>> INSIDE THE GOVERNMENT THERE

IS NONE.

EVERY ACTION, EVERY MOMENT IS

BACKED BY THE FULL POWER AND

CREDIT SUSPECT AS THAT MAY BE OF

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

>> THAT IS A SCENE FROM SEASON

THREE OF THE POPULAR SHOW TIME

SHOW "BILLIONS" STARRING DAMIEN

LEWIS.

HE PLAYS HEDGE FUND MANAGER

BOBBY AXLEROD.

YOU TYPICALLY HEAR HIM USING AN

AMERICAN ACCENT ON TELEVISION.

FROM STARRING ROLES IN "BAND OF

BROTHERS" TO "HOMELAND" TO

"BILLIONS."

HE HAS CONVINCINGLY PLAYED AN

AMERICAN WAR HERO, AN AMERICAN

TRADER AND HE'S SHOOTING AN

EPISODE OF "BILLIONS."

SEE IF YOU SEE HIM SWINGING FROM

HIS AMERICAN ACCENT TO HIS

NATIVE BRITISH ONE.

HE'S LEARNED A MEAN GAME OF PING

PONG DURING HIS DOWN TIME ON SET

SO WILLIE INVITED HIM TO THE

SPIN TABLE TENNIS CLUB FOR THIS

MORNING'S "SUNDAY SITDOWN."

>> Reporter: LIKE THE CHARACTER

HE PLAYS IN THE THIRD SEASON OF

THE HIT SHOW "BILLIONS" --

>> WHAT HAVE I DONE WRONG REALLY

EXCEPT MAKE MONEY?

>> Reporter: WHEN DAMIEN LEWIS

SHOWS UP --

>> GREAT, LOOK AT THIS.

>> Reporter: -- HE IS LIKE THIS.

>> I BROUGHT MY OWN PADDLES.

A SWORD.

>> Reporter: A FAVORITE PASTIME

FOR THE 47-YEAR-OLD BRITISH

STAR.

>> LET'S MAKE THIS QUICK SO WE

CAN GET DOWN TO BUSINESS AND

PLAY PING PONG WHICH IS WHY

WE'RE BOTH HERE.

>> YES.

>> Reporter: THE SHOWDOWN.

>> YOU DO ANY STRETCHES THIS

MORNING?

I DID AN HOUR AT HOME.

>> Reporter: LEWIS'S CHARACTER

BOBBY AXLEROD IS A HEDGEFUND

BILLIONAIRE TRYING TO OUTSMART

THE U.S. ATTORNEY PLAYED BY PAUL

GIAMOTTI.

>> I'M TELLING THE STORY I'M NOT

COWARDING, NOT DEFEATED.

>> WE DESCEND THROUGH THE SOUL

OF HELL.

WE SEE THE STAKES JUST RISE

HIGHER AND HIGHER.

>> Reporter: IT LOOKS FROM THE

OUTSIDE, YOU CAN TELL ME IF IT'S

TRUE FROM THE INSIDE, THAT IT'S

JUST A BLAST TO PLAY SOMEBODY

LIKE BOBBY.

>> IT'S REALLY GOOD FUN.

THIS IS A SHOW ABOUT [ BLEEP ]

BEING [ BLEEP ].

CAN I SAY THAT?

>> YES.

>> HE PREDATORS, HE PROWLS.

THAT'S A GOOD METAPHOR FOR HEDGE

FUND GUYS WHO ARE LOOKING FOR

THE INJURED WILDER BEAST OFF THE

END OF THE PAST.

>> Reporter: HE MET WITH AND

STUDIED WITH WALL STREET TITANS.

>> YOU KNOW, THIS IDEA, YOU

KNOW, YOU CAN MAKE ANYTHING OF

YOURSELF HERE.

YOU KNOW, THAT'S CENTRAL TO THE

AMERICAN STORY, ISN'T IT?

COME HERE, MAKE SOMETHING OF

YOURSELF.

YOU, TOO, CAN BE PRESIDENT ONE

DAY, MY SON.

IT'S TRUE.

>> Reporter: AS YOU WERE

DESCRIBING BOBBY, I WAS THINKING

OF DONALD TRUMP.

HE CARRIES THE SAME CHIP ON HIS

SHOULDER.

>> WE CAN MAKE IT AS POLITICAL

AS YOU DARE.

I THINK PEOPLE WILL START

SWITCHING OFF THE CHANNEL RIGHT

NOW.

OF COURSE THE COMPARISONS ARE

THERE.

WE WANT THOSE COMPARISONS TO BE

THERE.

>> Reporter: LEWIS IS BEST KNOWN

FOR PLAYING AMERICAN, BUT HE WAS

BORN AND RAISED IN LONDON.

AT THE AGE OF 16 LEWIS FORMED

HIS OWN THEATER COMPANY.

>> WE CALLED OURSELVES

CHAMELEONS.

YEAH.

RIGHT.

EXACTLY.

>> THAT'S APPROPRIATE FOR

16-YEAR-OLD THEATER CREW.

>> THE CHAMELEONS.

I LOVED IT.

I SAID TO MOM AND DAD ONE DAY,

IT WAS A QUESTION THEY WERE

DREADING, IF I DIDN'T GO TO

UNIVERSITY, I WANTED TO GO TO

THEATER SCHOOL, WOULD YOU MIND?

AND THEY SAID, GO.

GO.

YOU HAVE OUR BLESSING.

>> Reporter: LEWIS STUDIED AT

LONDON'S GUILDHALL OF MUSIC AND

DRAMA IN THE EARLY 1990s.

HIS BREAK OUT ROLE WAS IN 1995

WHEN HE CAME TO AMERICA FOR HIS

BROADWAY DEBUT IN "HAMLET."

THE BIG HOLLYWOOD BREAK CAME IN

2001 WHEN LEWIS WAS CAST BY

STEVEN SPIELBERG AND TOM HANKS

IN HBO'S WORLD WAR II SERIES,

"BAND OF BROTHERS."

>> NEXT TIME I SAY WAIT FOR MY

COMMAND, YOU WAIT FOR MY

COMMAND, SARGEANT.

>> Reporter: AFTER A SUCCESSFUL

FIRST READING WITH HANGS, LEWIS

HIT THE TOWN TO CELEBRATE BUT HE

STILL HADN'T MET WITH SPIELBERG.

>> I GO OUT AND I GET ABSOLUTELY

HAMMERED.

I WAS SO EXCITED.

I'M IN L.A., I DID A GOOD

AUDITION FOR TOM HANKS.

I COME BACK ABOUT 3:00 IN THE

MORNING.

I GET A PHONE CALL AT 8:00

SAYING, DAMIEN, STEVEN WOULD

LIKE TO MEET YOU NOW.

CAN YOU BE HERE BY 9:00.

I'M LIKE, WHAT, 3 SHOWERS, 17

CUPS OF COFFEE AND I GO IN

SHAKING AND STEVEN IS THERE AND

HE'S ALREADY GOT HIS VIDEO ON

HIS SHOULDER AND THEN THEY

OFFERED ME THE ROLE.

THERE IN THE ROOM.

IT WAS GREAT.

>> Reporter: DAY CHANGED YOUR

LIFE.

>> OH, SURE.

>> Reporter: A LITTLE HUNG OVER

BUT IT CHANGED EVERYTHING.

>> IT WAS A GREAT DAY.

>> Reporter: WITH THE SUCCESS OF

"BAND OF BROTHERS" AND A GOLDEN

GLOBE NOMINATION, A BIG CAREER

WAS WAITING BUT THE RISING STAR

PUT ON THE BRAKES.

YOU DIDN'T DO THE THING THAT A

LOT OF PEOPLE MIGHT HAVE DONE

WHICH IS HANG OUT IN HOLLYWOOD.

IS THAT A CONSCIOUS DECISION?

>> I HAD A COUPLE OF BIG MOVIE

OFFERS AFTER "BAND OF BROTHERS."

ONE OF THEM WAS "DREAM CATCHER."

IT TOOK FOREVER TO SHOOT IT.

I SUPPOSE I FELT INCREDIBLY LESS

SATISFYING EXPERIENCE IS ALL I

CAN SAY.

I DID GO BACK A LITTLE BIT

THINKING, I'M NOT GOING TO SIT

IN L.A.

>> Reporter: SO LEWIS LEFT

HOLLYWOOD AND WENT HOME TO THE

U.K. PLAYING ROLES ON BRITISH

TELEVISION.

IN 2007 HE MARRIED BRITISH

ACTRESS HELEN MCRORY.

TOGETHER THEY HAVE A DAUGHTER

MANNON AND SON GULLIVER.

>> Reporter: IN 2011, A DECADE

AFTER "BAND OF BROTHERS" LEWIS

WAS THRUST INTO AMERICAN STARDOM

PLAYING DOUBLE AGENT NICHOLAS

BRODY ON THE HIT SHOW

"HOMELAND."

>> I WAS BROKEN LIV GOLDEN GLOBE

>> HELLO, ENONE.

I'M DAMIAN LEWIS, ONE OF THOSE

PESKY BRITTS.

>> Reporter: NOW HE'S BEEN FRONT

AND CENTER IN WHAT CRITICS HAVE

CALLED THE GOLDEN AGE OF

TELEVISION.

>> ENTERTAINMENT HISTORIANS

MIGHT WELL GO TO THAT MOMENT OF

"BAND OF BROTHERS" AND

"SOPRANOS" WAS BEING FILMED.

I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF IT

TOTALLY BY CHANCE BUT PROBABLY

BECAUSE I JUST -- I JUST WANTED

TO WORK AND DO GOOD WORK AND

WITHOUT KNOWING IT, REALLY,

REALLY GOOD WRITING WAS COMING

UP IN TV.

>> Reporter: YOU GOT THAT

CINEMATIC QUALITY BUT IT WAS ON

TELEVISION.

>> YEAH.

I'VE BEEN HAPPILY IN THE MOMENT

OF IT.

>> Reporter: AT THE MOMENT HE'S

HAPPILY IN THE MIDDLE OF

DOMINATING ANOTHER OPPONENT ON

THE PING PONG TABLE.

>> DID YOU CUT THAT ONE?

SOMEBODY PUT A HOLE IN YOUR

RACKET.

>> NICE.

>> NO, RUNNING ME AROUND.

KIWI!

OH.

>> OH.

>> THAT'S THE ONE I'VE GOT TO

USE.

SETUP AND SMASH.

THANKS, WILLIE.

WELL PLAYED, MAN.

>> THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

>>> THAT'S WHERE WILLIE IS THIS

MORNING, PRACTICING HIS PING

PONG GAME.

THE THIRD SEASON OF

"BILLIONAIRE" IS AIRING TODAY.

HOW HE NAILED THE NEW YORK

ACCENT AND WHY HIS ACTING

PROCESS INCLUDES ASSIGNING AN

ANIMAL, CHECK OUT OUR WEB EXTRAS

AT TODAY.COM/SUNDAY.

DON'T FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE

SUNDAY SITDOWN PODCAST.

YOU CAN FIND IT ON THE TUNE IN

APP OR WHEREVER YOU GET YOUR

PODCASTS.

WE'RE HAPPY TO SAY THE RESPONSE

TO WILLIE'S FIRST WEEK WAS HUGE.

TO WILLIE'S FIRST WEEK WAS HUGE.

YOU'LL LOVE HEARING AN EXTRA 30