The Night Manager still hasn’t come to America yet (it airs on AMC next month), but Britain is flat-out obsessed with the miniseries right now. They’re calling it the new must-watch series, or the new Poldark or whatever. And on Sunday’s episode, Tom Hiddleston showed his butt (go here to see the NSFW butt screen-cap). And Hiddles is becoming the new… something. I mean, I feel weird saying that TNM is taking Tom’s fame next-level, because he already had a rabid, crazy fanbase thanks to Loki and his general movie career. But there’s something about being on TV, being in people’s home every week, and now suddenly there’s a renewed interest (in Britain) for the gangly Lord Dragonfly. Which is my only explanation for this piece that appeared in the Daily Mail over the weekend: “Sex god he may be, but the Night Manager’s Tom Hiddleston is so ambitious he won’t let any woman get too close.” Oh, this is going to be good.

Hiddles is a lonely workhorse. A university friend says: “Tom is the consummate gentleman, pleasant to everybody he meets, from royalty down to the lowliest runner on set. You’ll struggle to find anyone with a bad word to say about him. He gives the impression of being supremely relaxed, but make no mistake, he has worked tirelessly to get where he is today. Talent only gets you so far….Being so focused on success isolates him. Hundreds of people consider themselves his mate, but probably no more than half a dozen truly know him — if that. As for women, they are only allowed to get so close, then he moves on. But being a chameleon suits him. It’s his short-cut to success. That and a complete lack of fear.”

He sacrifices personal relations for his career: “He realised he would have to make sacrifices to make it big. Some people would get closer than others, but they would find out in the end that his career comes first. Even his best mate came second when the chips were down.”

His real estate: His home is a four-bedroom property that was originally an artist’s studio, tucked away in Primrose Hill, North London. Visitors say it is ‘every inch the movie-star’s place — a knockout’, though only the few who have been invited through the electronic gates and two separate courtyards to reach the £5 million house would know. But for much of the year he is in Los Angeles — his preferred locale is the buzzing, ocean-side district of Venice Beach, where he disappears into the crowds with ease.

His ladies, including a J-Arthy mention: He has been linked to a host of women, among them Thor co-star Kat Dennings, Oscar-nominated Jessica Chastain, with whom he starred in horror film Crimson Peak, and Sherlock actress Lara Pulver — who so memorably appeared on screen stark naked. Last year, he spent a noticeably tactile afternoon at Wimbledon with Jane Arthy, a record producer, who was described by those who sat with them as his girlfriend. Hiddleston promptly denied this, and they have not been seen together since.

Whether he’s with Elizabeth Olsen: Of late, however, there have been signs there may be a special someone in his life — namely Elizabeth Olsen, the American actress who starred opposite him in the Hank Williams biopic. Hiddleston and Olsen, 27, have been spotted having lunch together, while their body language on the red carpet speaks of more than a professional bond. Reports suggest they have been dating, though it is ‘casual’, but Hiddleston has declined to say a word on the subject. With the tidal wave of work offers showing no signs of abating — and that tilt at the 007 job as motivation — there remains little time for romance.

[From The Daily Mail]

I miss Jane Arthy. That was a crazy time. The Dragonflies genuinely thought that Tom and Jane Arthy were the real deal, and that he was about to announce a surprise engagement/wedding/baby at any moment. When it’s far more likely she was just a friendly hookup. As for Tom’s overwhelming, all-encompassing ambition… sure. I think he’s trying to tighten up Team Hiddles and make the move into a wider audience and bigger mainstream success, thus the role in Kong: Skull Island. I also think that’s why he keeps trying out new, ambiguous, inoffensive lines in his interviews. But just one question… if Hiddleston is such a seasoned, driven professional, why does he act like an overeager puppy whenever he gets near an open mic?

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Photos courtesy of Getty, WENN.