Ben Bailey Smith, who also goes by the rap moniker Doc Brown, is a British actor, screenwriter, and rapper. In the 2022 television series _Andor_, he portrayed Blevin. This series is part of the Star Wars universe. He is the sibling of the well-known novelist Zadie Smith. As an actor, his notable roles include Joe Hawkins in the British police procedural Law & Order: UK and Nathan Carter in the comedy drama 4 O'Clock Club.
Smith initially auditioned for the part of a young Lando Calrissian in the 2018 movie Solo: A Star Wars Story, but Donald Glover was ultimately cast in the role. In 2020, he auditioned for a project he believed was a military drama titled Pilgrims. He was informed that his role involved "a sergeant major chewing out some soldiers." Several days later, he learned he had secured the role and that the project was, in fact, Star Wars.
Due to the studio's need for secrecy, Smith only received the script pages for his specific scenes. The context of these scenes was explained to him on the day of filming. The scripts were labeled Pilgrims, and the dressing rooms displayed false names. To prevent drones from capturing images, the actors were required to wear large cloaks when moving between their dressing rooms and the set. Smith found the lines challenging, as they were filled with sci-fi terminology, names of fictional planets, and fictional laws, leaving him uncertain about his character's meaning. The actor recounted, "One day, while delivering a line, the director approached me. He suggested doing it again with more urgency because the planet was about to explode. I responded, 'Is it? I wasn't aware. Now I understand the situation.'"
- Andor — " Aldhani "
- Andor — " The Axe Forgets "
- Andor — " The Eye "
- Andor — " Announcement "
- Andor's Ben Bailey Smith on Playing Supervisor Blevin and the Fun of Being Bad on StarWars.com (backup link)
- Andor — " Rix Road "