Charlie Hunnam Reveals the Real-Life Inspiration Behind His Iconic Jax Teller on ‘Sons of Anarchy’

Charlie Hunnam starred as Jax Teller for seven seasons on FX’s “Sons of Anarchy,” alongside Katey Sagal, Tommy Flanagan, and Ron Perlman, as the series followed the rise and fall of Jax within the fictional SAMCRO motorcycle club. Although the show was scripted and drew inspiration from Hamlet, Hunnam has shared that a real biker he met during early preparation helped shape his portrayal of the character.

Charlie Hunnam Says Jax Teller Was Inspired by a Real Biker

Speaking to The Huffington Post in 2015, Hunnam explained that he spent significant time around real motorcycle clubs during the early rehearsal period for “Sons of Anarchy.” One particular experience stood out.

“Yeah, I got to know some people really well,” Hunnam said. “Through this show, I’ve spent an enormous amount of time in that world of bikers and clubs and the rallies and (expletive) like that.”

Hunnam said the most impactful time came before filming even began, when he visited Oakland and spent time with a well-known motorcycle club. “This one kid in particular that I met was amazing,” he recalled. “Because he was Jax Teller. His dad was in the club and had been in the club his whole life. And he was 22. He’d had 22 birthday parties in the Oakland clubhouse of this motorcycle club.”

According to Hunnam, the young man represented both the club’s past and future. “He was the heir apparent, like the history and future of that club,” he said. “Just an amazing guy.”

How Real-Life Influence Shaped Jax’s Look and Mannerisms

Hunnam said the biker’s presence left a lasting impression, even before he knew how closely the man’s life mirrored the character he was about to play.

“He just had an amazing presence about him,” Hunnam said. “People often say they don’t make guys like that anymore. He was like an old school outlaw, cowboy, (expletive) badass gunslinger. But modern day.”

The actor revealed that the man was killed shortly after Hunnam left Oakland. “He ended up getting killed the week after I left Oakland, right before we started shooting,” Hunnam said. As a tribute, Hunnam wore a necklace on the show in his memory.

“Literally Jax wears the jeans and the shoes he wore,” Hunnam explained. “I just thought I couldn’t find someone that would be more prototypically perfect than this kid. So I just based everything on him.”

Charlie Hunnam Reflects on the Impact ‘Sons of Anarchy’ Has Years Later

In a 2020 interview with People, Hunnam looked back on what “Sons of Anarchy” meant for his career. “Well, frankly, it gave me a career,” he said. “And it gave me the ability to have confidence that I was going to be able to make acting work as a lifelong career.”

“I think I went into ‘Sons of Anarchy’ being a pretty unaccomplished actor in terms of my skill set,” Hunnam admitted. “I wasn’t one of these people that were born enormously and innately talented. I had to really cultivate a skill set.”

He added, “Where I cultivated a lot of that skill set was going to work and shooting 10 pages a day on ‘Sons of Anarchy’ for seven years. I feel like that was my college days.”

Despite frequent fan requests, Hunnam has been clear that he will never return to the role. “I would never, ever put that cut back on,” he said. “I would never put his rings back on. Not even for Halloween.”

“It was a very deep experience,” he explained. “I lived with that character inside me for years, like, in a very real way.”

Hunnam added definitively, “He’s dead now. So there would be no ever bringing him back. When he died, he died.”

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