Hugh Grant Says It's 'More Interesting' to Play 'Damaged, Bad Guys': Good Ones Can Be 'Boring' (Exclusive)

Hugh Grant is in his villain era.

Heretic, the upcoming A24 horror film from writer-directors Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, stars the British actor as — in his words — a “damaged, bad guy.” 

“Good guys are difficult,” Grant, 64, tells PEOPLE on Thursday, Oct. 24 at the film’s AFI Fest premiere presented by Canva. “They're difficult to keep from being boring.”

He adds, “I think almost any actor prefers being the damaged, bad guy. It's much more interesting.”

Mr. Reed, Grant’s character in Heretic, appears to be harmless at first, welcoming two missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints into his home. But as Sister Barnes and Sister Paxton (Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East, respectively) attempt to convert him to their religion, they become enmeshed in a psychologically twisted test of faith.

“There was a lot of research into cult leaders, religion and particularly religious iconoclasts and atheists,” Grant says of preparing to play Mr. Reed. “And into serial killers, and particularly what made them the way they are — and the weird fact that frequently, after all the terrible things they did, they still had devoted followers or lovers.”

Heretic continues a recent trend toward darker characters in Grant’s work: he played the villains in 2017’s Paddington 2 and 2023’s Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves, and is next reprising his role as Daniel Cleaver in the fourth Bridget Jones movie, Mad About the Boy, with Renée Zellweger.

“Earlier on” in his screen work, Grant tells PEOPLE, he played similarly bad-intentioned characters before becoming a mainstream rom-com star. “I think I lost faith in that other strand that my career could have taken,” he says, highlighting 1995 films An Awfully Big Adventure and Restoration. “I wish that I had kept that going at the same time as I'd been doing the romantic comedy — as much as I love the romantic comedy.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

For Thatcher, 24, costarring with Grant in Heretic was a learning opportunity. “It was really interesting watching him during the rehearsal process because he's very specific and wouldn't move on until something felt right,” she tells PEOPLE on the red carpet. “And I respect that because a really smart actor thinks through every move.”

Asked for a favorite Hugh Grant movie, she smiles. “There's Bridget Jones. That's my comfort movie, absolutely. About a Boy, one of my favorite movies. Love Actually — also one of my comfort movies.”

East, 23, doesn’t hesitate in picking Grant’s best work. “One of the best movies ever made is Paddington 2,” she says. “I watch Paddington 2 all the time, so it's got to be Paddington 2.”

Heretic is in theaters Nov. 8.