Still Crushing on Mr. Darcy? Then Let Me Introduce You to Michiel Huisman's Dawsey Adams

Updated on Aug 18, 2018 at 7:50 PM

Did I turn on The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society expecting to swoon a little bit? You betcha. Did I expect my jaw to hit the floor, hard, the minute Michiel Huisman appeared on screen? Well, I've seen ~~his butt~~ Game of Thrones, so, also yes. I guess I just wasn't expecting to fall so hard for him, the rest of the absurdly gorgeous cast, and the film itself. That was shortsighted of me, considering it's a romantic WWII drama with a surprisingly dark edge, handled masterfully by Four Weddings and a Funeral director Mike Newell.

Based on the bestselling and beloved novel by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, the film follows Juliet Ashton (Lily James), a writer longing to break free from the pen name that earned her heaps of money during war time to carve out her own story. Despite her engagement to a wealthy, handsome American named Mark (Set It Up's Glen Powell), she forms a life-changing bond through exchanging letters with Huisman's Guernsey island pig farmer, Dawsey Adams — side note: I don't know what kind of name "Dawsey" is, either, but let's not dwell on it. He regales her with delightful stories about a book club he and fellow readers on the island accidentally started while their home was being occupied by Nazi soldiers, so Juliet takes it upon herself to travel there, meet the book club, and hopefully find some literary inspiration. Naturally, she finds a whole lot more.

Now I know what you're thinking: that story sounds adorable, beautiful, and quaint. And it is! But that's not what we're here to discuss. Although The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society has copious amounts of beautiful people — James, Powell, and even Matthew Goode in glasses, because apparently Mike Newell was casting this movie with me specifically in mind — we're here to discuss Dawsey. The character gives off some serious Mr. Darcy vibes, thanks to all those billowing shirts and initially serious demeanor . . . you know, if Mr. Darcy was a half-starved pig farmer recovering from emotional trauma instead of a ridiculously wealthy British lord.

Now that I've had long enough to recover from swooning right off my couch and onto the carpet from watching the movie, I figured I might as well share my passion for him with the world in the form of carefully selected photos and GIFs. You're welcome in advance.

Warning: Light spoilers for The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society to follow!

Technically, he and Juliet first meet IRL when she arrives on Guernsey island and asks him where she might find a room to stay for the night, and he nearly kills her by dropping tiles from the roof he's repairing on the street next to her. Naturally, they don't realize who the other actually is. It's not until the pair meet at the book club meeting that night that they truly make a connection; they admit later on in the film that they each expected the other's physical appearance to be far different (in Dawsey's case, he envisioned her as a rotund, tweed-loving grandmother). The cutest of meet-cutes.

While it takes a little while for the rest of the book club to fully warm up to Juliet, it's obvious that Dawsey is smitten from the very start.

Did I mention he's raising a very, very adorable child named Kit? Because he is, and it's all very adorable.

Not everyone can pull off an old-timey hat, but I'm thankful that we now know that Michiel Huisman is among those who can.

And then there's that steamy scene between him and Juliet in his bedroom . . . in which, of course, they barely even touch and remain fully clothed. What?! It's still sexy.

You can almost see the sparks flying as Dawsey reaches out to pull a flower free from Juliet's hair and she desperately tries to ignore his deep v.

I mean. Damn.

How does she walk out of the room with him shooting such a longing glance at her? And with his shirt unbuttoned like that?! Because she's Juliet Ashton, and she has a book to write. A work ethic icon, if I'm being honest.

This movie is so good and streaming on Netflix now, so go watch it. And then maybe watch it a second time (at least) because Michiel Huisman and Lily James didn't eat a gross pie made out of a potato, a beet, and a dash of milk for you to watch this just once.