If you saw Lion and thought Dev Patel's face looked familiar, here's why.

Excuse me, but I’ve been deep-diving into a big Dev Patel-shaped hole recently and I need to talk about it.

You see, it all began when I saw Lion a few weeks ago.

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture, Lion follows the true story of Saroo Brierley, a young Indian boy who became separated from his family at five years of age. Unable to find his way back home, he is adopted by an Australia family. Twenty-five years later, he uses Google Maps to try and trace his way back to the village he came from.

Lion has broken Box Office records in Australia, and in its first weekend was the fifth highest-grossing Australian film of all time.

Mia Freedman, Monique Bowley and I discuss why you absolutely need to see Lion at the movies. (Post continues below.)

The storyline is moving, the acting is mesmerising, and the way it’s shot is stunning.

But it was Dev Patel I couldn’t keep my eyes off.

Where did he come from? I kept asking myself.

I knew I’d loved him in Slumdog Millionaire back in 2008, but what I didn’t realise was that the two of us went back even further.

In 2006, Patel starred in the TV show Skins, and GOODNESS, I did not recognise him at all.

Patel played Anwar Kharral in the cult-classic British teen drama alongside a bunch of other now-famous names, including Jack O'Connell (who has since played the leading role in Unbroken), Nicholas Hoult (star of X-Men and Mad Max), Hannah Murray (Gilly in Game of Thrones) and Joe Dempsie (Gendry in Game of Thrones).

And guys, I'm going to be frank. Anwar was kind of... creepy.

For example:

The character's favourite things included "tequila, dope, pills, Lupe Fiasco, breasts and X Factor." I'm pretty sure he watched a lot of porn. And NOW look at him.

Patel also starred in the critically acclaimed The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, where he was also pretty bloody lovely.

In all seriousness, Patel is the Oscar-nominated actor we ought to keep our eyes on. He fought hard for his role in Lion after feeling typecast in Slumdog Millionaire. 

"There were a lot of reservations about me being the guy from Slumdog. They're like, 'We've seen that. We need someone fresh and new and hungry,' and they just wanted someone that could really transform for the role," he told E!.

"I had to go in and really prove myself and fight against this preconceived notion that everyone had in the room, which made me want it even more, really."

Up for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, Patel is among only a handful of non-white nominees.

Just when I thought I could not possibly love him any more, just hours ago he spoke at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards about Trump's "utterly devastating" decision to ban nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.

"I just flew in from India a day ago. When I heard the news it was utterly devastating," he said during a red carpet interview.

"The first thing that came into my head was the children who arrive on these shores with hope in their hearts.

"It's horrible. It's divisive. I hope something changes and something can be done because it really is terrible."

At just 26, something tells me that for Dev Patel, this only the beginning.