Josh O'Connor

Josh O'Connor (born 20 May 1990) is an English actor. He is known for his portrayal of Johnny Saxby in the 2017 film God's Own Country, directed by Francis Lee, for which he won a British Independent Film Award for Best Actor, and for his portrayal of Lawrence Durrell in the ITV series The Durrells. He also appeared as Marius in BBC One's miniseries of Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables, and portrayed Prince Charles in Seasons 3 and 4 of the Netflix drama The Crown.

Josh O'Connor
O'Connor at the 2015 Odessa International Film Festival
Born	(1990-05-20) 20 May 1990 Southampton, England
Nationality	English
Alma mater	Bristol Old Vic Theatre School
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2012–present
Relatives	John Bunting (grandfather) Madeleine Bunting (aunt)

Early life

O'Connor was brought up in Cheltenham, England. He is a grandson of the British sculptor John Bunting. His maternal aunt is British writer and commentator Madeleine Bunting.[1] His ancestry is Irish, English, Scottish and, through his matrilineal great-grandmother, Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jewish.[2]

He trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, from which he graduated in 2011.[3] O'Connor is a Southampton FC supporter.

Career

In 2012, O'Connor appeared in Lewis. In 2015, he played Rich in the biographical drama film The Program about the cyclist Lance Armstrong, directed by Stephen Frears. The following year, he took over the role of Donaghy in Florence Foster Jenkins, starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant.

Since 2016, he has played the role of Lawrence "Larry" Durrell in the ITV comedy-drama The Durrells.

In 2017, he starred as Johnny Saxby in the British drama film God's Own Country, directed by Francis Lee. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on 23 January 2017.[4] For his performance, he received a British Independent Film Award for Best Actor.[5]

On the stage, he has appeared with the Royal Shakespeare Company in The Shoemaker's Holiday and Oppenheimer, at the Donmar Warehouse in Versailles and at Southwark Playhouse in Farragut North.

In July 2018, he was added to the cast of international Netflix series The Crown to portray Prince Charles in seasons 3 and 4.[6]

O'Connor starred alongside Laia Costa in Harry Wootliff's critically acclaimed directorial debut Only You,[7] which premiered in competition at The London Film Festival on 19 October 2018. For his performance, he received his second British Independent Film Award for Best Actor.[8]

Filmography

Films

Title	Year	Role	Notes
Michael Myers in Love	2011	None	Composer Short film
The Eschatrilogy: Book of the Dead	2012	Zombie
The Magnificent Eleven	2013	Andy
Hide and Seek	2014	Max
The Riot Club	2014	Ed
Bridgend	2015	Jamie
Cinderella	2015	Ballroom Palace Guard
Holding on for a Good Time	2015	Charlie	Short film
The Program	2015	Rich
Florence Foster Jenkins	2016	Donaghy
Best Man	2016	Donald	Short film
God's Own Country	2017	Johnny Saxby	British Independent Film Award for Best Actor Empire Award for Best Male Newcomer Stockholm International Film Festival for Best Male Actor Nominated— BAFTA Award for Rising Star Nominated— Evening Standard British Film Awards for Breakthrough of the Year Nominated— London Film Critics' Circle Award for British/Irish Actor of the Year
The Colour of His Hair	2017	Peter	Short film Documentary film
Only You	2018	Jake	British Independent Film Award for Best Actor
Hope Gap	2019	Jamie
Emma.	2020	Mr. Elton

Television

Title	Year	Role	Notes
Lewis	2012	Charlie Stephenson	Episode: "Generation of Vipers"
Doctor Who	2013	Piotr	Episode: "Cold War"
Law & Order: UK	2013	Rob Fellows	Episode: "Dependent"
The Wipers Times	2013	Dodd	Television film
London Irish	2013	James	Episode: "1.2"
Peaky Blinders	2014	James	3 episodes
Ripper Street	2014	PC Bobby Grace	8 episodes
Father Brown	2015	Leo Beresford	Episode: "The Curse of Amenhotep"
The Durrells	2016–19	Lawrence Durrell	26 episodes
Les Misérables	2019	Marius Pontmercy	3 episodes
The Crown	2019–present	Prince Charles	4 episodes Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast in a Drama Series

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result
2017	LesGaiCineMad	Best Actor	God's Own Country	Won
	Stockholm Film Festival	Best Actor		Won
	British Independent Film Awards	Best Actor		Won
2018	London Film Critics Circle Awards	British/Irish Actor of the Year		Nominated
	Evening Standard British Film Awards	Best Actor		Nominated
		Breakthrough of the Year		Nominated
	Empire Awards	Best Male Newcomer	God's Own Country	Won
	British Academy Film Awards	Rising Star Award	Himself	Nominated
	Faroe Islands International Film Festival Golden Carp Film Awards	Favorite Actor – International	God's Own Country	Nominated
2019	British Independent Film Awards	Best Actor	Only You	Won
2020	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast in a Drama Series	The Crown	Won
2020	British Academy Television Awards	Best Supporting Actor		Pending

References

1. Herman, James Patrick. "Verge List: Sundance 2017 – Josh O'Connor". Verge. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
2. Bunting, Madeleine (2016). Love of Country: A Journey Through the Hebrides. Granta Books. p. 16. ISBN 978-1847085177.
3. Sandwell, Ian. "Josh O'Connor, Stars of Tomorrow 2016". Screendaily. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
4. "Shudder Films' First Completed Feature Selected for Premiere at Sundance ‹ News and Opportunities ‹ Homepage". NFM. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
5. "God's Own Country · BIFA · British Independent Film Awards". British Independent Film Awards. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
6. Clarke, Stewart (26 July 2018). "'The Crown': Josh O'Connor to Play Prince Charles, Marion Bailey the Queen Mother". Variety. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
7. Kermode, Mark (14 July 2019). "Only You review – a perfectly realised story of love and longing". The Observer. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
8. "Only You · BIFA · British Independent Film Awards". British Independent Film Awards. Retrieved 19 May 2020.

External links

• Josh O'Connor on IMDb
• Josh O'Connor at Rotten Tomatoes