Cody Fern

Cody Fern (born 6 July 1988) is an Australian director and actor. Following his feature debut in The Tribes of Palos Verdes, he played a supporting role in the FX series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (2018). Later that year, Fern played the Antichrist Michael Langdon in American Horror Story: Apocalypse and appeared in the final season of the Netflix drama House of Cards.

A frequent collaborator of Ryan Murphy, Fern subsequently appeared in two seasons of American Horror Story, starring in its ninth season 1984 and guest-starring in the tenth season Double Feature. He has also appeared in two episodes of the spin-off series American Horror Stories. In 2025, he appeared in the Apple TV+ series Foundation.

Early life and education Fern was born on 6 July 1988 in Southern Cross in rural Western Australia. He attended boarding school at Merredin Senior High School, and graduated from Curtin University of Technology with an honours degree in commerce in 2009. Career Fern had initially considered a career in finance before pursuing acting. According to an interview with Anthem Magazine, he hated his life while working in finance. He said, "This is not what I want my life to be. But I'm here and I'm doing it and I'm trying to fit in." It was the Cate Blanchett-starring film duology Elizabeth and Elizabeth: The Golden Age that made him want to become an actor.

Fern has trained with acting coaches, including Ellen Burstyn, Larry Moss, and Susan Batson. Fern played the lead role of Albert in the National Theatre of Great Britain's production War Horse, which received critical acclaim.

In 2011, Fern played Romeo in Shakespeare WA's production of Romeo and Juliet, Lindsay in the Black Swan Theatre Company's Jandamarra, and the Earl of Southampton in the world premiere production of The Enchanters at the State Theatre of Western Australia. He has appeared in a number of short films, including the Western Australian Screen Award-winning film Still Take You Home (2010) and The Last Time I Saw Richard (2014).

In 2014, Fern was the recipient of the annual Heath Ledger Scholarship by Australians in Film, an award aimed at financially and professionally supporting actors of Australian descent. This includes, besides a cash fund, a two-year scholarship at Los Angeles' Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre and mentorship from the father of actor Heath Ledger.

He appeared as Jim Mason in The Tribes of Palos Verdes and wrote, directed and starred in the short film Pisces opposite Keir Gilchrist in 2017.

In 2018, Fern made his television debut in the acclaimed FX true crime anthology series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story as David Madson which earned him the Gold Derby TV Award for Movie/Limited Series Supporting Actor and a nomination for Breakthrough Performer of the Year. He was announced to star in the series regular role of Duncan Shepherd on the final season of House of Cards. The same year, Fern portrayed the Antichrist Michael Langdon in the eighth season of FX horror anthology series American Horror Story, titled Apocalypse. In 2019, Fern played Xavier Plympton in the ninth season of the show, American Horror Story: 1984.

In 2021, Fern portrayed Stan Vogel in American Horror Stories episode Feral, and Valiant Thor in American Horror Story, Double Feature: Death Valley. In 2022, he portrayed Thomas Browne in American Horror Stories episode Milkmaids. In 2022, Fern played a priest named Jacob in the film Father Stu.

In May 2025, it was announced that Fern would be making his feature film directorial debut with Closing Night starring Sarah Paulson, Toni Collette, Dianne Wiest, and Toby Wallace.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2008 Hole in the Ground Zack Short film 2010 Still Take You Home Milk Drawn Home Steve 2011 3AM Nj 2014 The Last Time I Saw Richard Richard 2017 The Tribes of Palos Verdes Jim Mason Pisces Charlie Short film; also director and writer 2018 The Great Darkened Days Travelling Salesman 2022 Father Stu Jacob 2023 Fairyland Eddie Body 2025 Jimpa Himself Cameo 2026 Post-production; director and writer only

Television

Stage Year Title Role 2009AlaskaChris

Video games Year Title Role Notes 2023 Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Dagan Gera Voice, motion capture, and likeness