Joseph Zada

Joseph Cumpston (born July 21, 2005), known professionally as Joseph Zada, is an Australian actor. He has appeared in television series such as Total Control and Stan Australia series Invisible Boys (2025), as well as Australian movies Bilched (2019) and The Speedway Murders (2023). He appeared in the series We Were Liars (2025) and is set to appear in East of Eden, and star in the film adaptation of Sunrise on the Reaping as Haymitch Abernathy.

Early and personal life Zada was born and raised in Sydney, Australia. His father, Jeremy Cumpston, is a director, actor, and doctor. His mother, Jessica Brentnall is a film producer. He has four siblings, including Hal Cumpston.

Career His first notable acting role was as Toby in the 2019 comedy drama Bilched. In 2023, he played the lead role of Dan in the crime documentary film The Speedway Murders. He later appeared as Daniel in several episodes of Australian political drama series Total Control, at the start of the third season. In 2025, Zada starred in the Stan series Invisible Boys as Charlie Roth. The series follows the challenges of teens in Geraldton following the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, a survey designed to gauge the level of support for same-sex marriage in the country. The Guardian stated that Zada, along with co-stars Joe Klocek, Aydan Calafiore and Zach Blampied, played the roles with "depth and complexity".

In May 2024, it was announced that Zada would star in the television adaptation of the 2014 young adult novel We Were Liars by E. Lockhart in the role of Johnny Sinclair, a cousin of main character Cadence. The series released on Amazon Prime Video on June 18, 2025. In October 2024, it was announced that Zada would appear as Cal Trask in the Netflix series East of Eden, an adaptation of the 1952 John Steinbeck novel of the same name. The series is set to be released in 2026.

In April 2025, it was announced that Zada would star as Haymitch Abernathy in the Lionsgate film The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, based on the best-selling prequel novel to The Hunger Games'' of the same name. Zada was announced in the role with Whitney Peak, who will play Lenore Dove Baird, Haymitch's girlfriend. In December 2025, Zada was named Breakthrough Actor of the Year by GQ Australia magazine.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 2019 Bilched Toby David Jones Locker Noel Short film 2026 data-sort-value=Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, The" Haymitch Abernathy Post-production

Television