Josh O'Connor

Joshua Mathias O'Connor (born 20 May 1990) is an English actor. From 2016 to 2019, he had a major role portraying Larry Durrell in ITV's The Durrells. He had his breakthrough playing the lead role of a gay sheep farmer in Francis Lee's romantic drama God's Own Country, for which he won the BIFA Award for Best Actor.

O'Connor gained recognition for his portrayal of Charles, Prince of Wales, in the Netflix drama series The Crown (2019–2020), winning the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for the role. He has since starred in the period drama Emma (2020), the crime drama La chimera (2023), the romantic sports film Challengers (2024), heist drama The Mastermind (2025), murder mystery Wake Up Dead Man (2025), and science fiction thriller Disclosure Day (2026).

Early life and education O'Connor was born to John, a teacher, and Emily, a midwife. He grew up in Newbury until he was five, when his family moved to Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, where he was brought up. He is the middle son in a family of three boys.

O'Connor's grandfather was sculptor John Bunting, his grandmother was a ceramicist, and his maternal aunt is British writer and commentator Madeleine Bunting. His ancestry is Irish, English, Scottish and, through his matrilineal great-grandmother, Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jewish.

He wanted to be a professional artist when he was younger, but he did not think he was good enough, so he switched to rugby and then discovered acting. His first major role was at age seven as the scarecrow in a school production of The Wizard of Oz, followed by a minor role in a school production of Bugsy Malone. during the week and spent a lot of time on weekends at the Axiom, a local arts centre. He grew up in a Labour-supporting household, but he traces his political awakening to the arts centre's closure when he was eleven, feeling the deep sense of loss in the community. He is proud to have grown up outside London, in a town with a strong tradition of regional theatre. O'Connor has cited his school's drama programme as having helped him live with his dyslexia for many years, especially when preparing for his GCSEs. During his third year of theatre school, he signed with an agent. This led to a role as young returning soldier Hugh in Peter Gill's 2014 play Versailles at the Donmar Warehouse in Covent Garden, London.

In the same year, he played Max in Hide and Seek, James in Peaky Blinders and PC Bobby Grace in Ripper Street. After a year and a half of auditioning, he landed the role of a Bullingdon toff named Ed in The Riot Club (2014), Lone Scherfig's adaptation of Laura Wade's play Posh, appearing alongside up-and-coming British actors Sam Claflin, Douglas Booth, Max Irons, Freddie Fox, Ben Schnetzer and Olly Alexander. The following year, he took over the role of Donaghy in Florence Foster Jenkins, starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant, and starred as Donald in the short film Best Man. From 2016 to 2019, he played the role of Lawrence "Larry" Durrell in the ITV comedy-drama The Durrells.

In 2017, he starred as the young sheep farmer Johnny Saxby in the British drama film God's Own Country directed by Francis Lee. In preparation for his role, he worked with a Yorkshire farmer, labouring in the fields in between takes to learn the proper techniques and get the right physicality, and eventually birthed over 150 lambs. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim. For his performance, he received multiple recognitions including the British Independent Film Award for Best Actor and the Empire Award for Best Male Newcomer, and was nominated for the BAFTA Rising Star Award.

In 2018, O'Connor starred as Peter in the segment The Colour of His Hair in Boys on film 18: Heroes, and starred alongside Laia Costa in Harry Wootliff's directorial debut Only You, which premiered in competition at the London Film Festival. For his performance, he received his second British Independent Film Award for Best Actor. In 2019, he portrayed Marius Pontmercy in the British television adaptation of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables. He also starred as Jamie in Hope Gap, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, earning the Best Actor award at the Barcelona-Sant Jordi International Film Festival. It had a limited release in theaters, before dropping digitally in May 2020. He revealed that the role did not initially interest him and that he had to be persuaded to audition. Creator Peter Morgan asked him to read a scene in which Charles compares himself to a character in Saul Bellow's 1944 novel Dangling Man, in which the character waits to be drafted into war because the war will give his life meaning. It was the "aimlessness and purposelessness of Charles's life as heir to the throne" that ultimately sparked O'Connor's interest in the character.

He reprised the role for Season 4 of The Crown, and admitted that his character is "horrible" in that season. Still, he said he understood the source of Charles' discontent, saying that it all boils down to the fact that Charles has spent his entire life being overlooked. O'Connor's performance received universal acclaim and earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama, and the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series, in addition to nominations for the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series. The cast also won its second Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. He described the culmination of his journey as Prince Charles as "the experience of a lifetime." O'Connor was seen in the drama film Lee, starring Kate Winslet, which is set during World War II and directed by Ellen Kuras. That film premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. O'Connor also starred opposite Zendaya and Mike Faist in Challengers, directed by Luca Guadagnino. Initially due to premiere at the 80th Venice International Film Festival, the film was postponed and released in 2024, due to the 2023 writers' and actors' strike.

In 2024, it was announced that O'Connor had joined the cast of Wake Up Dead Man, the third installment of the Knives Out film series directed by Rian Johnson. The film was released on December 12, 2025. O'Connor also joined the cast of Disclosure Day, directed by Steven Spielberg, in November 2024, which was released in the summer of 2026. O'Connor also starred opposite Paul Mescal in The History of Sound, a World War I love story film directed by Oliver Hermanus. It premiered at the 78th Cannes Film Festival and was released in September 2025 at the United States.

Artistry Francis Lee, director of God's Own Country, has described O'Connor as "one of those rare actors that is a real shape-shifter". O'Connor experimented with method acting for his role in God's Own Country. He described his experience for Interview magazine:

Other ventures

O'Connor created the Waterlogged initiative to raise funds for Mind, a mental health charity working across England and Wales. Inspired by his mother who swam 60 times in her 60th year and by Roger Deakin's Waterlog, he attempted 30 swims around the UK and Ireland in his 30th year. In January 2020, he and Olivia Colman visited the Stars Appeal, which aims to enhance the patient experience at the Salisbury District Hospital. In December 2020, he and Emma Corrin offered their company for tea as part of a series of prize draws in support for War Child UK's Torn From Home appeal.

Since 2017, O'Connor has been a brand ambassador for Loewe. In March 2021, he starred in Loewe's campaign shot in the Baja California desert for the Eye/Loewe/Nature collection made with sustainable thinking and recycling ethos. It pledged 15 euros of every sale to Fundación Global Nature, a charity for the protection of wildlife species in danger of extinction. In January 2026, he was announced as a brand ambassador for Dior.

Personal life O'Connor lived in a Victorian house in Shoreditch and briefly relocated to New York where he bought a house near the town of Stroud. In his spare time, O'Connor enjoys reading, drawing, camping, swimming, embroidering, making ceramics and gardening.

Political views and activism O'Connor is a supporter of the Labour Party, campaigned for Jeremy Corbyn in the 2019 general election, and has described himself as a "liberal left-winger". He said of his views on the monarchy: "I'm a republican, although not in any kind of fist-waving, campaigning way. I was always mostly uninterested in them." In an interview with The New York Times in 2020 he said: "I think [Queen Elizabeth II] is an extraordinary woman. Time after time, lots of men have failed, and this one woman in power has been consistent and remained dutiful and generally apolitical. In that sense, I have huge respect for her — and for Charles [who] is another level of someone who's literally been waiting his entire life for this moment that still hasn't come."

Acting credits

Film Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2013 The Magnificent Eleven Andy2014 Hide and Seek Max The Riot Club Ed Montgomery2015 Bridgend Jamie Cinderella Ballroom Palace Guard The Program Rich 2016 Florence Foster Jenkins Donaghy 2017 God's Own Country Johnny Saxby 2018 Only You Jake 2019 Hope Gap Jamie 2020 Emma Mr. Elton 2021 Mothering Sunday Paul Sheringham 2022 Aisha Conor Healy2023 La chimera Arthur Lee Antony Penrose Bonus Track Jonno Also story writer 2024 Challengers Patrick Zweig 2025 Rebuilding Thomas "Dusty" Fraser Jr. The History of Sound David White The Mastermind James Blaine "J.B." Mooney Wake Up Dead Man Rev. Jud Duplenticy 2026 Disclosure Day Dr. Daniel Kellner 2027 Post-production Paris Post-production

Television Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2012 Lewis Charlie Stephenson Episode: "Generation of Vipers"2013 Doctor Who Piotr Episode: "Cold War" Law & Order: UK Rob Fellows Episode: "Dependent" London Irish James Episode: "1.1"2014 Peaky Blinders James 3 episodes Ripper Street PC Bobby Grace 8 episodes 2015 Father Brown Leo Beresford Episode: "The Curse of Amenhotep" 2016–2019 The Durrells Lawrence Durrell 26 episodes 2019 Les Misérables Marius Pontmercy 3 episodes 2019–2020 The Crown Charles, Prince of Wales Main role (Seasons 3–4);13 episodes 2021 Romeo and Juliet Romeo Filmed version of the 2021 play 2025 Saturday Night Live Himself (host) Episode "Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen"

Theatre Year Title Role Director Playwright Theatre Ref. 2013 Farragut North Ben Fowles Guy Unsworth Beau Willimon Southwark Playhouse 2014 Versailles Hugh Skidmore Peter Gill Peter Gill Donmar Warehouse2015 The Shoemaker's Holiday Rowland Lacy Philip Breen Thomas Dekker Swan Theatre Oppenheimer Luis Walter Alvarez Angus Jackson Tom Morton-Smith Swan Theatre, Vaudeville Theatre 2021 Romeo and Juliet Romeo Simon Godwin William Shakespeare Filmed at the Royal National Theatre

Awards and nominations + Award Year Category Film Result Astra Film Awards 2026 Best Supporting Actor - Comedy or Musical Wake Up Dead Man Astra Midseason Movie Awards 2024 Best Actor Barcelona-Sant Jordi International Film Festival 2020 Best Actor British Academy Film Awards 2018 BAFTA Rising Star Award British Academy Television Awards 2020 Best Supporting Actor 2021 Best Actor British Independent Film Awards 2017 Best Actor 2019 LesGaiCineMad 2017 Best Actor Evening Standard British Film Awards 2018 Breakthrough of the Year Empire Awards 2018 Best Male Newcomer European Film Awards 2023 European Actor David di Donatello Awards 2024 Best Actor in a Leading Role Critics' Choice Television Awards 2021 Best Actor in a Drama Series Golden Globe Awards 2021 Best Actor – Television Series Drama Gotham Independent Film Awards 2025 Outstanding Lead Performance Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards 2021 Best Actor in a Streaming Series, Drama London Film Critics Circle Awards 2018 British/Irish Actor of the Year 2024 British/Irish Performer of the Year Primetime Emmy Awards 2021 Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Satellite Awards 2021 Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Screen Actors Guild Awards 2020 Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast in a Drama Series 2021 Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series Stockholm Film Festival 2017 Best Actor