Alex Lawther


Alexander Jonathan Lawther is an English actor. He is known for portraying James in the Channel 4 series The End of the F***ing World and for his acclaimed role as Kenny in the season three episode "Shut Up and Dance" of the Netflix series Black Mirror. Lawther also played the role of young Alan Turing in the film The Imitation Game, in which he won the London Film Critics' Circle Award for Young British Performer of the Year, and originated the role of John Blakemore in Sir David Hare's South Downs on the West End.

Early life

Lawther was born in Winchester, Hampshire and raised in Petersfield. The youngest of three, he has said that his aspiration to be an actor came from having to make up his own games to entertain himself as a child. Both of his parents are attorneys, while his older brother, Cameron Lawther, is a film producer, and his older sister Ellie Lawther works in public policy. The brothers have worked together on The Fear and Yussef is Complicated.
In 2009, Lawther wrote and put together a play entitled Rejected Fairytales as part of his drama club involvement at Churcher's College in Petersfield. Lawther played Ratty in The Wind in the Willows at school. Lawther did not study drama at GCSE or A level. He trained with the National Youth Theatre. He initially planned to study History at King's College London before forgoing his spot to pursue acting professionally.

Career

Lawther's professional debut came at the age of 16, when he appeared as John Blakemore in David Hare's South Downs at Chichester Festival Theatre and again at the Harold Pinter Theatre in the West End. He made his feature film debut as the young Alan Turing in the Academy Award-winning film The Imitation Game. The role won him the London Film Critics' Circle Award for "Young British Performer of the Year" in 2015. In 2015, he appeared in a supporting role in the critically acclaimed coming-of-age drama film X+Y. In 2016, he gained his first lead role playing Elliot, alongside Juliet Stevenson in the British film, Departure, the debut film of Andrew Steggall.
In 2016, Lawther played the main character Kenny in "Shut Up and Dance", an episode from series three of the British science fiction anthology series Black Mirror. While the episode overall received mixed reviews, Lawther received acclaim and significant recognition for his performance. In 2017, Lawther played Tibby Schlegel in Howards End, a BBC One adaptation of the E.M. Forster novel and the lead role in Trudie Styler's Freak Show. That same year, he also starred, alongside Jessica Barden, as James in the television series The End of the F***ng World. The role also brought Lawther more acclaim from critics. He would go on to reprise this role during the show's second season.
Subsequently, Lawther played the lead role of Amberson in Toby MacDonald's Old Boys, as well as a supporting role in the horror film Ghost Stories. In 2020, Lawther played one of the main protagonists in Régis Roinsard's thriller, Les Traducteurs, his first non-English language film. To prepare for this role, he became fluent in French.

Recognition

Lawther has been praised by Dame Maggie Smith for his work, reportedly telling him that "most of us spend our lives trying to do what you've achieved". He has been compared to actor Ben Whishaw, whom he cites as an idol of his and worked with on the short film Miss Fortunate. He has received the London Film Critics' Circle Award for "Young British Performer of the Year" for The Imitation Game for and the Dublin Film Critics Award for "Best Actor" for Departure. In 2015, he was named as one of BAFTA's Breakthrough Brits.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage

Radio

Music Video

YearTitleRole
2020"The Key to Life on Earth" by Declan McKennaHimself