Welsh actor (born 1989)
Taron Egerton ( EJ -ər-tən ;[ 1] born 10 November 1989) is a Welsh actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art , he performed in stage plays before gaining recognition for his starring role as a spy in the action comedy films Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014) and Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017).
Egerton has starred in several biographical films, portraying military officer Edward Brittain in the drama Testament of Youth (2014), the titular ski-jumper in the sports film Eddie the Eagle (2016), and singer Elton John in the musical Rocketman (2019). The last of these earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor . He also starred as Jimmy Keene in the miniseries Black Bird (2022), for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award , as Henk Rogers in the biopic Tetris (2023), and in the thriller film Carry-On (2024).
Early life
Egerton was born in Birkenhead on 10 November 1989.[ 2] [ 3] His mother worked in social services, while his father ran a bed-and-breakfast near Liverpool ;[ 4] both of them are Liverpool natives.[ 5] He has two younger half-sisters.[ 4] Although born in England, Egerton considers himself to be Welsh "through and through" and is fluent in both Welsh and English.[ 6] [ 7]
Egerton's parents divorced when he was two, and he subsequently moved with his mother to the Welsh island of Anglesey , where he went to primary school.[ 3] [ 5] The family then relocated to Aberystwyth when he was 12 years old.[ 3] He became lonely due to losing childhood friends.[ 8] He began acting at age 15,[ 9] which he later explained was "as much about trying to be social and make friends as it was an interest in acting".[ 8] He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art , from which he graduated in 2012.[ 9]
Career
Early work and Kingsman films (2012–2018)
Egerton performed in a stage production of the play The Last of the Haussmans at the National Theatre in London in 2012.[ 10] After appearing in the crime drama series Lewis , he was cast as the lead role in Matthew Vaughn 's Kingsman: The Secret Service , an action comedy film adaptation of the comic book The Secret Service by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons , in 2013.[ 5] [ 11] He portrayed British Army officer Edward Brittain in the 2014 biographical drama film Testament of Youth , earning a nomination for Best British Newcomer at the BFI London Film Festival .[ 12] [ 13] Kingsman: The Secret Service was released in 2015, garnering highly favorable reviews that described it as "fun, stylish and subversive" as well as grossing over $400 million.[ 14] [ 15] Writing for TheWrap , James Rocchi deemed Egerton to be "a naturally charismatic presence with smarts behind his smile" as Gary "Eggsy" Unwin , a recruit for an espionage organisation.[ 16] Egerton rose to fame with the role.[ 5] He starred in the crime film Legend that same year.[ 4]
Egerton at the 2018 Global Education and Skills Forum
At the 69th British Academy Film Awards in 2016, Egerton received a nomination for the BAFTA Rising Star Award .[ 17] In the same year, he played ski-jumper Eddie the Eagle in the eponymous biopic and voiced Johnny, a passionate gorilla, in the animated musical film Sing .[ 5] [ 18] Egerton reprised the role of Eggsy in the film Kingsman: The Golden Circle , a sequel to Kingsman: The Secret Service , released the following year. It drew a mixed response from critics.[ 19] In 2018, he starred in the crime drama film Billionaire Boys Club and played the title character in the action-adventure film Robin Hood .[ 20] [ 21] Both films were failures commercially and with critics.[ 8] Egerton later specified that Robin Hood was not the film he had signed up to create and that it had "lost its vision."[ 21] He attributed his involvement in Billionaire Boys Club and Robin Hood to monetary reasons.[ 8]
Career progression (2019–present)
Egerton starred as singer Elton John in the biographical musical film Rocketman . He learned to play the piano for the part and sang live in each take during filming.[ 9] The film was released in 2019, receiving positive reviews, and the actor's portrayal of John earned praise.[ 22] [ 23] The Washington Post ' s Ann Hornaday opined that Egerton "exerts a steadying, singularly charismatic force" in the role, while Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair described his portrayal as "nuanced and emotionally intelligent while still loose, carried with verve and agility".[ 24] [ 25] Egerton won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his performance.[ 26] He also garnered a British Academy Film Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role and a Grammy Award nomination for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media for his work on the film's soundtrack .[ 27] [ 28] [ 29] That same year, Egerton narrated the audiobook version of John's autobiography, Me , and the two performed on stage together several times.[ 30] [ 31]
Also in 2019, Egerton voiced Moomintroll in the animated series Moominvalley and Rian in the fantasy series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance .[ 32] [ 33] He reprised the role of Johnny in Sing 2 , which released in 2021.[ 34] Egerton starred in the play Cock by Mike Bartlett . Directed by Marianne Elliott and held at the Ambassadors Theatre in the West End , the production marked his West End debut.[ 35] After missing performances due to fainting on stage during the first night of performances in March 2022 and testing positive for COVID-19 later that month, Egerton exited for "personal reasons" the following month.[ 36] [ 37] The production of Cock garnered mixed critical reception, with Egerton's performance gaining praise.[ 38] The Guardian ' s Arifa Akbar wrote he "is especially affecting in his romantic desperation".[ 39]
Egerton executive produced and portrayed American drug dealer Jimmy Keene in the miniseries Black Bird , an adaptation of Keene's memoir In with the Devil . It premiered on Apple TV+ in 2022.[ 8] Reviewing the series, Saloni Gajjar of The A.V. Club wrote that Egerton "aces Jimmy's duality while switching from being overtly confident to silently breaking down".[ 40] He received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie .[ 41] The following year, Egerton portrayed entrepreneur Henk Rogers in the biographical film Tetris , about the video game of the same name , which also released on Apple TV+.[ 42] Lovia Gyarke of The Hollywood Reporter commended him for playing Rogers with an "earnest goofiness".[ 43]
In in the Netflix thriller film Carry-On (2024), Egerton starred as a TSA agent blackmailed by a terrorist.[ 44] He deemed it a rare opportunity to lead a film aimed at a wide audience.[ 45] Nick Schager of The Daily Beast wrote that "Egerton exudes the right mix of stuck-in-a-rut defeatism and harried determination to hold the film together".[ 46] On Netflix, Carry-On became the fifth-most-watched English-language film of all time.[ 47]
Egerton will next star in the Apple TV+ miniseries Firebug and in the crime thriller film She Rides Shotgun .[ 48] [ 49]
Public image and personal life
Egerton lives in West London .[ 4] He describes himself as having come from a working-class background.[ 50] Having lost a grandmother to motor neurone disease , he is an ambassador for the Motor Neurone Disease Association .[ 7] [ 51] Following speculation about his sexuality, Egerton explained that it is "a joy to support" his gay friends, though he is not himself gay.[ 52] However, as a teenager, Egerton questioned whether he was gay and explained that he felt "very panicked and upset about how I would be perceived".[ 53]
Egerton was named one of the 50 best-dressed British men in 2015 and 2016 by British GQ .[ 54] [ 55]
Acting credits
Film
Television
Theatre
Music videos
Audio
Discography
Soundtrack albums
Guest appearances
Accolades
Egerton won a Golden Globe Award for his role in Rocketman .[ 26] He has also garnered a Grammy Award nomination for his work on its soundtrack.[ 28] He has been nominated by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts for the BAFTA Rising Star Award and the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.[ 17] [ 27]
References
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