Owen Cooper: Young British Star Taking the World by Storm

Owen Cooper (born 5 December 2009) is an English actor. He gained recognition for playing Jamie Miller in the Netflix miniseries Adolescence (2025), a breakout role which earned him a Primetime Emmy Award nomination. This young man from Warrington has become one of Britain’s most talked-about new stars.

How Old is Owen Cooper?

Cooper was born on 5 December 2009, in Warrington, England. This makes him 15 years old right now. Cooper is 15 years old, at the time of writing, however, he was only 14 years old when he filmed Adolescence, which made him just one year older than his character, Jamie.

From Football Dreams to Acting Success

A member of the Warrington Rylands U15 squad, he originally wanted to be a footballer before taking weekly acting lessons with The Drama Mob, a drama school co–created by Coronation Street actress Tina O’Brien and Esther Morgan, in Manchester. He stated that he had been inspired to pursue acting after seeing Tom Holland’s performance in The Impossible, and that his family was supportive yet “not pushy” during his early interest in drama and acting.

Owen comes from a normal working family. His mother is a carer and his father works in IT. He has two brothers. This young actor is the first person in his family to try acting as a career.

What Did Leonardo DiCaprio Say About Owen Cooper?

One of the most amazing moments in Owen’s new career happened when Hollywood legend Leonardo DiCaprio reached out to praise his work. He was saying, ‘Hey, Owen, I’m such a massive fan of Adolescence,'” Cooper said, describing DiCaprio’s praise. “And I was like ‘What?!’ It’s weird to be honest,” Cooper said.

This praise from one of the world’s biggest movie stars shows just how special Owen’s acting really is.

How Did Owen Cooper Get Cast in Adolescence?

The story of how Owen got his big break is quite amazing. Series co-creator Stephen Graham had sought to cast an unknown actor from northern England for the role. The production team for Adolescence approached Cooper’s drama school and asked to view tapes of their strongest northern actors; teachers at the school later stated that they believed that Cooper “just had something” and that the series’ production team revisited the school on numerous occasions until he was eventually offered the role.

He had been selected from a pool of over 500 auditions. This shows just how special the casting team thought Owen was compared to all the other young actors who tried out.

How Old Was Owen Cooper When Filming Adolescence?

He filmed the series from July to October 2024. This means Owen was just 14 years old when he was acting in this difficult and emotional show. Being so young and taking on such a challenging role makes his performance even more impressive.

Amazing Reviews and Awards

Owen’s acting has impressed everyone who has seen it. The role earned him widespread critical acclaim, with the Evening Standard writing that “his is a performance that may be the best debut ever seen by a child actor”.

He won the Gotham TV Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance in a Limited Series. He was also nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie at the upcoming 77th Primetime Emmy Awards, making him the youngest actor to ever be nominated in the category.

What’s Next for Owen Cooper?

Owen’s career is just getting started. He has also been selected to play young Heathcliff in Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights, set to be released in 2026. He will star alongside big names like Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi in this movie.

He will appear in the upcoming BBC Three series Film Club. This shows that TV and film companies are very excited to work with this talented young man.

Life in Warrington

Even with all his success, Owen still lives a normal life. As of April 2025, Cooper resides in Orford, a suburb of Warrington. He is a fan of Liverpool F.C., and delivered the match ball at a Super League match between Warrington Wolves and Hull F.C. on 12 April 2025.

Why Owen Cooper is Special

What makes Owen so special is how natural he is at acting. Actors train for years and years and still can’t really master what Owen has mastered, which is basically just being in the moment and listening and being truthful.

While on set everyone would be bawling their eyes out after the takes, Owen, the reason for everyone being emotional, would be unhinged and playing swing ball even though there was a psychologist on set to make sure he was okay. This shows how easily Owen can switch between his serious acting work and just being a normal teenager.

Owen Cooper’s story shows that with natural talent and hard work, amazing things can happen. From a football-loving boy from Warrington to a star praised by Leonardo DiCaprio, Owen is proof that dreams really can come true.