The handsome British and Irish men taking Hollywood by storm

You know that bittersweet feeling when your favourite actor suddenly becomes popular? On the plus side, they appear in more roles so you’re not short of seeing them on the silver screen. However, the downside is that they’re no longer just a secret British treasure – they’ve made it to Hollywood and they belong to everyone now.

Let’s be clear: good looks will only get you so far. These thespians work incredibly hard at their craft. Plus, they each have a je ne sais quoi which sets them apart from the rest of the pack. Whether it’s White Lotus star Leo Woodall’s rugged good looks and captivating on-screen intensity, or the relatable performance style and humble and grounded personality of Normal People’s Paul Mescal — it’s hard not to fall under their charm.

Many of these critically acclaimed actors are in some of 2024’s most anticipated films — Paul Mescal plays the lead in Gladiator II while on a more musical note, Jonathan Bailey portrays Fieryo in the new Wicked musical adaption.

The Irish-born actor is an unstoppable force. Over the last four years, his career has soared sky-high and he’s gone from supporting roles to playing the leading man.

It’s not just his charming looks, the parts that Paul takes on usually require complexity and vulnerability and portray the modern man in an eye-opening way. His role as Connell in Normal People playing a struggling college student with remarkable sensitivity and depth earned him a BAFTA and Emmy nomination. Showing off his character range, he went on to play a young, depressed father in the film Aftersun and ended up with an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

The 28-year-old hasn’t buckled under the pressure of a heavy workload: “I weirdly enjoy the intensity of the way my brain works. That’s why I think I function better when I’m at work than when I’m between jobs,” he told GQ. “My agent refers to me openly as a psychopath when it comes to work.”

While Paul isn’t an unknown name, he hasn’t carried a film on this scale before. Director Ridley Scott spoke to GQ about how casting the Irish actor was a perfect risk: “I do it all the time. Brad Pitt hadn’t done a movie and Sigourney Weaver. I take that kind of chance.”

Lucien Laviscount’s life changed when he was cast in the hit Netflix series, Emily In Paris.

The Lancashire lad had a few acting gigs before landing the big part but nothing that was career-changing. He had minor roles in Grange Hill, Scream Queens, and Snatch – even a Celebrity Big Brother appearance when he was 19 years old. In the end, it was Emily’s French adventure that elevated his status to Netflix-leading-man.

Lucien was only meant to have a small part in the critically acclaimed series, but he won over the crew. He recalled to Gentleman’s Journal: “I was only meant to do four episodes to begin with, but I got a round of applause after episode three and thought, oh cool that’s a wrap, off I go and was going to just head home.”Director Darren Star (of Sex and the City fame) called Alfie on the way home to come back to set — his endearing performance as cheeky London lad Alfie had impressed everyone so much they all agreed it was impossible to let him go.

One thing you might not know — Lucien says he has David Beckham to thank for his career. “Being an actor came up when I was quite young,” he told Gentleman’s Journal. “I was on a modelling gig for a project with David Beckham back in the day and he recognised something in me and got his assistant to call an acting school in Manchester. Next thing I know I was in an acting class, and things sort of went on from there.” Lucien believes that David was responsible for him changing his path. “I bumped into him a while back and said to him, ‘thank you, you changed my life.’”

James Norton’s rise to success is full of lots of unexpected roles. The 39-year-old London-born actor has had a big year onscreen with his lead role as record label producer Christopher Blackwell in Bob Marley: One Love.

Jumping from music to the science scene, his latest release is Joy on Netflix — in which he plays a scientist who helps to develop the first test tube baby. On the subject of not conforming to one character type, he told Elle: “I always want to try and keep myself and other people guessing what the next step will be.’’

Like any rising star, his schedule is packed. He started shooting Joy, which he stars in alongside Bill Nighy, less than a week after being on the West End in A Little Life. Amidst the success, he still has moments of self-doubt though: “Sometimes I feel a pressure to get in line. I think a lot of people do,’’ he told Elle.

Before entering the blockbuster world, the 29-year-old was perhaps best known for starring as the main character in the MGM+ series Billy the Kid. Yet, entering the Hunger Games arena put his face on the Hollywood watch list.

Now in his rom-com era, he is filming People We Meet on Vacation — which is based on the juicy Emily Henry novel. Slightly less romantic, also coming up is prison thriller Wasteman in which Tom will act alongside Rivals’ Alex Hassell.

He told Wonderland about staying sane in Hollywood: “It’s exciting, but you have to hold on to the core things that make you who you are. The world we live in comes and goes so quickly.” He added: “You’re going to wake up the day after the premiere and you’re still going to be back in your kitchen, making coffee like anybody else.”

Over the years, Dev Patel has become a household name.

Long before reaching his current level of fame, he was a British treasure starring in the original E4 cast of Skins as Anwar Kharral. His breakthrough role came in 2008 in Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire. After this, he gained critical acclaim with his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in Lion.

Away from big-budget projects, he has taken a shine to independent films — with the most recent being his directorial debut. Monkey Man was released in 2024 and the 34-year-old directed, co-wrote, produced, and starred in it.

“I’m just trying to be true to myself as an actor,” he told Dazed about his career choices. “I’m trying to surprise myself, not the public. All you can do is put your best foot forward. Sometimes you win, and sometimes you fail miserably. That’s the absolutely crippling heartache of this industry.’’

If anyone knows about working hard it’s Jonathan Bailey. The Oxfordshire-born actor had a staggering leap into the industry and is about to star in this year’s most anticipated film.

He made viewers swoon with his turn as Viscount Anthony Bridgerton in the Netflix period drama and was praised for his palpable chemistry with co-star and on-screen lover Simone Ashley. After winning hearts, he further showed off his acting skills in Fellow Travellers, gaining three Emmy nominations.

But the film that everyone’s talking about is Wicked. The line-up is mega with Jonathan singing alongside superstar Ariana Grande. He will be playing Fiyero Tiegelaar, proving he has another string to his bow with his musical talents. Away from the Emerald City, he will then be starring as Dr.Henry Loomis in Jurassic World Rebirth.

So what does a day in the life of Jonathan look like? In Variety’s Actors on Actors interview series, he told how he was juggling the impossible feat of filming Bridgerton, Wicked, and Fellow Travellers in the same period. The actor worked 33 days in a row and would disembark planes and go straight to set. Describing this time as “residual trauma” he said: “There’s something to be said for just freefalling, not having enough time, and just going on instincts.”

In 2023, Barry Keoghan caused a lot of buzz for his dark role as Oliver in Saltburn.

The 32-year-old was described in 2018 by The Hollywood Reporter as “the next big thing” which certainly was the truth. Best known for playing psychologically darker characters, the Dublin-born actor’s name is now a hot topic. One of his next exciting roles will be playing Paul McCartney in the upcoming Beatles biopic.

He has starred in some critically acclaimed films such as Dunkirk, The Banshees of Insherin (gaining him his first Academy nomination), and The Killing of a Sacred Deer. However, it was his role as Oliver in Saltburn that really showed off his acting talent – with ‘Murder on the Dancefloor’ forever on repeat in our heads.

Barry selects his roles carefully, even turning down a role in Gladiator II. On the selection process, he said: “It comes down to what role I played last. Will it challenge me? Will it elevate me? Will it help me mature as an actor, as a person? So, I pick my movies, and I’m very cautious selecting what I want to step into.”

Hot Priest Andrew Scott is very much on everyone’s radar after Fleabag. He came to the nation’s attention playing the unlikely love interest of an unconventional and charming Catholic priest who forms a deep connection with Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character.

Whilst fans may be sad there isn’t a season three in the works, Andrew has been booked and busy. He recently was accoladed for his performance in Netflix’s Ripley, for which he received an Emmy nomination. He also shone in All of Us Strangers as Adam, a screenwriter in his 40s who begins an intense connection with Paul Mescal’s character Harry.

At the same time his career has been taking off, the star has been going through the deeply tragic personal loss of his mother. Speaking to Variety about it all, he said: “It’s a really funny thing, to be honest. I can’t disappear the fact that this has happened in the midst of all this.’

It seemed to all happen in One Day — Leo Woodall became a Hollywood name almost overnight when he played the romantic lead that won hearts in the Netflix show that was number one around the world.

Before this, fans knew him from the HBO series White Lotus in which he played the love interest – of his now girlfriend – actress Meghan Fahny.

In 2023 he was named the Screen International Star of Tomorrow, and just a year later he’s broken into Hollywood. However, he revealed to Glamour that partying in the hills isn’t as appealing as it sounds: “A lot of the parties that you suddenly get invited to really aren’t that fun.’’

Next, he will be starring in the new Bridget Jones film as part of the fourth installment of the iconic film saga.

Josh O’Connor’s Hollywood game has elevated in the last year. Best known until now for his role as Prince Charles on Netflix’s The Crown, the Southampton-born actor’s star is rising.

His entrance into the world of fame was unusual as The Crown was released during COVID. So once lockdown was lifted, the doors opened to a whole new level of fame. He told Vanity Fair: “It was just bizarre. I wasn’t recognised. We were locked down, stuck in our houses—and when I came out, I was recognised.”

Hitting more mainstream success, this year Josh starred in the highly anticipated Challengers alongside Zendaya, playing an overconfident tennis player. Not a natural sports star, Josh was dedicated to his craft and trained for four weeks with a tennis coach in preparation for the sports drama.

Believe it or not, Josh doesn’t believe he possesses the typical movie star charm. When asked if he had movie star quality he told The Guardian: “I don’t think I have. That’s not me being faux-humble. I’m too anxious a person. I don’t know that I have those attributes really. I don’t think I’m quite strong enough to be a movie star.”

It doesn’t seem that Hollywood certainly doesn’t agree. His next big release is The History of Sound, where he stars alongside Paul Mescal.

Henry Golding first garnered attention in the romantic comedy world. Originally born in Malaysia, the British actor got a lucky break in a global casting call for Crazy Rich Asians.

When he landed the role of Nick Young, alongside Constance Wu, this cemented his status as a romantic male lead. He then went on to star alongside other A-listers such as Anna Kendric in Simple Favour and Emilia Clarke in Last Christmas.

Most recently, he jumped on the bandwagon of modern period adaptions for a Jane Austen remake. In 2022, he starred alongside Dakota Johnson in Perusasion — based on the author’s 1817 novel.

The 37-year-old said to The Standard of the timing of his breakthrough “I’m glad success came later. I have perspective and know it’s not the end of the world if it goes wrong. I’ve seen there are all sorts of pitfalls when it comes to success and it going to people’s heads. If that ever happens to me I hope somebody picks me up on it and gets me back in shape.”

Cillian Murphy made waves as the morally dubious gangster Tommy Shelby, complete with soulful eyes and a Brummie accent. The 48-year-old actor became the first Irish-born actor to bring home an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of theoretical physicist J Robert Oppenheimer.

He thanked director Christopher Nolan and producer Emma Thomas for “the wildest, most exhilarating, most creatively satisfying journey you’ve taken me on”, as well as “every single crew and cast member, you carried me through”.

He said: “We made a film about the man who created the atomic bomb, and for better or for worse, we are all living in Oppenheimer’s world, so I’d like to dedicate this to the peacemakers everywhere.”