Dominic Cooper

For the British novelist, see Dominic Cooper (author).

Dominic Edward Cooper (born 2 June 1978)^[1][2] is an English actor^[3] known for his portrayal of comic book characters Jesse Custer on the AMC show Preacher (2016–2019) and young Howard Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with appearances in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) and the ABC series Agent Carter (2015–2016), among other Marvel productions. Cooper played Sky in Mamma Mia! (2008) and its sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018).

Dominic Cooper
Cooper at the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con
Born	(1978-06-02) 2 June 1978 (age 46) Greenwich, London, England
Alma mater	London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2001–present
Partner(s)	Ruth Negga (2010–2016) Gemma Chan (2018–present)

Early in his career, Cooper was cast in significant roles in productions by the Royal National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company; he received acclaim for originating the role of Dakin in the 2004 play The History Boys with which, in 2006, he returned to the West End, transferred to Broadway, and adapted to film. Since that time, he has acted in a series of British and American productions, including the acclaimed period pieces An Education (2009) and My Week with Marilyn (2011), as well as action films, such as Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012) and Need for Speed (2014).

Early life and education

Cooper was born and brought up in Greenwich, London,^[4] the son of Julie (née Heron), a nursery school teacher, and Brian Cooper, an auctioneer.^[5][6] He has two brothers, Simon and Nathan, a musician in the band The Modern, a half-brother, James, and a half-sister, Emma.^[7][8] His maternal great-grandfather was film-enthusiast E. T. Heron, who published The Kinematograph Weekly.

Dominic attended John Ball Primary School in Blackheath, London, followed by Thomas Tallis School in nearby Kidbrooke, then trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) in Professional Acting, graduating in 2000.^[9]

Career

Cooper at the 2011 Berlin International Film Festival for The Devil's Double

Cooper first worked in television and film before making his stage debut in Mother Clap's Molly House at the National Theatre in 2001. Cooper was involved in Alan Bennett's play The History Boys, as the character Dakin, from its first reading.^[10] He also toured with the production to Broadway, Sydney, Wellington and Hong Kong as well as appearing in the radio and film adaptations of the play.^[11][12][13] He has had notable roles in the Royal National Theatre's adaptation of the His Dark Materials trilogy where he played the lead character Will Parry, the TV series Down To Earth and Sense & Sensibility.

In 2008, he appeared as Sky in Mamma Mia!, in which he sang several songs.^[14] The same year, he appeared opposite Keira Knightley in The Duchess as Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey.^[15] He starred in films An Education and Freefall in 2009 and also played Hippolytus in Phèdre at the National Theatre alongside Helen Mirren and Margaret Tyzack.^[16]

In 2010, he played rock drummer Ben in the film Tamara Drewe, and in 2011 played the leading roles of Latif Yahia and Uday Hussein, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's son in the biographical film The Devil's Double, which was critically acclaimed but criticised for whitewashing, and portrayed Milton H. Greene in My Week with Marilyn.^[15] 2011 was also the year Cooper first appeared as Howard Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Initially appearing in the film Captain America: The First Avenger, he reprised his role in the Marvel One-Shot Agent Carter two years later, and in the television series of the same name in 2015 and 2016.

In 2012, he appeared as vampire Henry Sturges in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Around this time, he was cast in the lead role in the unproduced Albert Hughes project Motor City based on the Black Listed script of the same name.^[17] In February 2012, he signed on to replace Clive Owen the financial thriller Cities, ultimately leaving Motor City.^[18] Cities was cancelled after production delays.

Cooper at the 2016 San Diego Comic Con to promote Preacher

In 2014, he portrayed the main antagonist in two films: Dino Brewster in Need for Speed and Mehmed in Dracula Untold.^[15][19] Cooper depicted James Bond author Ian Fleming in the television mini-series Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond in 2014. The next year, he appeared in two films, Miss You Already and The Lady in the Van, a film by Nicholas Hytner, who had previously directed him in the stage adaptation of His Dark Materials and both theatrical and film versions of The History Boys.^[20]

Cooper played Jesse Custer, the lead role in AMC's Preacher;^[21] the programme debuted in May 2016. He co-starred in the Warcraft film adaptation, which was released in June 2016.^[22] In late 2016, he starred in a well-received West End revival of Stephen Jeffreys' 1994 play, The Libertine at the Haymarket Theatre; he played John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, the role originated on stage by John Malkovich and played by Johnny Depp in the 2004 film.^[23]

Cooper reprised his role of Sky in 2018's sequel film Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.

Personal life

Cooper shared a flat with James Corden, his co-star in The History Boys and Starter for 10, until Corden started a family with his wife, Julia Carey.^[24] Cooper was responsible for introducing Corden to Julia, whom he had known for years and who was working at Save the Children when he and Corden called in one night.^[25] He is also the godfather of Corden's first child, Max.^[26]

Cooper dated his Mamma Mia! co-star Amanda Seyfried on and off from 2008 to 2009. From 2010 to 2016, he was in a relationship with Irish actress Ruth Negga. They first met in 2009 on the set of the National Theatre's production of Phèdre, and starred opposite each other in other projects including the 2011 short film Hello Carter, the 2016 film Warcraft, and AMC's Preacher (2016–2019). They lived together in London's Primrose Hill.^[27][28][29] Despite breaking up in 2016, the press first reported the split in April 2018.^[30][31] Cooper has been in a relationship with actress Gemma Chan since 2018.^[32]

Politics

In August 2014, he was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue.^[33] In 2023, he signed the Artists4Ceasefire's open letter to President Joe Biden calling for an immediate ceasefire during the Israel–Hamas war.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2001	From Hell	Constable
2002	The Gentleman Thief	PC Merrifield
	Anazapta	Clerk
	The Final Curtain	Young Priest
2003	I'll Be There	Boyfriend
	Boudica
2005	Breakfast on Pluto	Squaddie at disco	Ruth Negga also appeared
2006	The History Boys	Dakin
	Starter for 10	Spencer
2008	The Escapist	Lacey
	Mamma Mia!	Sky Rymand
	The Duchess	Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey
2009	An Education	Danny
	Brief Interviews with Hideous Men	Daniel / Subject 46
	Freefall	Dave Matthews
2010	Tamara Drewe	Ben
2011	A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures	Sammy	Voice
	Captain America: The First Avenger	Howard Stark
	The Devil's Double	Latif Yahia / Uday Hussein
	My Week with Marilyn	Milton H. Greene
	Hello Carter	Carter	Short film
2012	Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter	Henry Sturges
2013	Dead Man Down	Darcy
	Summer in February	AJ Munnings
	Agent Carter	Howard Stark	Short film
2014	Reasonable Doubt	Mitch Brockden
	Need for Speed	Dino Brewster
	Dracula Untold	Mehmed II
2015	Miss You Already	Kit
	The Lady in the Van	Theatre Actor
2016	Warcraft	King Llane Wrynn
2017	Stratton	John Stratton
	The Escape	Mark
2018	Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again	Sky Rymand
2022	The Princess	Julius
TBA	Cry from the Sea	Seamus	In production[34]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2001	The Infinite Worlds of H. G. Wells	Sidney Davidson	Episode: "Davidson's Eyes"
	Band of Brothers	Allington	Episode: "Currahee"
2003	Sparkling Cyanide	Andy Hoffman	Television film
2004	Down To Earth	Danny Wood	Episode: "First Love"
2008	Sense and Sensibility	Mr. Willoughby	3 episodes
	God on Trial	Moche	Television film
2014	Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond	Ian Fleming	Miniseries; Lead role, 4 episodes
2015–2016	Agent Carter	Howard Stark	5 episodes
2016–2019	Preacher	Jesse Custer	Lead role, also executive producer (season 3–4); 43 episodes
2018	The Grand Tour	Himself (guest)	Series 2, Episode 5
2020	Spy City	Fielding Scott	Miniseries; Lead role, 6 episodes; released in USA in 2021
2021–2024	What If...?	Howard Stark (voice)	2 episodes
2022	That Dirty Black Bag	Arthur McCoy	Lead role, 8 episodes
2023	The Gold	Edwyn Cooper	Main role, 6 episodes[35]
2024	My Lady Jane	Lord Seymour	Main role, 8 episodes[36]
2024	Suspect	Jon	Main role, 8 episodes[37]
TBA	The Last Frontier	Havlock	Upcoming series

Radio

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2005	The All-Colour Vegetarian Cookbook	Damien
2006	The History Boys	Dakin

Theatre credits

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Run	Notes
1999	Charley's Aunt		Repertory Theatre	August 1999
2001–2002	Mother Clap's Molly House	Thomas / Josh	National Theatre – Lyttelton	Sept – Nov 2001	Original production
2002	Caryl Churchill Events	Cliff / Young Man	Royal Court Theatre	October 2002	Off-West End readings
	A Midsummer Night's Dream	Puck	Royal Shakespeare Theatre	Feb – Mar 2002
			England, Spain, U.S.	Mar – June 2002	International tour
			Barbican Theatre	Apr – May 2002	London residency during tour
2003	Call to Prayer		Operating Theatre Company	—	RADA reading
2003–2004	His Dark Materials	Will	National Theatre – Olivier	Dec 2003 – Mar 2004	Original production
2004–2006	The History Boys	Dakin	National Theatre – Lyttelton	May – July 2004	Original production
				Nov 2005 – Feb 2006
			HKAPA	February 2006	International tour
			St. James Theatre	February 2006
			Sydney Theatre	March 2006
			Broadhurst Theatre	Apr – Oct 2006	Broadway transfer
2009	Phèdre	Hippolytus	Lyttelton Theatre	June 2009
			Shakespeare Theatre Company	September 2009	Washington, D.C. transfer
2016	The Libertine	John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester	Theatre Royal	Aug – Sep 2016
			Theatre Royal Haymarket	Sep – Dec 2016	West End transfer

Awards and recognition

Awards and nominations received by Dominic Cooper

Award	Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref(s)
British Independent Film Awards	2006	Best Newcomer	The History Boys	Nominated	[38]
Capri Hollywood International Film Festival	2011	Best Ensemble Cast	My Week with Marilyn	Nominated
Dublin Film Critics' Circle	2007	Best Lead Actor	The Devil's Double	Nominated
Drama Desk Award	2006	Best Actor	The History Boys	Nominated	[39]
Empire Awards	2007	Best Male Newcomer	The History Boys and Starter for 10	Nominated
London Film Critics' Circle Awards		Best British Supporting Actor	The History Boys	Nominated	[40]
Online Film & Television Association	2015	Best Guest Actor in a Drama	Agent Carter	Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards	2010	Best Performance by an Ensemble	An Education	Nominated
Satellite Awards	2015	Best Actor in a Limited Series or Movie made for Television	Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond	Nominated
Saturn Awards	2011	Best Actor	Devil's Double	Nominated
	2015	Best Guest Actor	Agent Carter	Nominated

References

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5. Das, Lina (8 October 2009). "Super Cooper: Dominic Cooper's Hollywood education". London Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014. There are few 31-year-old actors who can claim...
6. Riegel, Katie (26 September 2007). "Dominic Cooper, Fresh Face". Broadway.com. Archived from the original on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2006. Age: 27
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10. Bennett, Alan; Hytner, Nicholas (14 November 2006). The History Boys The Film. Faber & Faber. p. viii. ISBN 0-86547-971-2.
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13. "The History Boys". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 March 2006. Archived from the original on 9 December 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2006.
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16. Spencer, Charles (12 June 2009). "Phèdre with Helen Mirren at the National Theatre, review". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
17. Taylor, Drew (2 September 2012). "Gerard Butler Revenge Thriller 'Motor City' Suffers Engine Failure | IndieWire". www.indiewire.com. Archived from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
18. "Dominic Cooper Moves to the 'Cities'". MTV News. Archived from the original on 7 April 2023. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
19. Foundas, Scott (30 September 2014). "Film Review: 'Dracula Untold'". Variety. Archived from the original on 6 June 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
20. Barraclough, Leo (24 September 2014). "First Look: Drew Barrymore, Toni Collette Shoot 'Miss You Already' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 10 June 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
21. "Preacher: Dominic Cooper is Jesse Custer – IGN". IGN. 17 April 2015. Archived from the original on 15 May 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
22. Collura, Scott (4 December 2013). "Ben Foster and Dominic Cooper Head for Warcraft". IGN. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
23. Billington, Michael (27 September 2016). "The Libertine review – Dominic Cooper is riveting as rakish hero". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
24. Cadwalladr, Carole (7 August 2011). "Dominic Cooper: the devil inside". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
25. The Late Late Show with James Corden (17 May 2016), Kristin Chenoweth Forgives You, archived from the original on 11 November 2021, retrieved 26 August 2017
26. "Dominic Cooper on James Corden: "I knew the first day I met him...", John Malkovich, Dominic Cooper, Sophie Ellis-Bextor and a Strictly Come Dancing announcement, The Chris Evans Breakfast Show – BBC Radio 2". BBC. 19 August 2016. Archived from the original on 27 September 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
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28. McBride, Caitlin (8 June 2016). "Irish actress Ruth Negga and Dominic Cooper make rare public appearance at Warcraft premiere". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
29. "Loving Star Ruth Negga on Biracial Politics: "I Get Very Territorial About My Identity"". Vogue. Archived from the original on 13 July 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
30. "Ruth Negga Talks Diversity, Hamlet And Her Split From Dominic Cooper". Marie Claire. 8 August 2018. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
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37. "Suspect unveils first look at season 2 as Dominic Cooper joins cast | Radio Times".
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External links

• Dominic Cooper at IMDb
• Dominic Cooper at the Internet Broadway Database
• eFilmCritic.com interview with Dominic Cooper by Dan Lybarger Archived 26 October 2020 at the Wayback Machine
• Dominic cooper interview The Telegraph