Dominic Cooper
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Dominic Edward Cooper (born 2 June 1978) is an English actor known for his portrayal of comic book characters
Jesse Custer The Reverend Jesse Custer is the fictional protagonist of the comic book series ''Preacher (comics), Preacher'', created by writer Garth Ennis and artist Steve Dillon (with a large percentage of the original cover art painted by Glenn Fabry), and ...
on the
AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...
show ''
Preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...
'' (2016–2019) and young Howard Stark in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...
, 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 ''Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again'' is a 2018 jukebox musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Ol Parker, from a story by Parker, Catherine Johnson (playwright), Catherine Johnson, and Richard Curtis. It is the sequel and prequel to t ...
'' (2018). Early in his career, Cooper was cast in significant roles in productions by the
Royal National Theatre The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...
and
Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...
; 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), and the fantasy film ''
Warcraft ''Warcraft'' is a franchise of video games, novels, and other media created by Blizzard Entertainment. The series is made up of six core games: '' Warcraft: Orcs & Humans'', '' Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness'', '' Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos ...
'' (2016).


Early life and education

Cooper was born and brought up in
Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...
, London, the son of Julie (née Heron), a nursery school teacher, and Brian Cooper, an auctioneer. He has two brothers, Simon and Nathan, a musician in the band The Modern, a half-brother, James, and a half-sister, Emma. 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 Kidbrooke is an area of south-east London, England, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich south-east of Charing Cross and north west of Eltham. The district takes its name from the Kyd Brook, a watercourse which runs from Orpington to Lewisha ...
, then trained at the
London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. In ...
(LAMDA) in Professional Acting, graduating in 2000.


Career

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 Alan Bennett (born 9 May 1934) is an English actor, author, playwright and screenwriter. He has received numerous awards and honours including four BAFTA Awards, four Laurence Olivier Awards, and two Tony Awards. In 2005 he received the Socie ...
's play '' The History Boys'', as the character Dakin, from its first reading. He also toured with the production to Broadway,
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
and
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
as well as appearing in the radio and
film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
adaptations of the play. He has had notable roles in the
Royal National Theatre The National Theatre (NT), officially the Royal National Theatre and sometimes referred to in international contexts as the National Theatre of Great Britain, is a performing arts venue and associated theatre company located in London, England, ...
's adaptation of the ''
His Dark Materials ''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), '' The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and '' The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follo ...
'' 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. The same year, he appeared opposite
Keira Knightley Keira Christina Knightley ( ; born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Known for her work in independent films and Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters, particularly Historical drama, period dramas, she has received List of awards and no ...
in '' The Duchess'' as Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey. He starred in films '' An Education'' and '' Freefall'' in 2009 and also played Hippolytus in '' Phèdre'' at the National Theatre alongside
Helen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (; born Ilyena Lydia Vasilievna Mironov; 26 July 1945) is an English actor. With a career spanning over six decades of Helen Mirren on screen and stage, screen and stage, List of awards and nominations received by Helen Mirre ...
and Margaret Tyzack. 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 Uday Saddam Hussein (; 18 June 1964 – 22 July 2003) was an Iraqi politician and businessman. He was the eldest son of Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and his first wife Sajida Talfah. Owing to his family connections, Uday held various roles i ...
, 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''. 2011 was also the year Cooper first appeared as Howard Stark in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...
. 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. In February 2012, he signed on to replace Clive Owen the financial thriller ''Cities'', ultimately leaving ''Motor City''. ''Cities'' was cancelled after production delays. In 2014, he portrayed the main antagonist in two films: Dino Brewster in '' Need for Speed'' and Mehmed in '' Dracula Untold''. Cooper depicted
James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...
author
Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer, best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his ...
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''. Cooper played
Jesse Custer The Reverend Jesse Custer is the fictional protagonist of the comic book series ''Preacher (comics), Preacher'', created by writer Garth Ennis and artist Steve Dillon (with a large percentage of the original cover art painted by Glenn Fabry), and ...
, the lead role in
AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...
's ''
Preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...
''; the programme debuted in May 2016. He co-starred in the ''Warcraft'' film adaptation, which was released in June 2016. In late 2016, he starred in a well-received West End revival of Stephen Jeffreys' 1994 play, ''The Libertine'' at the
Haymarket Theatre The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre in Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in ...
; he played John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, the role originated on stage by John Malkovich and played by
Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp, multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for ...
in the 2004 film. Cooper reprised his role of Sky in 2018's sequel film ''
Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again ''Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again'' is a 2018 jukebox musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Ol Parker, from a story by Parker, Catherine Johnson (playwright), Catherine Johnson, and Richard Curtis. It is the sequel and prequel to t ...
''.


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. Cooper was responsible for introducing Corden to Julia, whom he had known for years and who was working at
Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...
when he and Corden called in one night. He is also the godfather of Corden's first child, Max. 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 AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...
's ''
Preacher A preacher is a person who delivers sermons or homilies on religious topics to an assembly of people. Less common are preachers who Open-air preaching, preach on the street, or those whose message is not necessarily religious, but who preach com ...
'' (2016–2019). They lived together in London's Primrose Hill. Despite breaking up in 2016, the press first reported the split in April 2018. Cooper has been in a relationship with actress Gemma Chan since 2018.


Politics

In August 2014, he was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue. In 2023, he signed the Artists4Ceasefire's open letter to President Joe Biden calling for an immediate ceasefire during the
Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
.


Filmography


Film


Television


Radio


Theatre credits


Awards and recognition


References


External links

* *
eFilmCritic.com interview with Dominic Cooper by Dan Lybarger


The Telegraph {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Dominic Living people 1978 births 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors Actors from the Royal Borough of Greenwich English male film actors English male radio actors English male stage actors English male television actors Alumni of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art Male actors from London People from Greenwich Royal Shakespeare Company members English male Shakespearean actors Male actors from Kent English male voice actors