Frederick James Carter is an English actor and director. He starred as Kaz Brekker in the Netflix fantasy series '' Shadow and Bone'' (2021–2023). He previously played Peter "Pin" Hawthorne in '' Free Rein'' (2017–2019), also on Netflix.

Early life and education

Carter was born on 27 January 1993 in

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

and grew up predominantly in

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

. As his father was in the military, he spent some of his childhood moving around, with stints in

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

and

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the List of cities in Virginia, most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeaster ...

. His older brother is fellow actor Tom Austen; they also have a middle brother. The three of them went to school at Queen's College in

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

. A production of ''

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

'' starring

Mark Rylance Sir David Mark Rylance Waters (; born 18 January 1960) is an English actor, playwright and theatre director. He is known for his roles on stage and screen, having received numerous awards including an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Oliv ...

that Carter saw in London when he was 16 inspired him to pursue acting. He went on to train in acting at the Oxford School of Drama, graduating in 2015.

Career

Following graduation, Carter featured in the company of the Rose Theatre Kingston production of ''

The Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was f ...

'' directed by

Trevor Nunn Sir Trevor Robert Nunn (born 14 January 1940) is an English theatre director and lyricist. He has been the artistic director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal Haymarket. He has dir ...

. Carter made his onscreen debut as a soldier in the 2017

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

film, ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...

''. That same year, Carter landed his first major role as a main character Peter "Pin" Hawthorne in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

series '' Free Rein''. He also played this role in the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

and Valentine's specials. He starred as Alexander Flint in the 2018 stage production of

Harley Granville-Barker Harley Granville-Barker (25 November 1877 – 31 August 1946) was an English actor, director, playwright, manager, critic, and theorist. After early success as an actor in the plays of George Bernard Shaw, he increasingly turned to directing a ...

's ''Agnes Colander'' in the

Ustinov Studio The Ustinov Studio is a studio theatre in Bath, England. It is the Theatre Royal's second space, built in 1997 at the rear of the building on Monmouth Street. It is named after the actor Peter Ustinov who led the fundraising programme for the ...

at the Theatre Royal in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. Carter then played Ellis in 2018 horror film '' The Convent''. In 2019, Carter wrote and directed his first short film, ''No. 89''. He also had a main role as Tom in the Channel 5 miniseries ''15 Days'' and a recurring role as Jason Ripper in the American

series '' Pennyworth''. In October 2019, it was announced Carter would star as Kaz Brekker in the 2021

series '' Shadow and Bone'', an adaptation of the fantasy book series '' The Grisha Trilogy'' and the '' Six of Crows Duology'' by

Leigh Bardugo Leigh Bardugo (; born April 6, 1975) is an American fantasy author. She is best known for her young adult Grishaverse novels, which include the '' Shadow and Bone'' trilogy and the ''Six of Crows'' and '' King of Scars'' duologies. She also rec ...

. Many publications singled out the ''Six of Crows'' half of the story for further praise, including ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...

'', and '' CNET''. For the second season of ''Shadow and Bone'', Carter was singled out for praise for his portrayal, with publications ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...

'' and ''Rolling Stone'' particularly praising his scenes with Amita Suman and the ''Crows'' storyline overall. The series was cancelled by Netflix after two seasons, but fans are currently campaigning to get it back, reaching more than 200,000 signatures asking to save it. As of 2023, Carter plays surgical student Gideon Fletcher in the

Paramount+ Paramount+ (formerly known as CBS All Access in the United States and 10 All Access in Australia) is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, stream ...

adaptation of Elizabeth Macneal's '' The Doll Factory''. He appeared in the

Apple TV+ Apple TV+ is an American subscription over-the-top streaming service owned by Apple. The service launched on November 1, 2019, and it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service w ...

miniseries ''

Masters of the Air ''Masters of the Air'' is a 2024 American war drama miniseries created by John Shiban and John Orloff for Apple TV+. It is based on the 2007 book of the same name by Donald L. Miller and follows the actions of the 100th Bomb Group, a Boeing ...

'' in 2024. Carter returned to the stage in 2025, starting opposite Arsema Thomas in ''Poor Clare'' at the

Orange Tree Theatre The Orange Tree Theatre is a 180-seat theatre at 1 Clarence Street, Richmond in south-west London, which was built specifically as a theatre in the round. It is housed within a disused 1867 primary school, built in Victorian Gothic style. Th ...

in Richmond.

Personal life

Carter married Caroline Ford on 3 December 2022, having met on the set of ''Free Rein'' and been in a relationship since 2018. Carter does photography as a hobby. He is based in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

, London.

Filmography

Stage

Video games

References

External links

*
Freddy Carter
at Spotlight {{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Freddy Living people 21st-century English male actors Akrotiri and Dhekelia people Alumni of the Oxford School of Drama English filmmakers English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors Male actors from Plymouth, Devon Male actors from Somerset People educated at Queen's College, Taunton Actors from Taunton 1993 births