Joe Alwyn

Joseph Matthew Alwyn (born 21 February 1991) is an English actor. Alwyn made his feature film debut as the titular character in Ang Lee's 2016 war drama '' Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk'' and has since played roles in films such as '' The Favourite'' (2018), '' Boy Erased'' (2018), ''Mary Queen of Scots'' (2018), '' Harriet'' (2019), '' Catherine Called Birdy'' (2022), and ''The Brutalist'' (2024), as well as the BBC and Hulu drama series '' Conversations with Friends'' (2022).

Born in Kent and raised in North London, Alwyn developed an interest in acting during his teenage years. He acted in student productions at Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and obtained BA degrees in English literature and drama, and acting, from the University of Bristol (2012), and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (2015), respectively.

Alwyn worked with American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift on ten of her songs released from 2020 to 2022, including "Exile" and " Betty" from Swift's eighth studio album, ''Folklore'', which won the Album of the Year at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. He won a Trophée Chopard at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival and appeared on the 2022 ''Time'' 100 Next list of rising stars.

Early life and education

Joseph Matthew Alwyn was born on 21 February 1991 in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England. Raised in North London, Alwyn is the son of a psychotherapist mother and a documentary filmmaker father. He is the great-grandson of composer William Alwyn. His great uncle was priest and peace activist Bruce Kent.

Alwyn was privately educated at the City of London School. He briefly took guitar lessons, and was part of a school band called Anger Management. He later played football and rugby at school. Although an " introverted" child,Alt URL
/ref> Alwyn knew he wanted to be an actor. He auditioned for a small role in ''Love Actually'', but was not cast. In his late teens, he joined the National Youth Theatre. While studying for a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English literature and drama at the University of Bristol, he acted in two student productions at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. After graduating in 2012, he applied to four drama schools, and was accepted by the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, where he completed a BA degree in acting. In his third year there, Alwyn signed with an agent who had seen him in a student showcase, and who then helped him get cast in the role of the title character in '' Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk'' (2016): his debut in a feature film.

Career

Acting

In early 2015, Alwyn was cast in the lead role of Taiwanese director Ang Lee's 2016 war drama film, '' Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk'', which is a film adaptation of the 2012 novel of the same name by American writer Ben Fountain. Lee stated that he selected Alwyn because of his "ability to communicate the book's paradox of war with just his facial expressions". Alwyn came to the United States for the first time after passing the film's auditions. He stated that he didn't "exactly fit" the casting requirements of the role, which were "a 19-year-old U.S. Army grunt"; Alwyn said he had long blond hair and was "a lot skinnier" when he auditioned. In reviews of the film, critics praised Alwyn's performance for its naturalism. Journalists went on to describe the film as his "breakout". He then played a supporting role in the 2017 mystery drama film '' The Sense of an Ending'', directed by Indian filmmaker Ritesh Batra.

Alwyn appeared in a number of 2018 films. He played a supporting role as the British nobleman Samuel Masham in the period black comedy film '' The Favourite'', directed by Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos. The film garnered 10 nominations at the 91st Academy Awards. Lauren McCarthy of '' W'' magazine praised Alwyn's physical humour and silly acting style in the film, in contrast to his " boy-next-door-meets-movie-star-hearthrob looks". He played a supporting role in Chris Weitz's historical drama '' Operation Finale'', and a minor role in Joel Edgerton's '' Boy Erased''—a biographical drama film based on a 2016 memoir by American LGBT+ activist Garrard Conley. Alwyn then appeared as English statesman Robert Dudley in the historical drama ''Mary Queen of Scots''. Alwyn won the Trophée Chopard alongside Australian actress Elizabeth Debicki at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

In 2019, Alwyn played a slave owner in '' Harriet'', a biographical drama about Harriet Tubman. He appeared as Bob Cratchit in the dark fantasy television miniseries ''A Christmas Carol,'' based on Charles Dickens' 1843 novella of the same name. In 2021, he had a minor role in drama film '' The Souvenir Part II'', and played a 1960s industrialist in the film adaptation of Jojo Moyes' 2008 romantic novel, '' The Last Letter from Your Lover''.

In 2022, Alwyn starred in the drama series ''Conversations with Friends''—a Hulu adaptation of the 2017 novel of the same name by Irish author Sally Rooney. Alwyn was paired with Margaret Qualley in the romantic thriller film '' Stars at Noon'', directed by French filmmaker Claire Denis, and played the titular character's uncle in '' Catherine Called Birdy'', a medieval comedy film directed by Lena Dunham, based on the 1994 children's novel of the same name; both the films were met with generally positive reviews, with the former premiering at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival and winning the Grand Prix.

In late 2022, Eimear McBride wrote and directed ''A Very Short Film About Longing.'' The film was screened at the 2023 BFI London Film Festival. It starred Alwyn, Natalia Kostrzewa and Lashay Anderson and was soundtracked by Tindersticks. In 2024, Alwyn played a supporting role in '' Kinds of Kindness'', an anthology film directed by Greek filmmaker Yorogos Lanthimos.

Music

While in a relationship with American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, Alwyn contributed to the production of ten of her songs released from 2020 to 2022. Alwyn stated that "it came about from messing around on a piano, and singing badly," and then "being overheard by Swift, and being, like, 'Let's see what happens if we get to the end of it together'". He is credited as co-producer of the songs "Exile", " Betty", " My Tears Ricochet", "August", " This Is Me Trying" and " Illicit Affairs" on Swift's eighth studio album, ''Folklore'' (2020); and was also co-writer of "Exile" and "Betty", under the pseudonym William Bowery. "Exile" reached the top 10 of the charts in various countries, including number six on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number eight on the UK Singles Chart.

At the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2021, ''Folklore'' won the Album of the Year, earning Alwyn his first Grammy Award for his producing credit on the record. Credited as Bowery, Alwyn also co-wrote " Champagne Problems", "Coney Island" and the title track on Swift's second 2020 album, ''Evermore''. In April 2022, Alwyn revealed to ''The Wall Street Journal'' that the name "William Bowery" was derived from the first name of his great-grandfather William Alwyn, who was a music composer, and the last name in honour of the New York City neighbourhood Bowery, where he had spent "a lot of time" when he first arrived in the U.S. On Swift's tenth studio album, ''Midnights'' (2022), he is credited as co-writer of " Sweet Nothing", again as Bowery.

Personal life

Alwyn was in a relationship with Taylor Swift from 2016 to 2023. It was subject to intense tabloid scrutiny. On their breakup and the publicity surrounding it, Alwyn said in 2024: "I would hope that anyone and everyone can empathize and understand the difficulties that come with the end of a long, loving, fully committed relationship of over six and a half years. That is a hard thing to navigate. What is unusual and abnormal in this situation is that, one week later, it's suddenly in the public domain and the outside world is able to weigh in ... There is always going to be a gap between what is known and what is said. I have made my peace with that." Swift references her breakup with Alwyn on her eleventh album ''The Tortured Poets Department'' (2024).

Alwyn keeps his personal life private, which he described as a "knee-jerk response to the culture we live in". '' GQ'' labelled Alwyn a "notoriously low-key actor".

Advocacy

Since the outbreak of the 2023 Gaza war, Alwyn has used his platform, particularly on Instagram, to raise awareness for the Palestinian cause and support charities, including Disaster Emergency Committee (DEC). He signed the Artists4Ceasefire letter addressed to then U.S. President Joe Biden and sported the collective's pin at various public events.

In response to the April 2025 Supreme Court ruling on the definition of woman in the Equality Act and subsequent EHRC guidance, Alwyn was one of over 400 film and television professionals to sign an open letter pledging "solidarity with the trans, non-binary and intersex communities" and condemning both actions.

Filmography

Film

Television

Discography

Accolades

Footnotes

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Alwyn, Joe
1991 births
21st-century English male actors
Living people
Male actors from London
Male actors from Royal Tunbridge Wells
Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
Alumni of the University of Bristol
Joe
Chopard Trophy for Male Revelation winners
English male film actors
English male stage actors
English male songwriters
Grammy Award winners
National Youth Theatre members
People educated at the City of London School