Jessie Buckley | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Buckley at the2025 Toronto International Film Festival | |
| Born | (1989-12-28)28 December 1989 (age 36) Killarney,County Kerry, Ireland |
| Education | Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (BA) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2008–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives | Madge Clifford (great-grandmother) |
| Awards | Full list |
Jessie Buckley (born 28 December 1989) is an Irish actress and singer.Her accolades include aGolden Globe Award, aBAFTA Award, in addition to nominations for twoAcademy Awards and threeActor Awards.
Buckley began her career in 2008 as a contestant on theBBC talent showI'd Do Anything, in which she came second. ARADA graduate, her early onscreen appearances were in BBC television series such asWar & Peace (2016) andTaboo (2017). Buckley made her film debut with the lead role inBeast (2017), followed by herbreakout role as an aspiring country music singer in the musical filmWild Rose (2018); the latter earned her a nomination for theBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
Buckley's career progressed with starring roles in films such asI'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020),Men (2022),Women Talking (2022) andWicked Little Letters (2023). For her performance as a troubled mother in the psychological dramaThe Lost Daughter (2021), she received nominations for theBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She gained further recognition for her portrayal ofAgnes Shakespeare in the period dramaHamnet (2025), receiving theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress - Drama, as well as a nomination for theAcademy Award for Best Actress.
On television, Buckley has starred in theHBO miniseriesChernobyl (2019) andseason four ofFargo (2020). On stage, Buckley's portrayal ofSally Bowles in a 2021West End theatre revival ofCabaret won her theLaurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical. In 2022, she released the collaborative albumFor All Our Days That Tear the Heart withBernard Butler, which was shortlisted for the 2022Mercury Prize.
Buckley was born on 28 December 1989[1] inKillarney, County Kerry,[1] to Marina Cassidy and Tim Buckley.[2] She has a younger brother and three younger sisters.[1] She is the great-granddaughter ofIrish republicanMadge Clifford.[3]
She attended Ursuline Secondary School, an all-girls convent school inThurles, County Tipperary, where her mother works as a vocal coach[4][1] and where she performed in school productions.[1] She played a number of male roles at school, including the male lead role of Tony in the musicalWest Side Story and Freddie Trumper inChess.[5] She reached grade eight in piano, clarinet, and harp at theRoyal Irish Academy of Music, and was a member of the Tipperary Millennium Orchestra. She attended summer workshops with the Association of Irish Musical Societies (AIMS) to improve her singing and acting, and it was here that she was recognised as a talented actress and encouraged to apply for drama school in London. Just before she auditioned forI'd Do Anything, she was turned down by two drama schools, including one the day before her first audition for the show.[5]
Buckley attended theRoyal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), graduating in January 2013.[6]
Buckley began her career as a contestant onI'd Do Anything, a talent show centred on the search for a new, unknown lead to playNancy in the 2009West End revival of the British musicalOliver!.[7] She reached the final on 31 May 2008, finishing in second place behindJodie Prenger.[8] On 26 August 2008, Buckley performed on Denny Street inTralee, County Kerry forRTÉ Radio 1.[citation needed] She followed this with a performance at a charity concert inCounty Tipperary.[citation needed] On 14 September 2008, Buckley performed at an outdoor concert in celebration ofAndrew Lloyd Webber's birthday inHyde Park, London. She gave a solo rendition of "I Don't Know How To Love Him" fromJesus Christ Superstar, and sang "Light at the End of the Tunnel" fromStarlight Express with fellowI'd Do Anything finalists Keisha Amponsa-Banson,Niamh Perry,Rachel Tucker, as well asAny Dream Will Do finalistsDaniel Boys, Lewis Bradley,Ben James-Ellis andKeith Jack.[9] On 18 September 2008, she andAoife Mulholland performed with theRTÉ Concert Orchestra at another event held by Lloyd Webber at theNational Concert Hall, Dublin.[10]
Buckley was offered the opportunity to understudy for the role of Nancy,[11] but turned it down in favour of another production. On 10 October 2008, it was announced that Buckley would make her Off-West End debut in a revival of theStephen Sondheim musicalA Little Night Music, in the role ofAnne Egerman, at theMenier Chocolate Factory, afringeStudio Theatre, in London from 22 November 2008 to 8 March 2009.[12] She appeared alongsideMaureen Lipman andHannah Waddingham in the production, which was directed byTrevor Nunn.[13] She appeared in a Christmas concert alongsideMaria Friedman,Cantabile, andTim Rice in 2009,[14] and in February 2010 she appeared alongsideDaniel Boys (andNight Music co-star Kelly Price[15]) in a series of Valentine musical concerts.[16]
After graduating from RADA in January 2013,[6] she worked forShakespeare's Globe in its 2013 summer season, playingMiranda inThe Tempest, and singerArabella Hunt and Kate inSamuel Adamson'sGabriel.[17][18] In September 2013, Buckley appeared oppositeJude Law inMichael Grandage's West End production ofHenry V at theNoël Coward Theatre.[19] She also played Perdita inKenneth Branagh's theatre company production ofThe Winter's Tale,[20] which was streamed live to cinemas worldwide on 26 November 2015.[citation needed]
After an episodic appearance in the detective drama seriesEndeavour, Buckley portrayedMarya Bolkonskaya inBBC'snew dramatisation ofWar and Peace (2016).[21][22] She received acclaim for her performance, with Viv Groskop ofThe Guardian citing her performance as a highlight of episode two, writing that she plays this supposedly plain and pious character "beautifully".[23] Buckley continued her television career with a main role in the drama seriesTaboo (2017), starringTom Hardy.[24] She also starred as Honor Martin inBBC One's dramaThe Last Post (2017),[citation needed] and as Marian Halcombe in the five-part television adaptation ofWilkie Collins' novelThe Woman in White (2018).[25]
Buckley made her film debut as Moll Huntford in the psychological thrillerBeast (2018).[citation needed] She then starred in the country music dramaWild Rose (2018), which earned Buckley the opportunity to perform music from the film at theGlastonbury Festival.[citation needed] The officialsoundtrack from the film reached number one on theUK Country Albums Chart.[citation needed] The film received positive reviews, and her performance was rewarded with a nomination forBest Actress in a Leading Role at the73rd British Academy Film Awards.[citation needed]
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In 2019, Buckley appeared as Lyudmila Ignatenko in theHBO andSky UK historical drama mini-seriesChernobyl, which revolved around theChernobyl disaster of 1986 and theclean-up efforts that followed.[citation needed] The five-part series was critically acclaimed, receiving 19 nominations at the71st Primetime Emmy Awards.[citation needed] Buckley then appeared in the biographical dramaJudy, based on the life of American actressJudy Garland.[26]
In 2020, she had four releases:Dolittle, directed byStephen Gaghan,[27]The Courier, directed byDominic Cooke,[28]Misbehaviour, directed byPhilippa Lowthorpe,[29] and the surrealist psychological thrillerI'm Thinking of Ending Things, directed byCharlie Kaufman forNetflix.[30] Her performance in the latter was lauded by critics and earned her a nomination forBest Actress at the30th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards. The same year, Buckley had a lead role in thefourth season of theFX black comedy crime dramaFargo, where she played nurse Oraetta Mayflower.[31][32][33][34]
In 2021, Buckley starred as the younger version of Leda Caruso inMaggie Gyllenhaal's feature directorial debutThe Lost Daughter, withOlivia Colman portraying the character's older counterpart. The film began a theatricallimited release in the United States on 17 December 2021, prior to streaming onNetflix at the end of the month. It received acclaim from critics. CriticTy Burr believed that Buckley was a "revelation" in the film.[35] For her performance, Buckley won aGotham Independent Film Award for Outstanding Supporting Performance,[citation needed] and was nominated for aBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.[citation needed] She also received her firstAcademy Award nomination forBest Supporting Actress at the94th Academy Awards.[citation needed]
Buckley was approached byEddie Redmayne to star alongside him, asSally Bowles, in a revival of the musicalCabaret. She embraced the gruelling nature of the role and maintained strict silence during the day to protect her voice for eight shows a week.[36] The production opened to rave reviews in the West End in November 2021,[37][38] winningBest Musical Revival and Buckley's own asBest Actress at the 2022 Olivier Awards.[39] David Benedict, writing forVariety wrote that Buckley played Bowles "with astonishing fierceness."[40] Nick Curtis, theatre critic for theEvening Standard, described Buckley as "a powerhouse of emotion".[41]
On 15 April 2022, Buckley and formerSuede guitaristBernard Butler released "The Eagle & The Dove", the lead single from their collaborative album.[42]For All Our Days That Tear the Heart was released on 17 June 2022.[43] It debuted at No. 23 on theUK Albums Chart.[44] The album was shortlisted for the 2022Mercury Prize.[45]
In 2022, Buckley starred as a widowed woman who travels on holiday to a countryside village inAlex Garland'sfolk horror filmMen, alongsideRory Kinnear.[46] The film was screened at theCannes Film Festival in theDirectors' Fortnight section in May 2022, before being released in the United States on 20 May 2022 byA24.[47][48] In June 2021, Buckley joinedFrances McDormand,Rooney Mara,Claire Foy andBen Whishaw inSarah Polley'sfeature adaptation ofMiriam Toews' bestselling novelWomen Talking, withMGM'sOrion Pictures andPlan B Entertainment producing the film.[49] The film began its limited theatrical release in the United States and Canada on 23 December 2022.[50] In July 2022, Buckley joined Colman,Luke Evans,Jonathan Pryce andJohnny Flynn inScrooge: A Christmas Carol, an animated rendition of theCharles Dickens' classic, which was released onNetflix in December 2022.[51]
She reunited withOlivia Colman inWicked Little Letters, a comedy directed byThea Sharrock. Principal photography for the project occurred in autumn 2022 in the United Kingdom.[52][53] That same year, it was announced that Buckley would replaceCarey Mulligan as the lead in Christos Nikou's English-language feature film debutFingernails.[54] The film, co-starringRiz Ahmed andJeremy Allen White, was shot in Toronto in late 2022.[55] Both films premiered at the2023 Toronto International Film Festival.[citation needed]
In May 2023, it was announced that Buckley would star alongsidePaul Mescal inChloé Zhao's historical dramaHamnet, based on thenovel of the same name.[56] Listed among the top ten films of 2025 by theAmerican Film Institute,Hamnet received highly positive reviews from critics, with Buckley's performance garnering widespread acclaim. David Fear ofRolling Stone opined that people "will be talking about Jessie Buckley's performance for years"[57] while Johnny Oleksinski atNew York Post wrote that "it's Buckley who's giving one of those rare turns that simply beggars belief. She swings back and forth from cast iron to porcelain. The actress is thunderous, playful, grounded and ethereal."[58] Buckley won the award forBest Actress in a Drama at theGolden Globes for the role.[59] Buckley additionally won theCritics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress.[citation needed] Buckley also received her second nomination for theBAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and her first nomination for theAcademy Award for Best Actress.[citation needed]
She next appeared oppositeTim Crouch in a performance ofAn Oak Tree at theYoung Vic in London on 6 May 2025.[citation needed]
Buckley lives inNorfolk as of 2022[update].[60] She married her husband Freddie Sorensen, a mental health worker and ex-TV producer, in mid-2023.[61] In 2025, she gave birth to a baby girl.[62][63]
Buckley is an ambassador for The Matt Talbot Community Trust, which provides support for individuals in recovery from addiction.[64]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Join My Band | Stella | Short film |
| 2012 | Crosswinds | Jessie | Short film |
| 2013 | Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart | Luna (voice) | English dub |
| 2017 | Red Light | Kelly | Short film |
| Beast | Moll Huntford | ||
| 2018 | Pulsar | Cassa | Short film |
| Wild Rose | Rose-Lynn Harlan | ||
| 2019 | A Battle in Waterloo | Ellen | Short film |
| Judy | Rosalyn Wilder | ||
| 2020 | Dolittle | Queen Victoria | |
| The Courier | Sheila Wynne | ||
| Misbehaviour | Jo Robinson | ||
| I'm Thinking of Ending Things | Young Woman | ||
| 2021 | The Lost Daughter | Young Leda Caruso | |
| 2022 | Men | Harper Marlowe | |
| Women Talking | Mariche | ||
| Scrooge: A Christmas Carol | Isabel Fezziwig (voice) | ||
| 2023 | Fingernails | Anna | |
| Wicked Little Letters | Rose Gooding | ||
| 2025 | Hamnet | Agnes Shakespeare | |
| How to Shoot a Ghost | Photographer | Short film | |
| 2026 | The Bride! | Bride of Frankenstein | Post-production[65] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | I'd Do Anything | Herself (contestant) | Runner-up |
| 2010–2011 | Shades of Love | Emily Strong | 3 episodes |
| 2014 | Endeavour | Kitty Batten | Episode: "Trove" |
| 2016 | War & Peace | Marya Bolkonskaya | 6 episodes |
| 2017 | Taboo | Lorna Bow | 7 episodes |
| The Last Post | Honor Martin | 6 episodes | |
| 2018 | The Woman in White | Marian Halcombe | 5 episodes |
| 2019 | Chernobyl | Lyudmila Ignatenko | 5 episodes |
| 2020 | Fargo | Oraetta Mayflower | Season 4 (10 episodes) |
| 2021 | Romeo & Juliet | Juliet | Royal National Theatre play forSky Arts[66] |
| 2025 | The Scarecrows' Wedding | Betty O'Barley (voice) | Television film[67] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me | Kate Wilder | Voice,motion capture, and likeness |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–2009 | A Little Night Music | Anne Egerman | Menier Chocolate Factory Garrick Theatre |
| 2013 | The Tempest | Miranda | Shakespeare's Globe |
| Gabriel | Kate | Shakespeare's Globe | |
| Henry V | Katherine | Noël Coward Theatre | |
| 2015 | The Winter's Tale | Perdita | Garrick Theatre |
| 2021–2022 | Cabaret | Sally Bowles | Playhouse Theatre |
Collaborative albums
Soundtrack albums
In 2026, Buckley was awarded theGolden Globe for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture—Drama for her role as Agnes Shakespeare (Anne Hathaway) in the motion pictureHamnet. She was also nominated in the Best Actress category in the 2026Academy Awards.[69]
In 2019, she was recognised byForbes in its annual30 Under 30 list.[70] In 2020, she was listed at number 38 onThe Irish Times' list of Ireland's greatest film actors of all time.[71]
Jessie Buckley was born in Killarney, Co Kerry, in December 1989 and is the eldest of one brother and three sisters.
The 32-year-old Kerry star...
However, the pact does not include "Bond 26," the next chapter in the James Bond series, as well as director Chinonye Chukwu's historical drama "Till" (set for Oct. 14) and "Women Talking" (Dec. 2). Universal Pictures International is handling the rollout for those films outside the U.S. as part of a previous distribution agreement between the two companies.
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