Theo James

Theodore Peter James Kinnaird Taptiklis was born on 16 December 1984 in High Wycombe, England.[1][2] He is the son of Philip Taptiklis, a business consultant, and Jane (née Martin), who worked for the National Health Service.[3][4][5] His paternal grandfather was Greek (he moved from the Peloponnese to New Zealand).[6] His other ancestry is English and Scottish.[7] James is the youngest of five children, having two older brothers and two older sisters.[7][8]

James was raised in Askett, Buckinghamshire, England.[9] He attended Aylesbury Grammar School and went on to earn his undergraduate degree in philosophy from the University of Nottingham. He trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.[10][11]

In 2010, James made his television debut in two episodes of A Passionate Woman, starring opposite Billie Piper.[11][12] He played Turkish diplomat Kemal Pamuk in an episode of the first season of Downton Abbey.[13] His film credits include You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010). James was cast in Stranger while still in his final year at drama school. He was named a "Star of Tomorrow" in 2009 by Screen International.[14]

In 2011, James starred in the short-lived horror series, Bedlam, playing the lead role of Jed Harper. James played James, an obnoxious night club rep, in the British comedy, The Inbetweeners Movie (2011).

In 2012, James appeared in the TV-mini series, Room at the Top as Jack Wales and ITV's Case Sensitive as Aiden Harper.[15] He was in the films, The Domino Effect (2012) and the fourth installment of Underworld: Awakening (2012), playing the role of David, opposite Kate Beckinsale.[16] James starred as Detective Walter William Clark Jr. alongside Chi McBride in the American crime-drama series Golden Boy (2013), which aired for only one season.[17]

James at the Divergent premiere in 2014

His breakthrough role was portraying the character of Tobias "Four" Eaton in Divergent (2014), the film adaptation based on the New York Times bestselling novels by Veronica Roth.[18] James reprised the character in the sequel, The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015).[19]

In 2015, he became the brand ambassador for Hugo Boss fragrances for men, appearing in print ads and commercials.[20]

James starred alongside Amber Heard, Billy Bob Thornton and Jim Sturgess in the film adaptation of London Fields,[21] and in the indie drama The Benefactor (2015), alongside Richard Gere and Dakota Fanning.[22][23]

He returned in one more Divergent film, The Divergent Series: Allegiant (2016). He reprised his character David in the fifth Underworld film, that time as the film's male lead.[24][25]

James executive produced and starred as Michael in Backstabbing for Beginners (2018). He starred as Will Younger in the Netflix film, How It Ends (2018).

In 2019, James executive produced and played Sidney Parker in British series Sanditon as a male lead. It is an eight-part period-drama adaptation of Jane Austen's final novel, written only months before her death in 1817. James will not reprise his role for the series' second and third seasons. He then executive produced and starred in the film Lying and Stealing. James launched his own film and TV production company called Untapped that same year.[26]

James produced and appeared in the 2020 British science fiction film Archive, playing a robotics scientist working on a hidden project involving building a prototype based on his dead wife.[27] He is set to star in the drama series The Time Traveler's Wife and play a series regular role in the second season of the satire series The White Lotus.[28][29]

James is married to Irish actress Ruth Kearney. The two met at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.[30] They divide their time between Venice Beach, California, and North London.[1]

Outside his acting career, James was the singer and guitarist of the London-based band Shere Khan, which disbanded in 2012.[31]

In June 2016, James travelled to Greece with UNHCR, where he met Syrian refugees and learned more about their situation.[32] He has since been a supporter of refugees' rights and called for greater humanitarian aid for people displaced by the Syrian Civil War.[33][34][35]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Theo James.

• Theo James at IMDb