While most actors separate their debut and breakthrough roles, Owen Cooper combined them as Jamie Miller in Adolescence, a 2025 Netflix miniseries. At just sixteen years old, Cooper has won five awards for his performance. In addition to a Gotham TV Award and National Television Award, Cooper in September became the youngest male Primetime Emmy award winner when he was fifteen. He is also the youngest male winner in his category at the Critics Choice Award and Golden Globes.
Owen Cooper is an English actor born in Warrington, England, UK. His passion for acting originally stemmed from watching Tom Holland’s The Impossible and being a big Stranger Things fanatic. After attending a few acting classes in Manchester, Cooper only thought of acting as a hobby. A few weeks later, he auditioned for Adolescence with two self tapes portraying a guilty and an innocent schoolboy walking into the headmaster’s office. Cooper’s impressive improv led him to in person call backs and finally landing the lead. According to IMDB, Stephen Graham, who played Cooper’s father in Adolescence, was so impressed by his audition turned co-writer saying, “I think that’s him”.
Adolescence follows a fictional story of a police investigation of 13-year-old Jamie Miller, who is accused of murdering his classmate Katie. Cooper stars in two of the four episodes in the series. Cooper acts as a fearful and distressed teenager. While sitting in the back of the cop car, he begs to see his parents, acting confused, vulnerable, and annoyed. His acting convinces the audience to question whether he is innocent or guilty.
The third episode, scoring the highest of all four episodes with 9.1/10 on IMDB, features Cooper’s therapy scene, which many reviewers describe as almost perfection. Jamie acts charming and innocent until he suddenly changes to threatening. The psychologist puts a sandwich Jamie dislikes on one side of the table and a hot chocolate on the other. Psychologist Danielle Haig claims the hot chocolate is a comforting and warm offering, while the sandwich is a psychological test to decide if he eats it, comments on it, or leaves it. Cooper dramatically embodies his character’s emotions in this intense scene.
After wrapping up the film, Graham introduced Cooper to his agent, who helped him land the role of Young Heathcliff in Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights adaptation, currently showing in theatres.
Image Source: Los Angeles Times