On September 14th, the Emmy’s revealed the winner of ‘Best Supporting Actor.’ The crowd erupts in a ferocious applause as 15-year-old Owen Cooper made his way up to the stage, earning his title from his debut role as Jamie in Adolescence. In accordance with his win, Owen is officially the youngest male to ever receive this award, dethroning Scott Jacoby for his 1973 role in That Certain Summer. “I was nothing three years ago, and I’m here now,” Cooper says on stage. “If you listen and you focus and you step out of your comfort zone, you can achieve anything in life.” Owen’s quick rise to fame supports his speech, encouraging the youth to reach for their aspirations. But who is Owen Cooper, and what is the story behind his immense success? 

       Owen was born in Northern England in December of 2009. His parents, Andy and Noreen Cooper, have been active advocates and supporters throughout the entirety of his acting career. They accompanied Owen to the Emmys, beaming in pride as they applauded their victorious son. Owen jokes with reporters about the origin of his acting skills, considering that his brothers are electricians and his mother is a carer. As a carer, Owen’s mother works with any person facing a disability or an illness. His father, Andy, works in IT (information technology industry). His career is primarily centered around green energy and the statistics and analysis within it. Owen is also accompanied by two brothers, Connor and Ollie. Owen’s initial career dream was to be a soccer player, which was converted after watching Tom Holland in The Impossible. Following his revelation, Owen convinced his parents to place him in acting classes. Owen says his parents were taken aback, given that he’d been vocal about his desire to play soccer professionally. Considering that Owen was a minor with a full-time job, his parents accompanied him on the set of Adolescence. While filming, Noreen underwent an operation that required a large amount of recovery time. “They would swap over sometimes because at the time my mum had an operation so she had to stay home for most of episode three,” the Emmy-winning actor said. Regardless of rules or safety precautions, Owen’s parents simply marveled at the incredible natural performance talent he held.

              Owen made his incredibly notorious debut in Adolescence, where he portrays a child convicted of murder. Each episode is filmed in a single-shot take, which only further recognizes Owen’s talent. Memorizing an entire 50 minute scene is not done without immense struggle and persistence, particularly for an entirely inexperienced actor. Owen reflects on his cumbersome shooting days, recalling the hours of memorization needed and the minimal time the show was given to film. Prior to his breakout role, Owen’s acting experience did not expand beyond weekly acting classes at the Drama MOB school in Manchester, England. When Owen was made aware of the upcoming role, he submitted a self-tape to casting director Shaheen Baig. He was chosen out of a pool of roughly 500 teenage boys, greatly in accordance with his natural performance style and indefinite passion for cinema. In Owen’s audition video, he was asked to submit separate clips of himself, portraying both an innocent character and a guilty character. Shaheen Baig noted Owen’s intelligence and natural camera presence. Upon viewing his audition video, Baig knew it was clear that Owen was the one.

           After his win at the Emmy’s, Owen is flooded with an abundance of opportunities within the film industry. In 2026, Owen is scheduled to appear as a young Heathcliff in the upcoming film adaptation of Wuthering Heights and as Callumm in the BBC TV mini-series Film Club. Owen Cooper’s win serves as an inspiration for aspiring actors, particularly among the youth. “Tonight proves if you listen, and you focus and you step out of your comfort zone, you can achieve anything in life,” Owen says in his victory speech. “It may be my name on the wall but it really belongs to the people behind the camera.” Now, Owen Cooper serves as a pivotal media figure within the new generation. Owen Cooper joins a growing list of Gen-Z actors, which includes notorious teenage actors such as McKenna Grace, Mason Thames, Ariana Greenblatt, and many more. These fresh names are soon to serve as the new face of Hollywood, and Owen Cooper’s win has certainly laid the fundamentals for a highly successful career in the film industry.