Edward George Skrein (; born 29 March 1983) is a British actor, film director, screenwriter and rapper. He gained experience as an actor in independent films or television series. In the years that followed, he became known for portraying

Daario Naharis Daario Naharis is a fictional character in the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin and its television adaptation '' Game of Thrones''. Introduced in ''A Storm of Swords'' (2000), Daario is ...

in the third season of the television series ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of '' A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the fir ...

''. Skrein later rose to greater recognition portraying the villain Francis Freeman/Ajax in the superhero-comedy film ''

Deadpool Deadpool is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Fabian Nicieza and artist/writer Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (cover-dated Feb. 1991). Initially, Deadpo ...

'' (2016). Skrein went on to replace Jason Statham in the action film '' The Transporter: Refueled'' (2015) and portrayed the cocky bounty-hunting

cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.

Zapan in '' Alita: Battle Angel'' (2019). He later starred as Lt. Dick Best in the war film '' Midway'' (2019). Skrein made his directorial debut with the short film ''Little River Run'' (2020), which he released on his Instagram.

Early life

Skrein was born in Camden, London, England, and was raised there and in other London boroughs,

Haringey The London Borough of Haringey (pronounced , same as Harringay) is a London borough in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation of ...

and

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ...

. He is of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

and Austrian Jewish descent. Skrein attended

Fortismere School Fortismere School (simply referred to as Fortismere) is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form located in Muswell Hill, Greater London, England. In 2016, it was ranked by ''The Sunday Times'' as the 12th best comprehensive school in th ...

. He graduated from

Byam Shaw School of Art The Byam Shaw School of Art, often known simply as Byam Shaw, was an independent art school in London, England, which specialised in fine art and offered foundation and degree level courses. It was founded in 1910 by John Liston Byam Shaw and ...

, a public tertiary art school, with a BA Hons degree in fine art painting.

Career

Music

In 2004, Skrein released a three track EP under the record label Dented Records. In 2007, he released his first album, ''The Eat Up''. He has collaborated with a variety of artists including

Foreign Beggars Foreign Beggars were an English hip hop and dubstep group. Since their formation in 2002, the group's trajectory had seen them evolve from an underground hip hop group to an electronic crossover act. The group consisted of four artists individ ...

Asian Dub Foundation Asian Dub Foundation (ADF) is an English electronic music band that combines musical styles including rap rock, dub, dancehall, ragga, and South Asian music. The group also includes traditional rock instruments such as electric bass and guit ...

Plan B Plan B typically refers to a contingency plan, a plan devised for an outcome other than in the expected plan. Plan B may also refer to: * Plan B, a brand name of levonorgestrel, an emergency contraception drug Film and television * Plan B Ent ...

, Dubbledge and Doc Brown. Later that year, Skrein released a collaborative EP, ''Pre-Emptive Nostalgia'', with the group

A State of Mind ''A State of Mind'' is a 2004 documentary film directed by Daniel Gordon and produced by Nicholas Bonner.Justin Corfield, ''Historical Dictionary of Pyongyang 2013'', page 16 "Nick Bonner has also been involved in the production of a number o ...

. In 2009 Skrein collaborated with rapper Dr Syntax to bring the collaborative album ''Scene Stealers'' under the name Skreintax.

Acting

Skrein made his acting debut in

's short film ''Michelle''. Skrein got his first lead role in Plan B's '' Ill Manors''. Skrein portrayed

in the third season of the television series ''

''. However, in the fourth season of the series, he was replaced by Dutch actor

Michiel Huisman Michiel Huisman (; born 18 July 1981) is a Dutch actor who has acted in both Dutch and English-language TV series and films. Huisman began his career in the Dutch soap opera ''Goede tijden, slechte tijden'' (1998). He later played in the Dutc ...

. Skrein states that it was not his choice to leave the show. In 2014, Skrein was cast in '' The Transporter: Refueled'', replacing Jason Statham as the lead. Though the film was critically panned, his performance was praised. In 2016, Skrein played the lead villain,

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...

, in the blockbuster action film ''

''. In 2017 Skrein also appeared in the music video for 'Eye Contact' by Ocean Wisdom playing the bad guy. In 2018, Skrein starred in psychological revenge thriller, '' In Darkness'', alongside

Natalie Dormer Natalie Dormer (born 11 February 1982)Stacy Martin Stacy Martin (born 20 March 1990) is a French actress. Her breakthrough role was playing Joe as a young woman in Lars von Trier's 2013 drama film ''Nymphomaniac''. Early life Martin was born in Paris, where she spent her early childhood. She m ...

; principal photography began in early 2016. He was slated to star in the ''Hellboy'' reboot as

Ben Daimio Benjamin Daimio is a fictional comic book character who appears in Dark Horse Comics books featuring Hellboy and the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, of which Daimio is an employee. Created by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi and Guy Davis, D ...

, a Japanese-American character; after controversy over his casting, Skrein announced on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that he was stepping down from the role in the hopes an actor of the proper ethnicity would be cast. On 8 November 2019, he starred in

Roland Emmerich Roland Emmerich (; born 10 November 1955) is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. He is widely known for his science fiction and disaster films and has been called a "master of disaster" within the industry. His films, most of wh ...

’s blockbuster movie '' Midway'', co-starring

Mandy Moore Amanda Leigh Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to fame with her debut single, "Candy", which peaked at number 41 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Her debut studio album, '' So Real'' (1999), recei ...

Patrick Wilson Patrick Joseph Wilson (born July 3, 1973) is an American actor and director. He began his career in 1995, starring in Broadway musicals. He received nominations for two Tony Awards for his roles in ''The Full Monty'' (2000–2001) and ''Oklahoma ...

Luke Evans Luke George Evans (born 15 April 1979) is a Welsh actor and singer. He began his career on the stage, performing in many of London's West End productions such as ''Rent'', ''Miss Saigon'', and '' Piaf'' before making his film breakthrough in ...

Aaron Eckhart Aaron Edward Eckhart (born March 12, 1968) is an American actor. Born in Cupertino, California, Eckhart moved to the United Kingdom at an early age. He began his acting career by performing in school plays, before moving to Australia for his h ...

Nick Jonas Nicholas Jerry Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Jonas began acting on Broadway at the age of seven, and released his debut single in 2002; this caught the attention of Columbia Records, where Jonas ...

Dennis Quaid Dennis William Quaid (born April 9, 1954) is an American actor known for a wide variety of dramatic and comedic roles. First gaining widespread attention in the late 1970s, some of his notable credits include '' Breaking Away'' (1979), '' The ...

and

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor and playwright. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...

. In 2022, Skrein starred as Vince in ''I Used to Be Famous''. Leslie Felperin, writing for ''The Guardian'', gave the film 3/5 stars, calling it a "sweet-natured but predictable comedy drama".

Writing and directing

Skrein made his directing debut by directing and writing the short drama film ''Little River Run'' which he released on 20 July 2020 at his Instagram.

Personal life

Since he was 12 years old, Skrein has been a swimming coach for Greenwich Leisure Limited working at leisure centres such as Caledonian Road Pool and Gym and Archway Pool.

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

Ed Skrein
at the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Skrein, Ed English hip hop musicians English male film actors English male rappers English male television actors English people of Austrian-Jewish descent Grime music artists Living people Male actors from London Rappers from London 21st-century English male actors 1983 births