Biography
Date of Birth
11 December 1993, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, UK
Height
5' 8" (1.73 m)
Trivia
Attended St Julie's Catholic High School in Liverpool with British track & field athlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson.
Is a huge Bruce Springsteen fan.
As of 2019 still lives with her parents Jimmy and Donna in Liverpool where her dad works for Everton Football Club.
Before her acting career took off, she worked as a checkout girl in a Tesco supermarket and worked in a bar for some time.
She turned down the chance to appear in Strictly Come Dancing (2004). Instead, she went with her mother and her grandmother to the studio to watch it live.
She got the call to audition for Killing Eve (2018) while nursing a hangover, following a party night with friends at a music festival in Barcelona. Despite feeling that she had little chances, she took the 13-hour flight to Los Angeles anyway. After five minutes in reading with Sandra Oh, she landed the part.
While filming their scenes in Good Cop (2012), Stephen Graham was so impressed by her talent that he proceeded to call his agent Jane Epstein. She then arranged a meeting with Jodie and later became her agent, which kickstarted her acting career. When Jodie won her BAFTA award for Killing Eve (2018), she thanked Graham for introducing her to Epstein and making her career possible.
She is a supporter of Tyred, a road safety charity that campaigns to outlaw old coach tyres.
Jodie's "Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series" Emmy for Killing Eve (2018) was presented to her by Gwyneth Paltrow.
Jodie's cinematic crush is Paul Rudd, especially his character Peter from I Love You, Man (2009).
In 2019, at the age of 26, she became the youngest winner of the Emmy in the category "Best Actress in a Drama Series", a record previously held by Lindsay Wagner, who was 28. One year later, the record was broken by Zendaya, who won the Emmy at the age of 24.
Quotes
My first professional audition was for a radio play in Manchester. That was the first audition that I got. It was my first paid job, which I think was, like, £150, and I thought it was megabucks.
It's going to be very, very different from 'The White Queen.' Rather than it being a follow-up, I think 'The White Princess' is definitely a standalone show.
It's so nice when you go on to a job and you've worked with someone before.
With acting, you have to just tell the truth in each moment.
You do have to challenge yourself. I think scared is a good thing.
I feel particularly passionate about being a part of 'Rillington Place' because I've never had a job where I've felt so much responsibility and I've had to handle something with so much delicacy, because this story and these people were real.
I don't know if it's the way I've been brought up or if it's because I spend so much time away that I appreciate being at home so much.
I love characters who can rile an audience so much - it means you've done your job well.
I always find with dramas that the more that's left to the imagination of the audience, the better.
I feel, in drama, you don't need to be fed everything. Even though sometimes when you watch, you want to know what happened and you want to see it, I feel like sometimes it's so much stronger to see the effects that those actions have had.
I find if my character is more glamorous, I become more conscious of what I look like.
I just love making people laugh.
I was a natural drama queen when I was younger. I was always doing impersonations and showing off.
There's something refreshing about going into filming and not brushing your hair, letting your toenails chip, drawing darker circles under your eyes.
I think everything happens for a reason.
I'm a big believer in fate, and it's working out well so far.
When you get scripts and you really enjoy reading them, you know it's a good project.
I came off Snapchat. I was done with it... I think I spent too much time on it.
You have to be confident enough to pick yourself up and go to 30 meetings and be told no every time and not take that to heart.
I'd love to do something where I have to completely transform. Or something that is very physical and would test me with discipline in that way. Something that I'd maybe have to train for.
I feel like when you perform in a period drama, it's so easy to transform yourself into someone else because the costumes are so different.
Liverpudlians have an amazing sense of humour, and they're very loyal and warm. All my family and friends are there, so when I'm not filming, I like to go back and catch up with everyone. We're a very close family.
When you wear the costumes in a period drama, you already feel like a different person - the clothes make you stand differently, change your posture, the way you walk. You really have to have stamina - you have two hours in hair and makeup, and then another hour to remove all that.
In 'The White Princess,' the women are leading the story, and they're holding everything together. It's definitely a world of women's empowerment.
I think, in history, we often see a false representation of women. The men are always the successors and, supposedly, of their own merit, which I don't believe to be to true.
A lot of things in my career have happened by chance.
I grew up watching Keira Knightley films nonstop, and I always admired period dramas and just everything that goes into it.
Emotions fascinate me, just being able to express myself through acting. I love that. And I think, in everyday life, you're always trying to repress your emotions. Like if you're sad, you don't want to show it to someone else.
I don't think talent or an instinct for acting is something you can teach.
I'd always wanted to do costume drama, but period dramas often become very wooden. Just because they're born in the 1400s, all of a sudden people start losing their sense of humour or their personalities.
My mum used to always say to me, 'What's meant for you won't pass you by,' and it's true. If I didn't get something, it wasn't meant for me.
I used to sing when I was into local theatre but gave it up to concentrate on dance.
I don't speak any other languages, which I'm kind of ashamed about, actually.
As an actor, you have to find reasons why your character made her decisions, and you have to empathise with her.
To read a piece of material from a period drama told from the woman's perspective is just so unique.
Watching 'Morvern Callar' was a game changer for me.
I'd done acting at a local drama school on Saturdays. I just enjoyed it. It never entered my mind I could possibly do it for a career.
A movie that makes me cry every time is 'Billy Elliot.' That scene where he's dancing in the hall, and his dad walks in. And the first time his dad can see how amazing he is dancing, but he's so conflicted with kind of his own feelings towards it. Oh, it's so emotional.
I'm constantly learning with each new job, especially about people, which is important for playing characters.
I know who I am, I know my truth and that's good enough for me
