Rise to Fame
He found his first film role from a casting notice taped in a shop window in Dublin's Sheriff Street. His film education came from sneaking into Cineworld on Parnell Street until they eventually banned him. He did Love/Hate and small parts for years before Christopher Nolan cast him in Dunkirk, and Yorgos Lanthimos put him in The Killing of a Sacred Deer, both in 2017. He didn't look like either director's usual collaborator, which turned out to be the point. The Banshees of Inisherin in 2022 earned him a BAFTA and an Oscar nomination and cemented the argument.
In the Spotlight
Saltburn gave him a lead role that required carrying every unsettling beat of Emerald Fennell's psychological thriller, and he didn't flinch. The film became one of the more discussed releases of 2023. Since then he's done Masters of the Air, Bird, landed a Dior ambassadorship, and been cast as Ringo Starr in Sam Mendes' Beatles biopic series due in 2028. The split from Sabrina Carpenter in late 2024 generated tabloid coverage without affecting his booking rate. He's working like someone who knows exactly how rare this moment is.
Side Notes
Seven years across 13 foster homes after his mother died from drug addiction when he was 12. He has said he lost his father, two uncles, and a cousin to drugs. He was arrested in April 2022 for drunk and disorderly conduct outside a Dublin apartment complex. He has a son, Brando, from a previous relationship, and has pushed back publicly against online attacks on his parenting. The rough edges aren't packaging. They're just the actual story.