Daniel Jacob Radcliffe is an English actor. He rose to fame at age twelve, when he began portraying Harry Potter in the film series of the same name. Over his career, Radcliffe has received various awards and nominations.

Radcliffe made his acting debut at age 10 in the BBC One television film David Copperfield (1999), followed by his feature film debut in The Tailor of Panama (2001). The same year, he starred as Harry Potter in the film adaptation of the J.K. Rowling fantasy novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Over the next decade, he played the eponymous role in seven sequels, culminating with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011). During this period, he became one of the world's highest-paid actors and gained worldwide fame, popularity, and critical acclaim.

Following the success of Harry Potter, Radcliffe challenged himself acting in a variety of genres such as the romantic comedy What If? (2013), the horror films The Woman in Black (2012) and Victor Frankenstein (2015), the comedy-drama film Swiss Army Man (2016), the heist thriller film Now You See Me 2 (2016), and the action comedy The Lost City (2022). He earned critical acclaim for his portrayals of poet Allen Ginsberg in the drama film Kill Your Darlings (2013), FBI agent Nate Foster in the thriller film Imperium (2016), and Weird Al Yankovic in the comedy Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (2022) earning a Critics' Choice Television Award for the latter. Since 2019, he has starred in the TBS anthology series Miracle Workers.

Radcliffe branched out to stage acting in 2007, starring in the West End and Broadway productions of Equus. From 2011 to 2012 he portrayed J. Pierrepont Finch in the Broadway revival of the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. He continued in Martin McDonagh's dark comedy The Cripple of Inishmaan (2013–2014) in the West End and Broadway and a revival of Tom Stoppard's play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (2017) at The Old Vic. He also starred in the satirical plays Privacy (2016) and The Lifespan of a Fact (2018), respectively off and on Broadway. In 2022, he starred in the New York Theatre Workshop revival of Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along.

Radcliffe has contributed to many charities, including Demelza Hospice Care for Children and the Trevor Project; the latter awarded him its Hero Award in 2011.

Early life

Daniel Jacob Radcliffe was born at Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital in Hammersmith, London, England on 23 July 1989, the only child of Marcia Jeannine Gresham (née Jacobson) and literary agent Alan George Radcliffe. His Jewish mother was born in South Africa, traces her ancestry to Jewish immigrants from Germany, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia, and was raised in the English town of Westcliff-on-Sea in Essex. His Northern Irish father was raised in a "very working-class" Protestant family in Banbridge in County Down. In 2019, he explored both sides of his family history in the BBC genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are? Radcliffe's parents had both acted as children. As a casting agent, his mother was involved in BBC productions including The Inspector Lynley Mysteries.

Radcliffe was educated at three private schools for boys in London: Redcliffe School, Sussex House School, and the City of London School. After the release of the first Harry Potter film, attending school proved difficult for him as some fellow pupils became hostile, though he states that they were just trying to "have a crack at the kid that plays Harry Potter" rather than acting out of jealousy. As his acting career began to consume his schedule, he continued his education through on-set tutors. He has admitted to not being a very good student, considering school useless and finding the work "really difficult". He achieved A grades in the three AS level exams that he took in 2006, but decided to take a break from education and did not attend university. Part of his reasoning was that he already knew he wanted to be an actor and screenwriter, and that it would be difficult to have a normal college experience.

Career

1999–2001: Acting debut and early career

Radcliffe first expressed a desire to act at age five. After one of his mother's casting agent friends secured him an audition, he made his acting debut at age ten in BBC One's two-part adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel David Copperfield (1999), portraying the title character as a young boy. He made his film debut in The Tailor of Panama (2001), an American film based on John le Carré's 1996 spy novel, which was a moderate commercial success.

2001–2011: Stardom with Harry Potter

In 2000, producer David Heyman met Radcliffe while he was at the theatre with his father, a well-known literary agent who Heyman was friends with. He asked him to audition for the role of Harry Potter for the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the best-selling book by British author J. K. Rowling. Rowling had been searching for an unknown British actor to personify the character, and the film's director Chris Columbus recalled thinking, "This is what I want. This is Harry Potter" after he saw a video of the young actor in David Copperfield. Eight months later, following several auditions, Radcliffe was selected to play the part. Rowling endorsed the selection, saying: “I don't think Chris Columbus could have found a better Harry.” Radcliffe's parents originally turned down the offer, as they had been told that it would involve six films shot in Los Angeles. Warner Bros. instead offered Radcliffe a two-film contract with shooting in the UK; Radcliffe was unsure at the time if he would act in more than two Harry Potter films.

The release of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone took place in 2001. Radcliffe received a seven-figure salary for the lead role, but asserted that the fee was "not that important" to him; his parents chose to invest the money for him. The film was highly popular and was met with positive reviews, and critics took notice of Radcliffe: "Radcliffe is the embodiment of every reader's imagination. It is wonderful to see a young hero who is so scholarly looking and filled with curiosity and who connects with very real emotions, from solemn intelligence and the delight of discovery to deep family longing," wrote Bob Graham of the San Francisco Chronicle.

2002–2008: West End and Broadway Theatre debut

In 2002, Radcliffe made his stage debut as a celebrity guest in a West End production of The Play What I Wrote, directed by Kenneth Branagh—who also appeared with him in the second Harry Potter film. He appeared in the film December Boys, an Australian family drama about four orphans that was shot in 2005 and released to theaters in mid-September 2007. On 13 April 2006, a portrait of Radcliffe by Stuart Pearson Wright was unveiled as part of a new exhibition opening at the National Theatre, before being moved to the National Portrait Gallery.

In 2007, Radcliffe co-starred with Carey Mulligan in My Boy Jack, a television drama film shown on ITV. The film received mostly positive reviews, with several critics praising Radcliffe's performance as an eighteen-year-old who goes missing in action during a battle. Radcliffe stated, “For many people my age, the First World War is just a topic in a history book. But I've always been fascinated by the subject and think it's as relevant today as it ever was.” Later that year, he published several poems under the pen name Jacob Gershon—a combination of his middle name and the Hebrew version of his mother's maiden name Gresham—in the underground fashion magazine Rubbish.

2010–2018: Return to Broadway and independent films

After voicing a character in The Simpsons episode "Treehouse of Horror XXI" in late 2010, Radcliffe debuted as J. Pierrepont Finch in a 2011 Broadway revival How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre. The role had previously been played by Robert Morse and Matthew Broderick. Other cast members included John Larroquette, Rose Hemingway and Mary Faber. Both the actor and production received favourable reviews, with USA Today commenting: “Radcliffe ultimately succeeds not by overshadowing his fellow cast members, but by working in conscientious harmony with them – and having a blast in the process.” Radcliffe's performance in the show earned him Drama Desk Award, Drama League Award and Outer Critics Circle Award nominations. The production itself later received nine Tony Award nominations. Radcliffe left the show on 1 January 2012.

Radcliffe's first post-Harry Potter project was the 2012 horror film The Woman in Black, adapted from the 1983 novel by Susan Hill. The film was released on 3 February 2012 in the United States and Canada, and was released on 10 February in the UK. Radcliffe portrays a man sent to deal with the legal matters of a mysterious woman who has just died, and soon after he begins to experience strange events and hauntings from the ghost of a woman dressed in black. He has said he was "incredibly excited" to be part of the film and described the script as "beautifully written"

2019–present: Television series and continued work

In 2019, Radcliffe starred as Craig in the TBS comedy limited series Miracle Workers based on the book by Simon Rich. The show's second season premiered on 28 January 2020. He voice–starred as Rex Dasher, a secret agent who helps Marla, in the animated film Playmobil: The Movie directed by Lino DiSalvo. In 2020, Radcliffe starred as Miles in the action comedy film Guns Akimbo directed by Jason Lei Howden and co-starring Samara Weaving and Natasha Liu Bordizzo. He also starred as Tim Jenkin in the thriller film Escape from Pretoria, based on the real-life prison escape by three young political prisoners from jail in South Africa in 1979. He also played the role of Prince Frederick in the Netflix special Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt opposite Ellie Kemper.

Radcliffe reunited with multiple cast members of the Harry Potter film series for an HBO Max special titled Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, which was released on 1 January 2022. Radcliffe stars as the villain in the action-adventure comedy film The Lost City, opposite Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum. He portrayed musician "Weird Al" Yankovic in Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, a biographical parody film produced for The Roku Channel.

In early 2022, Radcliffe returned to the stage acting in the New York Theatre Workshop revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical Merrily We Roll Along playing Charley Kringas. He starred alongside Jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. The revival started on 21 November 2022, and is set to open on 12 December 2022. The production will run for a limited engagement through 8 January 2023.

Personal life

Radcliffe splits his time between homes in the Fulham area of London and the West Village neighbourhood of New York City's Manhattan borough. He has been in a relationship with American actress Erin Darke since 2012, after having met on the set of Kill Your Darlings. In March 2023, they were confirmed to be expecting their first child together. Darke gave birth the next month.

In 2008, Radcliffe revealed that he has a mild form of the neurological disorder dyspraxia, which sometimes prevents him from doing simple activities such as writing or tying his shoelaces. He said, “I was having a hard time at school, in terms of being crap at everything, with no discernible talent.”

Radcliffe has expressed his fondness for rap music and admitted to having "an obsession with memorising complicated, lyrically intricate and fast songs". On 28 October 2014, he rapped the 1999 Blackalicious song "Alphabet Aerobics" during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Radcliffe is close to his family, whom he credits for keeping him grounded. In August 2010, he became teetotal after finding himself becoming too reliant on alcohol. In March 2020, he appeared as the guest on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, where he discussed his alcohol misuse during his teens and his decision to become teetotal, and how his parents' support and staying in his native England helped him cope with fame.

Radcliffe stated of his beliefs in 2012: “There was never [religious] faith in the house. I think of myself as being Jewish and Irish, despite the fact that I'm English.” He has said that his family are “Christmas tree Jews” also he said: “I'm an atheist, but I'm very proud of being Jewish. It means I have a good work ethic, and you get Jewish humour and you're allowed to tell Jewish jokes. For instance: did you hear how copper wire was invented? Two Jews fighting over a penny. And so on.” In 2009, he stated that he was an atheist and said, “I'm very relaxed about [being an atheist]. I don't preach my atheism, but I have a huge amount of respect for people like Richard Dawkins who do. Anything he does on television, I will watch.” However, he was quoted as saying in 2012, “I'm an atheist, and a militant atheist when religion starts impacting on legislation.” In 2019, he described himself as "agnostic leaning toward atheism".