Owen Cooper, a 16-year-old from Warrington, has made history by winning the Golden Globe for best supporting male actor for his role in Netflix's 'Adolescence'. The drama, which explores male toxicity, was one of the big winners at the ceremony, taking four awards. Cooper described the experience as 'not feeling real'.
Cooper's journey began at the Drama Mob, a school co-founded by Coronation Street actor Tina O'Brien. Esther Morgan, co-founder, said Cooper's talent was evident from the start. 'You could tell he definitely wanted it. He wasn't messing around when it came to listening, taking direction and learning his lines.'
Cooper's success is already inspiring more boys to take up drama. Morgan noted a 'huge drop-off' in boys attending her classes after primary school, but since Cooper's rise, more boys have joined. 'Having that role model of saying, yeah, I went to drama classes, I gave it a go, I think that really has helped some of those boys to just go out the comfort zone.'
Co-writer Jack Thorne praised Cooper's dedication, recalling that he arrived for rehearsals 'word perfect'. Thorne hopes the show's success could usher in a new wave of working-class British dramas. 'I know from trying to sell stuff I've made abroad before that accents and British issues were not seen as having an audience abroad. But who knows?'
Morgan is also a passionate advocate for northern actors, who she says are being cut out as the industry centralises in London. 'More shows need to be made and produced up here. We need more casting directors working here because for some of our young people they don't have the funds to travel up and down to London for castings.'
