Ewen Leslie
Ewen Leslie | |
|---|---|
| Born | 27 July 1980 Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia |
| Education | John Curtin College of the Arts[1] Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (2000)[2] |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Partner | Nicole O'Donohue[3][4] |
| Children | 2[3][4] |
Ewen Leslie (born 27 July 1980) is an Australian actor.
Early life and education
Leslie is from Fremantle, Western Australia. He was acting in school plays at the age of ten. After seeing a newspaper advertisement for auditions for children's series Ship to Shore, he secured a role on the show from the age of 12 to 14. From there he attended high school at John Curtin College of the Arts, via a theatre scholarship, attending at the same time as fellow actor Sam Worthington, who was several years older.[1]
Leslie wanted to attend Sydney's National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) after his senior year, but missed the auditions.[1] Instead, he ended up studying acting at Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) in Perth, graduating in 2000.[2]
Career
Theatre
After graduating from WAAPA, Leslie moved to Sydney, and between bar work shifts at the Old Fitzroy Hotel, he began performing in shows at the venue. His first paid stage-acting job was a small part in a 2007 production of Paul at Belvoir Theatre, which lead to further stage roles at Belvoir. He eventually scored a role in Riflemind, a play by Andrew Upton which for Sydney Theatre Company directed by Oscar-winning actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman and starring Hugo Weaving and Martin Csokas. His performance caught the attention of Cate Blanchett.[1][5]
He joined the STC Actors Company in 2008 and won a Helpmann Award[6] and a Sydney Theatre Award[7] for his performance as Prince Hal/Henry V opposite Cate Blanchett in The War of the Roses (directed by Benedict Andrews).[8]
In 2010, Leslie played Richard III at the Melbourne Theatre Company directed by Simon Philips. Alison Croggon in The Australian wrote: "This is a deeply intelligent performance, physically and emotionally unafraid. It marks the ascension of a remarkable actor".[9] He won his second Helpmann Award and a Green Room Award for this performance.
The following year, Leslie played Hamlet in a sellout season at the Melbourne Theatre Company,[10] a role he would reprise in 2013 in Sydney for Belvoir St Theatre. He played one of the lead roles in The Wild Duck (directed by Simon Stone)[11] which had successful seasons in Sydney, Melbourne and Oslo for The Ibsen Festival.
In 2013 he was The Player in STC's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead opposite Toby Schmitz and Tim Minchin.[12] In 2015 he travelled to Paris to perform in Simon Stone's production of Thyestes, and played the title role in Belvoir's production of Ivanov.[13]
In 2021, Leslie returned to the Sydney Theatre Company to perform in Kip Williams' production of Julius Caesar performed by only three actors.
Film and television
Leslie's first break came when he was cast as the lead role in 2005 drama Jewboy, a film that screened at the Cannes Film Festival and Sundance Film Festival. He has since played lead roles in several drama films – Three Blind Mice (2008), Dead Europe (2012), The Daughter (2015) and The Butterfly Tree (2017). His other film appearances include war film Kokoda (2006), erotic psychological horror drama Sleeping Beauty (2011), war drama The Railway Man (2013), black comedy The Mule (2014), outback drama Sweet Country (2017) and colonial thriller The Nightingale (2017). Leslie also voiced the character of Pigling Bland in the live action / animated Peter Rabbit films.[14]
His notable television roles include Operation Buffalo, The Luminaries, The Gloaming, The Cry, Safe Harbour, Fighting Season, Deadline Gallipoli, Devil's Dust, Mabo, Redfern Now and Rake.
In 2017, Leslie won an AACTA Award for his role as Pyke in the second season of Top of the Lake, opposite Elisabeth Moss, Nicole Kidman and Alice Englert. Maureen Ryan in Variety wrote that his performance was "subtle and powerful", while Michael Idato in the Sydney Morning Herald wrote, "In a world where fame is fleeting and often hoisted upon the undeserved, Leslie is a proper revelation. He's a stunning performer, perhaps one of the best on our screens".[15]
In 2024, Leslie appeared in Stan thriller series Exposure and drama series Prosper.[16][17] In December 2024, Leslie was named in the cast for Foxtel drama The Twelve.[18]
Leslie has also performed voiceover work on television commercials for My State Bank, Subaru, McDonald's McCafé, University of Melbourne, Repco RACQ and BMG.[19]
Personal life
Leslie's partner of over 20 years is award-winning film producer Nicole O'Donohue, and together they have two children, Elliot and Eve.[3][4]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Justice | Bully | |
| 2002 | The Doppelgangers | Fitz | Short film |
| 2004 | Sold Out | Punter | Short film |
| Right Here Right Now | SBLT Sam Fisher | Feature film | |
| 2005 | Jewboy | Yuri | Feature film |
| Live to Give | Seb | Short film | |
| The Mechanicals | Toast Man | Short film | |
| 2006 | Kokoda | Wilstead | Feature film |
| 2007 | Katoomba | Don | Short film |
| 2008 | Three Blind Mice | Sam | Feature film |
| Netherland Dwarf | Dad | Short film | |
| 2009 | Lonely | Bob | Short film |
| Apricot | Marcel | Short film | |
| 2011 | Sleeping Beauty | Birdmann | Feature film |
| 2012 | Dead Europe | Isaac | Feature film |
| Suspended | Dave | Short film | |
| 2013 | Scene 16 | Luke | Short film |
| The Railway Man | Thompson | Feature film | |
| 2014 | The Mule | Detective Les Paris | Feature film |
| 2015 | The Daughter | Oliver Finch | Feature film |
| Death in Bloom | Christopher Crumples | Short film | |
| 2017 | The Butterfly Tree | Al | Feature film |
| Sweet Country | Harry March | Feature film | |
| Face | James | Short film | |
| 2018 | Peter Rabbit | Pigling Bland (voice) | Feature film |
| The Nightingale | Goodwin | Feature film | |
| 2021 | Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway | Pigling Bland (voice) | Feature film |
| 2022 | The Stranger | Assistant Commissioner Milliken | Feature film |
| TBA | Mr Pillow | Upcoming |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Ship to Shore | Guido Bellini | 52 episodes |
| 1996 | Bush Patrol | Dave | 1 episode |
| 1997 | The Gift | Boy | Episode: "The Cockroach Rap" |
| 2001 | Wild Kat | Morgan Ritchie | 13 episodes |
| 2002 | The Road from Coorain | Reg | Television film |
| The Junction Boys | Luke Mason | Television film | |
| 2003 | All Saints | Tony Hunter | 3 episodes |
| 2006 | Love My Way | Duc | 8 episodes |
| 2007 | Lockie Leonard | John East | 7 episodes |
| 2009 | My Place | Mr. Bracey | 1 episode |
| 2012 | Mabo | Bryan Keon-Cohen | Television film |
| Devil's Dust | Matt Peacock | Miniseries | |
| Redfern Now | Mr. Parish | 2 episodes | |
| 2013 | Top of the Lake | Steve (voice) | Episode: "The Edge of the Universe" |
| Mr & Mrs Murder | Hugo | Episode: "The Course Whisperer" | |
| 2014 | Wonderland | Nick Deakin | 8 episodes |
| 2015 | Deadline Gallipoli | Keith Murdoch | 1 episode |
| No Activity | Police officer (voice) | 6 episodes | |
| 2016 | Janet King | Patrick Bocarro | 5 episodes |
| Rake | Bevan Leigh | 3 episodes | |
| 2017 | Top of the Lake | Pyke | 6 episodes |
| Sisters | Abraham | 2 episodes | |
| 2018 | Safe Harbour | Ryan Gallagher | Miniseries |
| Fighting Season | Captain Edward 'Ted' Nordenfelt | Main cast | |
| The Cry | Alistair Robertson | Main cast | |
| 2020 | The Luminaries | Crosbie Wells | Main cast |
| The Gloaming | Alex O’Connell | Main cast | |
| Operation Buffalo | Major Leo Carmichael | Main cast | |
| 2022 | Pieces of Her | Arthur Gibson | 4 episodes |
| Bali 2002 | Tom Keirath | 1 episode | |
| 2023 | The Clearing | Tom Atkins | 1 episode |
| 2024 | Prosper | Dion Quinn | 8 episodes |
| Colin from Accounts | Constable Byrne | 1 episode | |
| Exposure | Jim | 1 episode | |
| 2025 | The Twelve | Season 3: "Cape Rock Killer" |
Theatre
Awards and nominations
References
- ^ a b c d "Ewen Leslie: Our Next Big Thing". Stage Whispers. November 2010.
- ^ a b c "Ewen Leslie" (PDF). Shanahan.
- ^ a b c "Talent. Charm. Ambition. He's a star in the making, but who is he?". The Sydney Morning Herald. 15 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "Actor Ewen Leslie". The Saturday Paper. 23 July 2022.
- ^ Waites, James (12 October 2007). "Riflemind | Sydney Theatre Company". Australian Stage. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ "Past nominees and winners". Helpmann Awards. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ "2009". Sydney Theatre Awards. Archived from the original on 22 October 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Boland, Michaela (22 January 2009). "The War of the Roses – Part 1 and Part 2". Variety. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Croggon, Alison (3 May 2010). "This Richard III is one of the greats". The Australian. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
- ^ Boland, Michaela (11 August 2011). "Hamlet too successful for Melbourne Theatre Company's own good". The Australian. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Woodhead, Cameron (23 February 2012). "The Wild Duck". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Blake, Jason (11 August 2013). "Alive yet alone, Stoppard players shine together". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Blake, Jason (24 September 2015). "Ivanov review: Entertaining Ewen Leslie brings dry Australian laughs to Russian tale of woe". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
- ^ Martyn, Shona (4 February 2019). "Lunch with: The Cry actor Ewen Leslie". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- ^ Idato, Michael (22 August 2017). "Top of the Lake: China Girl is Nicole Kidman's finest hour". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
- ^ Knox, David (24 May 2024). "Airdate: Exposure | TV Tonight". TV Tonight. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ Knox, David (17 November 2023). "Airdate: Prosper | TV Tonight". TV Tonight. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ Staff Writer. "Cast revealed for third season of award-winning anthology series, THE TWELVE: CAPE ROCK KILLER". Screenwest. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
- ^ "Ewen Leslie". EM Voices.
- ^ "Ewen Leslie theatre credits". AusStage.
External links
- Ewen Leslie at IMDb