During Owen Cooper’s meteoric rise to fame, from dancing Gangnam Style as a child to starring in Netflix’s Adolescence, he has been supported by his beloved mum Noreen
Owen Cooper’s rise to fame has been nothing short of extraordinary, and behind this rapid ascent is a mother’s unwavering support.
Noreen, Owen’s 51-year-old mum, recalls a video from when her son was just three years old. In it, the young Owen, clad in a red onesie and surrounded by a mass of dark curls, dances enthusiastically in their Warrington living room to the infectious K-Pop tune of Gangnam Style.
Another clip from 2014 captures Owen’s similar innocence lining up plastic zoo animals on the floor and singing along to The Lion King. From a young age, Noreen fondly nicknamed him her ‘mini Harry Styles’, and though acting wasn’t part of the plan back then, it most certainly seems to be now, the Daily Mail reports.
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Today, Noreen’s son is a household name, thanks to his star-making role as Jamie Miller in the harrowing Netflix drama Adolescence. The series captivated audiences worldwide, surpassing 24 million viewers in its first week, and critics hailed Owen as a “once-in-a-generation talent.”
His rise to fame was unimaginable to Noreen, who never anticipated her youngest son’s journey would take him from their modest three-bedroom terrace in Cheshire to the grand halls of Knole, a 600-year-old former royal residence in Kent, where he’s filming his next major role: playing Heathcliff in the upcoming adaptation of Wuthering Heights . The 15-year-old is currently filming alongside A-list stars Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi.
It has only been a year since Owen, once just another football-loving teenager, found himself thrust into the limelight. Until March 2024, he was still a regular at the Warrington Rylands Under-15s, playing midfield and dreaming of a football career.
Actor Stephen Graham, who co-wrote the script and starred as Jamie’s father, has called finding Owen “the biggest achievement” of the four-part series.
Supporting her son’s newfound success has meant sacrifices. Noreen has spent years ferrying Owen to drama classes in Didsbury, Manchester, an hour away from home.
The Coopers aren’t an acting family Noreen works as a carer, while Andy, 44, works in IT, and Owen’s two older brothers, Ollie, 20, and Connor, 30, are electricians. Despite this, Owen’s talent has flourished under the right guidance.
Noreen and Andy worked hard to give their ordinary family holidays, with trips to Legoland, and regular visits to Anfield to watch Liverpool were key highlights. Owen, a devout Liverpool fan, was a regular fixture on the pitch with his friends, often more interested in football than drama. “I never wanted to be an actor,” Owen admits. “It wasn’t in my DNA.”
But something changed when Owen watched Tom Holland in The Impossible, the 2012 film about the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Soon after, Owen signed up for acting classes with The Drama MOB in Manchester in 2021.
“I was just doing it for a hobby and didn’t expect much from it,” Owen says. It was through The Drama MOB that Owen caught the attention of casting director Shaheen Baig, who was looking for unpolished, genuine talent for Adolescence.
Filming for Adolescence involved a unique approach, and each episode was filmed in a single take. Since Adolescence, Owen has been pushed into the spotlight, with a promising career ahead. He is continuing to juggle his newfound fame with school, supported by Noreen and a tutor on set.
For Noreen, the journey has been a whirlwind, but her pride for Owen is palpable. “What a journey,” she posted a caption online, alongside a photo of her, Andy, and Owen, what a journey indeed and it’s only just beginning.