The life-long neighbours of Adolescence star Owen Cooper have described him as a ‘lovely lad’ who would do anything for them.
The 15-year-old is currently shooting a big-screen adaptation of Wuthering Heights alongside superstar Margot Robbie – after Adolescence became the most popular show on Netflix.
But less than a year ago Owen was just another ordinary schoolboy kicking a football around with mates and playing PlayStation in his bedroom, MailOnline can reveal.
His life until July 2024 was one that will be recognisable to most as an entirely normal one in a provincial English town.
For Owen, that town was Warrington in Cheshire, where his carer mum Noreen and IT worker dad Andy bought a modest terraced house for £87,000 almost 20 years ago as the base where they could raise a family.
Christine Walker, 75, who has lived next door to the young star all his life, told MailOnline: ‘I’ve known him since he was a baby and to me he’s just a regular kid.
‘I’d see him play football with his friends in the park right outside my house.
‘He’s a massive Liverpool fan and used to go to Anfield quite a bit with his dad Andy and his brothers.’
The modest terraced house for £87,000 was the base for Owen Cooper to grow up
Owen Cooper pictured with his mother and father at a screening of Adolescence
Another neighbour, 79-year-old Madeleine Rigby, also spoke of Owen’s childhood extremely fondly.
She said: ‘I remember when he was born – it was on my birthday.
‘Owen is a lovely young lad. Really polite and well mannered.
‘He would run errands for me in the past. He and his family would do absolutely anything for you if you asked.’
Mrs Walker added: ‘He was a really quiet and shy lad so I was surprised when he took up acting but he’s done so well. I’m really pleased for him, he’s worked and studied hard for what he’s got.
‘None of his family are in the business and he’s not one of these kids who’ve been in stage school since the moment they could speak.
‘He’s only been doing it for a few years but it’s something that he is really keen on. His mum used to drive him to drama classes every week.
‘I spoke to Owen over the weekend before he left and he was telling me how much he enjoyed working with Stephen Graham, who I also love.
‘When he is back in Warrington, I see him on his bike a lot cycling to school. He has the acting world at his feet at the moment.
Owen Cooper is seen as Jamie Miller in Netflix’s Adolescence
‘It’s surreal really, I thought I might see him on television one day – but as a footballer rather than an actor.
‘But good luck to him – he’s a lovely lad from a wonderful down-to-earth family, who’ll certainly keep him grounded when he gets really famous.’
Owen, born in early December 2009, was the baby of the family but it’s understood he grew up close to his older brothers, Ollie, now 20, and Connor, 30, who have both gone into careers as electricians.
Facebook photographs taken by mum Noreen, 51, or Andy, 44, show Owen from his earliest childhood to his mid-teens, growing up in a loving and supporting family.
At one point, alluding to Owen’s trademark tousled brown hair, Noreen refers to her beloved youngest boy as ‘my mini Harry Styles.’
Owen went to a local Catholic primary school in Warrington where he did well, particularly in German – but it was at sport that he excelled with PE his favourite subject and, long before he ever thought of getting involved in acting, Owen was a budding footballer.
Owen Cooper is seen as Jamie Miller in Netflix’s Adolescence
He and his local friends would play football for hours at a time in the park right outside that terraced home in a working class area of central Warrington, an industrial town midway between Manchester and Liverpool.
Despite living a stone’s throw from the Warrington Wolves’ rugby league ground, football was his passion and he soon joined local side Warrington Rylands.
A source at the club told MailOnline: ‘Everyone here is beside themselves with pride for what he’s done. He comes from a great family and everyone here will help keep his feet on the ground but he’s such a sound lad that there won’t be a problem.’
Was well as playing in Rylands’ Under-15s, the teen harboured dreams of playing for his family’s favourite team Liverpool.
Their rising star, England right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, was his favourite player but Owen himself appeared most often in midfield.
When not kicking a ball around, he would be playing video games like Grand Theft Auto, FIFA and Red Dead Redemption on his PlayStation.
HIs favourite treats, when allowed by Noreen, were Maltesers and Skittles or a can of Irn Bru.
His favourite films were Titanic, Inception and the Marvel Spider-Man franchise.
But it was watching then child actor Tom Holland in the 2012 film The Impossible, which told the story of a family caught up in the 2004 Tsunami and also starred Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor, which proved a pivotal moment in his life.
Seeing Holland’s intense performance inspired him to try to become an actor himself.
This led him to sign up to acting classes at The Drama MOB, a drama school co-founded by former Coronation Street star Tina O’Brien and her friend Esther Morgan.
This was a new move for anyone from the Cooper family – as Owen later told i-D magazine: ‘I never really wanted to be an actor. It wasn’t really in my DNA.’
Despite the novelty of his ambition, his mum Noreen could hardly have been more supportive.
She would drive him to and from the drama school in the Manchester suburb of Didsbury every Tuesday evening – a 45-mile, hour-long round trip from their home.
And it was through drama school that he came to audition for the role of Jamie Miller in Adolescence.
He was persuaded to send in a video tape of him performing at The Drama MOB to producers.
Adolescence casting director Shaheen Baig had considered 500 boys for the part in all, but Owen’s demo tape quickly persuaded her that she had found her Jamie.
Graham too – who had conceived the idea for the drama himself – said he knew straight away that the young actor in front of them was perfect for the starring role: he turned to the rest of the team and said ‘I think that’s him.’
Graham’s instincts were proven correct as soon as they began shooting.
Director Philip Barantini was amazed at the way Owen coped with the hugely demanding one-take nature of the show despite being aged just 14 at the time of filming with no previous professional experience.
Barantini told Variety: ‘He just absolutely blew me away. Actors train for years and years and still can’t really master what Owen has mastered – which is basically just being in the moment and listening and being truthful.’
Shooting for the drama began last July at locations in Liverpool and Sheffield and lasted until October.
Owen appeared in intense scenes alongside established stars Stephen Graham as his onscreen father and Ashley Walters as a detective.
Owen told Variety Magazine in a recent interview: ‘I was just doing it [acting] for a hobby and didn’t expect much from it.
‘And then when Adolescence came, I obviously took it a lot more seriously. And I just took it on the chin really, and just did it.’
And although word of the power of Owen’s performance had been an open secret in film production circles for months, it was not until Adolescence was released on Netflix on 13 March that he suddenly found himself a star in the eyes of the public too.
Cooper plays 13-year-old Jamie Miller who has been accused of stabbing to death his female classmate.
The compelling storyline in Adolescence coupled with the fact that each of the four episodes is filmed in one continuous sequence to build tension, has made it a smash hit with critics and viewers alike since premiering last week.
Owen’s debut acting role has been so impressive that he has been likened to Leonardo Di Caprio and Jodie Foster, who were both child stars when they made their first films – respectively, This Boy’s Life and Taxi Driver.
Ms Morgan, director of The Drama MOB, said Owen had attended classes for two years before securing the role in Adolescence, and revealed: ‘It was clear to the teaching team that Owen was a very gifted actor.’
His acting teacher Alex Edge added: ‘Owen was a very talented member of the class whose talent shone through during his weekly sessions at The Drama MOB.
‘He was always fantastic at improvisation and seemed to think very deeply about the character he was portraying. We are all absolutely thrilled to see Owen on our screens and it was a privilege to teach him’.
Back in Warrington Mrs Walker said many locally were stunned at his success as Owen did not initially seem a natural candidate for an acting career.
She said: ‘He was a really quiet and shy lad so I was surprised when he took up acting but he’s done so well. I’m really pleased for him, he’s worked and studied hard for what he’s got.
‘None of his family are in the business and he’s not one of these kids who’ve been in stage school since the moment they could speak.
‘He’s only been doing it for a few years but it’s something that he is really keen on. His mum used to drive him to drama classes every week.
‘I spoke to Owen over the weekend before he left and he was telling me how much he enjoyed working with Stephen Graham, who I also love.
‘When he is back in Warrington, I see him on his bike a lot cycling to school. He has the acting world at his feet at the moment.
‘It’s surreal really, I thought I might see him on television one day – but as a footballer rather than an actor.
‘But good luck to him – he’s a lovely lad from a wonderful down-to-earth family, who’ll certainly keep him grounded when he gets really famous.’
Mrs Rigby added: ‘Owen even got me Stephen Graham’s autograph. I’m thrilled at the success he’s having because he deserves it.’
Now he is set for Hollywood glory by shooting a film remake of Wuthering Heights, based on the 1847 Emily Brontë novel, featuring as the young Heathcliff.
The movie is being worked on at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire with Saltburn star Jacob Elordi as the elder Heathcliff and Margot Robbie as Catherine Earnshaw.
Owen is understood to have agreed time away from school for the shoot, and Noreen has accompanied him to London – they travelled down from Warrington last Sunday.
He also has been given a personal tutor by producers for the duration of the shoot to ensure he does not get behind on his GSCE coursework.