Daniel Francis (actor)

Last updated
Daniel Francis
BornFebruary 9, 1983 [1] [2]
Battersea, London, England
Alma mater London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
OccupationActor
Years active2002–2003; 2007–present

Daniel Francis (9 February 1983 [1] [2] ) is a British actor. He began his career in theatre. On television, he is known for his roles in Small Axe: Education (2020), the Netflix miniseries Stay Close (2021) [3] , and the Netflix period drama, Bridgerton .

Contents

Early life and education

Francis was born to Jamaican parents [4] and raised by his mother on a council estate in Battersea, South London. [5] Having been shy growing up, he discovered acting through Pyramid Youth in Clapham. When he was seventeen, under the mentorship of theatre director Sacha Wares, Francis was cast in Bintou at the Arcola Theatre. He went on to train at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). [6]

Career

Upon graduating from LAMDA, Francis landed small roles in the Royal Shakespeare Company productions of The Comedy of Errors in Salford and Twelfth Night in Stratford-upon-Avon. He went on to star in The Brothers Size at the Young Vic, the stage adaptation of The Hounding of David Oluwale as the titular David Oluwale, [7] and Off the Endz at the Royal Court Theatre. [8]

Francis landed his first major onscreen role as Sgt Carl Haleford in the 2012 ITV war drama Homefront . That same year, he made his feature film debut as Sean Warren in the sports drama Fast Girls and played Black in Blackta, returning to the Young Vic. The following year, he played the titular role in the Singapore Repertory Theatre production of Othello . [9]

In 2016, Francis played Martin Luther King Jr. in Katori Hall's The Mountaintop at the New Vic Theatre in Staffordshire. He joined the recurring cast of Once Upon a Time for its seventh and final season as Dr. Facilier or Baron Samdi.

In the meantime, Francis has worked as a personal development coach and consultant, and as a community manager for Hedera Hashgraph. [10]

Francis played Esmond Smith in the Education installment of Steve McQueen's Small Axe anthology, which premiered in 2020. He also starred in Cops at Southwark Playhouse. [11] He was then cast in Harlen Coben's 2021 Netflix mystery miniseries Stay Close as Dave Shaw.

Francis starred in the Apple TV+ series Liaison , the second season of the Amazon Prime adaptation of The Wheel of Time , [12] and currently co-stars on the Netflix period drama Bridgerton . [13]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2011The ShotShort film
2012 Fast Girls Sean Warren
2016In and OutJoshShort film
2017Cla'amLow BeakShort film
2024 Don't Move DontrellFilm [14]

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2003 EastEnders Pete1 episode
Trail of GuiltNathanielDocuseries; episode: "To Catch the Carjackers"
2010 Law & Order: UK Louis FrancisEpisode: "Broken"
2012 Eternal Law Captain Caple1 episode
Homefront Sgt Carl HalefordMiniseries
2013 Holby City Joey RyanEpisode: "Arthur's Theme"
2017–2018 Once Upon a Time Dr. Facilier / Baron Samdi8 episodes
2020 Small Axe Esmond SmithAnthology; episode: Education
2021 Stay Close Dave ShawMiniseries
2023 Liaison Albert Onwori6 episodes
The Wheel of Time Turak2 episodes
2024-present Bridgerton Marcus Anderson11 episodes

Stage

YearTitleRoleNotes
2002Bintou Arcola Theatre, London
2007 The Comedy of Errors Antiopholus (understudy) / Merchant The Lowry, Salford
Twelfth Night Lord / Sailor Courtyard Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
2008 The Brothers Size Ogun Young Vic, London
2009The Hounding of David Oluwale David Oluwale England tour
2010Off the EndzKojo Royal Court Theatre, London
2012BlacktaBlackYoung Vic, London
2013 Othello Othello Singapore Repertory Theatre, Singapore
2016 The Mountaintop Martin Luther King Jr. New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme
2020CopsRoosevelt "Rosey" Washington Southwark Playhouse, London

References

  1. 1 2 @therealdanielfrancis; (9 February 2026). "As it's another trip around the sun for me..." Retrieved 10 February 2026– via Instagram.
  2. 1 2 Seemela, Masego (11 July 2024). "Daniel Francis delves into representing diverse love stories onscreen". Sowetan. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
  3. ↑ Ritman, Alex (8 January 2021). "'Small Axe' Star Daniel Francis Joins Netflix's Harlan Coben Thriller 'Stay Close' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  4. ↑ Mitchell, Tamika (1 July 2024). "Daniel Francis talks... Bridgerton". The British Blacklist. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  5. ↑ "Tough choices". My London. 11 February 2010. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  6. ↑ "Daniel Francis". New Vic Theatre. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  7. ↑ Choonara, Esme (27 January 2009). "The Hounding of David Oluwale – interview with Daniel Francis". Socialist Worker. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  8. ↑ "Daniel Francis". Royal Court Theatre. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  9. ↑ Yogalingam, Sharmila Melissa (19 April 2013). "Interview: Daniel Jenkins and Daniel Francis of Singapore Repertory Theatre's Othello". Blog Critics. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  10. ↑ "Daniel Francis". Wiza. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  11. ↑ "'My desire is to rise against the odds in a racist justice system': Daniel Francis on his role in the premiere of COPS". My Theatre Mates. 9 January 2020. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  12. ↑ "Scoop: Two Seanchan are Cast + More Cast Speculation". WOT Series. 18 May 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  13. ↑ White, James (20 July 2022). "Bridgerton Adds Daniel Francis And More As Season 3 Starts Shooting". Empire. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  14. ↑ Kroll, Justin (2023-07-19). "Ishana Night Shyamalan's The Watchers & Sam Raimi's Don't Move Among Latest Projects Granted SAG-AFTRA Waivers To Shoot During Strike". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved 2023-08-17.
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