Sophie Skelton | |
|---|---|
 Skelton in 2018 | |
| Born | Sophie Alexandra Skelton 7 March 1994 Woodford, Greater Manchester, England |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2008–present |
Sophie Alexandra Skelton (born 7 March 1994) is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Brianna Fraser in the Starz drama series Outlander . [1]
Skelton was born and raised in Woodford, Greater Manchester, the daughter of entrepreneurial children's toy inventors. [2] [3] She began dancing at the age of three, eventually training in ballet at the Royal Academy, before moving into musical theater and stage productions. [4] [1] Her first professional television role, in series two of the British crime drama DCI Banks (2012), was a two-episode stint as schoolgirl Becca Smith. [5] [6]
Skelton attended Stockport Grammar School, completing her A Levels in 2012. She was going to study English Literature at King's College London the following year but ended up turning down her offer to pursue acting instead. [7] [8]
In 2013, Skelton guest-starred as Esme Vasquez-Jones in series one of CBBC's award-winning children's drama The Dumping Ground . [9] [10] That same year, she went on to portray Nikki Boston's (Heather Peace) estranged daughter Eve in the ninth series of BBC One's school-based drama series, Waterloo Road , and Yasmin Carish in a series thirteen episode of the long running medical series Doctors . [11] [12]
Transitioning into feature films, Skelton's first role was in 2014's The War I Knew. She portrayed Margaret in director Ian Vernon's tale of a WWII paratrooper lost behind enemy lines. [13] [14]
2015 saw a return to episodic television for Skelton. She again appeared in the BBC series Doctors, portraying Ellen Singleton in the series sixteen episode "Revenge". [15] [16] Next, she guest starred in a series nine episode of ITV's WWII and post-war era legal drama Foyle's War. [17] Later that year, Skelton appeared in a twelve-episode stint as Sofia Matthews on So Awkward , CBBC's sitcom revolving around three socially awkward school-age friends, and a two episode guest starring role as Gemma Holt on BBC One's medical drama Casualty . [18] [19]
Skelton's first leading film role was in Charlotte Stente Nielsen's 2016 fantasy-horror short Blackbird. [20] Her breakout role, in the British fantasy action-adventure series Ren: The Girl with the Mark, came later that year. [6] She won Best Lead Actress at the Hyperdrive Sci-Fi and Fantasy Film Festival for her role in the series. [21] 2016 also saw Skelton cast in the role of Brianna Fraser in the Starz TV series Outlander . [22] [23] The role, opposite Scottish actor Richard Rankin as Roger MacKenzie is recurring, becoming a main cast member from Season 4 onwards, and will continue throughout their story arc as outlined in Diana Gabaldon's genre-bending book series. [22] [24]
In 2017, Skelton portrayed Jess in Christopher Menaul's film Another Mother's Son , the true story of Louisa Gould, a widow living in Nazi-occupied Jersey during WWII. [25] From there she went on to star in Day of the Dead: Bloodline (2017), a remake of the 1985 George Romero zombie film [13] and alongside Nicolas Cage in the bank heist film #211 (2018), based upon the real-life "Battle of North Hollywood" in 1997.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | The War I Knew | Margaret | |
| 2016 | Blackbird | Rose | Short film |
| 2017 | Another Mother's Son | Jess | |
| Day of the Dead: Bloodline | Zoe Parker | ||
| 2018 | 211 | Lisa MacAvoy | |
| 2022 | Stalker | Rose Hepburn |
| Year | Title | Character | Production | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | DCI Banks | Becca Smith | ITV | 2 episodes |
| 2013 | The Dumping Ground | Esme Vasquez-Jones | CBBC | Episode: "Esme" |
| 2013−2014 | Waterloo Road | Eve Boston | BBC One | 2 episodes |
| 2013, 2015 | Doctors | Yasmin Carish / Ellen Singleton | BBC | 2 episodes |
| 2015 | Foyle's War | Student Jane | ITV | Episode: "Trespass" |
| So Awkward | Sofia Matthews | CBBC | Recurring role, 12 episodes | |
| Casualty | Gemma Holt | BBC One | 2 episodes | |
| 2016 | Ren: The Girl with the Mark | Ren | Online | Series regular, 5 episodes |
| 2016–present | Outlander | Brianna Fraser | STARZ | Series regular (Seasons 2-3), Main role (Seasons 4-8), 48 episodes |
| 2023 | Castlevania: Nocturne | Julia Belmont (voice) | Netflix | Episode: "A Common Enemy in Evil" |
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Hyperdrive Festival Award | Best Leading Actress | Ren [26] | Won |
| Jury Award | Best Actress | Ren | Nominated | |
| International Online Web Fest | Best Actress | Ren | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actress on Television | Outlander | Nominated |
| 2021 | Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actress on Television | Outlander [27] [28] | Nominated |
| 2022 | Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actress in a Network or Cable Television Series | Outlander [29] | Nominated |
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