Jodie Comer

JODIE COMER IN LONDON, DECEMBER 2016. DRESS: JUNYA WATANABE. BOOTS: OLIVIER THEYSKENS. STYLING: ANDREAS PETER KRINGS. HAIR: CHI WONG FOR BUMBLE AND BUMBLE/MANAGEMENT+ARTISTS. MAKEUP: CIARA O’SHEA/LGA MANAGEMENT. MANICURE: LAUREN MICHELLE PIRES FOR CHANEL. PRODUCTION: LAURA HOLMES PRODUCTION LTD. RETOUCHING: BLANK. SPECIAL THANKS: THE WORX.

With the upcoming Starz show The White Princess, Jodie Comer continues her rise as one of the most exciting actresses in Britain. In the titular role, as the first Tudor queen, Comer plays Elizabeth (“Lizzie”) of York as she goes from naive heartbreaker to kingmaker over the course of 14 years. The actress’s own ascension has been much speedier. In 2016, she starred in the television show Thirteen, which became the most watched drama on the BBC’s on-demand service, playing a woman trying to reintegrate into society after 13 years locked in a cellar. She also appeared alongside Tim Roth and Samantha Morton in the critically acclaimed true-crime adaptation Rillington Place about serial murderer John Christie. And Comer has recently completed filming season two of Doctor Foster, the mystery medical drama in which she plays the younger other woman.

And yet the 23-year-old Liverpool native has managed to stay grounded. She even still lives at home, in Liverpool, with her parents. “I don’t know if it’s the way I’ve been brought up or if it’s because I spend so much time away that I appreciate being at home so much,” Comer says. “You get on the bus and people are like, ‘Hi, love.’ It’s those things I would miss. Or it’s me not wanting to admit that I have to move away from Mum and Dad.” Acting wasn’t so much in the blood as ingrained in her personality from as far back as she can remember. “I was a natural drama queen when I was younger,” she says. “I was always doing impersonations and showing off. I just love making people laugh.” 

Even with several high-profile projects under her belt, Comer still occasionally gets starstruck around cast mates, notably Samantha Morton. “She is my idol,” Comer says. “Watching Morvern Callar was a game changer for me. When we met, I tried to play it cool, but then thought, ‘Okay, let’s scrap the whole cool thing,’ and I said, ‘I love you.’ She replied, ‘Thank you.’ ” 

Now film directors are sending their own admiring missives Comer’s way. Her next film is Steven, a drama revolving around the pre-fame years of legendary musician Morrissey. “I play Christine, who works in the tax office with Steven,” she explains. “She’s very narrow-minded and doesn’t think before she speaks, and he’s this serious guy into all this weird music. She takes a shine to him, but he can’t stand her really.” It’s hard to imagine even an enigmatic figure like Morrissey rebuffing her.