Antony Starr facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Antony Starr
Starr at GalaxyCon in 2024
Born	(1975-10-25) 25 October 1975 (age 49) Wellington, New Zealand
Education	Rangitoto College University of Auckland
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1995–present

Antony Starr (born October 25, 1975) is an actor from New Zealand. He is famous for his roles on TV. These include playing two characters, Jethro and Van West, in the show Outrageous Fortune (2005–2010). He also played Lucas Hood in the series Banshee (2013–2016). More recently, he became widely known for playing Homelander in the superhero TV series The Boys (2019–present) and its spin-off shows.

For his acting in the 2012 Australian movie Wish You Were Here, Starr won an AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. He was also nominated for the New Zealand Film Award for Best Actor for his role in After the Waterfall (2010).

Antony Starr's Early Life

Antony Starr was born in Wellington, New Zealand. When he was growing up, he loved surfing and practiced karate. Starr can speak several languages, including English, Indonesian, Norwegian, and Spanish.

He went to Rangitoto College and finished school in 1993. Even though he was a good student, he often missed classes. He took drama classes at school and worked as an extra in different shows. Eventually, he decided to become a full-time actor. During this time, he also worked at a petrol station.

Antony Starr's Acting Career

Early Roles and First Success

Antony Starr started acting professionally in the early 1990s. He had a small part in Shortland Street and appeared as a guest in Xena: Warrior Princess.

In 2001, Starr was cast in Mercy Peak as Todd Van der Velter. This was a guest role he played throughout the show's three seasons. He also got a role in the soap opera Shortland Street as the brother of a main character. Starr said he did not like how fast-paced this show was.

After these roles, Starr appeared in other TV shows. These included a main role in the kids' series Hard Out. He also had guest roles in P.E.T. Detectives and Street Legal. He also had a short role in Serial Killers, a comedy series.

Starr at the premiere of Wish You Were Here in 2012

Playing twin brothers Van and Jethro West in Outrageous Fortune brought Starr many awards. He won the 2007 Air New Zealand Screen Award for Best Actor. He also won Best Actor at the Qantas Television Awards and the Asian TV Awards in the same year. In 2005, he was named Best Actor at the first Qantas Television Awards for his role in Outrageous Fortune.

While filming the first season of Outrageous Fortune, Starr also worked on Toa Fraser's first movie, No. 2. This movie was released in New Zealand in early 2006. Starr's other movie roles include The World's Fastest Indian by Roger Donaldson. He also appeared in the US comedy Without a Paddle and Brad McGann's movie In My Father's Den. Between the second and third seasons of Outrageous Fortune, Starr made a short film with friends.

Starr also performed on stage. In 2005, he was in the play ... with Strangers. In 2004, Starr acted in two theater shows: Closer at Auckland's Silo Theatre and ... with Strangers.

Between filming seasons five and six of Outrageous Fortune, Starr starred in the movie After the Waterfall and the TV movie Spies and Lies.

In 2011, Starr joined the cast of the Australian police drama Rush. He played Senior Sergeant Charlie Lewis. He also had a role in the second season of Lowdown.

From 2013 to 2016, Starr starred in the TV series Banshee. This was his first role on U.S. television. He played John Smith, an ex-convict who pretends to be Lucas Hood, the new Sheriff of Banshee. The show's fourth and final season aired in April 2016. Also in 2016, Starr played Garrett Hawthorne in the CBS crime series American Gothic.

Worldwide Fame with The Boys

Starr at the 2020 Santa Barbara International Film Festival

In January 2018, it was announced that Starr would play The Homelander in The Boys. This show is based on a comic book and is made by Amazon Studios. In the series, he acts alongside Karl Urban, who is also from New Zealand. Starr mentioned that it was a "bizarre mix-up" to have two New Zealand actors playing American and English characters in an American show. The first season was released in July 2019 on Amazon Prime and was very popular. The second season came out in September 2020, and the third in June 2022. These seasons were highly praised and successful.

Starr's acting in The Boys became a highlight of the show. It made him a well-known actor, even though he initially didn't think much of the role. In an interview, he said he did the audition "almost out of anger" because there wasn't much to go on besides "Bad Superman."

Critics have highly praised Starr's performance. Carrie Witmer of Uproxx said he creates "fear, excitement, and comedy" with his expressions. Hannah Gearan of Screen Rant called Starr "The Best Part of The Boys," noting his "chilling performance." Michael Ordoña of Los Angeles Times called Homelander "TV's most intriguing villain." Many audiences and critics have called for Starr to receive an Emmy Award for his role. Variety ranked Starr's Homelander among the 100 greatest TV performances of the 21st century.

Since then, Starr has continued to play Homelander in spin-off series. These include the animated show The Boys Presents: Diabolical (2022), where he did voice work. He also had a small appearance in Gen V (2023). The character also appeared in the video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022), with Starr providing the voice and likeness. Homelander's likeness also appeared in the 2024 video game Mortal Kombat 1.

In 2023, Starr also worked on two movies. The first was the action drama The Covenant, starring Jake Gyllenhaal. Next, Starr played a main role as a controlling father in the horror movie Cobweb. Joshua Rivera of Polygon praised Starr, saying he "excels at portraying disturbed men who have learned to wear normalcy like a mask."

The fourth season of The Boys started on Amazon Prime Video on June 13, 2024. It had the highest viewership of all the seasons. Starr's acting again received positive reviews. He presented an award at the 2024 Primetime Emmy Awards. He won two Critics' Choice Super Awards in 2023 for Best Actor in a Superhero Series and Best Villain in a Series. He also won a Saturn Award in 2025 for Best Supporting Actor on Television.

He appeared as a terrorist leader in the action thriller G20, starring Viola Davis. It was released on April 10, 2025, on Amazon Prime Video. Jordan Hoffman of Entertainment Weekly praised Starr's strong portrayal and dialogue.

Starr is expected to return as Homelander in the fifth season of The Boys.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Online

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Antony Starr para niños