Hayley Atwell facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hayley Atwell
Atwell in 2022
Born	Hayley Elizabeth Atwell (1982-04-05) 5 April 1982 (age 43) London, England
Citizenship	United Kingdom United States
Alma mater	Guildhall School of Music and Drama (BA)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2005–present
Partner(s)	Ned Wolfgang Kelly (2022–present; engaged)

Hayley Elizabeth Atwell (born 5 April 1982) is a British and American actress. After appearing in various West End productions, Atwell gained popularity for her roles in period dramas, appearing in the films Brideshead Revisited (2008), The Duchess (2008) and the miniseries The Pillars of the Earth (2010); for the latter two, she was nominated for a British Independent Film Award and a Golden Globe Award respectively.

She rose to prominence with her portrayal of Agent Peggy Carter in several Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films, starting with Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) which inspired the creation of the spin-off ABC television series, Agent Carter (2015–2016). Atwell also starred in the fantasy films Cinderella (2015), Christopher Robin (2018) and Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway (2021), and had a leading role in the action film Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023). For her work on stage, Atwell has received Laurence Olivier Award nominations for her leading performances in The Pride (2013) and Rosmersholm (2020).

Early life

Hayley Elizabeth Atwell was born on 5 April 1982 in London as the only child of her parents; her mother, Allison Cain, is British and her father, Grant Atwell, is an American photographer from Kansas City, Missouri, of Irish and partial Native American descent. Atwell has dual citizenship of the United Kingdom and the United States.

After attending Sion-Manning Roman Catholic Girls' School in London, she took her A-Level at the London Oratory School.

Atwell took two years off to travel with her father and work for a casting director. She then enrolled at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where she trained for three years, graduating in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in acting.

Her contemporaries at Guildhall included actress Jodie Whittaker, whom Atwell later described as a "great friend", and Michelle Dockery, with whom she later worked in Restless.

Career

2005–2009: Early roles and breakthrough

Atwell made her professional stage debut in Prometheus Bound (2005) at the Sound Theatre in London, portraying Io, a maiden exiled by Zeus. Her role received positive reviews with the British Theatre Guide praising her performance, writing that that she "makes us respond to the anguish without for a moment inviting a chuckle at her bandaged hands". In 2006, she starred as the protagonist's wife, Bianca, in Women Beware Women at the Royal Shakespeare Company. .....

Atwell appeared in two productions from 2007 to 2008 at the Royal National Theatre, both directed by Nicholas Hytner: Man of Mode and Major Barbara. In the former, she portrayed Belinda, a SoHo PR worker and for the latter, she received an Ian Charleson Commendation.

Atwell made the transition to film roles with her first major role coming in Woody Allen's 2007 film Cassandra's Dream, playing stage actress Angela Stark. In 2008, she also appeared in The Duchess, which earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the British Independent Film Awards. Later that year, Atwell appeared in the Miramax film Brideshead Revisited.

In 2009, Atwell made her West End debut as Catherine, the adopted niece in a troubled household, in Lindsay Posner's A View From the Bridge. Variety praised her for having an "ideal freshness" and girlishness while still able to shift into uncontrolled rage; her performance was later nominated for an Olivier Award. Later in the year, Atwell appeared as '415' in AMC Television's November 2009 miniseries The Prisoner, a remake of the 1967–68 series by the same name.

2010–2016: Established actress and the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Atwell at the 66th British Academy Film Awards in 2013

In 2010 Atwell appeared in Channel 4's adaptation of William Boyd's Any Human Heart, and later that year, Ken Follett's miniseries Pillars of the Earth for which she received a Golden Globe Award nomination.

In April 2010, Atwell was cast as the love interest in a then-forthcoming film about Captain America as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She first starred as Peggy Carter in the 2011 American superhero film Captain America: The First Avenger. MTV Networks' NextMovie.com named her one of the "Breakout Stars to Watch for in 2011". She also voiced Carter in the 2011 video game Captain America: Super Soldier. Following a short break from the theatre, Atwell later starred in Alexi Kaye Campbell's 2011 production of The Faith Machine, directed by Jamie Lloyd at the Royal Court Theatre.

In 2013, Atwell starred in BBC Two's adaptation of William Boyd's espionage novel, Restless. In February of that year, she also starred in "Be Right Back", an episode in Charlie Brooker's critically acclaimed science fiction television series Black Mirror. Her role received critical praise being called one of the best performances of the series. That same year, Atwell also worked with Alexi Kaye Campbell and Jamie Lloyd again in a revival of The Pride at Trafalgar Studios. Her performance gained her a second Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress. That year, she also appeared in the Marvel One-Shot short film Agent Carter.

Atwell at the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con

Atwell returned to Marvel for the 2014 film Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and in the 2015 films Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man. As Carter, she appeared in two episodes of the ABC television show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and as the lead role in Agent Carter, which aired from 2015 to 2016. Agent Carter was cancelled by ABC on 12 May 2016. She also provided Carter's voice in Lego Marvel's Avengers and Avengers: Secret Wars. In 2015, Atwell played Cinderella's mother in Disney's live action adaptation of Cinderella directed by Kenneth Branagh.

In February 2016, Atwell was cast in the ABC series Conviction. The series aired 13 episodes between October 2016 and January 2017; in May 2017, ABC announced it had been cancelled.

2017–present: Return to theatre and Mission Impossible

Atwell starred as Margaret Schlegel in BBC One's 2017–2018 miniseries, Howards End, based on the classic E.M. Forster novel and adapted by playwright Kenneth Lonergan. In 2018, she played Evelyn Robin, the wife of the titular character in Disney's live action Winnie-the-Pooh film Christopher Robin directed by Marc Forster and co-starring with Ewan McGregor.

Atwell returned to the stage in 2018 in Dry Powder at the Hampstead Theatre and later appeared in Josie Rourke's Measure for Measure at the Donmar Warehouse, opposite Jack Lowden. The production gained critical acclaim, with The Daily Telegraph adding that it was "beautifully staged and expertly performed". As a result of positive reception, the play's run was extended.

In 2019, Atwell starred opposite Tamara Lawrance in a three-part BBC adaptation of Andrea Levy's novel The Long Song, about a slave on a sugar plantation in 19th-century Jamaica. She also reprised the role of Peggy Carter in Avengers: Endgame. In September 2019, it was announced that Atwell will star in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One and Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, both directed by Christopher McQuarrie and scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States in 2023 and 2025, respectively. In 2020, Atwell began hosting the podcast series True Spies. In 2021, early reviews for Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway revealed Atwell as part of the film's voice cast as Mittens the cat. In 2022, Atwell would again reprise her role as Peggy Carter/Captain Carter in Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness. That same year saw her partnered with The Picturehouse as part of the Picturehouse Ambassador Program as part of her own program Hayley Selects.

In December 2024, it was revealed she had been cast to reprise her role of Peggy Carter in Avengers: Doomsday, scheduled to be released on May 1, 2026.

Personal life

In 2010, Atwell lived in a flat in London. In 2015, she moved to Los Angeles to be close to the production of Agent Carter, although she still retained her personal home in London. During the filming of Captain America: The First Avenger in 2010, Atwell took a three-month course in art history and haiku at the Open University.

..... Atwell later gave her own memory of events, saying that someone unconnected to Weinstein had suggested she lose weight to look more like a flapper. .....

In a 2015 interview, Atwell discussed how her role as Peggy Carter influenced a then-recent tweet she made to her Twitter followers about having her image digitally altered on the cover of a German magazine. When one visitor to her page asked her, "Why are you so beautiful?", she retorted, "Why am I so photoshopped?" In the interview, Atwell stated, "It's important that young girls understand what photoshop is. I do feel a certain amount of responsibility now that I'm playing Peggy."

Atwell began a relationship with music producer Ned Wolfgang Kelly in 2022. In April 2023, they announced their engagement.

Atwell is a video game enthusiast.

Acting roles

Denotes projects that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2007	Cassandra's Dream	Angela Stark
	How About You	Ellie Harris
2008	Brideshead Revisited	Julia Flyte
	The Duchess	Elizabeth "Bess" Foster
2009	Love Hate	Hate	Short film
2010	Tomato Soup	Movie Star	Short film
2011	Captain America: The First Avenger	Peggy Carter / Agent Carter
2012	I, Anna	Emmy
	The Sweeney	DC Nancy Lewis
2013	Jimi: All Is by My Side	Kathy Etchingham
	Agent Carter	Peggy Carter	Short film
2014	Captain America: The Winter Soldier
	Testament of Youth	Hope Milroy
2015	Cinderella	Cinderella's Mother
	Avengers: Age of Ultron	Peggy Carter
	Ant-Man		Cameo
2016	The Complete Walk: Cymbeline	Imogen	Short film
2018	Christopher Robin	Evelyn Robin
2019	Blinded by the Light	Ms. Clay
	Avengers: Endgame	Peggy Carter
2021	Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway	Mittens	Voice
2022	Independent Miss Craigie	Narrator	Documentary
	Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness	Peggy Carter / Captain Carter (Earth-838)
2023	Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One	Grace
2024	The Imaginary	Lizzie	Voice; English dub
	Paddington in Peru	Madison
2025	Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning	Grace	Post-production
	Grand Prix of Europe		Voice
	Rogue Trooper		Post-production

Television

Video games

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Ref.
2005	Prometheus Bound	Io / Force	Sound Theatre
2006	Women Beware Women	Bianca	Royal Shakespeare Company
2007	The Man of Mode	Belinda	Royal National Theatre
2008	Major Barbara	Barbara Undershaft	Royal National Theatre
2009	A View from the Bridge	Catherine	Duke of York's Theatre
2011	The Faith Machine	Sophie	Royal Court Theatre
2013	The Pride	Sylvia	Trafalgar Studios
2018	Dry Powder	Jenny	Hampstead Theatre
	Measure for Measure	Angelo / Isabella	Donmar Warehouse
2019	Rosmersholm	Rebecca West	Duke of York's Theatre
2025	Much Ado About Nothing	Beatrice	Theatre Royal Drury Lane

Key

Denotes plays that have not yet premiered

Radio

Awards and nominations

See also

In Spanish: Hayley Atwell para niños