Freddie Highmore Biography

Alfred Thomas Highmore (born 14 February 1992) is an English actor. He made his debut in the comedy film Women Talking Dirty (1999). He is known for his starring roles in the films Finding Neverland (2004), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), August Rush (2007), and The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008). He won two consecutive Critics' Choice Movie Awards for Best Young Performer.

Highmore starred as Norman Bates in the drama-thriller series Bates Motel (2013-2017), for which he was nominated three times for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series and won a People's Choice Award. In 2017, Highmore began producing and starring as Dr. Shaun Murphy in the ABC drama series The Good Doctor, for which he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor.

Early life

Highmore was born on 14 February 1992 in Camden Town, London. His mother, Sue Latimer, is a talent agent whose clients include actors Daniel Radcliffe and Imelda Staunton. His father is the former actor Edward Highmore, and he has a younger brother.

His previous home was in Highgate, North London. Highmore was educated at a primary school in Hampstead Garden Suburb near Golders Green in the London Borough of Barnet and gained a scholarship to attend Highgate School, an independent school in Highgate, London. From 2010 to 2014, he attended Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he earned a double first in Spanish and Arabic.

Career

1999-2004: Beginnings and Finding Neverland

Highmore began his acting career with small roles on television at the age of 7. He made his film debut in Coky Giedroyc's comedy Women Talking Dirty (1999), playing the son of a woman who has recently become estranged from her commitment-phobic French lover. In 2001, Highmore played a young King Arthur in the TNT miniseries The Mists of Avalon, a take on the Arthurian legends that depicted the women of Camelot as the real power behind the throne.

In 2001, in the BBC miniseries Happy Birthday Shakespeare, he portrayed a young boy who dreams of moving his family to Stratford-upon-Avon. Highmore has acted alongside members of his family in two separate films: his brother played his brother in Women Talking Dirty, and his father played his father in Hallmark Entertainment's television film Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story (2001).

In 2004, Highmore returned to the big screen for the family adventure film Two Brothers, directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. He played the son of a French administrator who refuses to believe that his new friend, a tiger cub named Sangha, might be dangerous after having tasted blood. He next had a major role in the fantasy film Five Children and It (2004). That same year, Highmore made his breakthrough with a critically acclaimed performance as troubled Peter Llewelyn Davies in Marc Forster's semi-biographical film Finding Neverland. He received several awards and nominations for the role, including a Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer, and nominations for the Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.

2005-2011: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Spiderwick Chronicles

In 2005, he portrayed the main role of Charlie Bucket in Tim Burton's musical fantasy film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, adapted from the book of the same name by Roald Dahl. He was reportedly recommended by co-star Johnny Depp, with whom Highmore had worked in Finding Neverland; Depp had been impressed by the young actor's performance and thus put his name forward for the role. Highmore had not seen the original 1971 version of the film, and decided not to see it until he was done filming so his portrayal of Charlie would not be influenced. For his role, he again won the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer and was awarded the Satellite Award for Outstanding New Talent. Highmore also lent his voice to the film's accompanying video game of the same name.

He next appeared as a young Max Skinner in Ridley Scott's comedy-drama film A Good Year, which was released in the UK on 27 October 2006. Also in 2006, he began portraying protagonist Arthur Montgomery in the live-action/animated fantasy adventure film Arthur and the Invisibles, released on 13 December 2006. Two sequels followed: Arthur and the Revenge of Maltazard (2009) and Arthur 3: The War of the Two Worlds (2010). For the third film and the trilogy's accompanying video game, Highmore provided voice acting. In 2007, he lent his voice to the adventure fantasy film The Golden Compass (2007) and its video game of the same name. He then portrayed the title character in the drama film August Rush (2007). The story follows a musical prodigy as he searches for his birth parents. This film received a wide release on 21 November 2007.

Highmore next starred in the dual role of American twins Simon Grace and Jared Grace in the fantasy adventure film The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008), based on the popular children's stories of the same name by Tony DiTerlizzi. The film also had a video game, The Spiderwick Chronicles, in which Highmore reprised the characters of Simon and Jared in a voice role. That same year, he provided voice acting for the role of Little Jack in the animated film A Fox's Tale (2008). In 2009, Highmore voiced the lead character in the animated film Astro Boy and provided his voice to its accompanying video game, Astro Boy: The Video Game. He then played the main role in Toast, a BBC autobiographical film about chef Nigel Slater, which was aired on 30 December 2010. Also in 2010, he starred as Hally Ballard in the drama film Master Harold...and the Boys, based on the play of the same name by Athol Fugard. The following year, he co-starred in the romantic comedy-drama The Art of Getting By (2011).

2012-present: Bates Motel, screenwriting debut and The Good Doctor

In 2013, Highmore voiced the title character in the animated adventure film Justin and the Knights of Valour. From 2013 to 2017, he portrayed the iconic role of Norman Bates in the A&E drama-thriller series Bates Motel, a prequel to the Alfred Hitchcock film Psycho that restarts the storyline in the present day. He won a People's Choice Award in 2016 for his performance, and has received nominations for the Saturn Award for Best Actor on Television (2013), the Satellite Award for Best Actor - Television Series Drama (2013), and the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series (2014-2015, and 2017). Highmore ventured into writing and directing during his time working on the series, writing the fourth season episode "Unfaithful" and the fifth season episode "Inseparable", and directing the fifth-season episode "The Body".

In August 2014, it was reported that NBC had purchased a comedy pilot script written and executive produced by Highmore and Bates Motel showrunner Kerry Ehrin. In 2015, he appeared in the Libertines' music video for "You're My Waterloo". In 2016, Highmore starred in Stephen Poliakoff's BBC Two seven-part miniseries Close to the Enemy and Nick Hamm's political comedy-drama film The Journey. The following year, he began the lead role of Dr. Shaun Murphy in the ABC drama series The Good Doctor, on which he also serves as a producer and director. In 2017, he received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series for his performance.

Highmore has been cast as the voice of the Duke of Cheshire in the animated film adaptation of The Canterville Ghost. He is attached to play the title character, Baby Face Nelson, in the A&E drama pilot Baby Face, which he co-wrote and will executive produce with Kerry Ehrin. Highmore will also executive produce Ehrin's drama pilot Long Distance for NBC.

Personal life

Highmore lives in London and avoids social media. While on Bates Motel, Highmore developed a close friendship with co-star Vera Farmiga and became the godfather of her son.

Apart from English, Highmore is also fluent in Spanish and French, and semi-fluent in Arabic.

Highmore got married in 2021.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999	Women Talking Dirty	Sam
2004	Two Brothers	Raoul Normandin
	Finding Neverland	Peter Llewelyn Davies
	Five Children and It	Robert
2005	Charlie and the Chocolate Factory	Charlie Bucket
2006	A Good Year	Young Max Skinner
	Arthur and the Invisibles	Arthur Montgomery
2007	August Rush	Evan Taylor/August Rush
	The Golden Compass	Pantalaimon	Voice role
2008	The Spiderwick Chronicles	Jared and Simon Grace
	A Fox's Tale	Little Jack	Voice role
2009	Astro Boy	Toby Tenma / Astro Boy	Voice role
	Arthur and the Revenge of Maltazard	Arthur Montgomery
2010	Arthur 3: The War of the Two Worlds	Arthur Montgomery
	Master Harold...and the Boys	Hally Ballard
2011	The Art of Getting By	George Zinavoy
2013	Justin and the Knights of Valour	Justin	Voice role
2016	The Journey	Jack
	Almost Friends	Charlie Brenner
2020	Dragon Rider	Ben	Voice role
2021	The Vault	Thom Johnson

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000	Happy Birthday Shakespeare	Steven Green	Television film
2001	The Mists of Avalon	Young Arthur	2 episodes
2001	Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story	Son at playground	2 episodes
2002	I Saw You	Oscar Bingley	Television film
2010	Toast	Nigel Slater	Television film
2013-2017	Bates Motel	Norman Bates
2016	Close to the Enemy	Victor Ferguson	7 episodes
2017	Portrait Artist of the Year	Himself	Television competition
	Tour de Pharmacy	Adrian Baton	Television film
2017-present	The Good Doctor	Shaun Murphy
2018	Taskmaster	Himself	Contestant
2020	The Disney Family Singalong	Himself	Television special
2021	Leonardo	Stefano Giraldi	Main role

Video games

Year	Title	Role
2005	Charlie and the Chocolate Factory	Charlie Bucket
2007	Arthur and the Invisibles	Arthur Montgomery
	The Golden Compass	Pantalaimon
2008	The Spiderwick Chronicles	Jared and Simon Grace
2009	Astro Boy: The Video Game	Toby Tenma / Astro Boy

Music videos

Year	Title	Artist
2004	"Girls"	The Prodigy
2015	"You're My Waterloo"	The Libertines

Awards and nominations