The Cast of Skins: Where Are They Now?

From an Academy Award Winner to a TikTok Star, Here's Where the Cast of Skins Are Now

Jul 5 2021 by Angela Law

Running on E4 for eight seasons between 2007 and 2013, Skins was a gritty teen drama that defined a generation. Tracking the late high-school years of teenagers living in Bristol, the lingering cultural significance of Skins is probably down to the fact that every episode tackles teen drug use, sex, and mental health conditions in a frank way that no other show was doing at the time. For millennials, it was basically Euphoria before Euphoria was even Euphoria.

Like any other show, it was the cast that made Skins what it was, particularly in its first few seasons when the show's popularity peaked. And while the show's dedicated audience had started to move on in the latter years, most people from the cast went on to become massive stars. Ahead, we're tracking down the people who played your favourite Skins characters to update you on exactly what they've been up to since the show wrapped. And in case you need the warning, spoilers are ahead.

Image Source: Everett Collection

Nicholas Hoult, aka Tony Stonem

Played by Nicholas Hoult, Tony is the lead character in the first two seasons of Skins and is somewhat of an antihero. As the first season ends, we are left with a cliffhanger when Tony is hit by a bus, and this dramatically alters his arc on season two as he deals with a subdural hematoma. As for Hoult, he got his big break as a 12-year-old kid, starring alongside High Grant in About a Boy. More notably, though, he's since played Nux in Mad Max, appeared in more than one instalment of the X-Men franchise, and had a role in the critically acclaimed film The Favourite.

Image Source: Getty / David M. Benett

Hannah Murray, aka Cassie Ainsworth

Cassie — played by Hannah Murray — is an extremely complex character who deals with a host of mental health disorders on the show, like anorexia nervosa, suicidal ideation, and drug addiction. She is also extremely likeable for her eccentricities and gentle nature — but arguably, her most memorable moments in the show are saying "wow" a lot in a breathy voice. After exiting the show with the rest of the cast at the end of season two, Murray had a long stint on Game of Thrones, playing Gilly, and on the 2020 horror series The Expecting.

Image Source: Getty / Alberto E. Rodriguez

Kaya Scodelario, aka Effy Stonem

Oh Effy. Effy, Effy, Effy. Tony's sister appears a few times in generation one (seasons one and two), but she really takes over the reins in season three, once her brother and his mates depart the series. Effy is a quiet character at first and doesn't speak at all until after Tony's accident, but it is the love triangle between Freddie and Cook and her destructive behaviour and diagnosis of psychotic depression following her parents' split that dominate her storylines. Played by Kaya Scodelario, Effy appears in 27 episodes, which is the most episodes of all the characters. Since wrapping, Scodelario has had plenty of starring roles. Most recently, she starred in the now-cancelled Netflix series Spinning Out, horror movie Crawl, and the Maze Runner franchise.

Image Source: Getty / Steve Granitz

Joe Dempsie, aka Chris Miles

Chris is the wild party animal of the group and has a rough home life, where he lost his brother at a young age due to illness and then became emancipated from his absent parents. He develops a huge crush on his psychology teacher, Angie, but later enters a serious relationship with Jal, where their story tackles important topics like abortion before he sadly dies of a brain haemorrhage like his brother. Chris was played by Joe Dempsie, whom you'd definitely recognise for his role as Gendry on Game of Thrones. He's also set to appear alongside Toni Collette on Netflix's upcoming thriller series Pieces of Her.

Image Source: Getty / ANGELA WEISS

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Dev Patel, aka Anwar Kharral

Best mates with Maxxie, Anwar is played by Dev Patel and is portrayed as a Pakistani boy who's been raised in an Islamic household but doesn't take his religion very seriously, regularly taking drugs, drinking, eating pork, and having a lot of premarital sex. Patel truly needs no introduction, since he's probably the most awarded cast member to graduate from Skins. In case you do need a refresher, he's won BAFTAs, AACTAs, and SAGs for movies like Slumdog Millionaire, Lion, and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.

Image Source: Getty / GP Images

Jack O'Connell, aka James Cook

We can probably all agree that Cook's behaviour in the third and fourth seasons of Skins is extremely self-destructive, at best. Best mates with JJ and Freddie, Cook is the life of the party, but there's also no doubt that his troubled upbringing has left some serious scars. Cook was played by Jack O'Connell, who's still a full-time actor, having bagged roles in Unbroken and Starred Up. He also starred alongside George Clooney and Julia Roberts in the 2016 movie Money Monster, so, yeah, he's doing pretty well for himself.

Image Source: Getty / Zak Hussein - PA Images

Luke Pasqualino, aka Freddie Mclair

Taking up the spot as a lead character in season three, Freddie is largely considered one of the more sensible characters in the Skins generation-two cast. A lover of weed and skating, Freddie is involved in a love triangle between Effy and his best mate Cook in season three before being murdered by Effy's psychiatrist Dr Foster in season four. Brutal. Freddie was played by Luke Pasqualino, who's since appeared in the 2013 film Snowpiercer and a few episodes of the 2020 Netflix fantasy series Shadow and Bone.

Image Source: Getty / David M. Benett

Daniel Kaluuya, aka Posh Kenneth

Kenneth is a secondary recurring character who regularly hangs out with the main cast during generation one of Skins. That said, the actor who played him, Daniel Kaluuya, is absolutely one of the most successful alumni. Most notably, he played W'Kabi alongside Chadwick Boseman in Black Panther and has won countless awards (including a BAFTA and an Oscar) for his roles in Get Out and Judas and the Black Messiah, including an Academy Award for best supporting actor for the latter, and he was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for his role in Queen & Slim, which he appeared in opposite Jodie Turner-Smith. Kaluuya didn't just star in Skins, either. He was actually a contributing writer on the first two seasons of the series and the head writer of the episodes titled "Jal" and "Thomas".

Image Source: Getty / Slaven Vlasic

April Pearson, aka Michelle Richardson

A huge part of Michelle's story centres on her relationship with Tony, which is dysfunctional at best. In the end, the relationship is doomed after Tony's accident causes him to lose all memory of his feelings for her, so she moves on to Sid, who always had a crush on her. Michelle was played by April Pearson, who's had plenty of roles since, including in Tucked and Netflix's Kiss Me First. She is also pretty big on TikTok and has a podcast called Are You Michelle From Skins, in case you want to wander down memory lane with her.

Image Source: Getty / Gareth Cattermole

Larissa Wilson, aka Jal Fazer

Jal is closest with Chris and Michelle, but she is also known for being the smartest and most affluent member of the group — and for being a kick-arse clarinet player. Jal was portrayed by Larissa Wilson, who's since held small roles on a number of TV series, most recently the 2014 detective drama Suspects.