Max Harwood

Harwood was born and raised in Basingstoke.^[4] He attended Bishop Challoner Catholic Secondary School and then Queen Mary's College for sixth form where he took A Levels in theatre studies, art photography, music technology and history.^[5][6] He took a year-long foundation course at the Guildford School of Acting on a scholarship before going on to graduate from the Urdang Academy in London.^[7]

Harwood began his acting career in 2021, when he was cast to play the lead role of Jamie New / Mimi Me in the biographical coming-of-age musical comedy drama film Everybody's Talking About Jamie,^[8][9] which was released in select theatres in the United States on 10 September 2021,^[10][11] followed by a worldwide streaming release on 17 September 2021 via Amazon Studios on Amazon Prime Video. For his performance, Harwood earned a 2021 Digital Spy Reader Awards for Rising Star – Film.^[12][13][14] He also won Breakthrough Award in the Attitude Awards.^[15][16]

Harwood then starred as Oliver in the horror comedy film The Loneliest Boy in the World alongside Hero Fiennes Tiffin.^{[17][18][19][20][21]} He also appeared in the shorts Seagull with Paul Cooper^[22] and The Call with Adam Ali, David Ames and Oliver Wickham.^[23]

In 2023, Harwood appeared in an episode of the Netflix anthology series Black Mirror^[24] and played Alan Munson in the prequel play Stranger Things: The First Shadow at the Phoenix Theatre on the West End. Harwood was announced as part of the cast of Dean Puckett's Magpie opposite Tuppence Middleton and Thomas Turgoose, playing David.^[25]

In 2024, Harwood was cast in The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical as the lead role of Percy Jackson at The Other Palace in London.^[26]

• List of British actors