Will Sharpe

William Tomomori Fukuda Sharpe (born 22 September 1986) is a Japanese-English actor, writer, and director.[2]

Will Sharpe
Born
William Tomomori Fukuda Sharpe

(1986-09-22) 22 September 1986
London, England[1]
NationalityJapanese, English
Occupation
  • Actor
  • writer
  • director
Years active2008–present
Known for
Black Pond
The Darkest Universe
Flowers
Partner(s)Sophia Di Martino
Children2
RelativesArthur Sharpe (brother)

Background

Sharpe was born in London and raised in Tokyo until the age of eight.[3] His mother is Japanese.[4] After returning to the United Kingdom, he studied at Winchester College.[3]

Sharpe read classics at the University of Cambridge, where he was the president of the Footlights Revue.[5][6] He graduated in 2008 and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company for their 2008/2009 season.[7] Sharpe spent a year at the RSC and appeared in such plays as The Taming of the Shrew, The Merchant of Venice, and The Tragedy of Thomas Hobbes, in which he played a young Isaac Newton.[8][9] He played the character of Yuki Reid in the BBC medical drama Casualty.[8]

In 2009, he directed and co-wrote, along with his friend Tom Kingsley, the short film Cockroach. The pair's first feature-length film, Black Pond, was shown at the Prince Charles Cinema in London from November 2011.[10] Shortly after, he was co-nominated for a BAFTA Award for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer for the film.[3]

Sharpe is best known for writing, directing, and starring in the dark comedy-drama Flowers, which premiered on Channel 4 in 2016.[7] Starring Olivia Colman, Julian Barratt, Daniel Rigby and Sophia Di Martino, Flowers is a black comedy that tackles mental health, and follows the four eccentric members of the Flowers family as they navigate their lives together, and their own inner demons. The first series won a BAFTA Television Award for best scripted comedy, and the second series aired in 2018 to widespread critical acclaim.

In 2020, Sharpe won a BAFTA Television Award for his supporting role as Rodney Yamaguchi in BBC drama Giri/Haji—a role The Independent called 'one of the most riotously funny turns since Richard E Grant stepped out as Withnail.'[11][12]

He is represented by United Talent Agency.[13]

Personal life

His brother is composer Arthur Sharpe, who has written music for The Darkest Universe, Black Pond, and Flowers.[14] Will Sharpe has type two bipolar disorder.[15][16]

Sharpe is in a relationship with actress Sophia Di Martino, with whom he has two children, born in 2019 and 2021.[17][18]

Filmography
YearTitleRoleNotes
2008Never Mind the Buzzcocks—writer
2008The Wrong Doorvariousthree episodes
2009CockroachKiyoshiwriter, director
2009–10CasualtyYuki Reid
2011SirensStudentChannel 4 comedy drama
2011Black PondTimfeature film, actor, writer, co-director
2012SherlockCorporal Lyons"The Hounds of Baskerville"
2012Dirk GentlyDavid ChoTV series – Episode 2
2016The Darkest UniverseZacfeature film – actor, writer, director
2016–18FlowersShunTV series – actor, writer, director
2017W1AMichael ChungThree episodes
2018–19Defending the GuiltyWill PackhamBBC2 series
2019Giri/HajiRodney YamaguchiBBC television series
2021The Electrical Life of Louis Wain—feature film – writer, director
2021Landscapers—miniseries – director
2022The HouseEliasNetflix anthology film
2022The White Lotus Ethan SpillerMain role (season 2)

References
  1. England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007
  2. McEvoy, Sophie. "'Flowers' Is Back On Channel 4 & Its Creator Will Sharpe Is Someone You NEED To Know". Bustle. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  3. Brown, Maggie (23 April 2016). "Unknown writer gets his big TV break with dark English comedy". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
  4. "Interview with Will Sharpe". BBC. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  5. Feay, Suzi Feay (13 June 2018). "Will Sharpe: the comedy star on a flower trip". Financial Times. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  6. "Interview with Will Sharpe - Channel 4 - Info - Press". www.channel4.com. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  7. "Found in translation: Flowers writer Will Sharpe on bringing a Japanese sense of humour to the British stage and screen". The Independent. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  8. "Will Sharpe on his new sitcom Flowers: 'It's an uplifting show about melancholy'". i. 24 April 2016. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  9. "BBC One Casualty - Yuki Reid character page - actor Will Sharpe". Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  10. Macnab, Geoffrey (3 October 2011). "First Night: Black Pond, Raindance Festival, London". The Independent. Retrieved 7 October 2011.
  11. 'Baftas reward diversity and longevity in a post-Covid era' The Guardian website, 31 July 2020, Retrieved 1 August 2020
  12. 'Why Giri/Haji is the most underrated television drama of 2019' The Independent website, 5 December 2019, Retrieved 1 August 2020
  13. White, Peter (12 October 2020). "'Landscapers' Director Will Sharpe Signs With UTA". Deadline. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  14. "Arthur Sharpe interview". tellybinge.co.uk. 17 July 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  15. "How we went about portraying mental health in 'Flowers'". www.mind.org.uk. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  16. "Flowers: the hilarious 'comedy with mental illness' redefining sitcoms". the Guardian. 8 June 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
  17. White, Abbey (1 July 2021). "How Sophia Di Martino's 'Loki' Costume Was Designed to Support the New Mom on Set". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  18. Lewis, Tim (27 November 2021). "'I have an outsider's perspective': why Will Sharpe is the A-List's new favourite director". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
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