Ben Barnes

Benjamin Thomas Barnes was born on August 20, 1981, in London, England. His mother, Patricia Becker, worked as a relationship therapist, and his father, Thomas Barnes, was a professor of psychiatry. Educated at Homefield Preparatory and King’s College, both independent all-boys’ schools, Barnes developed an early interest in musical theatre. He participated in the National Youth Music Theatre and was a member of the boy band Hyrise for a short period. In 2004, he earned a BA Honours degree in Drama and English Literature from Kingston University, where he was the first drama student to achieve first-class honours.

Barnes’ professional acting career began in 2006, with a role in the stage production of “The History Boys” as Dakin and his television debut in the series “Doctors.” His entry into film included appearances in “Stardust” (2007) and a significant role as Prince Caspian in “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” (2008), a role he reprised in “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” (2010). He also took on the titular role in “Dorian Gray” (2009) and co-starred with Jessica Biel in “Easy Virtue” (2008).

His career progression expanded with roles in films such as “The Words” (2012) and “The Big Wedding” (2013), and the fantasy adventure “Seventh Son” (2014). On television, Barnes played Samuel Adams in the History Channel miniseries “Sons of Liberty” (2015) and gained further recognition for his roles as Logan Delos in HBO’s “Westworld” (2016–2020) and Billy Russo in Marvel’s “The Punisher” (2017–2019). Most recently, he starred as General Kirigan in the Netflix series “Shadow and Bone” (2021–2023) and Tim Jamieson in the upcoming MGM+ series “The Institute” (2025). He has also ventured into music, releasing his debut single “11:11” in 2021, followed by an EP “Songs For You” and a full album, “Where The Light Gets In,” in 2025.