Introduction to Stars of Tomorrow
The 2025 line-up for Stars of Tomorrow has been unveiled by Screen International. This annual talent program, now in its 22nd year, has a proven track record of identifying emerging British and Irish talents in the film industry. The program has been instrumental in launching the careers of many successful actors and filmmakers.
The 2025 Line-up
This year’s Stars of Tomorrow comprises 11 actors and nine filmmakers. Among the selected actors are Owen Cooper, a prime-time Emmy winner, Bella Maclean, star of Rival, Daniel Quinn-Toye, lead actor in the $100 million science fiction feature Voltron, and Nyuot, who appeared in the Stephen King adaptation The Long Walk. The filmmakers include Tobi Kyeremateng, producer of Passenger, Shalini Adnani, who made her feature debut supported by Film4, Ted Evans, whose debut film Retreat is a thriller told entirely in British Sign Language, and Jess O’Kane, writer of Bad Apples, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The Legacy of Stars of Tomorrow
The 2025 edition was the last to be overseen by Fionnuala Halligan, the former editor-in-chief of Screen International, who left to become director of international programs for the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia. Halligan had supervised the Stars of Tomorrow program for 15 editions, during which time she identified talents such as John Boyega, Jack Lowden, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Florence Pugh, and Jodie Comer.
The Future of Stars of Tomorrow
The curator of the UK & Ireland Stars of Tomorrow program will now be taken over by Charles Gant, Screen International‘s awards and reviews editor, starting with the 2026 edition. Gant said, "Finn’s departure means that the Stars of Tomorrow curatorial torch is now being passed on, and I’m proud and humbled to take on the challenge." The 2025 cohort was celebrated on September 24th in a special event in London, sponsored by Spotlight. Applications for the Stars of Tomorrow 2026 UK & Ireland will open next year.
Meet the Stars of Tomorrow
The 2025 cohort includes a diverse range of talented actors and filmmakers. To learn more about each of them, you can read their profiles, which were compiled by a team of industry experts, including Jessie Buers, Ellie Calnan, Ben Dalton, Leif Findlay, Charles Gant, Jamie Graham, Ian Haydn Smith, Helen O’Hara, Orlando Parfitt, Mona Tabbara, and Amon Warmann.
Actors
The 11 actors selected for the 2025 Stars of Tomorrow program are:
Owen Cooper
Bella Maclean
Daniel Quinn-Toye
Nyuot
and seven others.
Filmmakers
The nine filmmakers selected for the 2025 Stars of Tomorrow program are:
Tobi Kyeremateng
Shalini Adnani
Ted Evans
Jess O’Kane
and five others.
