Bill Milner
Encyclopedia
William Henry "Bill" Milner (born 4 March 1995) is an English child actor
, best known for his roles as Will Proudfoot in Son of Rambow
, Edward in Is Anybody There? and the young Magneto
in X-Men: First Class
.
, England area and formerly went to the Teddington School
, although he no longer attends that school.
Milner got his start in the Hammer & Tongs
film Son of Rambow
which was released in 2008. He has since appeared in the made-for-tv films Who Killed Mrs De Ropp? and My Boy Jack
. He also appeared in the film adaptation
of the David Almond
book Skellig
which was released in the UK in 2009. In 2009 he starred alongside Michael Caine
in the film Is Anybody There?, and also took on the role of Ian Dury
's son Baxter in the biopic, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll
which was released in the UK on the 8 January 2010. He played the role of young Magneto
in X-Men: First Class
.
"It was very easy working with Bill because I don't regard him as a child actor. I regard him as an actor who's a child. The difference is you feel absolute confidence in him. You don't feel he's a child. You can depend on him. He's quite extraordinary. Of course, he'd never been in the theater. He'd only been in an amateur dramatic society. So he didn't have any theatrical baggage to get rid of. He's a natural little boy.... He was absolutely essential." – Michael Caine on Milner's performance in Is Anybody There?, Boston Globe, 3 May 2009.
2009 Young Artist Award
Child actor
The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting in motion pictures or television, but also to an adult who began his or her acting career as a child; to avoid confusion, the latter is also called a former child actor...
, best known for his roles as Will Proudfoot in Son of Rambow
Son of Rambow
Son of Rambow is a 2008 comedy-drama film written and directed by Garth Jennings. The film premiered January 22, 2007 at the Sundance Film Festival. It was later shown at the Newport Beach Film Festival, Seattle International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and Glasgow Film...
, Edward in Is Anybody There? and the young Magneto
Magneto (comics)
Magneto is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the central villain of the X-Men comic, as well as the TV show and the films. The character first appears in X-Men #1 , and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby...
in X-Men: First Class
X-Men: First Class
X-Men: First Class is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics starring the X-Men.-Publication history:The original series was an eight-issue limited series. It began in September 2006 and ended in April 2007. It was written by Jeff Parker and penciled by Roger Cruz...
.
Life and career
Milner was born in England. He lives with his family in the MiddlesexMiddlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, England area and formerly went to the Teddington School
Teddington School
Teddington School is a co-educational comprehensive school, designated as a specialist Visual Arts College. The school has over 1,100 pupils in the age range 11-16 and is on a large site close to the River Thames opposite Trowlock Island.-History:...
, although he no longer attends that school.
Milner got his start in the Hammer & Tongs
Hammer & Tongs
Hammer & Tongs is the pseudonym of promo and film director Garth Jennings and producer Nick Goldsmith, as well as the name of their production company...
film Son of Rambow
Son of Rambow
Son of Rambow is a 2008 comedy-drama film written and directed by Garth Jennings. The film premiered January 22, 2007 at the Sundance Film Festival. It was later shown at the Newport Beach Film Festival, Seattle International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and Glasgow Film...
which was released in 2008. He has since appeared in the made-for-tv films Who Killed Mrs De Ropp? and My Boy Jack
My Boy Jack (film)
My Boy Jack is a 2007 television drama based on David Haig's 1997 play of the same name. It was filmed in August 2007, with Haig as Rudyard Kipling and Daniel Radcliffe as John Kipling. It does not include act three of the play, which extended to the 1920s and 1930s. Instead it ends with Kipling...
. He also appeared in the film adaptation
Skellig (film)
Skellig known in North America as Skellig: The Owl Man is a 2009 British fantasy, drama film directed by Annabel Jankel and starring Tim Roth and Bill Milner...
of the David Almond
David Almond
David Almond is a British children's writer who has written several novels, each one to critical acclaim.-Early life:Almond was born and raised in Felling and Newcastle in post-industrial North East England and educated at the University of East Anglia, he was born in 1951...
book Skellig
Skellig
Skellig is a novel by David Almond, for which Almond was awarded the Carnegie Medal in 1998 and also the Whitbread Children's Book of the Year Award. The book won the 2000 Michael L. Printz Honor from YALSA in the United States...
which was released in the UK in 2009. In 2009 he starred alongside Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
in the film Is Anybody There?, and also took on the role of Ian Dury
Ian Dury
Ian Robins Dury was an English rock and roll singer, lyricist, bandleader and actor who initially rose to fame during the late 1970s, during the punk and New Wave era of rock music...
's son Baxter in the biopic, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll
Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (film)
Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll is a 2010 biopic of Ian Dury, starring Andy Serkis as Dury. The film follows Dury's rise to fame and documents his personal battle with the disability caused by having contracted polio during childhood. The effect that his disability and his lifestyle have upon his...
which was released in the UK on the 8 January 2010. He played the role of young Magneto
Magneto (comics)
Magneto is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the central villain of the X-Men comic, as well as the TV show and the films. The character first appears in X-Men #1 , and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby...
in X-Men: First Class
X-Men: First Class
X-Men: First Class is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics starring the X-Men.-Publication history:The original series was an eight-issue limited series. It began in September 2006 and ended in April 2007. It was written by Jeff Parker and penciled by Roger Cruz...
.
"It was very easy working with Bill because I don't regard him as a child actor. I regard him as an actor who's a child. The difference is you feel absolute confidence in him. You don't feel he's a child. You can depend on him. He's quite extraordinary. Of course, he'd never been in the theater. He'd only been in an amateur dramatic society. So he didn't have any theatrical baggage to get rid of. He's a natural little boy.... He was absolutely essential." – Michael Caine on Milner's performance in Is Anybody There?, Boston Globe, 3 May 2009.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Son of Rambow Son of Rambow Son of Rambow is a 2008 comedy-drama film written and directed by Garth Jennings. The film premiered January 22, 2007 at the Sundance Film Festival. It was later shown at the Newport Beach Film Festival, Seattle International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and Glasgow Film... |
Will Proudfoot | Nominated — British Independent Film Award British Independent Film Awards The Moët British Independent Film Awards is an annual award ceremony celebrating achievement in independently funded British film and cinema. Nominations and jury are announced at the beginning of November with the award ceremony taking place in late November or early December.-History:The British... for Most Promising Newcomer Nominated — Young Artist Award Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award is an accolade bestowed by the Young Artist Foundation, a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically and/or financially challenged.The Young Artist... for Best Performance in an International Feature Film – Leading Young Performers (shared with Will Poulter Will Poulter William Jack Poulter is an English actor, most notable for his roles as Lee Carter in Son of Rambow, and as Eustace Scrubb in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.-Career:... ) |
| 2007 | Who Killed Mrs De Ropp? | Nicholas | TV movie |
| 2007 | My Boy Jack My Boy Jack (film) My Boy Jack is a 2007 television drama based on David Haig's 1997 play of the same name. It was filmed in August 2007, with Haig as Rudyard Kipling and Daniel Radcliffe as John Kipling. It does not include act three of the play, which extended to the 1920s and 1930s. Instead it ends with Kipling... |
Peter Carter | TV movie |
| 2008 | Pop Art | Toby | short film |
| 2008 | Is Anybody There? | Edward | Nominated — London Critics Circle Film Award for Young British Performer of the Year |
| 2009 | Skellig Skellig (film) Skellig known in North America as Skellig: The Owl Man is a 2009 British fantasy, drama film directed by Annabel Jankel and starring Tim Roth and Bill Milner... |
Michael | |
| 2009 | Mixtape | Ben | Short Film |
| 2010 | Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (film) Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll is a 2010 biopic of Ian Dury, starring Andy Serkis as Dury. The film follows Dury's rise to fame and documents his personal battle with the disability caused by having contracted polio during childhood. The effect that his disability and his lifestyle have upon his... |
Baxter Baxter Dury Baxter Dury is an English indie musician, currently signed to Rough Trade Records. He is the son of Ian Dury, and as a five-year-old he appeared on the front cover of Ian's LP New Boots and Panties!!. He left school at the age of fourteen. He has had a 'Record of the Week' in NME with Oscar Brown... |
Nominated — London Critics Circle Film Award for Young British Performer of the Year |
| 2010 | Disco | Danny | Short Film |
| 2011 | X-Men: First Class X-Men: First Class X-Men: First Class is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics starring the X-Men.-Publication history:The original series was an eight-issue limited series. It began in September 2006 and ended in April 2007. It was written by Jeff Parker and penciled by Roger Cruz... |
Young Erik Lensherr / Magneto Magneto (comics) Magneto is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the central villain of the X-Men comic, as well as the TV show and the films. The character first appears in X-Men #1 , and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby... |
Awards
2008 British Independent Film Awards- Most Promising Newcomer for Son of Rambow — Nominated
2009 Young Artist Award
- Best Performance in an International Feature Film – Leading Young Performers for Son of Rambow — Nominated