Jacob McCarthy

Suitcase and Asphalt in California

Jacob McCarthy landed in Los Angeles at eighteen with a backpack that weighed less than his ambition. There were no red carpets or agent calls waiting for him at the airport. He was just a kid from Dublin looking for work in an industry that tends to devour those without a backup plan.

In 2017, he landed the role that changed how his name was perceived in the industry. He played Gabriel in The Drummer and the Keeper, a small film that demanded extreme sensitivity to portray autism without falling into caricature. That shoot forced him to learn drumming in record time so the musical scenes would feel believable.

And the effort paid off.

Irish critics began to take notice after he won the Best Breakthrough Actor award at several European festivals that same year. It was the moment he understood that his eternally youthful look could be a double-edged sword. He had to choose carefully to avoid getting stuck in flat characters.

Comedy as a Training Ground

American television came knocking on his door in 2018 with the NBC series A.P. Bio. For four seasons, he brought to life Devin, a brilliant but somewhat odd student who served as a counterpoint to the cynicism of the adult leads. That was more than just a long-term contract.

It taught him the rhythm of sitcom comedy and how to survive fourteen-hour shoot days. But McCarthy didn't want to be just the funny high school sidekick. During the series' breaks, he looked for projects that would take him away from structured scripts aimed at the mainstream audience.

In 2019, he took part in The Last Summer, a Netflix production designed for quick consumption by young audiences. It was a tactical decision to gain global visibility while he kept auditioning for auteur projects. He knew television gave him stability, but film would give him the prestige he had been chasing since leaving Ireland.

It was a quick shoot with no technical complications.

Maturing Under the Coens' Watchful Eye

The definitive leap toward industry respect came in 2021. Joel Coen selected him for the cast of The Tragedy of Macbeth, a striking black-and-white visual project in which he shared the set with Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand. The role of Malcolm required a restraint McCarthy had not explored until then.

Working under a Coen brother doesn't leave room for major mistakes or unnecessary improvisation. The experience opened doors to productions with greater technical depth and budgets exceeding 50 million dollars. He definitively moved away from the young actor label that had followed him since arriving in the United States.

In 2024, his schedule filled up with major names and directors with a very specific vision. He took part in The Watchers, a horror film directed by Ishana Night Shyamalan that explored Irish folklore from a dark perspective. Filming took place in the forests of Galway, bringing him back to his homeland after years on California asphalt.

That same year, he shot the film The Surfer in Australia alongside Nicolas Cage. The production centered on a psychological thriller where physical tension was the key to every scene. McCarthy had to adapt to an extreme climate and to the intensity of a costar who gives little respite to actors with less experience.

The film premiered at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival in the Midnight Screenings section, with a running time of 99 minutes.