Inside One Day star Leo Woodall’s famous family as he soars to fame after heartbreaking new Netflix series

He is the star of Netflix’s latest heartbreaking drama series One Day, which has left viewers around the world in tears.

And Leo Woodall looks set to become a household name after starring as Dexter Mayhew in the 2009 TV adaptation of David Nicholls’ novel.

He initially wanted to pursue a career as a gym teacher or stuntman, but it was not until his late teens that he decided to study acting.

Inspired by performances in the gritty British dramas Skins and Peaky Blinders, he enrolled in drama school at the age of 19 before landing his first acting job in the short film Man Down.

But while he may not have been initially drawn to acting, it’s no surprise that Leo pursued a career in the arts, considering he comes from a theater family.

Leo’s parents met at drama school and his stepfather is also an actor.

His father Andrew Woodall, 60, has appeared in films including The Count of Monte Cristo, Belle and most recently Solo: A Star Wars Story.

He has also worked on several TV series including Grantchester, Endeavour, the Reckoning and Des.

Leo’s mother Jane Morton did not pursue an acting career after completing drama school, but after her relationship with Andrew ended, she married another actor.

Leo’s stepdad Alexander Morton, 78, is best known for playing ghillie Golly Mackenzie in the BBC series Monarch of the Glen.

He also appeared in the gangster film Get Carter and has appeared in shows such as Luther and Casualty.

Leo is also a descendant on his mother’s side of the late silent film actor Maxine Elliott, who was a star in the 1910s.

Leo attended Arts Educational School (ArtsEd) in London and graduated in 2019 with a BA in acting.

With a diploma behind him, the roles quickly ended up with Leo.

His first was in an episode of the hospital drama Holby City, and shortly afterwards he was cast in the upcoming science fiction film Nomad, chosen from 28,000 entries for the role.

Leo filmed for the film over a period of three years in twenty countries.

Meanwhile, he made his film debut in Cherry, directed by the Russo brothers, and appeared in the Peacock series Vampire Academy.

It was in 2022 that he had his first big breakout role as Jack in anthology series The White Lotus, the troubled ‘cousin’ of Tom Hollander’s character.

Discussing his introduction to the role, Leo told GQ, “Remember that episode of Friends where Joey has written a script for Chandler and Ross to read, and he writes ‘a handsome man walks in.’

‘It was something like this, it was like, ‘Handsome Jack walks to the pool. Portia looks at Handsome Jack.’

‘There was a tagline in the character breakdown that read: “Man from Essex, is a magnetic person who causes some trouble in the hotel”. I wish I could paraphrase it better.”

He left the show with about two dozen fans and a girlfriend, and began a romance with co-star Meghann Fahy.

But his experience on the set of White Lotus didn’t make One Day any less intimidating for Leo, who said it felt like a “mountain to climb.”

He told The Hollywood Reporter: ‘It struck me how much pressure I felt as a leading actor.

‘I didn’t know whether I should act like the captain of a sports team. And I struggled with not having a single moment to myself, like you can’t tie your own shoelace or spit out your own gum.

‘One day I noticed that I was being followed by a paparazzi photographer and I thought, “I don’t know how people deal with this on a day-to-day basis.”

“I want to be as successful as possible as an actor, but I don’t think it would be that much fun to be categorically famous.”

Leo stars alongside Ambika Mod, 27, as Emma Morley in 20-year love story One Day.

The series follows Emma and Dexter who meet on July 15, 1988, the night they graduate from the University of Edinburgh.

The next morning they go their separate ways, but the novel and the TV series catch up with them on the same day every year.

In each episode, we see Dex and Em, a year older, on this one specific date, as they grow and change, together and apart, experiencing joy and heartbreak.

The cast of One Day is completed by some big names, including Eleanor Tomlinson and Joely Richardson.

The decades-long love story is based on David Nicholls’ 2009 novel, which has sold more than five million copies worldwide.

It is not the first time that the story of Emma and Dexter has appeared on the cinema. A film starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess was released in 2011, but received mixed reviews.