Joy cast: where do you recognise Netflix cast from? What other roles have they had

• Joy on Netflix has a cast full of familiar faces.
• It includes Academy Award-nominee Bill Nighy - who you have definitely seen elsewhere.
• The film tells the real-life story of the world’s first ‘test-tube’ baby.

Netflix’s new film Joy features an incredible cast filled with familiar faces. The movie is based on an incredible true story - find out more here.

Directed by Ben Taylor, who shot episodes of Sex Education, it tells the real-life tale of the birth of the first IVF baby in 1978. Joy arrived on the streaming service today (Friday November 22).

If you have put Joy on and find yourself thinking - huh, I recognise these actors. But you can’t quite remember where from, don’t worry we’ve got you!

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Who is in the cast for Joy?

The main cast playing the real life roles of the IVF team who played key roles in the birth of ‘test-tube’ baby Louise Joy Brown have been confirmed. It includes an Oscar-nominated actor and a well-known face from British TV.

• Thomasin McKenzie - Jean Purdy
• James Norton - Robert Edwards
• Bill Nighy - Patrick Steptoe

Where do you know the Joy cast from?

The Netflix film is full of familiar faces - including one very famous Hollywood actor. As mentioned above the main cast includes: Thomasin McKenzie, James Norton and Bill Nighy.

These names may ring a bell, but you may not be entirely sure where you have seen them before. But don’t worry we are here to jog your memory.

Thomasin McKenzie

The 24-year-old actor plays one of the main roles in Joy, but she actually got her start with a minor role in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in 2014. Which does make sense when you learn she is from New Zealand - she played Astrid in the film.

In 2018 she played the role of Tom in Leave No Trace for which she won the National Board of Review Award for Breakthrough Performance. She was Elsa in the Oscar winning satirical film Jojo Rabbit and she recently played the titular role of Eileen in the 2023 film Eileen - alongside Anne Hathaway.

James Norton

Regular viewers of British TV will certainly recognise James Norton. He shot to fame for his role as Tommy Lee Royce in Happy Valley on the BBC.

Norton also played the main role in Grantchester from 2014 to 2019, being replaced by Tom Brittney from the ITV show’s fifth season. He was also in the adaptation of War and Peace in 2016 and had the lead role in 2018’s McMafia and was part of the cast for 2024’s Bob Marley: One Love.

Bill Nighy

It would take me days to list all of Bill Nighy’s roles throughout his illustrious career - and probably take you just as long to read it. He has been nominated for Academy Awards and won Golden Globes and BAFTAs.

You may recognise him from Love Actually, in which he played Billy Mack, as this was the role that shot him to international fame. He was also in Shaun of the Dead, alongside Simon Pegg.

Nighy was Davy Jones in the Pirates of the Caribbean films - albeit he was under tons of special effects at the time, but it was his voice. Most recently he appeared in 2022’s Living, for which he was nominated for best actor at the Oscars.

Have you watched Joy on Netflix, what did you think of the film? Share your thoughts by emailing me: [email protected].