Jacob Elordi has been quietly working on his filmography since he was a teenager, which may come as a surprise to those who only recognize him from a few recent movies and shows.
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The actor hails from Brisbane, Australia, and his first few films are beachy romps costarring fellow Aussies like Kylie Minogue, Paul Hogan, Olivia Newton-John, and Radha Mitchell. His first real break arrived when he was hired to play bad boy Noah Flynn in Netflix’s The Kissing Booth. After later landing the role of Nate Jacobs in HBO’s Euphoria, Elordi came into his own and started appearing in prestigious movies.
At 6’5″, Elordi casts a dominant shadow on any movie or television set. The 26-year-old currently has several new films in the works, including a Frankenstein movie written and directed by Guillermo del Toro. Elordi is set to play the Monster with Mia Goth and Oscar Isaac co-starring. Here’s a look at the movies that got Elordi where he is today.
Priscilla (2023)
Portraying Elvis Presley, Elordi towered over 5’1″ costar Cailee Spaeny, who played Priscilla Presley in this biographical drama written, directed, and produced by Sofia Coppola. That disparity was intentional and meant to highlight the uneven power dynamic between the famous exes, which was the main gist of the movie. Priscilla Presley herself was an executive producer on Priscilla, which was based on a book she co-wrote with Sandra Harmon called Elvis and Me.
Priscilla tells the story of how she met the King when she was 14 and he was 24. Against her parents’ wishes, she went to live with him in Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee and eventually married him and had a daughter, Lisa Marie Presley. Priscilla’s version of events depicts Elvis as a controlling, philandering husband who fell victim to drug and alcohol abuse just a few years into their marriage. Elordi received high praise for his performance in Priscilla, particularly his mastery of Elvis’s accent and mannerisms.
Saltburn (2023)
In Saltburn, Elordi takes his jocular upper-class persona up a notch as Felix Catton, a popular student who befriends dorky scholarship kid Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) while studying at Oxford University. After Oliver feeds Felix a pack of lies about his horrible home life, Felix brings him home to the family’s summer mansion, Saltburn, to spend the summer holiday. Oliver quickly ingratiates himself with Felix’s family—with the exception of cousin Farleigh (Archie Madekwe)—but it doesn’t take long before things go sideways and someone (or multiple someones) winds up dead.
Saltburn contains some of the most shocking and thought-provoking moments in modern film, and the movie simply wouldn’t be the same without Elordi’s co*cky smirk.
The Kissing Booth (2018, 2020, and 2021)
This Netflix Kissing Booth film series is based on a book by Beth Reekles. It stars Joey King as Elle, a nerdy high school student who has a crush on her best friend Lee’s (Joel Courtney) older brother, Noah (Elordi). Elle tries to hide her feelings for Noah, but when a school fundraiser puts a blindfolded Elle behind the counter of a kissing booth, she and Noah share a kiss that neither can deny means something.
Critics weren’t kind to The Kissing Booth, but plenty of Netflix viewers sang a different tune. It was so popular among subscribers that the streamer made two more films in the series. You can watch all three The Kissing Booth movies on Netflix.
He Went That Way (2024)
The actor set aside his good boy image with this crime drama helmed by first-time director Jeffrey Darling. Based on a true story, the movie is about a strange encounter between animal trainer Jim (played by Zachary Quinto), his chimpanzee, and a hitchhiker he picks up who turns out to be a serial killer named Larry Ranes (Elordi).
A little backstory: in the 1960s Ranes went on a killing spree near Kalamazoo, Michigan and killed five people. During his rampage, he met Jim, who was the only survivor of Ranes’ spree. The movie explores what happened during their time together that day to make Ranes spare Jim’s life.
The Sweet East (2023)
This satirical road trip film was written by Nick Pinkerton and directed by Sean Price Williams. The story is about a sheltered high school student named Lillian (Talia Ryder) who leaves her home in South Carolina for the first time ever and sets off on a journey along the eastern seaboard of the United States. Along with Elordi, Ayo Edebiri, Earl Cave, and Simon Rex also star.
Deep Water (2022)
Elordi doesn’t have a major part in Adrian Lyne’s (Unfaithful) latest erotic psychological thriller Deep Water, yet he still makes a big splash! He plays Charlie, a young Lothario who has an affair with Melinda Van Allen (Ana de Armas), who is married to Vic Van Allen (Ben Affleck). Melinda and Vic claim to have an open marriage, but somehow Melinda’s lovers (possibly including Charlie) keep winding up dead.
Screenwriters Zach Helm and Sam Levinson based this movie on Patricia Highsmith’s (The Talented Mr. Ripley) 1957 novel, also called Deep Water.
2 Hearts (2020)
This romantic drama follows the parallel lives of Chris (Elordi), Jorge (Adan Canto), and their respective partners (Tiera Skovbye as Samantha and Radha Mitchell as Leslie) as they grapple with all of the “what ifs” life can throw at us. Jorge suffers from a lung condition and is told he won’t live past age 20, while Chris is a healthy and athletic firefighter who has the world on a string. Suddenly the script gets flipped and Chris is lying in a hospital bed, making the viewer question what’s real while marveling at how quickly life can change for us all.
The Very Excellent Mr. Dundee (2020)
In this ’80s throwback schlockfest, “Crocodile Dundee” himself (Paul Hogan) comes out of retirement to star as himself alongside Chevy Chase, John Cleese, and Olivia Newton-John (in her final film performance). The story is that Hogan is about to be knighted by the Queen when someone sullies his reputation so he’s forced to clear his name by any means necessary. Elordi plays Chase, Hogan’s real-life son.
The Mortuary Collection (2019)
The Mortuary Collection is an anthology of connected horror stories told by a mortician called Montgomery (Clancy Brown). Elordi stars in Segment 2: Unprotected, a cautionary tale about a 1960s frat boy named Jake (Elordi) who hooks up with a girl named Sandra (Ema Horvath) at a party. During sex, he removes the condom he’s wearing, and the next morning he wakes up to a troubling rash. Disturbingly, he soon discovers that his romantic dalliance has resulted in a pregnancy … and not for Sandra.
Swinging Safari (2018)
Elordi made his full-length movie debut in this fun beach movie called Swinging Safari. Set in the 1970s, this Australian comedy-drama was written by Stephen Elliott, who is most known for working on The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. Swinging Safari (original title: Flammable Children) is about a teenager coming of age in a small beach town when a huge blue whale washes up on shore. The ensemble cast includes big-name Australian talents Guy Pearce, Julian McMahon, Asher Keddie, Jeremy Sims, and Kylie Minogue. Available to rent on Apple TV.
Elordi has already racked up an impressive list of feature films at the young age of 26! We’re looking forward to seeing what this leading man does next.
(featured image: Jeff Kravitz / Getty)
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