Cody Fern

Cody Fern (born 6 July 1988) is an Australian actor and director. Following his feature debut in The Tribes of Palos Verdes (2017), he portrayed murder victim David Madson in the FX series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (2018). Later that year, Fern played Michael Langdon in American Horror Story: Apocalypse. He appeared in the final season of the Netflix drama House of Cards as Duncan Shepherd. In 2019, he returned to American Horror Story for its ninth season 1984, playing Xavier Plympton. In 2021, he guest-starred in the tenth season, subtitled Double Feature, and has appeared in two episodes of the spin-off series American Horror Stories.

Cody Fern
Fern in June 2019
Born (1988-07-06) 6 July 1988
Southern Cross, Western Australia, Australia
NationalityAustralian
Alma materCurtin University of Technology
Occupations
  • Actor
  • director
Years active2008–present

Early life and education

Fern was born on 6 July 1988 in Southern Cross in rural Western Australia.[1][2][3] He attended boarding school at Merredin Senior High School, and graduated from Curtin University of Technology with an Honours Degree in Commerce in 2009.[4][5]

Career

Fern had initially considered a career in finance before pursuing acting. According to an interview with Anthem Magazine, he hated his life while working in finance. He said, "This is not what I want my life to be. But I'm here and I'm doing it and I'm trying to fit in." It was the Cate Blanchett-starring film duology Elizabeth and Elizabeth: The Golden Age that made him want to become an actor.[6]

Fern has trained with acting coaches, including Ellen Burstyn, Larry Moss, and Susan Batson. Fern played the lead role of Albert in the National Theatre of Great Britain's production War Horse,[7][8] which received critical acclaim.[9][10]

In 2011, Fern played Romeo in Shakespeare WA's production of Romeo and Juliet, Lindsay in the Black Swan Theatre Company's Jandamarra, and the Earl of Southampton in the world premiere production of The Enchanters at the State Theatre of Western Australia.[11] He has appeared in a number of short films, including the Western Australian Screen Award-winning film Still Take You Home (2010) and The Last Time I Saw Richard (2014).

In 2014, Fern was the recipient of the annual Heath Ledger Scholarship by Australians in Film, an award aimed at financially and professionally supporting actors of Australian descent. This includes, besides a cash fund, a two-year scholarship at Los Angeles' Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre and mentorship from the father of actor Heath Ledger.[12]

He appeared as Jim Mason in The Tribes of Palos Verdes and wrote, directed and starred in the short film Pisces opposite Keir Gilchrist in 2017.[13][6] In a Los Angeles Times sit-down interview, Fern had planned to take an 18-month hiatus from acting to focus on Pisces when Versace came along.[14]

In 2018, Fern made his television debut in the acclaimed FX true crime anthology series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story as David Madson which earned him the Gold Derby TV Award for Movie/Limited Series Supporting Actor and a nomination for Breakthrough Performer of the Year.[15] He was announced to star in the series regular role of Duncan Shepherd on the final season of House of Cards.[16][17] The same year, Fern portrayed the Antichrist Michael Langdon in the eighth season of FX horror anthology series American Horror Story, titled Apocalypse.[18] In 2019, Fern played Xavier Plympton in the ninth season of the show, American Horror Story: 1984.[19]

In 2021, Fern portrayed Stan Vogel in American Horror Stories episode Feral, and Valiant Thor in American Horror Story, Double Feature: Death Valley. In 2022, he portrayed Thomas Browne in American Horror Stories episode Milkmaids. In 2022, Fern played a priest named Jacob in the film Father Stu.

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2008 Hole in the Ground Zack Short film
2010 Still Take You Home Milk
Drawn Home Steve
2011 3AM Nj
2014 The Last Time I Saw Richard Richard
2017 The Tribes of Palos Verdes Jim Mason
Pisces Charlie Short film; also director and writer
2018 The Great Darkened Days Travelling Salesman
2022 Father Stu Jacob
2023 Fairyland Eddie Body

Television
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2014 Christmas Eve, 1914 Arnold Chapman Television film
2018 The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story David Madson 4 episodes
American Horror Story: Apocalypse Michael Langdon 9 episodes
House of Cards Duncan Shepherd 6 episodes
2019 American Horror Story: 1984 Xavier Plympton 9 episodes
2021 Eden Andy Dolan 3 episodes
2021-2022 American Horror Stories Stan Vogel Episode: "Feral"
Thomas Browne Episode: "Milkmaids"
2021 American Horror Story: Double Feature Valiant Thor 2 episodes

Video games
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2023 Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Dagan Gera Voice, motion capture, and likeness [20]

References
  1. "How old is Cody Fern?". PopBuzz. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
  2. Hughes, Jason (12 June 2014). "Heath Ledger Scholarship Awarded to 'War Horse' Stage Actor Cody Fern". The Wrap. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  3. Dow, Steve (21 March 2013). "Cody's calling". The Age. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  4. Bennett, Sally (15 October 2012). "Cody Fern ready for the ride of his life in War Horse". Sunday Herald Sun.
  5. Litson, Jo (10 March 2013). "Acting added up for Cody". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  6. Chang, Kee (18 November 2017). "Screen Test: Cody Fern". Anthem Magazine. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  7. Parris, Simon (1 January 2013). "War Horse [Melbourne] review". Man in Chair. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  8. Nicholas, Jessica (30 November 2012). "From the heart of the beast". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  9. Woodhead, Cameron (31 December 2012). "Brilliant puppetry wins hearts in a canter". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  10. Dow, Steve (20 March 2013). "War Horse star ordered to rest after injury". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  11. "Cody Fern". Shakespeare WA. 13 October 2011. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  12. Holman, Jordyn (13 June 2014). "Q&A: Heath Ledger Scholarship Recipient Talks Future in Film". Variety. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  13. Bugbee, Teo (30 November 2017). "Review: Strong Performances Anchor 'The Tribes of Palos Verdes'". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  14. "Cody Fern was going to take 18-month hiatus from acting when 'The Assassination of Gianni Versace' came along". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  15. Montgomery, Daniel; Dixon, Marcus James; Beachum, Chris; Eng, Joyce (6 September 2018). "2018 Gold Derby TV Awards winners: 'Versace' and 'Handmaid's Tale' are top winners, but 'Game of Thrones' takes Best Drama". Gold Derby. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  16. Evans, Greg (8 February 2018). "Cody Fern Lands Series Regular Role On Netflix's House of Cards". Deadline. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
  17. Variety Staff (27 August 2018). "House of Cards Unveils First Look at Diane Lane and Greg Kinnear Characters Inspired by Koch Brothers". Variety. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
  18. Otterson, Joe (26 July 2018). "American Horror Story Season 8 Casts Cody Fern as Michael Langdon and he's the best actor in that season". Variety. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  19. Harnick, Chris (18 September 2019). "Meet the American Horror Story: 1984 Characters: Who's Who Among the Star-Studded Cast". E! Online. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  20. Saunders, Toby (29 April 2023). "Star Wars Jedi: Survivor cast – Confirmed voice actors & how you know them". Radio Times. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
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