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Home , Andrew Denton, Anna Chancellor, April Webster, Brendan Cowell, Charles Vane, David Berthold

-Season Two-

CAST BIOGRAPHIES

TOBY STEPHENS ()

Toby Stephens was born in , England and trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic (LAMDA). He has gained critical acclaim as a stage and screen actor.

In 2011, Toby starred as ‘Jack Armstrong’ in the BBC Comedy Drama “Vexed.” Previous television roles include “Robin Hood” (BBC), “Wired” (ITV), “The Wild West” (BBC 1), “Jane Eyre” (BBC 1), “Sharpe’s Challenge” (ITV), “The Best Man” (ITV), “The Queen’s Sister” (), “Waking the Dead” (BBC 1), “Poirot” (ITV), “Cambridge Spies” (BBC 2), “Perfect Strangers” (BBC 2), and “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall” (BBC 1).

In 2012 Toby filmed Believe with Natasha McElhone and , and in 2013 starred as one of the leads in All Things to All Men alongside Gabriel Byrne and Rufus Sewell. Toby also wrapped filming in Caradog James’ The Machine for Content Film. Other film work includes: Severance, The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey, , Possession, The Announcement, Onegin, Photographing Fairies, Sunset Heights, Cousin Bette, , , and Orlando.

Toby is an accomplished stage actor – both in London’s West End and on Broadway. Theater credits include ‘Elyot’ opposite Anna Chancellor in “Noel Coward’s ,” ‘Georges Danton’ in “Danton’s Death” (National Theatre Olivier), ‘Henry’ in “” (), ‘Thomas’ in “A Doll’s House” and ‘Jerry’ in “” (), ‘Mr. Horner’ in “The Country Wife,” ‘Anthony Cavendish’ in “The Royal Family,” ‘Japes’ in “Japes” and ‘Stanley Kowalski’ in “” (), ‘Jesus’ in “The Pilate Workshop,” ‘’ in “Hamlet,” ‘Claudio’ in “Measure for Measure,” ‘Lysander’ in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” ‘’ in “Coriolanus,” ‘Young Beamish’ in “Unfinished Business,” ‘Max Piccolomini’ in “Wallenstein,” ‘Bertram’ in “All’s Well That Ends Well,” ‘’ in “,” and ‘Celebinus/King of Argier’ in “Tamburlaine” (RSC), ‘Hugo/Frederick’ in “Ring Round the Moon” (Lincoln Center), ‘’ in “Britannicus,” and ‘Hippolyte’ in “Phèdre” (Almeida and BAM), and ‘Damis’ in “” (Playhouse Theatre).

HANNAH NEW (Eleanor Guthrie)

Born in London, England, Hannah insisted at age 4 on attending ballet school, setting her on a performing path in life. She later turned her focus to acting and joined The National Youth Theatre of Great Britain.

Her interest in other cultures led her to travel around the world, including to Bolivia where she did volunteer work in children's homes. Upon her return to England, she attended Leeds University majoring in English and Spanish and performing in numerous stage productions in both languages. Hannah earned a First Class honors degree and promptly moved to Spain to further master the language through immersion and even studied Meisner in Spanish.

Hannah was quickly scouted by View Management, a top Spanish modeling agency, and decided to pursue print and commercial work to support her studies in Barcelona and Madrid and save for drama school back home. She was accepted and attended London University's Central School of Speech and Drama.

While pursuing her degree, Hannah was offered several Spanish projects including the lead in the 11 part mini-series adaptation of Maria Duenas' best-selling novel "El Tiempo Entre Costuras." Although against standard school policy, Central allowed Hannah to continue her studies while shooting this and several other projects in Spain and in December 2011, she graduated with a Masters in Acting with Distinction.

Since graduation, Hannah landed her first American role as one of the leads in “Shelter,” a for Warner Bros. and the CW that was produced by J.J. Abrams. She was then cast in Walt Disney Pictures' Maleficent starring . Hannah plays 'Leila,' the beautiful mother of young Princess Aurora. The film was released in March 2014.

LUKE ARNOLD (John )

A graduate of the prestigious Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), Luke is a young Australian on the rise. Luke was awarded runner-up of the 2011 Australians in Film (AiF) Heath Ledger Scholarship, an achievement that sees him in the company of some of Australia’s hottest young actors. The scholarship judging panel includes April Webster (casting director), Frances O’Connor (actor), Gregor Jordan (director), Ann Fay (Maura Fay Group casting agent), Kate Ledger (Heath Ledger’s sister), and Rob Marsala (AiF board member). Luke boasts an impressive and growing list of film credits including lead roles in Broken Hill; starring opposite Academy® Award Winner Timothy Hutton and Spy Kid’s Alexa Vega, The Tunnel; which premiered at Screamfest and has worldwide release by Paramount/ Transmission Films and the soon to be released Murder in the Dark; directed by Dagen Merill and written by Chris Wyatt (Napoleon Dynamite).

Luke’s diverse television guest star roles include “The Pacific” (HBO/Dreamworks), “Winners and Losers” (), “Panic at Rock Island” (Goalpost Pictures), “RUSH” (Network 10), “City Homicide” (Seven Network Australia),” Rescue Special Ops” (Network Nine), and most recently “Lowdown” (ABC), and “Winners and Losers” (Seven Network Australia). In 2013 he filmed “Never Tear Us Apart,” in which he plays the lead role as Michael Hutchence.

Luke is also a writer, producer and director in his own right, his short film Iphone Warfare winning the Peninsula Film Festival in 2011.

JESSICA PARKER KENNEDY (Max)

Coming off of a recurring role on “90210,” Jessica is also starring in the Lifetime movie “Nearlyweds” with Danielle Panabaker.

In 2011 Jessica starred in the CW series, “The Secret Circle,” as an elite New England student who comes to realize that she's a witch. Jessica was named one of E! Entertainment's "Hot Faces of Fall," featured as one of Zap2It's “Underrated TV Stars of 2011,” and adorned TV Guide's “Hot List.”

Jessica’s additional film roles include 50/50, opposite Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (an official selection of the Toronto International Film Festival, for which she received an Independent Spirit Award nomination); Andrew Niccol's In Time, opposite Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried; and Another Cinderella Story, opposite Selena Gomez.

Past television credits include ABC's “V” and “Brothers and Sisters,” the CW's “,” Nickelodeon's “The Troop,” and MTV Network's “Kaya and Valmont.”

Jessica is a professionally trained singer.

TOM HOPPER (Billy Bones)

Tom Hopper began his acting career at the acclaimed drama school of Rose Bruford College. While at school, Tom performed in such plays as “Festen” (the British stage adaptation of the popular Danish film) and ’s “The Tempest.”

After drama school, Tom continued to work in both television and film with roles in such productions as the BBC’s “Casualty,” ITV’s “Kingdom,” the BBC’s “Doctors,” the BBC’s “Dr. Who,” and thriller Saxon.

Tom then starred as one of the leads of Jon Wright’s horror thriller Tormented for BBC Films and Paramount Vantage. This tells the story of a bullied teenager who comes back from the dead to take revenge on his classmates. Also starring Alex Pettyfer and Georgia King, Tom plays ‘Marcus,’ the high school’s star athlete.

Tom had a series regular role on the popular SyFy series “.” He plays ‘Sir Percival,’ a powerfully built but humble and kind-hearted nobleman and one of the legendary Knights of the Roundtable.

Between seasons of “Black Sails,” Tom starred as ‘Asbjorn’ in Northmen, directed by Claudio Faeh.

ZACH MCGOWAN (Captain Charles Vane)

Born and raised in New York City, Zach McGowan caught the acting bug at an early age. He performed in student plays from grammar school through high school.

Though he continued to act in plays throughout his childhood, he realized that sports were his first priority. A natural athlete, he competed on the ice hockey, football, and lacrosse teams. At Carlton College he played on both the ice hockey and lacrosse teams while continuing to satisfy his love of acting while performing in college productions.

Upon graduation he returned to New York City and discovered that picking up where he left off with his acting career wasn’t so easy. In true Renaissance man form, he started to work at various restaurants and picked up culinary skills that earned him a spot on “Iron Chef America.” Zach continued to act in off-Broadway productions and made his film debut in the Roger Korman films Hunt for Eagle One and Crashing Point, which were shot on location in the Philippines. He continued his film work with a supporting role in with .

After years of living in the Big Apple, Zach and his wife decided to make the move to Los Angeles. He continued his work as a chef working at some of the city’s top restaurants such as with Animal owners John Shook and Vinnie Dotolo. His acting career picked up momentum with guest spots on countless TV series (i.e. “CSI Miami,” “Numbers,” “Cold Case,” etc.). He hit the jackpot when he was cast as ‘Jody,’ on Showtime’s hit series, “.” The on-camera nudity and ribald storylines are some of the most provocative that one can see on cable TV today – and Zach enjoyed pushing the envelope on the series!

Between seasons of “Black Sails,” Zach starred in Gary Shore’s Dracula Untold as ‘Shkelgim.’

His mellifluous voice has served him well with a burgeoning voice-over career. Zach has provided voice work for countless movie trailers --from Angels & Demons to the original Sherlock Holmes to voicing ‘Whiplash’ in the “Iron Man” video game.

TOBY SCHMITZ (Jack Rackham)

Born in , Western Australia, Toby attended Perth's Scotch College and briefly studied law at the University of Western Australia. He graduated from the acting course at National Institute of Dramatic Art with a degree in Performing Arts (Acting) in 1999.

His Theatre Company credits include “The School for Scandal” directed by , the premiere and national tour of David Williamson's “The Great Man” directed by Nevin, and leading roles in George Bernard Shaw's “Major Barbara,” Andrew Upton's “Hanging Man,” Tony McNamara's “The Great,” 's “Self Esteem,” Nina Raine’s “Rabbit,” and 's “Travesties.” Several of these productions toured to Melbourne and other Australian capital cities.

For Griffin Theatre Company, he played the central role of ‘Luke Boyce’ in 's The Boyce Trilogy – “The Woman with Dog's Eyes” (2004), “The Boy” (2005), and “The Emperor of Sydney” (2006), all directed by .

For Company B he played the title role in Brendan Cowell's “Ruben Guthrie” (2008 and 2009). He performed the role of ‘Coleman’ in “The Lonesome West” at Belvoir St. Theatre in 2009. He recently starred in Simon Stone’s version of “Private Lives.”

He also appeared in the premiere of Brendan Cowell's “Men” for Rogue Star Productions.

In 2000, he directed a production of Howard Korder's “A Boy's Life” at the Bondi Pavilion. In 2008 he directed Neil LaBute's “This Is How It Goes.”

In 2010, Toby played the eponymous character ‘Hamlet’ in the enormously successful La Boite Theatre production in Brisbane, directed by David Berthold, and played as ‘Benedick’ in Shakespeare's “.”

His many television credits include “McLeod's Daughters,” “The Heartbreak Tour,” “The Cooks,” “White Collar Blue,” “Water Rats,” “Fat Cow Motel” (ABC), “,” “Temptation,” and the Steven Spielberg/ produced miniseries “The Pacific.”

He also appeared in the third installment of the Underbelly Files series of telemovies, titled “The Man Who Got Away,” portraying notorious drug smuggler and organized crime figurehead ‘David McMillan.’

In 2012, he teamed up with Angus Sampson in season one of the Australian word game “Randling,” hosted by on ABC1.

Toby’s film credits include The Rage in Placid Lake, Somersault, Agoraphobia in the Desert of the Real, The Heist, My Last Ten Hours with You, Emulsion, Solo, Heaven, Right Here Right Now, for which he was also writer and co- executive producer, and Three Blind Mice, a film which has played at numerous international film festivals and won awards including the 11th FIPRESCI International Critics Award at the London Film Festival presented to the Best Film in the World Cinema section. His latest film is Griff the Invisible.

Toby is also an awarding-winning playwright. After a solid grounding in writing revue and stand-up comedy at university in Perth, Schmitz wrote his first play, “dreamalittledreamalittle,” while studying acting at NIDA. It was presented as a director's project there in 1998 and was later restaged at Belvoir St. Theatre. In 2002, Schmitz won 's Patrick White Playwrights' Award with his play “Lucky,” which was later produced by the Australian Theatre for Young People. “Chicks Will Dig You” was performed as part of Company B's 2003 B Sharp season. It won the Australian National Playwrights’ Centre/New Dramatists Award in 2004, and was shortlisted for the 2003 Philip Parsons Young Playwrights Award. In 2007, he wrote and directed “Capture the Flag” for Tamarama Rock Surfers. His other plays include “This Blasted Earth,” “Pan,” “Cunt Pi,” and “Grazing the Phosphorus,” commissioned by the National Institute of Dramatic Art. His play, “The Best Hotel in the Dam” opened for Tamarama Rock Surfers in 2009.

CLARA PAGET ()

Born in London in 1988, her mother is a writer and her father an artist. Clara started modeling after being talent spotted at a birthday party dressed as Marlene Dietrich.

Clara has appeared in “” as ‘Charlotte Cameron’ (directed by Richard Holthouse) and as ‘Linda’ in “Little Crackers” (directed by Paul King).

Clara was most recently seen on the big screen in director Justin Lin’s The Fast and The Furious 6 as the character ‘Vegh.’ Her other big screen roles include: St. Trinian’s 2: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold (Oliver Parker and Barnaby Thompson), One Day (Lone Scherfig), Johnny English 2 (directed by Oliver Parker), and Acid Girls (directed by Taylor Cohen).

HAKEEM KAE-KAZIM (Mr. Scott)

Hakeem Kae-Kazim was classically trained in the UK at the highly regarded and soon after graduation was invited to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. While performing at the National Theatre, Hakeem received glowing reviews, sharing the stage with critically acclaimed actors for his performances as ‘Edmund’ in” ” with Brian Cox, and ‘Tyrell’ in “Richard III” with Sir Ian McKellan.

Hakeem's transition to British television ensued with memorable leading roles in “Trial and Retribution,” “The Bill,” “,” “Ellington,” and the distinguished title role of “” for the BBC.

After settling in South Africa, his work in film and television gave Hakeem a huge following making him a household name and one of the country's top actors. While in South Africa, Hakeem appeared in numerous television productions and feature films including Hotel Rwanda, “Human Cargo,” and King Solomon's Mines.

Hakeem was nominated for an Avanti award (South Africa) for “Madame and Eve” and his sense of style led to a nomination for Elle Magazine's (South Africa) Fashionably First award. Hakeem was also nominated for the highly regarded Gemini award for Best Actor in a supporting role for his performance in “Human Cargo” and he gained international notoriety for his awesome portrayal of ‘George Rutugunda’ in the Oscar®-nominated film Hotel Rwanda. His performance gained the attention of Hollywood, leading to roles in The Front Line, Pirates of the Caribbean III, “Lost,” “Law & Order: SVU,” “Cane,” The Fourth Kind, “Strike Back,” and Wolverine.

He then starred in Black Gold and the musical Inale, both filmed in his motherland, Nigeria.

Hakeem is often recognized for his intensely captivating role of ‘Colonel Ike Dubaku’ in “24” - season seven and its prequel movie Redemption. He guest starred in Human Target and DARFUR (Attack on Darfur, USA), which won best film at the New York International Film Festival.

Hakeem can be seen in the upcoming Daylight’s End as the character ‘Chris Whitlock’ and in Cindy Gustafson’s A Chance of Rain as ‘Mutua.’

LOUISE BARNES (Miranda Barlow)

Louise Barnes was born in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. When she graduated with an Honors degree in Drama from the University of the Witwatersrand she had already begun working professionally. While her first love is theater, film and television work dominated and she became a household name through her roles in various South African daily dramas.

Her feature film work includes Hoodlum and Son, Borderline and Surviving Evil. Louise has enjoyed working on international television productions such as the South African-Canadian coproduction “Jozi H,” the BAFTA® award winning BBC production “The Sinking of the Laconia” and now, ' “Black Sails.” This is her second season playing the role of Miranda Barlow, a character she relishes.

In 2013 she received the South African Film and Television Award for Best Actress in a Soap for her work on “Scandal.”

She lives in Johannesburg with her husband, actor Nick Boraine, and their daughter.

RUPERT PENRY-JONES (Thomas Hamilton)

Born in London, England, Rupert Penry-Jones is best known for his films Matchpoint, Persuasion, and Hilary and Jackie.

His other film work includes: A Little Chaos, Red Tails, Charlotte Gray, The Four Feathers, Still Crazy, Virtual Sexuality, and Food of Love.

In the UK, Rupert has appeared in three seasons of the hit TV drama “Silk” as ‘Clive Reader’ and as ‘DI Joseph Chandler’ in “Whitechapel.” He has also appeared in MI-5, Casanova, “Cambridge Spies,” “North Square,” “Faith in the Future,” “Cold Lazarus,” “Kavanagh QC,” and “Absolutely Fabulous.”

The son of actress, Angela Thorne, the two starred together in the TV movie “Cold Comfort Farm.”

Rupert has starred in many theater productions, including: “The Priory,” “Les Liaisons Dangereuses,” “The Play About The Baby,” and “Chips with Everything.” His performance in “Don Carlos” for the Royal Shakespeare Company earned him the Ian Charleson Award.

Rupert is married to the actress Dervla Kirwan and they have two children.

SEAN CAMERON MICHAEL (Richard Guthrie)

Veteran South African-born actor Sean Cameron Michael has performed in over 80 international television series, shorts, and feature films. International audiences first met Sean in 2005 in Dean Devlin’s Emmy®-winning mini- series “The Triangle.” In 2008 he joined the cast of “24” playing the role of UN worker ‘Charles Solenz’ in Fox’s multi Emmy® and Golden Globe®-nominated feature “24: Redemption” (opposite Jon Voight and ). Other credits include Safe House (with Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds), Clint Eastwood’s Invictus (with Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman), and The Girl (with Toby Jones and ).

More recently Sean worked on the Emmy®-nominated “Strike Back” series (opposite Charles Dance), as well as with Oscar®-winner William Hurt in BBC Films’ Royal Television Society’s award-winning feature “The Challenger Disaster.”

Sean’s latest feature film is Zentropa Entertainment’s Danish western The Salvation for director Kristian Levring which premiered at Cannes to a six-minute standing ovation. He plays the supporting role of ‘Lester’ opposite Mads Mikkelsen, , and Eva Green. Sean will next be seen playing the lead role of ‘Sam’ in director Christopher-Lee Dos Santos’ science fiction feature Last Broken Darkness for DS Films Entertainment and The Karoo Film Company.

TADHG MURPHY (Captain Ned Low)

Tadhg Murphy graduated from the Samuel Beckett Centre in Trinity College with a Bachelor in Acting Studies and has since gone on to appear in a wide range of television, film, and theater productions.

Tadhg has appeared in the stage adaptation of Hugo Hamilton’s “The Speckled People” at the Gate Theatre, as well as Hugh Leonard’s “Da,” (also at the Gate) in which he played the role of ‘Young Charlie.’ Tadhg’s other theater performances include the Gate Theatre’s production of Tom Stoppard’s “The Real Thing,” directed by Alan Stanford, the ’s production of ’s “Three Sisters,” directed by David Leveaux, and Rough Magic Theatre Company’s production of Shakespeare’s “,” directed by Lynn Parker. He toured the US and the UK with Druid Theatre Company’s production of Enda Walsh’s “The Walworth Farce,” which was awarded a Scotsman Fringe First award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He also performed in “The Cripple of Inishmaan” with Druid Theatre Co., which again toured in Ireland and the U.S.

Tadhg has voiced a number of radio plays for RTÉ radio, including “The Plough and the Stars,” “The Finnegans,” and “The Colleen and the Cowboy.” His television work includes “Seachtar na Cásca,” “The Clinic,” “Love is the Drug,” and “No Tears.” He has also starred in Pride and Joy (2006), Jelly Baby (2005), ’s Alexander, and Stephen Bradley’s Boy Eats Girl (2005) for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film at the Irish Film and Television Awards.

In 2012 Tadhg completed filming the role of ‘Arne’ in “,” directed by Ciaran Donnelly, Johan Renck, and Ken Girotti. Tadhg reprised the role this summer in the second season (2013).

2013 saw Tadhg appear in “Mrs. Warren's Profession” at the Gate Theatre in which he played the role of ‘Frank.’ He was also cast in Dublin Berlin, a feature film directed by Robert Manson in which he plays the lead role of ‘Oisín.’ He recently finished touring with Gare St. Lazare’s production of “Waiting For Godot” for the Dublin Theatre Festival, directed by Judy Hegarty Lovett.

Tadhg is based in Dublin.

MEGANNE YOUNG (Abigail Ashe)

Meganne is a Cape Town-based actor. She received an Advanced Diploma for Professional Acting from CityVarsity and is currently completing her Honors with Gilford School of Acting, University of Surrey via correspondence.

Some of the productions she has been involved in include: Past Tense, which won Best Film in Cape Town and Los Angeles, and she; Best Actress, for the 48h Film Competition, Cape Town (dir. Allan Shelly, 2012), “The Challenger Disaster” playing ‘Michelle Fynman’ opposite William Hurt and Joanne Whalley (dir. James Hawes, 2013). Her most recent film is the much anticipated The Giver, starring Meryl Streep and Jeff Bridges (dir. Phillip Noyce).

Although her training at CityVarsity was film based, she has been involved in several theater productions; acting, stage-managing, and even directing and designing her own original production titled “Heart” (South African National Arts Festival, 2013). Other theater productions she has performed in include “Lenny and The Wasteland” and “Tale of Horribleness” which were both part of the Assitej Family Venue at the South African National Arts Festival (2013).

NICK BORAINE (Lord Peter Ashe)

Nick graduated from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg in 1994 with an honors degree in drama. Since then he has been in countless aspect of performing, writing and directing for stage, television as well as film.

As an actor Nick has starred in many plays, highlights of which include “Popcorn,” “Birdy,” “Faustus,” “Metamorphosis,” “Shopping and Fucking,” and “Truth in Translation.” In his film and television work Nick has been involved in many South African as well as international productions. Films include Promised Land, In My Country, I Dreamed of Africa, District 9, Jozi, and Paradise Stop. On television he’s starred in “King Solomon’s Mines,” “The Philanthropist,” “Strike Back,” “The Mating Game,” and the British TV series “Wild at Heart.”

Nick also holds the position of Associate Artistic Director of the Global Arts Corps (GAC) in New York, a not for profit organization that produces theater in post conflict environments like Northern Ireland, Rwanda, Cambodia and the former Yugoslavia. The documentary film about the work of the GAC, A Snake Gives Birth To A Snake, had it’s US premiere in October.

Nick is currently starring in the film Mandela’s Gun (2015) as well as Showtime’s “Homeland.”