Lara McDonnell

Lara McDonnell (born 7 November 2003) is an Irish actress. She starred as the alternating title role in the West End production of Matilda the Musical from 2015 to 2016. She has since landed roles in a number of films. McDonnell appeared on the 2021 Irish Independent list of actors to go stellar.^[2]

Lara McDonnell
Born	(2003-11-07) 7 November 2003 (age 21)[1] Castleknock, Dublin, Ireland
Education	St Brigid's National School, Castleknock The King's Hospital School
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2013–present

Early life and education

McDonnell is from the Luttrellstown area of Castleknock, a suburb west of Dublin. The eldest of three to parents Hazel and Ciaran, she has a sister (Charlotte) and a brother (Andrew).^[3] McDonnell attended St Brigid's National School, Castleknock. She took after school drama classes at a parish centre near her school.^[4][5]

Career

McDonnell made her first acting appearance in 2014, playing an adolescent Rosie in the romantic comedy-drama film Love, Rosie. The following year, she was cast as one of four girls playing Matilda Wormwood in the West End musical Matilda the Musical.^[3] After this, McDonnell played a young Anne Brontë in To Walk Invisible (2016) and then as Alannah in The Delinquent Season (2018).^[4]

She then played Captain Holly Short in Kenneth Branagh's Artemis Fowl (2020), a Disney film based on the novel of the same name by Eoin Colfer.^[6] Following the release of the trailer, McDonnell's casting drew some criticism as Holly is described in the book as having "nut-brown skin", leading to accusations of whitewashing.^[7][8] McDonnell would work with Branagh again on his film Belfast (2021), playing Moira.^[9]

In 2022, she appeared in the Channel 5 drama The Holiday as Lucy.^[10] The same year, she also appeared in the Netflix series The Last Bus.^[11] In 2023, she starred in Greatest Days, playing a teenage Rachel.^[12]

Since January 2024, McDonnell has played the part of Young Joan in the play The Hills of California.^[13]

Acting credits

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2014	Love, Rosie	10-year-old Rosie Dunne	Debut role	[6]
2016	To Walk Invisible	Young Anne	Television film
2018	The Delinquent Season	Alannah		[14]
2020	Artemis Fowl	Holly Short		[14]
2021	Belfast	Moira		[15]
2023	Greatest Days	Young Rachel		[12]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2022	The Holiday	Lucy		[10][16]
	The Last Bus	Lucy Monkhouse	Episode 10

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Venue	Notes	Ref.
2015–2016	Matilda the Musical	Matilda Wormwood	Cambridge Theatre London, England	Produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company. In December 2016, McDonnell was flown back to London to provide emergency cover as Matilda.	[17]
2024	The Hills of California	Young Joan	Harold Pinter Theatre London, England and Broadhurst Theatre New York	McDonnell was in the London cast, and in Autumn 2024, transferred to Broadway, alongside other cast members.