What Has Thomas Brodie-Sangster Been Up To Since He Played Newt In 'The Maze Runner'?
Thomas Brodie-Sangster is no stranger to the big screen. The 31-year-old actor landed his first on-screen role aged 11 in the TV film Station Jim, alongside renowned British actors David Bradley and Celia Imrie. He continued to act regularly, landing eight more on-screen roles before he stole hearts as the lovable (and love-sick) 13-year-old Sam in 2003's cult classic Christmas rom-com Love, Actually. It's this role, his first released cinematically, that Brodie-Sangster credits with kickstarting his two-decade-long career on screen. "It did wonders for my career," he told PEOPLE in 2020. "It taught me a lot and I got to work with some great people and I've only got good things to say about it really."
To younger audiences, however, Brodie-Sangster might be more recognizable as the earnest and charming Newt in the movie adaptations of the best-selling Maze Runner books. Brodie-Sangster starred in the young adult dystopic thrillers alongside heartthrobs Dylan O'Brien and Kaya Scodelario. And while those two went on to have illustrious careers starring in Teen Wolf and Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean series, what happened to Brodie-Sangster? The actor has stayed booked and busy in the years since, even managing to nab a nomination at the 2021 Emmy Awards.
10 He Finished Up A Two-Year Run On 'Game Of Thrones'
2014 was a busy year for the London-born actor, seeing the release of the first Maze Runner movie, a starring role in Phantom Halo alongside X-Men's Rebecca Romijn, and a "comical" death in Game of Thrones. Brodie-Sangster joined the best of British talent for a two-season spell on HBO's long-running fantasy show. First appearing in season three, Brodie-Sangster's portrayal of Jojen Reed lasted ten episodes before his character met his demise. In very appropriate Game of Thrones fashion, Jojen Reed was stabbed repeatedly, had his throat slit, and was eventually blown up by an exploding molotov cocktail.
9 He's Not Just A Pretty Face
Brodie-Sangster is also a prolific voice actor. He spent a whopping nine years voicing the character of Ferb in Disney's Phineas and Ferb. Over 130 episodes, Brodie-Sangster lent his voice as the co-lead of the series until it ended in 2015. He would go on to voice John Tracy in the Thunderbirds revival Thunderbirds Are Go (2015-2020), as well as Firedrake the dragon in Netflix's Dragon Rider (2020).
8 He Returned As Newt
Brodie-Sangster returned as fan-favorite Newt in The Maze Runner sequels The Scorch Trials (2015) and The Death Cure (2018). "5 years of joy and hard work conclude on Jan 25th when Maze Runner The Death Cure releases!" the actor wrote in a rare appearance on Twitter. "It would mean a lot to everyone involved in all 3 movies if you went and saw our film. We all put so much in to this one & to have people go & watch our work would be the cherry on a BIG cake." Brodie-Sangster won "Best Movie Chemistry" with Dylan O'Brien at the 2016 Teen Choice Awards for his role in The Scorch Trials.
7 He Went To A Galaxy Far Far Away...
In a blink and you'll miss it moment in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Brodie-Sangster joined the dark side. Eagle-eyed fans noticed the lifelong Star Wars fan as Petty Officer Thanisson, the First Order officer who tries to prevent Poe and Finn from escaping via TIE fighter. "A big childhood thing to tick off the list," the actor told USA Today.
6 He's A Man Of Many Talents
Just like his mother Trisha Bertram, Brodie-Sangster is a man of many talents. Not only can he act, but he can play the bass guitar too, as he showcased while performing with his mother's band Winnet, which also features his singer-songwriter sister Ava on vocals and his father Mark on drums. They family performed together for around seven years, playing the jazz clubs of South London. He also plays music with his co-star Dylan O'Brien, with the actor explaining, "as a bass player you really need a drummer to jam." The two formed a band called The Apologies while on set filming in South Africa. “We found this great little jam spot," he said. "We would go every weekend and we’d get other people from the crew; anyone that played guitar, anyone that played the tambourine, anyone that played anything. We ended up having the wrap party there.”
5 He 'Travelled' Back In Time
The actor donned a cape and rode a horse in 1520's England playing Rafe Sadler in the Golden Globe-winning miniseries Wolf Hall alongside fellow Brit Tom Holland. The six-part series was based on Hilary Mantel's Man Booker Prize-winning novel which told the story of the court of King Henry VIII. The actor's youthful appearance allowed him to play the 15-year-old character despite being 25 at the time.
4 He Finally Got The Girl
In 2017 the actor reunited with his Love, Actually costars, thirteen years after the film's release to record a television short film sequel. Red Nose Day Actually saw Brodie-Sangster's character Sam in a relationship with Joanna, the objection of his pre-teen affection from the original film. The televised short was produced to raise money for Red Nose Day, a fundraising day that supports Comic Relief, a charity co-created by Love, Actually writer/director Richard Curtis.
3 He Took Some Time To Reflect On His Career
After 15 straight years of working, Brodie-Sangster took a couple of years off after 2018's The Death Cure, to "just to chill out and focus on other things. I did wonder, ‘how important is it to me?’ But I missed it,” he told NME. “I missed the wonderful freedom of being able to explore all of those kinds of questions but doing it through a character. I think that’s the most interesting thing about acting." Brodie-Sangster returned to work to film 2020's The Queen's Gambit and was excited to immediately jump into his next project after filming wrapped on the Netflix show, but the world had other plans. "I left [The Queen's Gambit] feeling like ‘I can’t wait for the next job!’ And then this all happened…" he said, referring to the 2020 coronavirus-induced lockdown. "Kind of annoying! I can't wait for the next job. Lockdown is annoying!"
2 He Was Nominated For An Emmy
For his role as The Queen's Gambit's charismatic Chessmaster Benny Watts, Brodie-Sangster was nominated for his first Primetime Emmy Award, receiving a nod for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Anthology Series or Movie. The role was the second well received character he had played on a Netflix show, after appearing in the American wild west drama Godless three years earlier.
1 He Attempted Social Media
Bored and unable to work during the first lockdown in April 2020, Brodie-Sangster created an Instagram in an attempt to become "a part of this global online community." "I’ve never used social media regularly because I’ve always struggled with allowing myself to be so easily accessible," he wrote in his first post, before clarifying he would not use the account for self-promotion or to answer fan mail. "Let’s see how much I actually manage to post on this thing," he said. He has posted four times in the 18 months since.
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