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.
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). McDonnell attended St Brigid's National School, Castleknock. She took after school drama classes at a parish centre near her school.
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. After this, McDonnell played a young Anne Brontë in To Walk Invisible (2016) and then as Alannah in The Delinquent Season (2018).
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. 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. McDonnell would work with Branagh again on his film Belfast (2021), playing Moira.
In 2022, she appeared in the Channel 5 drama The Holiday as Lucy. The same year, she also appeared in the Netflix series The Last Bus. In 2023, she starred in Greatest Days, playing a teenage Rachel.
Since January 2024, McDonnell has played the part of Young Joan in the play The Hills of California.
Acting credits Film Year Title Role Notes 2014 Love, Rosie 10-year-old Rosie Dunne Debut role 2016 To Walk Invisible Young Anne Television film 2018 The Delinquent Season Alannah 2020 Artemis Fowl Holly Short 2021Belfast Moira 2023 Greatest Days Young Rachel
Television Year Title Role Notes 2022The Holiday Lucy The Last Bus Lucy Monkhouse Episode 10
Stage Year Title Role Venue Notes 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. 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.
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