Cody Fern

Early life and education

Fern was born on 6 July 1988 in Southern Cross in rural Western Australia. He attended boarding school at Merredin Senior High School, and graduated from Curtin University of Technology with an honours degree in commerce in 2009.

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.

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, which received critical acclaim.

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. 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.

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. 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.

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. He was announced to star in the series regular role of Duncan Shepherd on the final season of House of Cards. The same year, Fern portrayed the Antichrist Michael Langdon in the eighth season of FX horror anthology series American Horror Story, titled Apocalypse. In 2019, Fern played Xavier Plympton in the ninth season of the show, American Horror Story: 1984.

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.

In May 2025, it was announced that Fern would be making his feature film directorial debut with Mother Courage starring Sarah Paulson, Toni Collette, Dianne Wiest, and Toby Wallace.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage

Video games

References

References

1. "Cody Fern Movies & TV Shows List".
2. Hughes, Jason. (12 June 2014). "Heath Ledger Scholarship Awarded to 'War Horse' Stage Actor Cody Fern".
3. Bennett, Sally. (15 October 2012). "Cody Fern ready for the ride of his life in War Horse". Sunday Herald Sun.
4. Litson, Jo. (10 March 2013). "Acting added up for Cody".
5. Chang, Kee. (18 November 2017). "Screen Test: Cody Fern".
6. Parris, Simon. (1 January 2013). "War Horse [Melbourne] review".
7. Nicholas, Jessica. (30 November 2012). "From the heart of the beast".
8. Woodhead, Cameron. (31 December 2012). "Brilliant puppetry wins hearts in a canter".
9. Dow, Steve. (20 March 2013). "War Horse star ordered to rest after injury".
10. (13 October 2011). "Cody Fern".
11. Flavell Neist, Carol. (3 June 2011). "The Enchanters".
12. Holman, Jordyn. (13 June 2014). "Q&A: Heath Ledger Scholarship Recipient Talks Future in Film".
13. Bugbee, Teo. (30 November 2017). "Review: Strong Performances Anchor 'The Tribes of Palos Verdes'". The New York Times.
14. "Cody Fern was going to take 18-month hiatus from acting when 'The Assassination of Gianni Versace' came along".
15. (6 September 2018). "2018 Gold Derby TV Awards winners: 'Versace' and 'Handmaid's Tale' are top winners, but 'Game of Thrones' takes Best Drama".
16. Evans, Greg. (8 February 2018). "Cody Fern Lands Series Regular Role On Netflix's ''House of Cards''".
17. Variety Staff. (27 August 2018). "''House of Cards'' Unveils First Look at Diane Lane and Greg Kinnear Characters Inspired by Koch Brothers".
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".
19. Harnick, Chris. (18 September 2019). "Meet the American Horror Story: 1984 Characters: Who's Who Among the Star-Studded Cast".
20. Wiseman, Andreas. (15 May 2025). "Sarah Paulson, Toni Collette, Dianne Wiest & Toby Wallace Leading Cody Fern's 'Mother Courage'; Mk2 Launching At Cannes Market".
21. Dow, Steve. (21 March 2013). "Cody's calling".
22. (29 April 2023). "Star Wars Jedi: Survivor cast – Confirmed voice actors & how you know them".