Himesh Patel

British actor Himesh Patel first showcased his musical abilities through his portrayal of singer/songwriter Jack Malik in Yesterday, the 2019 fantasy feature directed by Danny Boyle and inspired by the Beatles.

Born to Gujarati parents in 1990 in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, Patel amused himself as a youngster by mimicking characters from his preferred television programs. He uncovered his acting aptitude at age 11 after securing a part in a school production. During his teenage years he developed a passion for indie rock while acquiring skills on both piano and guitar. At 16 he earned his initial prominent part in the long-running soap opera EastEnders, after which he took supporting roles in the sitcoms Damned and Motherland. He also performed onstage alongside David Tennant in Don Juan in Soho.

His breakthrough arrived in 2019 with the role of Jack Malik in Yesterday, whose premise follows a musician who awakens to find himself the sole individual on Earth retaining any memory of the Beatles before achieving fame by performing their material. Patel supplied vocals and played guitar for every song in the picture; those recordings appeared on an accompanying soundtrack album. The performance catapulted him into wider recognition and led directly to parts in The Aeronauts opposite Felicity Jones, the television miniseries The Luminaries with Eva Green, and Christopher Nolan’s 2020 spy thriller Tenet, which also featured Robert Pattinson and Elizabeth Debicki.