Tom Brittney spent five years as one of British television’s most recognizable faces, playing the motorcycle-riding, crime-solving Reverend Will Davenport on ITV’s beloved period drama Grantchester.
Yet it was a role he never actually landed that briefly thrust him into international headlines: in 2023, Brittney became one of three finalists, alongside Nicholas Hoult and eventual winner David Corenswet, to play Superman in James Gunn’s DC reboot.
Brittney is known primarily for Grantchester, in which he took over as the show’s lead vicar-detective in 2018, but his career also includes notable supporting work in Tom Hanks’s World War II drama Greyhound, the BBC Three film Make Me Famous, and more recently, the Netflix action-comedy Back in Action alongside Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx.
His story is one of steady, theater-trained craftsmanship rather than overnight stardom, the product of formal drama school training and years of guest roles before landing the part that would define his career on British television.
Profile
| Full Name | Tom Christopher Brittney |
| Born | 26 October 1990 |
| Age | 35 years old |
| Birthplace | Gravesend, Kent, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Actor, Producer, Director |
| Height | 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) |
| Parents | Mother: Lynn Brittney (author) |
| Siblings | Rose Brittney (younger sister, professional dancer) |
Early Life
Tom Christopher Brittney was born on 26 October 1990 in Gravesend, Kent, England. When he was twelve, his family moved to Devon, where his mother, author Lynn Brittney, taught drama and became his earliest acting influence. Brittney has credited her directly as his first drama teacher, recalling that it was not until he was around fourteen or fifteen that he realized acting could be a genuine career rather than simply a hobby.
He attended Colyton Grammar School in Devon, where a drama teacher encouraged him to pursue formal training, leading him to enroll at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London. Brittney has a younger sister, Rose, who became a professionally trained dancer, and he has spoken about growing up in a household where creative pursuits were actively encouraged rather than treated as impractical.
His mother Lynn Brittney is a published author known for the Mayfair 100 mystery series, set in London during the First World War, and Brittney has noted the influence of her storytelling background on his own approach to character work.
Education
Brittney trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, one of the United Kingdom’s leading conservatoires for actor training, before beginning his professional career shortly after graduating.
Career
Brittney’s first television appearance came in 2013 on the long-running daytime soap opera Doctors. He followed this with a recurring role as Lieutenant Jeremy Foster in Starz’s historical drama Outlander beginning in 2014, and a part as Roger Lockwood in Lifetime’s UnREAL in 2015, steadily building credits across British and American productions. He also appeared in X Company in 2017 and played physicist Conrad Habicht in an episode of the National Geographic series Genius.
Brittney’s defining role arrived in June 2018, when he joined the cast of ITV’s Grantchester as the Reverend Will Davenport, replacing James Norton as the show’s central vicar-detective for its fourth season onward. The role made him a household name in British television, pairing him with Robson Green’s Detective Inspector Geordie Keating to solve period murder mysteries in 1950s Cambridgeshire. Brittney remained with the series for five seasons, departing in 2023, and has described the warmth of the cast, particularly his on-screen partnership with Green, as one of the most meaningful aspects of the job.
Beyond Grantchester, Brittney expanded into film with a supporting role as Lieutenant Watson in Tom Hanks’s 2020 World War II thriller Greyhound, distributed on Apple TV+ after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted its planned theatrical release. The same year, he starred as Billy in the BBC Three drama Make Me Famous, written by Reggie Yates, exploring the psychological toll of reality television fame. He also appeared in the short film Fred, portraying a younger version of Titanic lookout Frederick Fleet.
In 2023, Brittney auditioned for the title role in James Gunn’s Superman, reportedly trying on Henry Cavill’s original costume during the screen-testing process and becoming one of the production’s three finalists before David Corenswet was ultimately cast. Brittney has spoken about the surreal nature of the process, noting that he had previously met Gunn years earlier while screen-testing for Guardians of the Galaxy, and that being sewn into an authentic Superman suit, a process that took roughly half an hour, was one of the more unusual experiences of his career. Although he did not win the part, the high-profile audition raised his international profile considerably. He went on to take a supporting antagonist role in Netflix’s 2025 spy comedy Back in Action, starring Cameron Diaz and Jamie Foxx, and has an upcoming lead role in the supernatural thriller Black Box (Flight 298), directed by Steven Quale and based on the short film The Vessel, in which he will headline a story centered on eerie events aboard a commercial flight.
Throughout his career, Brittney has balanced major studio opportunities with smaller, character-driven projects, reflecting his stage training at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. He has described always wanting to be an actor from a young age, while acknowledging that the ambition made early setbacks especially painful before Grantchester provided him with sustained, long-term visibility. His range, from period clergyman to Netflix action villain to a finalist for one of cinema’s most iconic superhero roles, illustrates a deliberate effort to avoid being confined to a single type of role.
Personal Life
Brittney lives in London and has cited photography as one of his primary hobbies outside of acting, often bringing a personal camera to film sets, including during his time on Grantchester; he has noted regret at not doing the same while filming Greyhound alongside Tom Hanks. He was previously in a relationship with London-based illustrator and designer Katie Tweddle, who has worked as a designer at Article Ten and runs her own illustration company, Outfaced Illustrations. Brittney has generally kept the details of his personal relationships private, with public attention focused mainly on his acting career and his near-miss casting as Superman.
Net Worth
Brittney’s net worth has been estimated by entertainment outlets at several million dollars, built primarily through his five years as a lead actor on Grantchester, supporting film roles in major productions including Greyhound and Back in Action, and his growing international profile following his high-profile Superman audition. S
ome entertainment finance trackers have placed his estimated net worth in the range of several million dollars as of recent years, with projections suggesting continued growth as he takes on larger film roles.
As with most actor net worth estimates, these figures should be treated as approximate rather than officially confirmed.
Notable Works & Achievements
Filmography
- Outlander (2014–2015)
- UnREAL (2015)
- Grantchester (2018–2023)
- Greyhound (2020)
- Make Me Famous (2020)
- Back in Action (2025)
- Black Box (Flight 298) (upcoming)
Conclusion
Tom Brittney’s career reflects the steady trajectory of a classically trained British actor who built lasting recognition through a single beloved role before expanding into international film.
His five seasons as the vicar of Grantchester gave him a dedicated fan base, while his near-casting as Superman demonstrated that Hollywood now sees him as a credible leading man on a much bigger stage.
As Brittney moves into more prominent film roles, including his upcoming lead turn in Black Box (Flight 298), his career appears to be entering a new phase, one built on the foundation of disciplined stage training and years of consistent television work.