It's been 15 years since Skins premiered. Here's where the cast are now.

There's not much that sticks out to me as great about the year 2007.

I was an extremely angsty 14-year-old with a very large side fringe, and the biggest fashion trend amongst my (equally as angsty) peers were brightly coloured jeans from Jay Jays. It was, honestly... grim.

But there was a bright spot: on January 25, 2007, Skins, a shockingly gritty new UK series following high schoolers as they grapple with dysfunctional families, mental illness, sexuality, substance abuse, death and bullying premiered. I mean, it doesn't sound very bright from that description - and it mostly wasn't - but Skins quickly became a defining show for teens of the time.

It was extremely disturbing for me to learn recently that 2007 was 15 years ago. That explains my aching back. At least the Jay Jays coloured jeans are gone, I guess.

As I clutch on to the last remaining fragments of my youth, let's revisit what the best recognised Skins actors have been up to since.

Nicholas Hoult.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

It's been 15 years, but I can still remember how loud I gasped at the end of season one when TONY STONEM WAS HIT BY A BUS.

This came just a few years after Regina George got hit in Mean Girls, and in hindsight I realise that buses where a convenient plot point in the 2000s. But at the time, holy sh*t. No one saw that coming.

Nicholas Hoult had an acting career before he became Tony Stonem, perhaps best known for playing the boy in About A Boy, alongside Hugh Grant.

Hoult has been open about how the fame of Skins was overwhelming for him, and he considered quitting acting at one point. He ultimately decided to go the other way, dropping out of school to focus solely on acting.

It paid off, because Hoult was cast in blockbusters like the X-Men films and Mad Max: Fury Road. Oh, and he dated his X-Men co-star Jennifer Lawrence from 2010 until 2014.

Hoult appeared in the critically acclaimed 2018 period black comedy The Favourite, which earned him a Critics' Choice Award for Best Acting Ensemble.

He played The Lord of the Rings author J. R. R. Tolkien in 2019's Tolkien.

Since 2020, Hoult has played Russian Emperor Peter III in the hilarious comedy-drama The Great, alongside Elle Fanning.

He has been dating American model Bryana Holly since 2015. They welcomed a son called Joaquin in 2018. For months, Hoult kept all details, including the baby's gender and name a secret.

"Someone will find out soon enough and that's fine. But for now it's my precious little thing and I'm keeping it," he told W magazine.

Dev Patel.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

If you're at all familiar with the Skins characters, well... I bet you didn't expect Anwar to become one of the show's biggest breakout stars. Anwar's character wasn't given as much love in comparison to the rest of gen one - he didn't have as many fleshed out storylines and it felt a bit like he was there for comedic value a lot of the time.

Skins was Dev Patel's first ever acting role, which makes his second role as Jamal Malik in the sleeper hit Slumdog Millionaire even more extraordinary.

He dated his co-star Freida Pinto for nearly six years from 2009 until 2014.

Patel then had roles in major films like The Last Airbender, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and its sequel.

In 2016, Patel starred as Saroo Brierley in the biographical film Lion, alongside Nicole Kidman and Rooney Mara, which earned him a BAFTA win and an Oscar nomination. He was only the third actor of Indian descent to receive an Oscar nom.

He had a main role in political drama The Newsroom from 2012 to 2014, and appeared in Amazon Prime Video's anthology series Modern Love (more Dev Patel rom-coms, please!) in 2019.

He has been dating Aussie Tilda Cobham-Hervey since 2018, after meeting on the set of Hotel Mumbai.

Hannah Murray.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

Ah, Cassie.

Bubbly, head-in-the-clouds Cass became somewhat of a cult character on the internet, which back then was not at all used to seeing a character be so upfront about their mental health struggles.

After leaving Cassie (and Sid - sob) behind, Hannah Murray made her stage debut as Mia in critically acclaimed West End production That Face.

She appeared in a number of smaller productions until 2011, when HBO confirmed she would portray Gilly in Game of Thrones. Gilly was originally meant to appear as a recurring character in seasons two and three, but she was promoted to part of the main cast for seasons four to eight, and along with Samwell Tarly, became part of one of the show's best loved relationships.

She won Best Actress at the Tribeca Film Festival for her role in Danish film Bridgend, and played convicted murderer Leslie Van Houten in Charlie Says, a 2018 biographical drama about the Manson Family.

Daniel Kaluuya.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

Daniel Kaluuya had a pretty minor role in the first few seasons of Skins as Posh Kenneth, but he was also one of the head writers on the show... and he was only 18 at the time. Incredible.

After Skins, Kaluuya appeared as a guest star in popular television series like Silent Witness and the Doctor Who special 'Planet of the Dead', as well as films like Johnny English Reborn, Kick-Ass 2 and Sicario. In 2011, he appeared in Black Mirror episode 'Fifteen Million Merits'.

Since 2017, Kaluuya has had a series of critically acclaimed roles: He won the BAFTA Rising Star Award and received nominations for the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, SAG Award, and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for Get Out.

After that, he received a SAG Award nomination as part of the cast of Marvel's Black Panther.

In 2020, he starred as revolutionary socialist Fred Hampton in the biographical drama, Judas and the Black Messiah, which won him an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award. He was 32 at the time of the Oscar win, making him the seventh-youngest winner of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, as well as the first British actor of African heritage to win an Academy Award.

Joe Dempsie.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

Skins had some truly soul-destroying deaths, and Chris' was the first.

Played by Joe Dempsie, poor Chris had one of the saddest backstories, but was one of the most loveable, funny characters.

Dempsie had guest roles in a number of well-known TV shows like Doctor Who and Merlin, but his biggest post-Skins role was as Gendry in Game of Thrones, which he appeared in from 2011 to 2013 and again from 2017 to 2019. That season eight storyline with Ayra... lawd. Chris would've been proud.

His next role is as part of the main cast for the upcoming Netflix thriller drama, Pieces of Her.

Kaya Scodelario.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

Effy Stonem, better known as the Queen of Tumblr. No one defined the online aesthetic of the early 2010s better than messy Tony's little sister, and by extension the actor who brought her to life.

After playing a smaller role in the first two seasons, Effy, her eyeliner, and her ripped tights, became the main characters in Skins' second generation.

In a devastating blow for me (#TeamFreddie), Scodelario dated Jack O'Connell, who played Cook, for about a year from 2008 until 2009.

In 2013, Scodelario signed on to star as the female lead in The Maze Runner film franchise. She also had a main role in 2017's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.

She had a big 2019: Scodelario appeared alongside Zac Efron in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, about serial killer Ted Bundy, where she portrays his wife Carole Ann Boone, and signed on to lead the Netflix series Spinning Out.

Scodelario married actor Benjamin Walker in December 2015, and both changed their last names to Scodelario-Davis. They have two children; a son born in November 2016 (whose godfather is Kaluuya), and a daughter born in September 2021.

Luke Pasqualino.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

There are two TV deaths that have haunted me forever, and one of those is the untimely end of poor Freddie McClair. I simply cannot get that rattling door and blood splatter out of my head.

FREDDIE DESERVED SO MUCH BETTER.

After the show, actor Luke Pasqualino had some very random movie roles, including in The Apparition with Ashley Greene and Tom Felton (which was considered one of the worst films of 2012. Oops).

He had a main role in the much better received BBC period drama The Musketeers from 2014 until 2016, as well as a few other British TV shows.

In 2021, he had a minor role in Netflix series Shadow and Bone.

Jack O'Connell.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

Jack O'Connell is known for playing delinquents, and none more so than sweet, angry Cook.

O'Connell's dad died when he was 18, and he has been open about how he engaged in self-destructive behaviour to cope, which saw him gain a reputation as a party boy in British tabloids.

His second career breakthrough came with independent prison drama Starred Up, where he played a violent teenager incarcerated in the same prison as his father.

He had his first lead role in a major Hollywood picture in 2014, when he stared in Unbroken, which was directed by Angelina Jolie.

He won the BAFTA Rising Star award in 2015 following these roles.

In 2016, O'Connell marked World Refugee Day with a short film titled Home, which was inspired by real life accounts from refugees and petitioned governments to expand asylum to provide further shelter, integrating job opportunities, and education.

His next role will be in a film adaptation of Lady Chatterley's Lover alongside The Crown's Emma Corrin.

April Pearson.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

After playing Michelle Richardson, April Pearson was cast in Jon Wright's comedy horror slasher film Tormented, and performed in theatre productions.

She transitioned further to independent and horror films, starring in 2016's Fractured and 2017's Caught. For the latter, she won two Best Actress awards at the American Horror and Upstate NY Horror film festivals.

Pearson married filmmaker Jamie Patterson in 2017 and announced her pregnancy in 2021. 

She also hosts interview-based podcast called Are you Michelle from Skins?, where she interviews other celebrities who are mostly recognisable for one reason. Guests on the podcast have included Oliver and James Phelps, who played Fred and George Weasley in the Harry Potter films, and Antony Costa from boy band Blue.

Mike Bailey.

Image: Channel 4/My Cast. 

Sigh. The first time I ever remember 'shipping' a fictional relationship was when I saw Sid and Cassie in Skins season one.

After Skins, Mike Bailey took on a couple of other roles, but nothing major. After his last project in 2017 - a web series called Hers and History - he retired from acting and went to university, where he completed a drama degree and teacher training.

He now works as a high school drama teacher, and just... imagine your drama teacher being the guy who wore that bright yellow 'Mega Dog' t-shirt on TV.

Megan and Kathryn Prescott.

Image: Channel 4/Instagram. 

"I'm Katie f***ing Fitch, who the f*** are you?" is a truly iconic moment in television, isn't it?

Twins Katie and Emily Fitch were played by IRL twins (obviously) Megan and Kathryn Prescott.

Meg, who played Katie, has had a minor acting career since Skins. In 2016, she became a bodybuilder.

Kathryn, who played Emily, has had minor movie roles like her sister, but has also starred in a number of TV series such as Reign and 24: Legacy.

In September 2021, Kathryn was struck by a truck in Brooklyn and suffered series injuries to her pelvis, legs, foot and hand. 

In January, Kathryn shared a post on Instagram thanking those who helped her after the accident.

"Thank you to my sister for moving heaven and earth to get to me during a global pandemic and travel ban. Thank you to all of my friends for being there, without hesitation, and for sending your mums, friends and sisters when you couldn't. Thank you to my hospital room mate for being who you are and for making me laugh, even when there wasn't much to laugh about. Thank you to everyone who has reached out and helped in every and any way they could. From the bottom of my heart, thank you," she said.

Sean Teale.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

When I talk about Skins being a defining TV show in my life... just know I mean strictly seasons one to four, a.k.a the first and second generations. The third generation, which helmed seasons five and six, was by far the weakest of the series, and was not as successful or well-received as the first two.

But that doesn't mean it was all bad.

Because... at least there was Sean Teale, who played Nick, a party boy rugby player with a complicated home life. 

After Skins, he had regular roles in period dramas Mr Selfridge and Reign. On Reign, he met Aussie actor Adelaide Kane, who he dated from 2014 until 2016.

More recently, he had a main role in The Gifted, a superhero series based on Marvel Comics' X-Men.

Sebastian de Souza.

Image: Channel 4/Getty. 

Sebastian de Souza played Nick's older brother Matty, who was the only lead character in the history of Skins to never have a centric episode - either solo or shared. He didn't really... do much, and but somehow, I was still obsessed with Matty. I guess it was because I was 18 and I just really liked his... face.

Despite this, de Souza has become one of the most successful members of the third generation cast.

He's obviously got a real thing for period dramas, which is a far cry from being an angry British teen on Skins. In 2012, he appeared in historical drama The Borgias, in 2017 he starred in another called Maigret in Montmartre and in 2018 he was in Medici: Masters of Florence.

Besides these, he's also starred in two huge recent shows, first as Gareth in Normal People, and secondly as Leo in The Great, alongside Elle Fanning and fellow Skins alum Nicholas Hoult.

All seven seasons of Skins are available to watch on Stan.

Chelsea McLaughlin is Mamamia's Senior Entertainment Writer. For more pop culture takes, sarcasm and... cat content, you can follow her on Instagram.

Feature image: Channel 4/Getty/Mamamia.

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