On May 20, 2025, Netflix dropped new original seriesShadow and Bone. Based on the popular book series by Leigh Bardugo, the show had been eagerly anticipated by fanssince it was announced. In only the first week of its release,Shadow and Boneis shaping up to be another massively popular fantasy series for Netflix.
TheShadow and Boneseries combines two of Bardugo’s books;Shadow and BoneandSix of Crows. The series is set ina fantasy kingdom called Ravka, divided by a strip of darkness called the Shadow Fold. Some people who are called Grisha are born possessing magical powers, and the lead character, mapmaker Alina, discovers she is one of them.
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The main cast is made up of young, interesting, diverse characters. Most of the leads are not played by familiar names, with actor Ben Barnes being the most well-known. For those who are watching and enjoying the series, here is a list of where to watch the leadShadow and Boneactors outside of the show.
Jessie Mei Li
Jessie Mei Li, who uses the pronouns she/they, plays Alina Starkov, an orphaned assistant cartographer in the First Army who learns that she can produce powerful light and is the long-awaited Sun Summoner. Li was born in 1995 and grew up in Surrey, England. She is a relatively new actor, making her stage debut in 2019 with Gillian Anderson inAll About Eve.
They can be seen in an episode of the British docudrama seriesLocked Up Abroad, which features episodic dramatized true stories about people arrested or captured while abroad. Li stars in a 2019 episode entitled “Panamania.” They will also be starring inthe upcoming Edgar Wright filmLast Night In Soho.
Archie Renaux
Archie Renaux plays Mal Oretsev, Alina’s best friend since childhood and a tracker in the First Army. He was born in 1997 and grew up in the UK in Tolworth. He began his career as a model for various brands before transitioning into acting. Renaux has actually acted alongside a fellowShadow and Bonecast member before, working with Ben Barnes in the BBC mini-seriesGold Digger, a relationship thriller.
Renaux plays the son of the lead character, who is a middle-aged woman who Barnes starts a relationship with. He can be seen in the recently released filmVoyagers, a science fiction film about people sent into space on a multi-generational mission. Renaux will also be joining the Marvel universe, set to appear inupcoming filmMorbiusstarring Jared Leto.
Freddy Carter
The first of the Crows on this list, Freddy Carter portrays Kaz Brekker, leader of the Dregs and owner of the Crow Club. Born in 1993, Carter grew up in Somerset in England. He was interested in drama from a young age, training at the Oxford School of Drama. He had a lead role in the British TV seriesFree Rein, about a teenage girl bonding with a mysterious horse in the English Countryside. The show went on for three seasons, including two specials, so there’s a good amount to watch.
Carter can be seen in another British series as well–the murder mystery mini-series15 Days. He also played Jason Ripper in three episodes of the DC television seriesPennyworth, about the early life ofBruce Wayne’s butler Albert Pennyworth.
Amita Suman
Amita Suman is playing Inej Ghafa, a member of the Dregs and a talented fighter. She was born in 1997 in Nepal and moved to Brighton England with her family at the age of seven. She trained at the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, a British drama school, and graduated in 2018.
Suman had a major and memorable guest role inthe Doctor Who episode"Demons of the Punjab," playing a younger version of companion Yasmin’s grandmother. It’s an excellent episode and definitely worth a watch. She also took on the recurring role of Naya in season two of The CW’sThe Outpost, a fantasy adventure series.
Kit Young
The final member of the Dregs, Kit Young plays Jesper Fahey,a skilled sharp shooter. Full name Christopher William Young, he was born in 1994 and raised in Oxfordshire in the UK. He graduated in 2017 from esteemed British drama school, The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
While he has had many stage and theater roles, Young’s first TV role post-graduation was in the episode “Pylon” of the British TV dramaEndeavour. He portrayed Lysander in the National Theatre Live’sA Midsummer’s Night Dream,which can be found on YouTube. He also has an upcoming role in another Netflix project based on popular fantasy books–the movie adaptation ofThe School For Good and Evil.
Ben Barnes
The most well-known of the cast, Ben Barnes plays General Kirigan or “the Darkling,” a Shadow Summoner and general of the Second Army. He was born in 1981 in London England and got his start in stage and theatre. Barnes will probably be familiar to a lot of viewers. Some of his most well known roles include Prince Caspian inThe Chronicles of Narniafilm series, Logan in HBO showWestworld, Dorian Grey inThe Picture of Dorian Grey, and Billy Russo in one ofNetflix’s Marvel series,The Punisher.
Barnes has a long resume, however, and there are several other projects interested fans can watch him in. Some films he has done outside the fantasy or action genre include 2008’sEasy Virtue, a British romantic comedy period piece,The Big Wedding, an ensemble comedy film, andKilling Bono, a British film also starringfellow Netflix star Robert Sheehan. On top ofGold Diggerwhich was mentioned above with Renaux, Barnes also starred in the mini-seriesSons of Liberty, which dramatized the events of the American Revolution.
