There was a time when the internet tried to box Jacob Elordi in. When he first broke into the mainstream, he was widely categorized as just another exceptionally tall, jaw-droppingly handsome actor destined to spend his career playing safe, athletic boyfriends in streaming rom-coms. Instead, Elordi chose chaos, complexity, and artistic reinvention.
Elordi enters his last year of his twenties at the absolute pinnacle of the film industry. The past twelve months alone have been a staggering victory lap—from his critically acclaimed, award-winning turn in Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein late last year to anchoring Emerald Fennell’s massive $240 million Wuthering Heights adaptation this past February. To celebrate his big day, we are tracing his incredible evolution by breaking down the 5 definitive roles that proved he is the premier leading man of his generation.
5. Nate Jacobs in Euphoria (2019–Present)
If The Kissing Booth gave Elordi his initial platform, HBO’s Euphoria is where he showed the world he was a serious actor. Playing Nate Jacobs—a hyper-masculine, deeply disturbed high school quarterback hiding a mountain of psychological trauma—Elordi was nothing short of terrifying. He took a character who could have easily been a one-dimensional bully and turned him into a mesmerizing, Shakespearean villain. It was a brave, dark performance that made the entire industry realize he was capable of incredible intensity.
4. Elvis Presley in Priscilla (2023)
Stepping into the blue suede shoes of Elvis Presley just a year after Austin Butler won an Oscar for the same role was considered a massive gamble. But under the direction of Sofia Coppola, Elordi delivered a completely different, wonderfully subversive version of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Rather than a grand caricature, his Elvis was charismatic yet deeply flawed, capturing the quiet, manipulative domestic realities of the icon’s relationship with a young Priscilla. It proved Elordi could handle intimate, auteur-driven prestige films.
3. Felix Catton in Saltburn (2023)
The movie that launched a million internet memes. In Emerald Fennell’s pitch-black satirical thriller, Elordi played Felix Catton, an effortlessly charming, aristocratic Oxford student who tragically becomes the obsession of Barry Keoghan’s character. Elordi infused Felix with a golden-boy warmth that made the entire audience understand exactly why someone would lose their mind over him. The performance earned him a well-deserved BAFTA nomination and permanently cemented him as pop culture’s favorite cinematic obsession.
2. The Creature in Frankenstein (2025)
Late last year, Elordi completely silenced any remaining critics who doubted his dramatic range. Taking over the iconic role of Mary Shelley’s Creature for monster-maestro Guillermo del Toro, Elordi underwent a massive physical and emotional transformation.
Buried under layers of breathtaking prosthetic makeup, he delivered a profoundly tragic, soulful, and deeply human performance that broke hearts worldwide. His chemistry with Oscar Isaac’s Victor Frankenstein was legendary, earning Elordi a Critics’ Choice Award and his very first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor early this year.
1. Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights (2026)
There was simply no other choice for the number-one spot. Reaming up with director Emerald Fennell for this past February’s highly anticipated gothic romance, Elordi took on the ultimate literary antihero: Heathcliff.
Starring alongside Margot Robbie, Elordi brought a dangerous, brooding, and fiercely passionate energy to the screen. The film wasn’t just a critical masterpiece; it was a commercial juggernaut, pulling in over $241 million globally. By turning a complex nineteenth-century character into a modern box-office phenomenon, Elordi officially graduated from an exciting young talent into an undisputed, top-tier Hollywood megastar.
