Hayley Atwell

Class of 2005

Hayley made her stage debut in the 2005 play Prometheus Bound. She appeared in multiple West End productions and on television, and was recognised for her breakthrough role as Lady Elizabeth Foster in the 2008 film The Duchess, for which she was nominated for a British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actress. Her leading performance in the 2010 miniseries The Pillars of the Earth earned her a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Miniseries.

Hayley rose to prominence for her portrayal of Peggy Carter in the superhero film Captain America: The First Avenger in 2011, a role she would reprise in the action-adventure series Agent Carter and the Marvel Cinematic Universe films Captain America: The Winter Soldier in 2014, Avengers: Age of Ultron in 2015, Ant-Man in 2015, and Avengers: Endgame in 2019.  She also had roles in the Testament of Youth in 2014, Cinderella in 2015, and Christopher Robin 2018.

On the stage, Hayley received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in A View from the Bridge in 2010 and nominations for Best Actress for her leading performances in The Pride in 2013 and Rosmersholm in 2020. Hayley began hosting the podcast series True Spies in 2020, which gives an insight into the world of espionage, asking listeners what they would do in real life spy situations.