Jude Law's Real Name: David Jude Heyworth Law

Quick answer: Jude Law was born David Jude Heyworth Law on December 29, 1972, in Lewisham, south-east London. David is his first name, but he has always gone by his middle name, Jude, which was inspired by Thomas Hardy's novel Jude the Obscure. He received Oscar nominations for The Talented Mr. Ripley and Cold Mountain (Britannica; Library of Congress).

Real name and early life

Britannica gives his name in full as David Jude Heyworth Law. It says he was born to Margaret Law (née Heyworth) and Peter Law, both teachers, so his second middle name is his mother's maiden name. The Library of Congress name authority files him as "Law, Jude, 1972-." Its citations include "b. David Jude Law, December 29, 1972 in Lewisham, London." One older citation gives 1971, but other LOC citations and Britannica use 1972.

Britannica says Law has always been called Jude rather than David. His sister, Natasha Law, is an artist. Both parents encouraged his love of cinema. As a teenager he joined the National Youth Music Theatre in 1987 and performed in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Career highlights

Law's early TV work included the soap Families and an episode of The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes. He made his film debut in Shopping (1994), opposite Sadie Frost, whom he later married. In 1997 he played Lord Alfred Douglas in Wilde and appeared in Gattaca and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Onstage he has been nominated for two Tony Awards, for Indiscretions and Hamlet.

He first turned down the role of Dickie Greenleaf in The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) for fear of being typecast. The part brought him an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor and a BAFTA win. He made 11 films between 2000 and 2004, including A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Road to Perdition, The Aviator, Closer, and Cold Mountain, which earned him a best actor nomination.

He romanced Cameron Diaz in The Holiday (2006), played Dr. Watson in two Sherlock Holmes films, and appeared in The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014). He played the young Albus Dumbledore in two Fantastic Beasts films and the Pope in HBO's The Young Pope. In 2025 he played Vladimir Putin in The Wizard of the Kremlin and co-starred with Jason Bateman in Netflix's Black Rabbit. Learn more about his costars on our Cameron Diaz real name page and Jason Bateman page.

Name notes for searchers

Jude is his middle name, used since childhood. Heyworth is his mother's family name. Searches for "David Law" will turn up other people, because he has never been credited that way.