Edward Jack Peter Westwick (born 27 June 1987) is an English actor and musician best known for his role as Chuck Bass on The CW's Gossip Girl as well as Vincent Swan in the TV series White Gold. He made his feature film debut in Children of Men (2006) and has since appeared in the films Breaking and Entering (2006), Son of Rambow (2007), S. Darko (2009), Chalet Girl (2011), J. Edgar (2011), Romeo & Juliet (2013), Bone in the Throat (2015), Freaks of Nature (2015), Billionaire Ransom (2016), and Me You Madness (2021). Early life Westwick was born in Hammersmith, London, and raised in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. He was born the youngest of 3 boys for Carole (née Blenkiron), an educational psychologist, and Peter Westwick, a university lecturer. He began music lessons and attended a Saturday morning drama school from the age of six. Westwick was educated at The Barclay School and North Hertfordshire College, where he took A-levels in business, law, and communication. He later trained at the National Youth Theatre in London. Career Acting Westwick made his film debut in Breaking and Entering (2006), following an open audition casting call sent to the National Youth Theatre. He went on to guest star in the British television series Doctors as Holden, Casualty as Johnny Cullin, and Afterlife as Darren. He also had a minor role in the film Children of Men (2006). In 2007, Westwick appeared in the film Son of Rambow and was cast as Chuck Bass in The CW's teen drama series Gossip Girl, based on the book series of the same name by Cecily von Ziegesar. Westwick said of his casting, "There wasn't much work in the UK. I was only in LA for a month and I got this show. It's changed my life." For his portrayal of Chuck, he assumed an American accent, based on the character Carlton Banks from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. As a result of the show's success, he was named one of 2008's Sexiest Men Alive by People magazine, and appeared the following year on its "100 Most Beautiful" list with the whole cast of Gossip Girl. Westwick earned the 2008 and 2009 awards for Best TV Villain at the Teen Choice Awards, and was named Breakthrough Talent by GQ in 2010. Entertainment Weekly also named Westwick's character Chuck Bass number one in their "Best Dressed TV Characters of