From Ireland to Hollywood, Daryl McCormack Carries His Ethnicity With Pride

There’s something about Daryl McCormack that makes people pause and wonder: Where is he from? What’s his background? With his sharp cheekbones, warm skin tone, and hypnotic eyes, fans can’t help but ask the question that leads them down a rabbit hole: What is Daryl McCormack’s ethnicity?

Daryl is a talented actor who represents two cultures with ease, moving between quiet Irish charm and a grounded American confidence. The deeper you dig, the more fascinating his story becomes. Keep reading as we take a closer look at Daryl’s roots.

Daryl McCormack grew up in Nenagh, a quiet town in County Tipperary, Ireland, but his roots stretch far beyond small-town life. His mom is Irish. His dad is African-American, originally from Baltimore. As he put it in his interview with Square Mile, “I’m African-American, I’m Irish. That’s something I’m proud of.”

That dual identity shaped him in more ways than one. As The Times reported, he faced racism early on, including a moment during a school performance when someone in the audience used a racial slur. “I thought about stopping, but I had to keep going,” he said. “I couldn’t stop. I was by myself on stage, and I just kept going.”

Instead of shrinking from those experiences, Daryl carried them with him and used them. He embraces both sides of who he is, and it shows in his work, his interviews, and how he walks through the world.

Daryl’s mom met his dad while traveling through California. She eventually returned to Ireland while pregnant, raising Daryl as an only child in a close-knit household. As Irish Central notes, his dad stayed in the U.S., and the two have only met a couple of times, but the connection isn’t lost.

In fact, one of Daryl’s strongest bonds is with his grandfather on his father’s side — a man who once chased an acting dream of his own in 1970s Los Angeles. “He just loves seeing his grandson go on the journey he’s gone on himself,” Daryl told The Guardian via Irish Central. “I’ve got to the point where I’m going further than where he finished.”

His mother, who now lives in London, played a huge role in helping him navigate life as a biracial kid in a predominantly white town. When Daryl came home upset about how people looked at him, she’d tell him, “It’s because you’re so handsome,” he recalled in The Times. It was a small thing, but it stuck.

Daryl has always been tuned in to what makes people feel seen, maybe because he spent so much of his early life knowing what it felt like to not be. “I knew I was physically different,” he said to The Times. “As a young kid, I just wanted to be like everyone else.”

By the time he starred alongside Emma Thompson in Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, Daryl had become — quietly and powerfully — the kind of actor people don’t forget. As The Times pointed out, he might be the first Irish male actor of color to lead a major film.

For Daryl, identity isn’t just a fact — it’s a lens he brings into his work. His ethnicity is part of what makes him stand out. He was never trying to represent anyone but himself. He, however, became a powerful icon and representation for people who shared his ethnicity and had never seen anyone like themselves in the spotlight.