Acting Westwick made his film debut in
Breaking and Entering (2006), following an open audition casting call sent to the National Youth Theatre. 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, 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 2008" list (tied with
Leighton Meester's character
Blair Waldorf), as well as in their "Best Performances" list alongside co-star Meester. '' in 2010 In 2008, Westwick became the new face of
K-Swiss. That same year, he appeared as Joey in the horror film
100 Feet. In 2009, Westwick played the role of Randy Holt in the
sequel to
Donnie Darko, directed by
Chris Fisher, and guest-starred in the third season of the
Showtime original series
Californication, as Chris "Balt" Smith, a student who was fascinated with vampire literature. In May 2009, he was attached to play Heathcliff in the film adaptation of
Wuthering Heights. However, in January 2010, director
Peter Webber left the project, which was then passed into the hands of
Andrea Arnold. This directing change caused the roles to be recast. In 2010, Westwick starred in the
McHenry Brothers short film
The Commuter, which was shot on a
Nokia N8 smartphone. In January 2011, Westwick joined
Clint Eastwood's film
J. Edgar, a biopic about
J. Edgar Hoover, the controversial first director of the
FBI. That same year, he appeared in the romantic comedy
Chalet Girl. He co-narrated the audiobook version of
City of Fallen Angels by
Cassandra Clare and also narrated Clare's second novel
Clockwork Prince from
The Infernal Devices series. In mid-2011, Westwick became an international celebrity endorser for
Penshoppe, a local clothing brand in the
Philippines. He next co-starred in the film adaptation of
Romeo & Juliet as the main
antagonist and Juliet's cousin,
Tybalt. The film was released on 11 October 2013. Westwick then portrayed the lead role in the film adaptation of
Anthony Bourdain's novel
Bone in the Throat, which premiered at
South by Southwest on 14 March 2015. Westwick then co-starred in the horror comedy film
Freaks of Nature, which was released on 30 October 2015. In March 2015, he joined the cast of
ABC's short-lived crime drama series
Wicked City as Kent Grainger, a sadistic Sunset Strip serial killer. The series was cancelled after airing three episodes, but was picked up by
Hulu to air the remaining five episodes. Westwick was next seen in
Jim Gillespie's
Billionaire Ransom, released on 19 August 2016, and stars in the thriller
The Crash, released on 13 January 2017. Westwick played Vincent Swan in the
BBC Two television comedy series
White Gold (2017). The show has so far aired two seasons, for a total of twelve episodes. Westwick starred in
Me You Madness (2021), co-starring and directed by
Louise Linton.
Music Westwick was a member of the British band The Filthy Youth. The
punk band, formed in 2006, was inspired by the
Rolling Stones,
The Doors and
Kings of Leon. The songs "Come Flash All You Ladies" and "Orange" were both featured in an episode of
Gossip Girl. The band consisted of fellow countrymen Benjamin Lewis Allingham (guitar), Jimmy Wright (guitar), Tom Bastiani (bass), and John Vooght (drummer). Westwick is also the vocalist of the band For You, who released their first single "Tailspin" on 15 January 2023.
Business In July 2025 it was announced that Westwick would become a shareholder and ambassador for online casino business Gamblr. ==Personal life==