Beginnings and rise to fame (1999–2015) , age 43, in September 2010 Johnson began acting at the age of six. On stage, he appeared in a London production of
William Shakespeare's
Macbeth, playing the son of
Macduff alongside
Rufus Sewell, who played
Macbeth, in 1999. He appeared in
Arthur Miller's
All My Sons in 2000. His television roles have included Niker in the 2004
BBC adaptation of the novel
Feather Boy, Aaron in
Danny Brocklehurst's
ITV1 serial
Talk to Me, and Owen Stephens in
Nearly Famous. In 2003, Johnson appeared as a young
Charlie Chaplin in
Shanghai Knights alongside
Jackie Chan and
Owen Wilson, with Chaplin depicted as a member of a London gang of street hooligans. That year, he guest starred in "
Fatal Consequences", a special live episode of the ITV drama
The Bill. In 2006, he appeared in
The Illusionist, appearing in the early flashback scenes as
Edward Norton's character, Eduard Abramovicz, as a teenager. The scenes show the young Eduard as he first learns magic. To do this, Johnson had to learn how to perform the ball trick that his character performs. He learned how to balance the egg on the stick, although that was mechanically effected. Also in 2006, he starred in the film
The Thief Lord as Prosper. Johnson appeared as
John Lennon in the 2009 biographical film
Nowhere Boy, directed by
Sam Taylor-Wood, whom he later married. His performance won him the
Empire Award for Best Newcomer, and he was nominated for
Young British Performer of the Year by the
London Film Critics' Circle. In 2010, Johnson appeared as
David "Dave" Lizewski/Kick-Ass, the lead character in
Kick-Ass, based on the
superhero comic book of the same name by Scottish writer
Mark Millar. His performance in
Kick-Ass saw him nominated for the
BAFTA Rising Star Award. He has also appeared as the central character, William, in
Hideo Nakata's
Chatroom. Johnson starred in
R.E.M.'s 2011 music video "
Überlin", which was directed by his then-fiancée. In 2012, Taylor-Johnson played Count Vronsky in
Anna Karenina. Later that year, he starred as Ben in
Oliver Stone's
Savages.
HitFix film critic Drew McWeeny was positive of the bond between Johnson and co-star
Taylor Kitsch, which "seems not only credible but lived in and authentic throughout the film," and noted the evolution in maturity of Johnson since
Kick-Ass. Taylor-Johnson starred in the
Godzilla reboot, released in May 2014. Taylor-Johnson played
Quicksilver in
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), the sequel to 2012's
The Avengers, as part of the
Marvel Cinematic Universe. Taylor-Johnson first appeared as the character in a post-credits scene of the film
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014). The role reunited him with
Elizabeth Olsen, who played his wife in
Godzilla. and in 2018, he appeared in
Outlaw King, a British-American historical action drama about
Robert the Bruce and the Wars of Scottish Independence. In 2020, Taylor-Johnson had a supporting role in
Christopher Nolan's film
Tenet. In 2022, he appeared in
David Leitch's
Bullet Train, an action-thriller film based on the novel
Mariabītoru by
Kōtarō Isaka. In 2023, he appeared in a commercial for
Armani's Acqua di Giò fragrance, shot in
Telašćica Nature Park. He reunited with Leitch in the 2024 action film
The Fall Guy. Also in 2024, Taylor-Johnson played another
Marvel character in
Kraven the Hunter, as part of
Sony's Spider-Man Universe. He featured in
Robert Eggers' horror film
Nosferatu. Taylor-Johnson starred in
28 Years Later, a sequel to the 2002 film
28 Days Later, directed by
Danny Boyle. ==Personal life==