Jacob Tremblay has spent his entire childhood in front of the camera. Now, at 19, he’s taking on the darkest role of his career. The Canadian actor who made audiences weep in Room and Wonder is unrecognizable as a young Ted Kaczynski in Netflix’s Unabomber. It’s a bold pivot for a former child star who has navigated Hollywood with unusual grace. Here’s everything you need to know about the actor behind the transformation.
Who Is Jacob Tremblay?
Jacob Tremblay was born on October 5, 2006, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He is the son of Christina Candia Tremblay and Jason Tremblay, and he has two sisters, Emma and Erica. The family resides in Langley, British Columbia.
Unlike many child actors, Tremblay’s career began without a stage-parent push. He was a fan of the Star Wars franchise and named his dog Rey after Daisy Ridley’s character. That kind of normal childhood grounding has helped him maintain a level-headed perspective on a career that started when he was just six years old.
The Breakout Role That Changed Everything
Tremblay’s first film credit came in 2013 with The Smurfs 2, where he voiced Blue Winslow. But it was 2015’s Room that turned him into a household name.
In Room, Tremblay played Jack Newsome, a five-year-old boy who has spent his entire life imprisoned in a single room with his mother. The performance was staggering in its emotional range, and it earned him the Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer. He also became the youngest nominee ever for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.
The role opened doors. He went on to star as August “Auggie” Pullman, a child with Treacher Collins syndrome, in the 2017 adaptation of Wonder. He headlined the R-rated comedy Good Boys in 2019, which became the first R-rated comedy since 2016 to finish first at the box office on its opening weekend.
Voice Acting and Animation Success
While Tremblay built a reputation as a dramatic actor, he also became one of Hollywood’s most in-demand voice performers.
He voiced the title character in Pixar’s Luca (2021), a role that endeared him to a whole new generation of fans. He played Flounder in Disney’s live-action The Little Mermaid (2023) and Damian Wayne/Robin in the adult animated series Harley Quinn. He also voiced Orion in DreamWorks Animation’s Orion and the Dark.
His animation work has allowed him to stretch different muscles while avoiding the physical demands and typecasting that often trap child actors.
The Unabomber Transformation
Tremblay’s most challenging role to date came in 2026 with Unabomber, Janus Metz’s film about the early life of Ted Kaczynski and the Harvard psychological experiments that may have radicalized him.
Tremblay told CBC News that he initially struggled to relate to Kaczynski, but found an unexpected connection: “What I found, and what I really held on to, was the idea of being the youngest person in the room.” Tremblay, who entered an industry dominated by adults, understood that feeling of awkwardness and not fitting in.
The role came with heavy thematic weight. Tremblay described the film’s core message as: “How important it is to treat children with love … and teach them how much value they have. Because on the flip side of that, if a child isn’t loved as much, it’s harmful and it causes violence. It really does.”
It’s a striking statement from a young actor who has navigated an industry that has recently reckoned with the damage child stardom can cause. Following Hayden Panettiere’s death in 2026, conversations about the ethics of child acting intensified. Tremblay’s thoughtful approach to his craft suggests he’s been paying attention.
What’s Next for Jacob Tremblay?
Tremblay’s post-Unabomber slate shows no signs of slowing down. He’s set to voice Curtis in Laika’s animated fantasy Wildwood. He also has The Skeleton Tree in post-production.
At 19, Tremblay has already built a body of work that spans drama, comedy, horror, and animation. He’s avoided the tabloid chaos that consumes many young stars and maintained a reputation as a serious, collaborative actor. Director Mike Flanagan, who cast him in Doctor Sleep, called him “one of the best actors I’ve ever worked with in my entire life.”
That kind of praise doesn’t come easily for child performers. But Tremblay isn’t a child performer anymore. He’s an actor, and Unabomber may be the proof that he’s here to stay.
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