Dev Patel Age, Partner, Net Worth & Biography

Dev Patel is 36 years old. The British actor and filmmaker, born in London on April 23, 1990, has been in a relationship with Australian actress Tilda Cobham-Hervey since 2017, and his net worth is approximately $10 million (Celebrity Net Worth, 2026). Patel is best known for Slumdog Millionaire, Lion and his directorial debut Monkey Man — three very different milestones in a career that began on British television and grew into one of the most interesting acting and directing careers of his generation.

Dev Patel Quick Facts

Full Name	Dev Patel
Date of Birth	April 23, 1990
Age	36 years old
Birthplace	London, England
Partner	Tilda Cobham-Hervey (2017–present)
Occupation	Actor, filmmaker
Net Worth	Approx. $10 million (Celebrity Net Worth, 2026)
Known For	Slumdog Millionaire; Lion; Monkey Man

Who Is Dev Patel?

Dev Patel is a British actor and filmmaker whose career has moved from the anarchic energy of the teen drama Skins to the Oscar stage, and most recently behind the camera. He first became famous worldwide as Jamal Malik in Slumdog Millionaire (2008), earning a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor and becoming part of a film that won eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Eight years later he was nominated for an Oscar himself, for his performance as Saroo Brierley in Lion (2016), for which he won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor.

Patel has built his career on roles that refuse to repeat themselves: the mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan in The Man Who Knew Infinity, the medieval knight Gawain in The Green Knight, the hotel waiter Arjun in Hotel Mumbai and the Charles Dickens hero in The Personal History of David Copperfield, for which he earned a Golden Globe nomination. In 2024 he added director to his list of credits with Monkey Man, an action thriller he co-wrote, produced and starred in. That same year, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Alongside contemporaries such as Jeremy Allen White and Barry Keoghan, Patel belongs to a generation of actors who move freely between prestige drama, blockbusters and independent film.

Dev Patel’s Early Life & Background

Dev Patel was born on April 23, 1990, in London, England, and grew up in Rayners Lane, Harrow. His parents, Anita and Raju Patel, were both born in Kenya to Gujarati Indian families, with ancestors from Jamnagar and Unjha in Gujarat; they immigrated to Britain separately as teenagers and met in London. His mother worked as a care worker and his father as an IT consultant. Patel was raised Hindu and speaks some Gujarati. He attended Longfield Primary School and Whitmore High School, where his first acting role was Sir Andrew Aguecheek in a school production of Twelfth Night. He earned an A* in GCSE Drama for a self-penned piece portraying a child caught up in the Beslan school siege.

As a child, Patel was, by his own description, “bloody energetic” — energy his mother channelled into taekwondo, which he began in 2000. He went on to compete nationally and internationally, winning a bronze medal at the 2004 AIMAA World Championships in Dublin, and he earned his 1st dan black belt in March 2006. While studying for A Levels in PE, Biology, History and Drama in 2007, he was also working on his first television role — a juggling act that set the pattern for a career built on discipline as much as talent.

Dev Patel’s Career

Patel’s first break came in 2006, when his mother spotted a casting advertisement for the new teen drama Skins in the Metro newspaper and took him to the audition — even though he had a science exam the next day. After two auditions he was cast as Anwar Kharral, a part partly modelled on his own personality, and the first series aired in January 2007. The role caught the eye of director Danny Boyle, whose daughter pointed him toward the show, and Patel was cast as Jamal Malik in Slumdog Millionaire after five auditions in August 2007. To prepare, he visited the Dharavi slums with Boyle, worked a day in a call centre and washed dishes in a hotel. The film went on to win four Golden Globes and eight Academy Awards, and Patel’s performance brought him a British Independent Film Award, a Critics’ Choice Award for Best Young Performer and a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor.

The years that followed mixed big studio work with smaller, character-led projects. He played Zuko in The Last Airbender (2010) — a film he later said he regretted making — and Sonny Kapoor in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), which took more than $136 million worldwide and led to a 2015 sequel. Between 2012 and 2014 he played Neal Sampat in Aaron Sorkin’s The Newsroom, and he appeared in About Cherry (2012), The Road Within (2014) and Neill Blomkamp’s Chappie (2015). In 2015 he played the Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan in The Man Who Knew Infinity, and the following year came Lion: as Saroo Brierley, the Indian-born Australian man who used Google Earth to find his childhood home, Patel won the BAFTA and AACTA awards for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for the Academy Award, becoming only the third actor of Indian descent to receive an Oscar nomination.

Since then Patel has kept moving between genres. He played Arjun in Hotel Mumbai (2018), the title role in The Personal History of David Copperfield (2019) — which brought a Golden Globe nomination — and Gawain in David Lowery’s The Green Knight (2021). He also earned an Emmy nomination for an episode of Modern Love (2019), founded his production company Minor Realm in 2021 and signed a first-look deal with ShivHans Pictures. His biggest step came in 2024 with Monkey Man, his directorial debut, in which he also stars as Kid, a young man fighting corruption in Mumbai. After an initial deal with Netflix, the film was acquired by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions for a theatrical release through Universal, premiering at SXSW in March 2024. His more recent credits include The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023), Rabbit Trap (2025) and the forthcoming The Peasant, while he is also set to star in and executive-produce the Miramax miniseries The Key Man.

Facts About Dev Patel

• His mother spotted the Skins casting advertisement in the Metro and took him to the audition — even though he had a science exam the next day.
• He prepared for Slumdog Millionaire by visiting the Dharavi slums with Danny Boyle, working a day in a call centre and washing dishes in a hotel.
• He is a taekwondo black belt — he won a bronze medal at the 2004 AIMAA World Championships in Dublin and earned his 1st dan black belt in March 2006.
• In August 2022 he broke up a knife fight on Gouger Street in Adelaide, Australia, and was featured in local news for it.
• He was named one of Time‘s 100 most influential people in the world in 2024.

Frequently Asked Questions

How old is Dev Patel?

Dev Patel is 36 years old. He was born on April 23, 1990, in London, England.

Who is Dev Patel’s partner?

Dev Patel’s partner is Australian actress Tilda Cobham-Hervey. They have been together since 2017 and moved to her hometown, Adelaide, in 2022. He previously dated his Slumdog Millionaire co-star Freida Pinto from 2009 to 2014.

What is Dev Patel’s net worth?

Dev Patel’s net worth is approximately $10 million (Celebrity Net Worth, 2026).

What is Dev Patel best known for?

Dev Patel is best known for playing Jamal Malik in Slumdog Millionaire (2008), for which he earned a BAFTA Best Actor nomination, and Saroo Brierley in Lion (2016), for which he won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for an Academy Award. He also directed and starred in Monkey Man (2024).

Has Dev Patel directed a film?

Yes. Dev Patel made his directorial debut with Monkey Man (2024), an action thriller he co-wrote, produced and starred in. The film premiered at SXSW in March 2024 and was released in cinemas by Universal.

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