Whatever Happened To Rachel Hurd-Wood?

In 2003, British actress Rachel Hurd-Wood flew into our hearts by starring in P.J Hogan's 2003 adaptation of iconic J.M. Barrie novel "Peter Pan." As Wendy Darling, the girl who finds herself whisked away to Neverland, she made viewers believe in the power of her connection with the titular Peter, the boy who never grew up — played in this adaptation by American actor Jeremy Sumpter. Hurd-Wood received praise for her performance, her very first appearance on-screen: Roger Ebert called her presence "delightful," and The New York Times declared, "[T]he movie belongs to Rachel Hurd-Wood's Wendy Darling," adding that she was "born for the role."

It's safe to say that the 2003 "Peter Pan" lives rent-free in the heads of most '90s babies — and fans of the film are probably wondering what Peter's favorite companion is up to now. Curious minds will be happy to know that she's active online: She frequently posts updates to her Instagram, and even has her own Substack, titled "Confessions of a Lost Girl." If you're eager to learn what adventures she's embarked on in the real world, read on.

After helping to bring our childhood dreams to on-screen life with "Peter Pan," Rachel Hurd-Wood moved in a more adult direction. Her next major role was in the 2006 thriller "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer," a grisly period piece directed by Tom Tykwer. Based on the book of the same name by Patrick Süskind, the film follows an unhinged perfumer who tries to re-create the scent of a woman he's obsessed with. Hurd-Wood played Laura, one of the perfumer's victims. She shared the project with some major actors, including Alan Rickman and Dustin Hoffman.

In a 2023 Substack post, Hurd-Wood looked back on her experience shooting the film. Fifteen at the time and trying to find her footing after getting teased for her role as Wendy at school, she hoped she might find romance on set but was unsuccessful. Ultimately, she decided to prioritize building relationships with the strong women around her. "'Perfume' is a film in which there is an undoubtable focus on female beauty. In my own life, I was just discovering what that meant, looking to women in their 20s and 30s for inspiration. Between the radiant female cast and crew, I marveled at the magic of their womanhood, the effortlessness they projected, exuding confidence in who they were and what they were about," she wrote. "[I]t was inspirational to witness talented professionals in their element and be part of something so beautiful."

Rachel Hurd-Wood followed up "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer" with another period piece, also based on a book: the 2010 adaptation of Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray." "Dorian Gray" was directed by Oliver Parker and starred Ben Barnes as the titular character, with Colin Firth co-starring as Henry Wotton. Hurd-Wood played Sibyl Vane, Dorian Gray's fiancée, who is driven to suicide by his reckless behavior.

For a 2012 interview with U.K. newspaper The Standard, journalist Hettie Harvey asked Hurd-Wood about her apparent penchant for films with dark subject matter. Hurd-Wood insisted that she wasn't especially inclined toward the macabre — she was simply open-minded. "The main thing I consider in accepting a role is less the tone of the movie and more whether I think it's a good film, whether I like the character and whether I think I could do it. I don't think, 'Oh, I've done X amount of dark films,'" she explained.

In the same article, Parker praised Hurd-Wood's talent and approach to her work: "Rachel has a genuine openness as an actress and a person," he said. "There is real strength in her innocence."

In 2014, Rachel Hurd-Wood booked a starring role in "Highway to Dhampus," an indie drama directed by Rick McFarland. In the film, she dons a fluffy coat and dark sunglasses to play Elizabeth, a socialite who visits an orphanage in Nepal with the less than altruistic goal of rehabilitating her image. Elizabeth acts like a diva upon  arrival, much to the dismay of Laxmi, the orphanage's headmistress (played by Suesha Rana) — although she ultimately ends up experiencing a change of heart. According to The Independent Critic, the film has the distinction of being the first feature to be shot primarily in Nepal by an American crew.

Hurd-Wood's moving performance was enough to garner her an award. She was named best lead actress at the 2015 Madrid International Film Festival — her first festival prize, despite various nominations for "Peter Pan," "Perfume," and horror flick "An American Haunting" in the past.

Acting isn't Rachel Hurd-Wood's only passion. While working on "Dorian Gray," she studied at the University College of London, where she began pursuing a degree in linguistics. Although she later discontinued her studies to shift her focus to her career once more, she would eventually resume higher education through the Open University, a public university in England that offers distance-learning courses. While there, she studied creative writing, showing a particular interest in poetry. During this era in her life, she decided to start sharing her work with the world, publishing both poetry and prose in The London Magazine.

In a 2016 interview with the magazine, Hurd-Wood noted that she first felt inspired to write at 8 or 9 years old, when she was frustrated that she couldn't relate to the lyrics in a Destiny's Child song and wanted to pen something that spoke to her own experiences. When asked whether she preferred poetry or prose, she spoke effusively about her fondness for both genres: "I love writing poems because the turnover's quick and that's quite satisfying. ... I feel less daunted by 10 lines than however many lines in a book. I do enjoy prose, though, you have more freedom with how you tell the story, and you don't have to be quite so particular." She also revealed a penchant for "writers who have a comic turn of phrase," counting Charles Bukowski and Dorothy Parker among her favorite authors.

Rachel Hurd-Wood hasn't just played memorable parts in feature films — she can also count several TV show roles among her credits. From 2015 to 2016, she played a young woman named Kate Campell in "Home Fires," which ran on the British network ITV for two seasons. The show — a period piece, as Hurd-Wood is wont to act in — followed the lives of several British women during World War II, all of whom were figuring out how to best support each other and their surrounding community in the face of an international crisis. The Irish Independent praised Hurd-Wood among the show's "impressive" supporting cast.

From 2017 to 2018, Hurd-Wood acted in a contemporary teen drama called "Clique," about an exclusive, mysterious group of girls at an elite university. Hurd-Wood's character, also named Rachel, acted as a sort of recruiter for this titular clique. Common Sense Media described her performance as "creepy, menacing, and yet appealing."

A 2019 interview with Jeremy Sumpter revealed that Sumpter and Rachel Hurd-Wood had a special connection off-screen as well as on. "She was my first love; I was her first love. And it is great to know that we will always have that," Sumpter told Mega Magazine. Yet both actors ultimately ended up with other people, with Sumpter marrying private corporate flight attendant Elizabeth Treadway and Hurd-Wood tying the knot with fellow actor Russ Bain (known for his recurring role in crime series "Shetland").

Hurd-Wood and Bain live together "somewhere in Middle England," according to Hurd-Wood's Substack. They share two children: a son named Liam and a daughter named Stella. Hurd-Wood shares plenty of endearing pictures of them on Instagram and writes often about the challenges and joys of motherhood on Substack. "In everything I do, my children are my priority. Nothing else truly matters except their wellbeing. I belong to them, now. ... My body looks and feels different, but who cares? It's grown, birthed, and nourished two humans. Loose skin and stretch marks are a small price to pay," she shared in a candid 2023 essay, titled "It Gets Easier." "Motherhood is nothing and everything like I thought it would be. I certainly don't relish every moment, but that's life. Some moments are golden, others grey. My reward for all of the slog, grind, and sacrifice is in their love. It's beyond worth it."

Jeremy Sumpter and Rachel Hurd-Wood might not have ended up together in real life — but their 2017 Instagram posts revealed that they kept in touch after shooting. Hurd-Wood shared a pic of the two at Disney's California Adventure park, in front of a row of palm trees. "Fifteen years later" was her short but sweet caption. Sumpter posted a photo the same day, showing the duo in front of the ever-iconic Sleeping Beauty Castle that greets guests entering the park. Sumpter posed with an arm around Hurd-Wood as the two smiled wide. "My little Rach," he captioned the post, adding a smiley face emoji. "Reunited at Disneyland." Of course, fans went wild in the comments of both posts, sharing their nostalgia for the 2002 film that introduced them to each other.

Although Sumpter and Hurd-Wood haven't revealed much else about the friendship they share today, it's nice to know that the two are on good terms. Here's hoping we'll see them on-screen together again someday — maybe even in a "Peter Pan" sequel. A fan can dream ... 

Since having two children of her own, Rachel Hurd-Wood has found herself gravitating toward children's storytelling in her writing. Her Instagram bio describes her as a "children's author," and indeed, she's represented by Caroline Wakeman Literary Agency.

In an interview posted to the literary agency's website, Hurd-Wood opened up about some of her motives as an author. As a child, she was often anxious, so she wants to write stories that will provide children some comfort or escape. She's inspired to create fantastical worlds such as the ones featured in Studio Ghibli films, as well as the works of Roald Dahl and Julia Donaldson.

Hurd-Wood also spoke about how her film background has influenced her writing. "Having read scripts from such a young age means that whenever I think up a story, it's very visual — the trick is pinning it down with words," she noted. She also highlighted parallels between acting and writing: "As an actor, you seek connection; both to the character you're playing and to the other actors in a scene — not to mention the audience! As an author, you seek to create a connection between the world, the characters you create, and the reader. Observation also features in both professions — and eye for detail in how people behave tends to help with both acting and writing."

According to Hurd-Wood's personal website, her first book — a picture book — will hit shelves in Spring 2024.

Given how much time Rachel Hurd-Wood has spent paging through scripts over the course of her career — which now spans two decades — it makes sense that she would become interested in screenwriting as a craft. Her website reveals that she's written several screenplays and found some success with them. She currently has one script in development with Balloon Entertainment — the U.K.-based production company behind the "Clique" series, which she starred in — and another in development with Hat Trick Productions, best known for its comedy series "Derry Girls." She was also a finalist for the BBC Writersroom's Comedy Room program, designed to recognize "the best in new comedy writing") (per the BBC).

Not only has Hurd-Wood penned her own scripts — she has also evaluated screenplays by other promising screenwriters, serving as a script supervisor, creative advisor, and script consultant for production companies Goldfinch and Ipso Facto Productions. She's also the resident reader for Script Stable, an organization founded to offer rising U.K. screenwriters resources and guidance.

Additionally, Hurd-Wood now offers paid subscribers to her Substack feedback on their work. "Whatever the topic, whatever the format, whatever the stage — idea through to final draft — I'd love to read your work and offer tailored guidance and/or collaboration," she stated in a post. "My strongest areas are screenplays, prose, essays, and poems, both fiction and non-fiction, however I am open to reading anything and offering whatever I can to help you."

In her "Confessions of a Lost Girl" Substack posts, Hurd-Wood is open about her rocky past. In fact, the blog's name is a double entendre, referencing not only her role in "Peter Pan" but her sense of feeling "lost" in the years that followed. Among other topics, her posts explore how to deal with "anxiety, self-destructive behaviors," and "problems with food and drink," as the blog's "Why subscribe?" page states. "I dug myself out of a pretty bleak hole as a messed-up former child actress to become the mostly stable, sober mum and children's author I am today," she declared on the blog.

Hurd-Wood writes a great deal about the practices she implements in order to live a happier and healthier life. In a post called "What's on Your Mind?", she listed "talking to friends, "talking to professionals," "journaling," and "regular exercise" as some of the strategies she currently relies upon to maintain her equilibrium. She follows along with YouTube exercise videos and also attests to the power of meditation. When she first stopped drinking, she meditated for 20 minutes every day; although she no longer does so, she makes time for it when she can.

In another blog post, this one titled "...and breathe," Hurd-Wood revealed that she teaches Pilates classes. She instructs all her students in diaphragmatic breathing, a strategy that she relies on when she feels "on the verge of overwhelm."

Rachel Hurd-Wood's Substack doesn't just feature essays about her adventures in the film industry and her life as a mother. It's also a platform for Hurd-Wood's creative writing — specifically, her poetry. Hurd-Wood has shared several short free-verse poems with subscribers; her work blends wry humor with more sobering ruminations.

In "don't miss the last train," Hurd-Wood contrasts her old drinking and partying habits with her current, more peaceful existence as a mother. "Then, I'd wake with syrupy liquor on my lips,/kept naked flames at a distance./Didn't bathe, didn't eat," she writes in the first stanza. The second stanza provides a glimpse at a better life: "Now I wake to clean teeth and sheets,/little arms outstretched, voices that squeak./Here there's hope, light and heat,/fruit and seeds." "May contain traces" is more abstract, following the speaker on a journey through city streets, "past the greying people mugging misery for pennies" and "violent reminders of ghosts."

Although Rachel Hurd-Wood remains passionate about creative endeavors — especially keeping up with her Substack and her children's book writing — she's also moving toward a more secure lifestyle. In a March 2024 blog post called "Dear Diary..." she opened up about applying for day jobs and finally landing one. "It's flexible and I'm really grateful for it," she wrote. "The work is part admin, part digital marketing, both of which I enjoy." Hurd-Wood spoke positively about the workplace environment, specifically her co-workers: "The women I'm working for are warm and kind, full of hugs and positive, affirming remarks, with homemade baked goods on tap. What more can you ask for?"

But what about acting? Hurd-Wood emphasized that she's not entirely closing that door, although she is shifting her focus a bit. "While I try to remain open to the prospect of working as an actor again in the future, for now I'm at peace with building a more solid and sustainable foundation," she clarified. Whatever she does, she'll surely have plenty of fans cheering her on.