The eight Herods in Jesus Christ Superstar, headshots supplied by the production
The eight stars playing Herod for the autumn run of Jesus Christ Superstar at Theatre Royal Drury Lane have been revealed.
As already revealed, Sam Ryder will continue as Jesus for the second spell of Tim Sheader’s 2026 production, performing alongside Desmonda Cathabel as Mary Magdalene, David Thaxton as Pontius Pilate, Bob Harms as Caiaphas, Matty J as Annas and Phil King as Peter.
Announced today, nine performers will juggle the role of Herod – Matt Bomer from 16 to 31 October, Rob Brydon from 2 to 7 November, Reece Shearsmith from 9 to 14 November, Bob The Drag Queen from 16 to 21 November, Michael Ball from 23 November to 5 December, the rescheduled Simon Russell Beale from 7 to 12 December, Omid Djalili from 14 to 19 December and Layton Williams from 21 December 2026 to 2 January 2027, who will return to the stage having played the role for two weeks at The London Palladium in August. One final Herod for the final week of performances will be revealed in due course.
The ensemble company includes Koko Alexandra, Jasmine Jules Andrews, Courtney Arango, Amy Barker, Alistair Beattie, Daniel Bowskill, Jahlil M Burke, Martha Burton, Marcelo Cervone, Sarah Freer, Sebastian Goffin, Alexander Kranz, Owen Lloyd, Milo McCarthy, Dan Moore, Cherece Richards, Kyle Richardson, Olivia Saunders, Toyan Thomas-Browne, Charley Warburton and Lillie-Pearl Wildman.
In preparation for his professional stage debut in the revival, Ryder told us earlier this year that he is embarking on an education: “I’ve been putting myself through a crash course of the West End. So anytime, and I mean, anytime, there’s a free night, I’ll go and see something.”
More details about the autumn transfer, playing for 12 weeks from October, are available here.
