Lily James has continued to gain popularity over the years through her top roles in film and television, and her name has become recognizable as a result. Although born with the given name of Lily Chloe Ninette Thomson, PopSugar reported that, in 2008, the actor decided to alter her stage name to Lily James after her devastating loss. At this time, James’ father, whose name was James “Jamie” Thomson, died of cancer. Like James, Thomson was a gifted actor who enjoyed the artistry of his work. In a 2022 interview with the Los Angeles Times, James opened up about memories of her late father, revealing that his humor has inspired her to consider pursuing more comedic roles in her career.
“My dad was such an artist — I barely ever heard him speak in his voice. It was always accents, always stories, always songs,” she said. “He was a clown, though. I’m less of a clown. I really want to do a comedy.” James’ father is still a strong force in her life and in 2018, James posted an image of herself as a child with her father on Instagram (above), captioning the photo “Greatest love x.”
