TWO IRISH ACTORS have been nominated for a Bafta Rising Star Award this year. 

Dubliner Barry Keoghan and Kerry native Jessie Buckley have both been nominated for the prestigious award.

The pair are joined by three other actors in the nominations: Cynthia Erivo, Lakeith Stanfield and Letita Wright. 

Keoghan (26) has risen to fame over the last few years after first appearing in RTÉ crime drama Love/Hate. Since then, he has gone on to star in Dunkirk and won a lot of praise for his performance in the Killing of a Sacred Deer, alongside Colin Farrell and Nicole Kidman.

Buckley (29) came to prominence after coming second in the 2008 BBC show I’d do Anything, a competition in which famed musical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber searched for a young star to play Nancy in the West End production of Oliver!.

Since then, she’s gone onto feature in a number of theatre and West End productions. 

She’s also won praise for her work in TV and film. Last year, she played Moll in film Beast, as well as Marya Bolkonskaya in BBC’s War and Peace. 

The pair are joined by three other actors in the nominations: Cynthia Erivo, Lakeith Stanfield and Letita Wright. 

British Cynthia Irvo was highly praised for her performance in Steve McQueen’s heist movie Widows, while Lakeith Stanfield has been winning widespread acclaim for his performances in 2017′s Get Out, and last year’s movie Sorry to bother You, among others.

Guyanese-born British actor Letita Wright is best known for her performance as Shuri in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The Rising Star Award is an audience choice award, with people voting for their favourite and the final winner being announced at the ceremony.