What if the secret to becoming a hot young thing in Hollywood lies on the wooden deck of a boat floating in a marina in Italy? Testing that theory, and perhaps proving it to be true, are David Jonsson, Daisy Edgar-Jones, and Aliocha Schneider. The three actors are the stars of Gucci’s Lido campaign this summer, shot by Jim Goldberg. In those images, the trio is photographed out at sea on a sailboat. One of the last times it got its big on-camera moment? In The Talented Mr Ripley, carrying the hottest thespians of the ’90s. For Jonsson, that was a real pinch me moment. “To think Jude Law, Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Philip Seymour Hoffman were on that exact same boat at roughly the same ages we were, that was pretty cool,” he says.
We’re not yet halfway through 2025 and yet Jonsson’s year has been laden with pinch-me moments. He won the EE Rising Star BAFTA in February, following in the footsteps of Daniel Kaluuya and Tom Hardy, and was simultaneously in the middle of shooting the forthcoming, mysterious movie project by Frank Ocean. That’s one of four things he’s got coming up over the next calendar year.
To mark his arrival in the Gucciverse, we asked Jonsson about joining the family, what binds his new movies, and, in the spirit of summer, the thing he always forgets to shove in his suitcase before a trip.
Gucci has such a storied history. What does it mean to you to be a part of it now?
A huge amount. Coming from a working-class family, Gucci was one of those lifestyle brands that meant you’d made it. It kind of superseded money, class, and all the other things that divide us, and sort of just meant ambition. Gucci’s a part of my history, and now I’m a part of theirs… That’s crazy.
You shot this campaign on a boat. Do you have good sea legs?
I used to skateboard so, yes, my sea leg game is pretty solid.
Had you met Daisy and Aliocha before?
I hadn’t, actually. But Daisy had been in my orbit for a while and one of Aliocha’s tracks randomly came up on my shuffle.
What’s the one thing you always forget to pack on a trip and have to grab at the airport?
Deodorant. Which makes me sound like I smell lol… I don’t, I’m just forgetful.
Tell us what’s exciting you about your summer.
So much. I’m working over the summer in New York City but I’m gonna find time to head upstate. Take a hike, a dip. Be in nature with some friends.
What’s your most cherished Gucci treasure?
That’s a toss-up between my lace up boots and my luggage tag… I can’t choose.
You’re working on a series of forthcoming projects: a Stephen King adaptation, the Sammy Davis Jr. film, the Frank Ocean film, Wasteman. Can you think of what binds them all, and gives them the David Jonsson seal of approval?
Haha! If there was a David Jonsson seal of approval, I guess it’s that all these projects are unique, and I guess that’s what brought me to them. None of them are the same, to me that’s exciting… scary, but exciting.
