James Frain was born on March 14, 1968 in Leeds, England, but raised in Essex. In his teen years, Frain was already directing, writing and acting in his own plays. After earning a degree in drama from the University of East Anglia, he graduated from London's Central School of Speech and Drama where he met famed British actor and director Sir Richard Attenborough. The connection proved worthwhile as Attenborough cast Frain in his first film, "Shadowlands" (1993), as a troubled Oxford student appearing opposite Sir Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger in the lead roles.