Brendan Gleeson (born 29 March 1955) is an Irish actor and film director. He is the recipient of three

IFTA Awards The Irish Film & Television Academy (IFTA) is an all-Ireland organisation focused on film and television. It has about 1000 members, and is based in Dublin, with branches in London and Los Angeles. The IFTA now holds separate ceremonies for the ...

, two

British Independent Film Awards The British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) is an organisation that celebrates, supports and promotes British independent cinema and filmmaking talent in United Kingdom. Nominations for the annual awards ceremony are announced in early November, ...

, and a

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...

and has been nominated twice for a

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cer ...

and four times for a

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

. In 2020, he was listed at number 18 on ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' list of Ireland's greatest film actors. He is the father of actors

Domhnall Gleeson Domhnall Gleeson (; born 12 May 1983) is an Irish actor and screenwriter. He is the son of actor Brendan Gleeson, with whom he has appeared in a number of films and theatre projects. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Media Arts from Dublin Inst ...

and Brian Gleeson. He is best known for his performance as

Alastor Moody The Order of the Phoenix is a secret organisation in the '' Harry Potter'' series of fiction books written by J. K. Rowling. Founded by Albus Dumbledore to fight Lord Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, the Order lends its name to th ...

in the ''Harry Potter'' films (2005–2010). He is also known for his supporting roles in films such as '' Braveheart'' (1995), ''

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and Ge ...

'' (1996)'', 28 Days Later'' (2002), ''Gangs of New York'' (2002), ''Cold Mountain'' (2003), ''Troy'' (2004), ''Suffragette'' (2015), ''Paddington 2'' (2017), ''The Ballad of Buster Scruggs'' (2018), and ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'' (2021). He is also known for his leading roles in films such as ''The General'' (1998), ''In Bruges'' (2008), ''The Guard'' (2011), ''Calvary'' (2014), ''Frankie'' (2014), and ''The Banshees of Inisherin'' (2022). He won an

in 2009 for his portrayal of

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

in the television film '' Into the Storm''. He also received a

nomination for his performance as

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

in the

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

series ''

The Comey Rule ''The Comey Rule'' is an American political drama television miniseries, based on the book '' A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership'' by former FBI director James Comey. The miniseries stars Jeff Daniels as Comey and Brendan Gleeson as Pr ...

'' (2020). From 2017 to 2019 he starred in the crime series ''

Mr. Mercedes ''Mr. Mercedes'' is a novel by American writer Stephen King. He calls it his first hard-boiled detective book. It was published on June 3, 2014. It is the first volume in a trilogy, followed in 2015 by ''Finders Keepers (King novel), Finders Keep ...

''. He received an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

nomination for his role in the

Stephen Frears Stephen Arthur Frears (born 20 June 1941) is an English director and producer of film and television often depicting real life stories as well as projects that explore social class through sharply drawn characters. He's received numerous accola ...

comedy series ''

State of the Union The State of the Union Address (sometimes abbreviated to SOTU) is an annual message delivered by the president of the United States to a joint session of the United States Congress near the beginning of each calendar year on the current conditio ...

'' (2022).

Early life

Gleeson was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, the son of Pat (1925–2007) and Frank Gleeson (1918–2010). Gleeson has described himself as having been an avid reader as a child.In Conversations with Eamon scruphy
10 November 2007, RTÉ He received his second-level education at St Joseph's CBS in

Fairview, Dublin Fairview () is an inner coastal suburb of Dublin in Ireland, in the jurisdiction of Dublin City Council and in the city's D03 postal district. Part of the area forms Fairview Park, a recreational amenity laid-out on land reclaimed from the sea ...

where he was a member of the school drama group. He received his

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

, majoring in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

. After training as an actor, he worked for several years as a secondary school teacher of Irish and English at the now defunct

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Belcamp College Belcamp House (sometimes Belcamp Hall) is a Georgian house and former school, situated within a substantial estate off the Malahide Road in Balgriffin in the northern suburbs of Dublin, Ireland. The house was designed by the noted architect Ja ...

in North

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

, which closed in 2004. He was working simultaneously as an actor while teaching, doing semi-professional and professional productions in Dublin and surrounding areas. He left the teaching profession to commit full-time to acting in 1991. In an

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

interview to promote ''Calvary'' in 2014, Gleeson stated he was molested as a child by a Christian Brother in primary school but was in "no way traumatised by the incident."

Career

As a member of the Dublin-based Passion Machine Theatre company, Gleeson appeared in several of the theatre company's early and highly successful plays such as ''Brownbread'' (1987), written by

Roddy Doyle Roddy Doyle (born 8 May 1958) is an Irish novelist, dramatist and screenwriter. He is the author of eleven novels for adults, eight books for children, seven plays and screenplays, and dozens of short stories. Several of his books have been ma ...

and directed by Paul Mercier, ''Wasters'' (1985) and ''Home'' (1988), written and directed by Paul Mercier. He has also written three plays for Passion Machine: ''The Birdtable'' (1987) and ''Breaking Up'' (1988), both of which he directed, and ''Babies and Bathwater'' (1994) in which he acted. Among his other Dublin theatre work are

Patrick Süskind Patrick Süskind (; born 26 March 1949) is a German writer and screenwriter, known best for his novel '' Perfume: The Story of a Murderer'', first published in 1985. Early life Süskind was born in Ambach, Bavaria. His father was writer and jo ...

's one-man play ''The Double Bass'' and John B. Keane's ''The Year of the Hiker''. Gleeson started his film career at the age of 34. He first came to prominence in Ireland for his role as

in '' The Treaty'', a television film broadcast on

RTÉ One RTÉ One ( ga, RTÉ a hAon) is an Irish free-to-air flagship television channel owned and operated by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). It is the most-popular and most-watched television channel in the country and was launched as ''Telefís ...

, and for which he won a

Jacob's Award The Jacob's Awards were instituted in December 1962 as the first Irish television awards. Later, they were expanded to include radio. The awards were named after their sponsor, W. & R. Jacob & Co. Ltd., a biscuit manufacturer, and recipients ...

in 1992. He has acted in such films as '' Braveheart'', ''

I Went Down ''I Went Down'' is a 1997 Irish crime comedy film by director Paddy Breathnach. Plot After serving an eight-month prison sentence for breaking and entering, working class Dublin lad Git Hynes, meets ex-girlfriend Sabrina Bradley, who now pref ...

'', ''

Gangs of New York ''Gangs of New York'' is a 2002 American epic historical drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan, based on Herbert Asbury's 1927 book '' The Gangs of New York''. The film stars Le ...

'', '' Cold Mountain'', '' 28 Days Later'', ''

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

'', ''

Kingdom of Heaven Kingdom of Heaven may refer to: Religious * Kingdom of Heaven (Gospel of Matthew) **Kingship and kingdom of God, or simply Kingdom of God, the phrase used in the other gospels * Kingdom of Heaven (Daviesite), a schismatic sect, founded by Will ...

'', '' Lake Placid'', ''

A.I. Artificial Intelligence ''A.I. Artificial Intelligence'' (also known as ''A.I.'') is a 2001 American science fiction film directed by Steven Spielberg. The screenplay by Spielberg and screen story by Ian Watson were based on the 1969 short story "Supertoys Last All ...

'', '' Mission: Impossible 2'', and '' The Village''. He won critical acclaim for his performance as Irish gangster

Martin Cahill Martin "The General" Cahill (23 May 1949 – 18 August 1994) was an Irish crime boss from Dublin. He masterminded a series of burglaries and armed robberies, and was shot and killed while out on bail for kidnapping charges. The Provisional Iris ...

John Boorman Sir John Boorman (; born 18 January 1933) is a British film director, best known for feature films such as ''Point Blank'' (1967), ''Hell in the Pacific'' (1968), ''Deliverance'' (1972), ''Zardoz'' (1974), '' Exorcist II: The Heretic'' (1977), ...

's 1998 film '' The General''. In 2003, Gleeson was the voice of Hugh the Miller in an episode of the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

animated series ''Wilde Stories''. While Gleeson portrayed Irish statesman Michael Collins in ''The Treaty'', he later portrayed Collins' close collaborator

Liam Tobin Liam Tobin (born ''William Joseph Tobin''; 15 November 1895 – 30 April 1963) was an officer in the Irish Army and the instigator of an Irish Army Mutiny in March 1924. During the Irish War of Independence, he served as an IRA intelligenc ...

in the film ''Michael Collins'' with

Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on ''The I ...

taking the role of Collins. Gleeson later went on to portray

in '' Into the Storm''. Gleeson won an

for his performance. Gleeson played

Hogwarts Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scotland, Scottish boarding school of Magic in Harry Potter, magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Pot ...

professor

Mad-Eye Moody The Order of the Phoenix is a secret organisation in the '' Harry Potter'' series of fiction books written by J. K. Rowling. Founded by Albus Dumbledore to fight Lord Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, the Order lends its name to th ...

in the fourth, fifth and

seventh Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven. Seventh may refer to: * Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution * A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts Film and television *"The Seventh", a second-season e ...

''Harry Potter'' films. His son

Domhnall Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Goidelic languages, Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic language, Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is part ...

played

Bill Weasley The Order of the Phoenix is a secret organisation in the '' Harry Potter'' series of fiction books written by J. K. Rowling. Founded by Albus Dumbledore to fight Lord Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, the Order lends its name to th ...

in the seventh and eighth films. Brendan Gleeson

Gleeson provided the voice of Abbot Cellach in ''

The Secret of Kells ''The Secret of Kells'' is a 2009 animated fantasy film about the making of the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript from the 9th Century. The film is an Irish-French-Belgian co-production animated by Cartoon Saloon, which premiered on 8 F ...

'', an animated film co-directed by

Tomm Moore Thomas "Tomm" Moore (born 7 January 1977) is an Irish filmmaker, animator, illustrator and comics artist. He co-founded Cartoon Saloon with Nora Twomey and Paul Young, an animation studio and production company based in Kilkenny, Ireland. His ...

and

Nora Twomey Nora Twomey (born 31 October 1971) is an Irish animator, director, screenwriter, producer and voice actress. She is best known as the co-founder of Cartoon Saloon, alongside Tomm Moore and Paul Young, an animation studio and production company, ...

Cartoon Saloon Cartoon Saloon is an Irish animation film, short film and television studio based in Kilkenny which provides film TV and short film services. The studio is best known for its animated feature films '' The Secret of Kells'', ''Song of the Sea'', ...

which premiered in February 2009 at the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. Gleeson starred in the short film '' Six Shooter'' in 2006, which won an

Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film The Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film is an award presented at the annual Academy Awards ceremony. The award has existed, under various names, since 1957. From 1936 until 1956 there were two separate awards, "Best Short Subject, One- ...

. This film was written and directed by

Martin McDonagh Martin Faranan McDonagh (; born 26 March 1970) is a British-Irish playwright, screenwriter, producer, and director. Born and brought up in London, he is the son of Irish parents. He is known as one of the most acclaimed modern playwrights whose ...

. In 2008, Gleeson starred in the comedy crime film ''

In Bruges ''In Bruges'' is a 2008 black comedy-drama crime film directed and written by Martin McDonagh in his feature-length debut and starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two London-based Irish hitmen in hiding, with Ralph Fiennes as the ...

'', also written and directed by McDonagh. The film, and Gleeson's performance, enjoyed huge critical acclaim, earning Gleeson several award nominations, including his first Golden Globe nomination. In the movie, Gleeson plays a mentor-like figure for

Colin Farrell Colin James Farrell (; born 31 May 1976) is an Irish actor. A leading man in projects across various genres in both blockbuster and independent films since the 2000s, he has received numerous accolades including a Golden Globe Award. ''The ...

's hitman. In his review of ''In Bruges'',

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

described the elder Gleeson as having a "noble shambles of a face and the heft of a boxer gone to seed." In July 2012, he started filming ''

The Grand Seduction ''The Grand Seduction'' is a 2013 Canadian comedy film directed by Don McKellar and written by Ken Scott and Michael Dowse. The film stars Taylor Kitsch, Brendan Gleeson, Liane Balaban and Gordon Pinsent. It is based on a 2003 French-Canadian ...

'', with

Taylor Kitsch Taylor Kitsch (born April 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor and model who has portrayed Tim Riggins in the NBC television series '' Friday Night Lights'' (2006–2011). He has also worked in films such as '' X-Men Origins: Wolverine'' (2009), ''Battle ...

, a remake of

Jean-François Pouliot Jean-François Pouliot (born 1957) is a Canadian film director from Quebec. He was born in Montreal and studied at Concordia University. He worked as an assistant cameraman, while also writing and directing short animated films for the Nationa ...

's French-Canadian '' La Grande Séduction'' (2003) directed by

Don McKellar Don McKellar (born August 17, 1963) is a Canadian actor, writer, playwright, and filmmaker. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge from Toronto known as the Toronto New Wave. He is known for directing and writing the ...

; the film was released in 2013. In 2016, he appeared in the video game adaptation ''

Assassin's Creed ''Assassin's Creed'' is an open-world, action-adventure, and stealth game franchise published by Ubisoft and developed mainly by its studio Ubisoft Montreal using the game engine Anvil and its more advanced derivatives. Created by Patrice D ...

'' and

Ben Affleck Benjamin Géza Affleck (born August 15, 1972) is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards and a Volpi Cup. Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS education ...

's crime drama ''

Live by Night ''Live by Night'' is a crime novel by American writer Dennis Lehane, published in 2012. It won a 2013 Edgar Award for novel of the year. Plot summary By 1926, Prohibition in the United States gives rise to an endless network of underground ...

''. In 2017 he finished ''Psychic'', a short he directed and starred in.

Musical talent

Gleeson is a

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

and

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

player, with an interest in

Irish folklore Irish folklore ( ga, béaloideas) refers to the folktales, balladry, music, dance, and so forth, ultimately, all of folk culture. Irish folklore, when mentioned to many people, conjures up images of banshees, fairies, leprechauns and people gat ...

. He played the fiddle during his roles in ''Cold Mountain'', ''Michael Collins'', ''The Grand Seduction'', and ''The Banshees of Inisherin'', and also features on Altan's 2009 live album. In the Coen brothers' ''

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs ''The Ballad of Buster Scruggs'' is a 2018 American Western anthology film written, directed, and produced by the Coen brothers. It had a limited theatrical release, being primarily intended for Netflix television. It stars Tim Blake Nelson, ...

'' (2018), Gleeson sings "

The Unfortunate Rake "The Unfortunate Lad", also known as "The Unfortunate Rake", is a traditional folk ballad (), which through the folk process has evolved into a large number of variants. Synopsis In nineteenth-century broadside versions, the narrator meets a comr ...

". He has also made a contribution in 2019 to the album by Irish folk group

Dervish Dervish, Darvesh, or Darwīsh (from fa, درویش, ''Darvīsh'') in Islam can refer broadly to members of a Sufi fraternity A fraternity (from Latin language, Latin ''wiktionary:frater, frater'': "brother (Christian), brother"; whence, ...

with a version of ''

Rocky Road To Dublin "Rocky Road to Dublin" is a 19th-century Irish song written by Irish poet D. K. Gavan about a man's experiences as he travels to Liverpool, England from his home in Tuam, Ireland. Originally popularized by Harry Clifton, it has since been per ...

''.

Personal life

He has been married to Mary Weldon since 1982. They have four sons;

, Fergus, Brían, and Rory. Domhnall and Brían are also actors. Gleeson speaks fluent

and is an advocate of the promotion of the Irish language. Gleeson is a fan of English football club

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

, as is his son Domhnall."Star Wars actor Gleeson: Villa Wembley win was special day"
, 13 May 2015, Aston Villa

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gleeson, Brendan 1955 births Living people 20th-century Irish male actors 21st-century Irish male actors Cartoon Saloon people Dublin fiddlers Gleeson family Irish expatriates in the United States Irish fiddlers Irish folk musicians Irish male film actors Irish male stage actors Irish male television actors Jacob's Award winners Male actors from Dublin (city) Musicians from County Dublin Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Primetime Emmy Award winners People from Artane, Dublin People from Howth