Jared Harris

Jared Francis Harris (born 24 August 1961) is a British actor. His roles include Lane Pryce in the drama series ''Mad Men'' (2009–2012), for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series; King George VI in the historical drama series ''The Crown'' (2016–2017); and Valery Legasov in the miniseries '' Chernobyl'' (2019), for which he won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor and was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie''.''

Harris also had roles as David Robert Jones in the science fiction series ''Fringe'' (2008–2012), Anderson Dawes in the science fiction series '' The Expanse'' (2015–2017) and Captain Francis Crozier in the series '' The Terror'' (2018). He is also known for his significant supporting roles in films such as '' The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'' (2008), '' Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows'' (2011), and Hari Seldon, a leading character in the science fiction series '' Foundation'' (2021).

Early life

Harris was born on 24 August 1961 in Hammersmith, London, the second of three sons of Irish actor Richard Harris and his first wife, Welsh actress Elizabeth Rees-Williams (1936–2022). His younger brother is actor Jamie Harris, his older brother is director Damian Harris and his maternal grandfather was politician David Rees-Williams, 1st Baron Ogmore.

Education

Harris was educated at Ladycross School, a former preparatory boarding independent school in the coastal town of Seaford in East Sussex, as were his brothers Jamie and Damian. He says, "They were famous for discipline, with cold showers every morning", and that "You were never known by your first name there. You were either called by your number, or your last name. Since there were three of us, Damian was 'Harris Ma' for major. I was 'Harris Mi' for minor, and Jamie was 'Harris Minimus,' being the youngest and the smallest". He then attended Downside School, a Catholic boarding independent school in the village of Stratton-on-the-Fosse (near the market town of Shepton Mallet) in Somerset, in South West England. He went on to Duke University in the U.S., graduating in 1984 with a BFA in drama, then returned to England to train as an actor at the Central School of Speech and Drama, graduating in 1989.

Career

1983–2008

Harris began his film career directing ''Darkmoor'' (1983), an unfinished feature-length film for Duke University's Freewater Films. His first film appearance as an actor was in '' The Rachel Papers'' (1989). He took minor roles in films such as the western romance '' Far and Away'' (1992), the historical epic '' The Last of the Mohicans'' (1992), and the crime drama '' Natural Born Killers'' (1994). He took the role of Benmont Tench in Jim Jarmusch's ''Dead Man'' (1995). He portrayed the role of the aged Will Robinson in the 1998 movie adaptation of the television series '' Lost in Space''. That same year he portrayed Vladimir in the controversial black comedy drama film ''Happiness'' (1998), written and directed by Todd Solondz. He portrayed Kenneth Branagh's character's doppelgänger in '' How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog'' (2000).

Other notable roles include Andy Warhol in '' I Shot Andy Warhol'', John Lennon in the television movie '' Two of Us'' (2000) and King Henry VIII in the 2003 BBC film adaptation of the novel '' The Other Boleyn Girl''. Harris portrayed Dr. Charles Ashford in '' Resident Evil: Apocalypse'' (2004). He portrayed the gruff Captain Anderson in the BBC2 adaptation of '' To the Ends of the Earth''; Mac McGrath in the movie '' Mr. Deeds''; Eamon Quinn on the FX series '' The Riches''; and David Robert Jones on ''Fringe''.

2009–2017

He gained widespread fame for his portrayal of Lane Pryce in the AMC period drama series ''Mad Men'' from 2009 until 2012. The show focuses on the lives of Ad Men in New York City during the 1960s. He first appeared in season three where he arrives as a British newcomer to Sterling Cooper, and later becomes a partner of the new agency Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Paul MacInnes of ''The Guardian'' wrote of Lane Pryce, "For much of his three season tenure on the show, Lane has seemed like the archetypal Englishman...He was polite, courteous, dry-witted, stingy. He was also apparently logical and keenly stoic, keeping calm and carrying on when Sterling Cooper broke up and its successor nearly went under." Harris received critical acclaim for his final appearance in the episode "Commissions and Fees" as well as a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, losing to Aaron Paul for ''Breaking Bad'' in 2012. He returned to the series to direct the 11th episode of season 7, which aired in 2015.

He portrayed Ulysses S. Grant in Steven Spielberg's acclaimed historical drama film '' Lincoln'' (2012).

His portrayal of King George VI in the first season of ''The Crown'' received praise from critic Matt Zoller Seitz, who stated that despite the series' large ensemble, "Harris still manages to communicate the character’s understated sensitivity and awareness of his circumscribed role in England’s drama so poignantly that one can’t help being moved by the performance". He received nominations for the British Academy Television Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series.

2018–present

He portrayed Captain Francis Crozier in the 2018 series '' The Terror'', based on the Dan Simmons novel of the same name that provided a fictional account of the fate of Franklin's lost expedition. In November 2018, Harris was one of the first recipients of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society's Louie Kamookak Medal, awarded "for making Canada's geography better known to Canadians and to the world", for his portrayal of Captain Crozier. Harris said that he was "gratified" that the series inspired curiosity about the real expedition, remarking, "It’s sort of fitting that history will recall that it was the RCGS that first recognized ''The Terror'', and that we as the recipients walked in the footsteps of Louie Kamookak."

In 2019, Harris portrayed Valery Legasov in the acclaimed miniseries ''Chernobyl'', which revolves around the Chernobyl disaster of 1986 and the cleanup efforts that followed. For that role he won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor and was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film. The series was produced by HBO in the United States and Sky UK in the United Kingdom.

In March 2019, Harris joined Jared Leto in Sony's Spider-Man spinoff ''Morbius''. He plays the developer of psychohistory Hari Seldon in the ''Foundation'' television series produced for Apple TV+ which premiered in September 2021.

In 2024, he played the father of a returning missing child in the British psychological thriller film '' Reawakening'', alongside Erin Doherty and Juliet Stevenson.

Personal life

Harris married Jacqueline Goldenberg in 1989 and they divorced three years later.

Harris married actress Emilia Fox, the daughter of actors Edward Fox and Joanna David, on 16 July 2005. Divorce filings were made in January 2009; the divorce was finalised in June 2010.

In April 2009, Harris met Allegra Riggio, a lighting designer and television host, at a comedy club where a mutual friend was performing. They married on 9 November 2013.

Harris resides in Los Angeles.

Acting credits

Film

Television

Theatre

Awards and nominations

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Jared
1961 births
Living people
20th-century English male actors
21st-century English male actors
Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
Audiobook narrators
Best Actor BAFTA Award (television) winners
British expatriate male actors in the United States
Duke University alumni
English male film actors
English male television actors
English male voice actors
English people of Irish descent
English people of Welsh descent
People educated at Downside School
Male actors from London
People from Hammersmith
Robin Fox family
Actors from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham