Favorite Irish Actors/Actresses
by Kevin_LaMarr_Lockard | created - 16 Aug 2017 | updated - 10 Oct 2017 | Public
1. Brendan Gleeson
Actor | Calvary
Brendan Gleeson was born in Dublin, Ireland, to Pat and Frank Gleeson. From a very young age, he loved to learn, especially reading classical text in and outside the classroom. He took great attention to Irish play writers such as Samuel Beckett, which eventually led to him performing in his high ...
2. Michael Fassbender
Actor | Shame
Michael Fassbender is an Irish actor who was born in Heidelberg, Germany, to a German father, Josef, and an Irish mother, Adele (originally from Larne, County Antrim, in Northern Ireland). Michael was raised in the town of Killarney, Co. Kerry, in south-west Ireland, where his family moved to when ...
3. Liam Neeson
Actor | Kinsey
Liam Neeson was born on June 7, 1952 in Ballymena, Northern Ireland, to Katherine (Brown), a cook, and Bernard Neeson, a school caretaker. He was raised in a Catholic household. During his early years, Liam worked as a forklift operator for Guinness, a truck driver, an assistant architect and an ...
4. Cillian Murphy
Actor | 28 Days Later...
Striking Irish actor Cillian Murphy was born in Douglas, the oldest child of Brendan Murphy, who works for the Irish Department of Education, and a mother who is a teacher of French. He has three younger siblings. Murphy was educated at Presentation Brothers College, Cork. He went on to study law ...
5. Fionnula Flanagan
Actress | The Others
Fionnula Flanagan was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland. From an early age she grew up speaking both English and Irish on a daily basis. Her parents weren't native Irish speakers but wanted Fionnula and her four siblings to learn the language. Her mother used to say, "A nation without a language ...
6. Domhnall Gleeson
Actor | Ex Machina
Domhnall Gleeson is an Irish actor and writer. He is best known for his portrayal of Bill Weasley in the Harry Potter film franchise (2010-2011), About Time (2013), Ex Machina (2015) and The Revenant (2015).
He is the son of actor Brendan Gleeson, alongside whom he has appeared in several films and ...
7. Jack Reynor
Actor | The Peripheral
Jack Reynor is an award-winning American actor who co-starred opposite Florence Pugh in A24's breakout summer 2019 hit, MIDSOMMAR, directed by Ari Aster. Most recently, he was seen in Anthony and Joe Russo's American crime drama film, CHERRY, opposite Tom Holland.
The multi-hyphenate talent wrote ...
8. Kelly Thornton
Actress | Flora and Son
Chosen from an open casting for the leading juvenile role in Lance Daly's award winning feature Life's A Breeze with Fionnula Flanagan and Pat Shortt (See Official Trailer below), Kelly was nominated for a Lead Actress Film IFTA Award in 2014. Actor Zachary Quinto presented Kelly with the Bingham ...
9. Saoirse Ronan
Actress | Hanna
Saoirse Una Ronan was born in The Bronx, New York City, New York, United States, to Irish parents, Monica Ronan (née Brennan) and Paul Ronan, an actor. When Saoirse was three, the family moved back to Dublin, Ireland. Saoirse grew up in Dublin and briefly in Co. Carlow before moving back to Dublin ...
10. Jamie Dornan
Actor | The Fall
Jamie Dornan was born on May 1, 1982 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK. He is an actor and producer, known for The Fall (2013), A Private War (2018) and Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021). He has been married to Amelia Warner since April 27, 2013. They have three children.
11. John Lynch
Actor | Black Death
John Lynch was born on December 26, 1961 in Corrinshego, Newry, Northern Ireland, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Black Death (2010), The Secret Garden (1993) and Best (2000). He was previously married to Mary McGuckian.
12. Aisling Franciosi
Actress | The Nightingale
Aisling Franciosi is an Irish-Italian actress known for "The Fall" (2013), "Game of Thrones" (2011), and "The Nightingale" (2018). She was born in Dublin in 1993, moved with her family to Italy soon after, and returned to Ireland four years later with her mother. She attended acting classes as a ...
13. Niamh McGrady
Actress | The Fall
After landing a role in Summer 2003 in Italy, on graduation she joined a Welsh production of Romeo and Juliet and then pantomime in Belfast, before moving to London for Northern Irish playwright Lisa McGee's production of Girls & Dolls. McGrady then featured in a production of the Shakespeare play ...
14. Karen Hassan
Actress | Wait for Me
Northern Irish born actress Karen Hassan recently starred as lead role 'Alison' in the feature film 'Wait For Me', directed by Keith Farrell and currently streaming on Amazon Prime. A gripping story of a sex worker struggling to reconnect with her lost daughter. She is also currently appearing on ...
15. Nick Lee
Actor | The Fall
Nick Lee was born in County Monaghan, Ireland. He is known for The Fall (2013), Reign (2013) and Midnight, Texas (2017).
16. Ian McElhinney
Actor | Hamlet
Ian McElhinney is a Northern Irish actor and director best known for his roles as General Dodonna in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Val-El in Krypton, and as Ser Barristan Selmy in the HBO series, Game of Thrones.
Over a career spanning more than thirty years, McElhinney has accumulated a number of ...
17. Séainín Brennan
Actress | This Town
Séainín Brennan is known for This Town (2024), Hache (2019) and Girona (2015). She has been married to Ben Fetherston since September 19, 2015.
18. Michael McElhatton
Actor | Game of Thrones
Michael McElhatton was born on September 12, 1963 in Terenure, Dublin, Ireland. He is an actor and writer, known for Game of Thrones (2011), Jack Ryan (2018) and Chernobyl (2019).
19. Aisling Bea
Actress | This Way Up
Aisling Bea is an actor, stand-up comedian, and writer from Ireland. In 2020 she won a BAFTA for Breakthrough Talent for her television series This Way Up, in which she also starred. In 2014 she won the British Comedy Award for Best Female TV Comedian. She trained at LAMDA (The London Academy for ...
20. Stephen Rea
Actor | The Crying Game
Stephen Rea was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He attended Belfast High School and the Queen's University, where he studied English. He later trained at the Abbey Theatre School in Dublin. In 1970s, he acted in the Focus Company in Dublin with the talented Gabriel Byrne and Colm Meaney. After ...
21. Chris O'Dowd
Actor | Bridesmaids
Christopher "Chris" O'Dowd (born 9 October, 1979) is an Irish actor and comedian best known for his role as Roy Trenneman in the Channel 4 comedy The IT Crowd (2006). O'Dowd created and is starring in the Sky 1 television series Moone Boy (2012). He had a recurring role on the drama series Girls (...
22. Roisin Murphy
Actress | What Richard Did
Roisin Murphy is known for What Richard Did (2012), The Clinic (2003) and Vikings (2013).
23. Dorothy Duffy
Actress | The Magdalene Sisters
Dorothy Duffy is known for The Magdalene Sisters (2002), Silent Witness (1996) and Childer (2016).
24. Michelle Doherty
Actress | The Hit Producer
Michelle Doherty is known for The Hit Producer (2015), What Richard Did (2012) and Trivia (2011).
25. Sarah Greene
Actress | The Guard
Sarah is originally from Cork and trained in Dublin where she graduated from the Gaiety School of Acting in 2006.
Sarah played Helen McCormick (Slippy Helen) opposite Daniel Radcliffe as Billy Claven in Martin McDonaghs's The Cripple of Inishmaan, directed by Michael Grandage at the Cort Theatre on ...
26. Maria Doyle Kennedy
Actress | The Tudors
Maria Doyle Kennedy was born on September 25, 1964 in Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland. She is an actress and director, known for The Tudors (2007), The Commitments (1991) and Orphan Black (2013). She has been married to Kieran Kennedy since June 11, 1988. They have four children.
27. Aidan Gillen
Actor | Game of Thrones
Aidan Gillen is an Irish actor. He is best known for portraying Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish in the HBO series Game of Thrones (2011), CIA operative Bill Wilson in The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Stuart Alan Jones in the Channel 4 series Queer as Folk (1999), John Boy in the RTÉ Television series ...
28. Sarah Bolger
Actress | In America
Sarah Lee Bolger (born 28 February 1991) is an Irish actress. She is best known for her roles in the films In America (2002), Stormbreaker, and The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008), as well as her award winning role as Lady Mary Tudor in the TV series The Tudors (2007), and for guest starring as ...
29. Stuart Graham
Actor | Hunger
Stuart Graham was born on May 31, 1967 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK. He is an actor and director, known for Hunger (2008), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) and The Good Word (2014).
30. Angeline Ball
Actress | The Commitments
Angeline Ball was born on June 28, 1969 in Cabra, Dublin, Ireland. She is an actress, known for The Commitments (1991), Bloom (2003) and The General (1998).
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