Gabriel Byrne

Biography

Gabriel James Byrne (born 12 May 1950) is an Irish actor. He has received a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for a Grammy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Tony Awards. Byrne was awarded the Irish Film and Television Academy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018 and was listed at number 17 on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors in 2020. In 2009, The Guardian named him one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination. Byrne's acting career began at the Focus Theatre in Dublin before he joined London's Royal Court Theatre in 1974. His screen debut came in the Irish drama serial The Riordans and the spin-off show Bracken. He went on to star in such films as Defence of the Realm (1986), Lionheart (1987), Miller's Crossing (1990), Little Women (1994), Dead Man (1995), The Usual Suspects (1995), The Man in the Iron Mask (1998), Enemy of the State (1998), End of Days (1999), Stigmata (1999), Vanity Fair (2004), The 33 (2015), and Hereditary (2018). He co-wrote The Last of the High Kings (1996) and also produced In the Name of the Father (1993). For his Broadway work, Byrne has received two nominations for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his roles in the Eugene O'Neill plays A Moon for the Misbegotten (2000), and Long Day's Journey into Night (2016). For his television work, Byrne has received two nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Paul Weston in the HBO drama series In Treatment (2008–2010), he also received a Golden Globe Award. His other notable television roles include Vikings (2013), Maniac (2018), and War of the Worlds (2019–2022). Byrne attended Ardscoil Éanna secondary school in Crumlin, where he later taught Spanish and history. He attended University College Dublin, where he studied archaeology, Spanish and linguistics, and graduated with a BA in 1972, becoming proficient in the Irish language. He went on to complete a Higher Diploma in Education (HDipEd) in 1973. Byrne played football in Dublin with Stella Maris. In January 2011, Byrne spoke in an interview on The Meaning of Life about being sexually abused by priests during his childhood. Before becoming an actor, Byrne had many jobs, including archaeologist, cook, Spanish and history school teacher at Ardscoil Éanna in Crumlin and even a spell as a bullfighter in Spain. He started acting at age 29, and began his career on stage with the Focus Theatre and the Abbey Theatre in Dublin.