Table of Contents
Latest News: Cillian Murphy Set to Reprise Role in Upcoming Peaky Blinders Film
Following his recent Oscar victory for Oppenheimer, Cillian Murphy is set to return to a beloved role in an eagerly anticipated project. Steven Knight, the creator of Peaky Blinders, confirmed that Murphy will reprise his iconic role as gangster Tommy Shelby in an upcoming film adaptation of the acclaimed BBC and Netflix series. In a recent interview with BirminghamWorld, Knight affirmed, “He definitely is returning for it. We’re shooting it in September just down the road in Digbeth.”
Murphy, who portrayed Shelby across 36 episodes from 2013 to 2022, received a BAFTA TV Award nomination for his performance in 2023. The series also featured a notable ensemble cast including Tom Hardy, Adrien Brody, Annabelle Wallis, and Anya Taylor-Joy.
Following the success of Peaky Blinders, Murphy took on the leading role in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, the 2023 biopic about physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. Murphy earned the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal. His latest film, Small Things Like These, an independent drama, premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2024.
Early Life and Education
Cillian Murphy was born on May 25, 1976, in Douglas, near Cork, Ireland. As the eldest of four siblings, including his brother Paidi and sisters Sile and Orla, Murphy was raised in a Catholic family with a strong academic background. His father, Brendan Murphy, served as a school inspector before becoming a civil servant at the Irish Department of Education. His mother, whose name remains private, was a French teacher, and Murphy’s aunts, uncles, and grandfather were also educators.
Murphy attended Presentation Brothers College, a private Catholic secondary school in Cork, where he excelled academically and developed an interest in the arts. Reflecting on his early years, Murphy shared with The Guardian, “I was always fascinated by the idea of artists: authors, playwrights, musicians. Those things seemed alien and otherworldly at the time.” Despite attending a rugby-focused, academically rigorous school, Murphy felt a strong pull toward the artistic world.
Initially aspiring to be a musician, Murphy formed a jazz-rock band named Sons of Mr. Green Genes with his friends. Although they received a record contract offer, Murphy chose to forgo this opportunity to focus on acting. His decision was further solidified after he attended a performance of A Clockwork Orange at a nightclub, which ignited his passion for drama. Murphy’s pursuit of a law career at University College Cork in 1996 proved unsuccessful, as he did not pass his law exams. However, this setback marked a crucial turning point, leading him to fully embrace the world of acting.
Theater Career and Early Film Roles
In the summer of 1996, at the age of 20, Cillian Murphy auditioned for and secured a leading role in Disco Pigs, a play by then-emerging playwright Enda Walsh. Initially scheduled for a short run at the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork, the play quickly gained acclaim, leading to an 18-month world tour that spanned Europe, Australia, and North America.
Receiving the script for Disco Pigs marked Murphy’s first encounter with a play beyond his academic experience. “That’s how theater illiterate I was,” Murphy admitted in an interview with The Irish Times. Despite his initial inexperience, Murphy delivered a standout performance as Pig, a role he reprised in the 2001 film adaptation of the play.
Following the success of Disco Pigs, Murphy began to land minor film roles, including appearances in 1998’s Sweety Barrett, which starred his friend Brendan Gleeson, and 1999’s The Trench, featuring the emerging talent Daniel Craig.
While Murphy’s film career flourished in the subsequent years, he has remained active on stage. His recent theatrical endeavors include performances in The Shape of Things, The Seagull, and Love Song. He has also collaborated with Enda Walsh on several projects, such as Misterman, Ballyturk, and Grief Is the Thing With Feathers.
Breakout Role in 28 Days Later
Cillian Murphy garnered widespread recognition for his compelling performance in the 2002 horror film 28 Days Later, directed by Danny Boyle. In this film, Murphy portrays Jim, a bike courier who awakens from a coma four weeks after a viral outbreak has ravaged Great Britain. 28 Days Later is notable for its innovative depiction of “fast zombies,” creatures that exhibit both rapid movement and heightened aggression, thereby revitalizing interest in the zombie genre.
In a 2022 interview, Murphy reflected on his audition process, noting initial challenges with mastering the character’s London accent. With guidance from Boyle, who had previously noticed Murphy’s talent in the film adaptation of Disco Pigs, Murphy eventually delivered a performance that he described as a breakthrough moment for him.
Murphy acknowledged that 28 Days Later was pivotal in advancing his career, leading to subsequent opportunities and establishing his collaboration with director Christopher Nolan. In 2003, Murphy expanded his repertoire with a leading role in Intermission, supporting roles in Girl with a Pearl Earring—featuring a young Scarlett Johansson—and the acclaimed war epic Cold Mountain.
The actor continued to receive critical acclaim for his role as the antagonist Jackson Rippner in the 2005 thriller Red Eye. Manohla Dargis of The New York Times lauded Murphy’s portrayal, suggesting that his performance was so effective that his agent should be cautious of potential typecasting.
Christopher Nolan’s Collaborations with Cillian Murphy: A Filmography Overview
Christopher Nolan’s cinematic partnership with Cillian Murphy has been a significant aspect of his directorial career, highlighted by Murphy’s performances in some of Nolan’s most acclaimed films. The collaboration began with Batman Begins in 2005, the inaugural installment of Nolan’s celebrated Dark Knight trilogy. Despite Murphy’s audition for the role of Bruce Wayne—a part ultimately portrayed by Christian Bale—Nolan recognized Murphy’s distinctive talent and cast him in the role of Dr. Jonathan Crane, a.k.a. the Scarecrow. Murphy reprised this role in the subsequent films, The Dark Knight (2008) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012).
Beyond the Dark Knight trilogy, Murphy’s association with Nolan continued with significant roles in Inception (2010), where he played Robert Fischer, and Dunkirk (2017), where he portrayed a World War II soldier. These roles further established Murphy’s versatility and his strong rapport with Nolan.
The partnership reached a new pinnacle with Oppenheimer (2023), where Murphy took on the lead role of J. Robert Oppenheimer. Nolan described this casting decision as “one of my favorite moments in the movie business.” Murphy undertook extensive preparation for the role, including a dramatic physical transformation and meticulous practice of facial expressions. His dedication to the role was profound, reflecting his longstanding admiration for Nolan’s work. Murphy remarked, “I’d always show up for Chris, even if it was walking in the background of his next movie with a surfboard… But I always hoped I could play a lead in a Chris Nolan movie. What actor wouldn’t want to do that?”
Oppenheimer, released alongside Barbie on the same day, became a substantial box-office success, grossing $957 million globally. Murphy’s portrayal was met with widespread acclaim, earning him a series of awards in 2024, including the Golden Globe for Best Male Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, as well as accolades from the BAFTA Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards. The culmination of this recognition came with Murphy receiving the Academy Award for Best Actor, marking his first Oscar win.
This successful collaboration between Nolan and Murphy underscores their impactful partnership in contemporary cinema, blending Murphy’s exceptional talent with Nolan’s visionary direction.
Murphy’s Other Films
In 2007, Murphy reunited with director Danny Boyle for the science fiction film Sunshine, which follows astronauts on a mission to reignite the sun in 2057. His filmography also includes Peacock (2010), Aloft (2014), Transcendence (2014), The Party (2017), and Anna (2019).
Beyond his renowned collaborations with Christopher Nolan, Cillian Murphy has demonstrated a remarkable range through his work in various lesser-known films. His performance in the 2005 film Breakfast on Pluto earned him a Golden Globe nomination. In this role, he portrayed a transgender woman on a quest to find her mother in 1970s London after being abandoned at birth. The following year, Murphy played a soldier in the Irish Republican Army in The Wind That Shakes the Barley, a war film that won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
Prior to Oppenheimer, Murphy’s most prominent recent film was A Quiet Place Part II (2020), the acclaimed sequel to the horror film starring Emily Blunt and John Krasinski. His latest project is the independent drama Small Things Like These, which premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2024.
Lead Role in Peaky Blinders
Cillian Murphy, standing at just over 5 feet 7 inches tall, earned widespread acclaim for his portrayal of the formidable yet complex gang leader Tommy Shelby in the BBC and Netflix series Peaky Blinders. This acclaimed drama, which chronicles the fictionalized life of a crime family in post-World War I Birmingham, England, aired for six seasons from 2013 to 2022. The series featured a stellar ensemble cast, including Tom Hardy, Adrien Brody, and Anya Taylor-Joy.
Steven Knight, the show’s creator, initially considered action star Jason Statham for the role of Shelby. However, Knight was convinced of Murphy’s suitability after receiving a text from him following his audition: “Remember, I’m an actor.”
Murphy described Shelby as a “gift of a character,” yet acknowledged the role’s demands. In a 2016 interview with The Guardian, he detailed the rigorous schedule, which involved 16-hour workdays and extensive dialogue preparation. During filming in Liverpool, Murphy led what he referred to as a “canceled life,” focusing solely on his role and recuperating in a small apartment.
Murphy’s dedication was recognized with a Best Drama Performance award at the National Television Awards and a BAFTA TV Award nomination for Leading Actor following the series’ final season.
In a December 2023 interview with Margot Robbie for Variety, Murphy expressed openness to reprising his role in a potential film adaptation, noting the challenge of transitioning to film but remaining receptive to compelling scripts.
Knight confirmed in March 2024 that Murphy will indeed return for a Peaky Blinders movie, with production slated to commence in September.
Family Life
As his theater career gained momentum in the summer of 1996, Murphy encountered Yvonne McGuinness, a classically trained visual artist from Kilkenny, Ireland. At the time, Murphy was cast in the stage production of Disco Pigs, and their relationship flourished as McGuinness accompanied him throughout much of the show’s tour. The couple has been married since 2004 and has two sons: Malachy, born in 2005, and Aran, born in 2007.
Murphy is notably absent from social media and seldom discusses his family in interviews, as he and McGuinness prefer to maintain a low profile. Nevertheless, they made a notable appearance at the Golden Globe Awards with their son Aran in January 2024.
Murphy has frequently acknowledged McGuinness’s role in helping him stay grounded amidst his rising fame during the early and mid-2000s. He remarked to People: “It’s very important to have somebody like that. My life hasn’t changed in any way, really. I still have the same friends, and we go to the same places.”
In 2015, the family relocated from London to Dublin to be nearer to their grandparents. During this period, McGuinness stayed in Dublin with their sons while Murphy filmed Peaky Blinders in Liverpool.