Brendan Gleeson
Brendan Gleeson (born 29 March 1955) is an Irish actor and film director. He is the recipient of three IFTA Awards, two BIFA's, and a Primetime Emmy Award and has been nominated twice for a BAFTA Award, five times for a Golden Globe Award and once for an Academy Award. In 2020, he was listed at number 18 on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors. He is the father of actors Domhnall Gleeson and Brian Gleeson. He is best known for his performance as Alastor Moody in the Harry Potter films (2005–2010). He is also known for his supporting roles in films such as Braveheart (1995), Michael Collins (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 (2019), and The Banshees of Inisherin (2022). He received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for the lattermost film. He won an Primetime Emmy Award in 2009 for his portrayal of Winston Churchill in the television film Into the Storm. He also received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his performance as Donald Trump in the Showtime series The Comey Rule (2020). From 2017 to 2019 he starred in the crime series Mr. Mercedes. He received an Emmy Award nomination for Stephen Frears' Sundance TV series State of the Union (2022).
120 acting credits · 1 directing credit
Acting · 120
Spider-Noir
2026
The Simpsons
1989
Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
The Graham Norton Show
2007
Saturday Night Live
1975
Golden Globe Awards
1944
The Late Late Show with James Corden
2015
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
2010
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
2005
Troy
2004
Mr. Mercedes
2017
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
2007
Kingdom of Heaven
2005
Edge of Tomorrow
2014
Braveheart
1995
28 Days Later
2002
Joker: Folie à Deux
2024
Mission: Impossible II
2000
A.I. Artificial Intelligence
2001
ScreenPlay
1986
Gangs of New York
2002
Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks
2003
Beowulf
2007
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
2018
Paddington 2
2017
In the Heart of the Sea
2015
State of the Union
2019
The Smurfs 2
2013
The Banshees of Inisherin
2022
Assassin's Creed
2016
In Bruges
2008
Cold Mountain
2003
The Village
2004
Stonehearst Asylum
2014
Far and Away
1992
The Comey Rule
2020
Safe House
2012
Song of the Sea
2014
The Secret of Kells
2009
The Tragedy of Macbeth
2021
The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!
2012
Lake Placid
1999
Frank of Ireland
2021
Green Zone
2010
Live by Night
2016
Suffragette
2015
The Guard
2011
The Company You Keep
2012
Turbulence
1997
Calvary
2014
H Is for Hawk
2025
Breakfast on Pluto
2005
Michael Collins
1996
The Raven
2012
The Tailor of Panama
2001
Riverdance: The Animated Adventure
2021
Albert Nobbs
2011
Dark Blue
2002
Hampstead
2017
The General
1998
The Field
1990
Into the Storm
2009
The Good Daughter
2026
The Snapper
1993
Into the West
1992
Trespass Against Us
2016
A Greyhound of a Girl
2023
1916 Seachtar Dearmadta
2013
The Lifeboat
1994
Alone in Berlin
2016
Harrison's Flowers
2000
Captain Morten and the Spider Queen
2018
The Butcher Boy
1998
The Irish Civil War
2022
In My Country
2004
Frankie
2019
The Grand Seduction
2014
Lost Lives
2019
The Cup
2011
Six Shooter
2004
1916 Seachtar na Cásca
2010
A Further Gesture
1997
The Treaty
1991
The Honey Wars
—
On the Red Carpet Presents: The Banshees of Inisherin
2023
This Is My Father
1999
Deconstructing 'The Village'
2005
My Life So Far
1999
Perrier's Bounty
2009
So You Want To Be A Pirate!
2012
Saltwater
2000
Sweety Barrett
1999
The Burren: Heart of Stone
2021
I Went Down
1997
Trojan Eddie
1996
Sexual Healing
—
Wild About Harry
2000
Dear Sarah
1990
The Path to Redemption
2006
The Tiger's Tail
2006
Angela Mooney Dies Again
1997
Studs
2006
Black Irish
2007
A Hero's Journey: The Making of Beowulf
—
Blood Runs Coal
—
Kerry: Tides of Time
2025
Noreen
2010
Pursuit
2015
Love Lies Bleeding
1993
Gay Byrne's Late Late Moments
2020
Atlantic
2016
Brendan Gleeson's Farewell to Hughes's
2024
Psychic
2018
The Dead Zoo
2022
Before I Sleep
1997
Cáca Milis
2001
Tales from the Poorhouse
—
Spaghetti Slow
1996
Spider-Noir - MGM+ Preview
2026