Personal Info
Known For:
Acting
Birthday:
December 12, 1949
Place of Birth:
Caterham, Surrey, England, UK
Social Media
Bill Nighy
Biography
William Francis Nighy (born 12 December 1949) is an English actor. Known for his work on screen and stage, he has received numerous awards, including two BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award and nominations for an Academy Award and a Tony Award.
Nighy started his career with the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool and made his London debut with the Royal National Theatre starting with The Illuminatus! in 1977. There he gained acclaim for his roles in David Hare's Pravda in 1985, Harold Pinter's Betrayal in 1991, Tom Stoppard's Arcadia in 1993, and Anton Chekov's The Seagull in 1994. He received a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor nomination for his performance in Blue/Orange in 2001. He made his Broadway debut in Hare's The Vertical Hour in 2006, and returned in the 2015 revival of Hare's Skylight earning a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play nomination.
Early film roles include in the comedies Still Crazy (1998), and Blow Dry (1999) before his breakout role in Love Actually (2003) which earned him a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor. He soon gained recognition portraying Davy Jones in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series (2006-2007), and Viktor in the Underworld film series (2003-2009). Other films include Shaun of the Dead (2004), The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), The Constant Gardener (2005), Notes on a Scandal (2006), Hot Fuzz (2007), Valkyrie (2008), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), About Time (2013), Emma (2020), and Living (2022), the last of these earning him his first career Academy Award nomination.
Nighy has gained acclaim for his roles in television earning a British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his performance in BBC One series State of Play (2003), and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for the BBC film Gideon's Daughter (2007). He's also known for his roles in HBO's The Girl in the Café (2006) and PBS's Page Eight (2012).
Known For
Filmography
| Year | TV Show | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Kent: Garden of England | Self - Narrator (voice) |
| 2023 | Norfolk & Suffolk: Coast & Country | Self - Narrator (voice) |
| 2022 | The Man Who Fell to Earth | Thomas Jerome Newton |
| 2022 | LIGHT & MAGIC | Self (archive footage) |
| 2021 | World's Most Scenic River Journeys | Self - Narrator (voice) |
| 2021 | Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty | Self - Narrator (voice) |
| 2021 | Iberia's Woodlands: Life on the Edge | Self - Narrator (voice) |
| 2019 | World's Most Scenic Railway Journeys | Narrator (voice) |
| 2018 | Ordeal by Innocence | Leo Argyll |
| 2017 | Castlevania | Saint Germain (voice) |
| 2014 | Late Night with Seth Meyers | Self |
| 2009 | The Big Art Project | Narrator |
| 2009 | Live from Studio Five | Self |
| 2009 | 10 Minute Tales | |
| 2006 | The One Show | Self |
| 2005 | Meerkat Manor | Narrator |
| 2005 | Doctor Who | Dr Black |
| 2004 | He Knew He Was Right | Colonel Osborne |
| 2003 | State of Play | Cameron Foster |
| 2003 | The Lost Prince | Stamfordham |
| 2003 | Canterbury Tales | James |
| 2003 | Grumpy Old Men | Self |
| 2002 | The Inspector Lynley Mysteries | Lockwood |
| 2002 | Timeshift | self (voice) |
| 2001 | Richard & Judy | Self |
| 2000 | Black Books | Man at bar |
| 2000 | Longitude | Lord Sandwich |
| 1999 | People Like Us | Will Rushmore |
| 1998 | Parkinson | Self |
| 1996 | Testament: The Bible in Animation | Belshazzar (voice) |
| 1995 | Kavanagh Q.C. | Giles Culpepper QC |
| 1994 | Wycliffe | David Cleeve |
| 1993 | Peak Practice | Alan Sinclair |
| 1993 | Eye of the Storm | Tom Frewen |
| 1991 | Performance | Roger Maitland |
| 1991 | Performance | Hugh Marriner |
| 1990 | Making News | Sam Courtney |
| 1990 | Chillers | Tom Dickenson |
| 1988 | South Of The Border | Tony Freason |
| 1988 | This Morning | Self |
| 1985 | The Last Place on Earth | Cecil Meares |
| 1983 | Auf Wiedersehen, Pet | Jeffrey Grainger |
| 1983 | Reilly: Ace of Spies | Goschen |
| 1980 | Fox | Colin Street |
| 1979 | Agony | Vincent Fish |
| 1979 | Minder | Oates |
| 1974 | Playhouse | Bruno |
| 1970 | Play for Today | Dave |
| Lazaruss | Doctor Lazarus ' Dr L' | |
| Ride or Die | The Director | |
| California Avenue | Jerry |