Known For:
Acting
Birthday:
January 22, 1940
Place of Birth:
Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England, UK
Sir John Vincent Hurt (January 22, 1940 – January 25, 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. He came to prominence for his role as Richard Rich in the film A Man for All Seasons (1966) and gained BAFTA Award nominations for his portrayals of Timothy Evans in 10 Rillington Place (1971) and Quentin Crisp in television film The Naked Civil Servant (1975) – winning his first BAFTA for the latter. He played Caligula in the BBC TV series I, Claudius (1976). Hurt's performance in the prison drama Midnight Express (1978) brought him international renown and earned Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards, along with an Academy Award nomination. His BAFTA-nominated portrayal of astronaut Kane, in the science-fiction horror film Alien (1979), notably included a scene where an alien creature burst out of his chest, named by several publications as one of the most memorable moments in cinema history.
Hurt earned his third competitive BAFTA, along with his second Oscar and Golden Globe nominations, as Joseph Merrick in David Lynch's biopic The Elephant Man (1980). Other significant roles during the 1980s included Bob Champion in biopic Champions (1984), Mr. Braddock in the Stephen Frears drama The Hit (1984), Winston Smith in Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) and Stephen Ward in the drama depicting the Profumo affair, Scandal (1989). Hurt was again BAFTA-nominated for his work in Irish drama The Field (1990) and played the primary villain, James Graham, in the epic adventure Rob Roy (1995). His later films include the Harry Potter film series (2001–11), the Hellboy films (2004 and 2008), supernatural thriller The Skeleton Key (2005), western The Proposition (2005), political thriller V for Vendetta (2005), action adventure Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008), sci-fi action Outlander (2008) and the Cold War espionage film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011). Hurt reprised his role as Quentin Crisp in An Englishman in New York (2009), which brought his seventh BAFTA nomination. He portrayed the War Doctor in the BBC TV series Doctor Who's 50th anniversary special, "The Day of the Doctor", in 2013.
Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors; director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in the world". He possessed what was described as the "most distinctive voice in Britain", likened by The Observer to "nicotine sieved through dirty, moonlit gravel". His voice acting career encompassed films such as Watership Down (1978), The Lord of the Rings (1978), The Plague Dogs (1982), The Black Cauldron (1985), Dogville (2003) and Planet Dinosaur (2011) as well as BBC TV series Merlin (2008–2012). In 2012, he was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement BAFTA Award, in recognition of his "outstanding contribution to cinema". He was knighted in 2015 for his services to drama.
Year | Movie | Role |
---|---|---|
2025 | Doctor Who: Wish World & The Reality War | The Doctor (archive footage) (uncredited) |
2024 | Doctor Who at the Proms | The Doctor (War) (archive footage) |
2023 | Lynch/Oz | John Merrick (archive footage) (uncredited) |
2021 | Hannibal Hopkins & Sir Anthony | Self (archive footage) |
2018 | Ayamé | Narrator (voice) |
2017 | Damascus Cover | Miki |
2017 | The Journey | Harry Patterson |
2017 | That Good Night | Ralph |
2017 | My Name Is Lenny | Leslie Salmon |
2016 | Jackie | The Priest |
2016 | ChickLit | Francis Bonar |
2016 | The Pity of War: The Loves and Lives of the War Poets | Siegfried Sassoon |
2016 | The Final Reel | Self - Narrator (voice) |
2016 | Back to Utopia | Professor Peter Panludic (voice) |
2015 | Dmitri Shostakovich: A Man of Many Faces | Narator |
2015 | The Alchemist's Letter | The Alchemist (voice) |
2015 | A.K.A Nadia | 347 |
2015 | Thomas & Friends: Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure: The Movie | Sailor John (voice) |
2015 | Break | Jack |
2015 | Doctor Who: The Husbands of River Song | The Doctor (War) (picture) (uncredited) |
2014 | Hercules | Cotys |
2014 | Wimbledon The Official Film 2014 | Narrator |
2014 | Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film | Self |
2013 | Doctor Who Live: The Afterparty | Self |
2013 | Jayne Mansfield's Car | Kingsley Bedford |
2013 | Snowpiercer | Gilliam |
2013 | Only Lovers Left Alive | Christopher Marlowe |
2013 | Benjamin Britten: Peace and Conflict | Narrator (voice) |
2013 | Muse of Fire | Self |
2013 | The Day of the Doctor: Cinema Intro | The War Doctor |
2013 | Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor | The War Doctor |
2013 | Doctor Who: The Night of the Doctor | The War Doctor |
2013 | Hello: A Portrait Of Leslie Phillips | Self / Stephen Ward |
2013 | The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot | The War Doctor (archive voice) |
2013 | Swan Lake 3D - Live from the Mariinsky Theatre | The Voice of the Winter Palace / Self |
2012 | Planet Dinosaur: Ultimate Killers | Narrator (voice) |
2012 | Sightseers | Jerusalem Narrator (voice) (uncredited) |
2012 | The Snipist | The Ministry |
2012 | More Than Honey | Narrator (english voice) |
2011 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 | Ollivander |
2011 | Melancholia | Dexter |
2011 | Immortals | Old Zeus |
2011 | Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy | Control |
2011 | The Gruffalo's Child | The Owl (voice) |
2011 | Sailcloth | Man |
2011 | The Confession | Priest |
2011 | On Borrowed Time | Self |
2011 | 23 Degrees, 5 Minutes | Professor Orit |
2011 | The Journey – Stories from the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa | Narrator |
2011 | In Love with Alma Cogan | MC |
2010 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 | Ollivander |
2010 | Brighton Rock | Phil Corkery |
2010 | Ultramarines: A Warhammer 40,000 Movie | Carnak |
2010 | Lou | Doyle |
2010 | Whistle and I'll Come to You | James Parkin |
2010 | A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures | Grandpa Sammy (voice) |
2010 | Behind Jim Jarmusch | Self |
2010 | Love at First Sight | Arthur |
2009 | The Limits of Control | Guitar |
2009 | The Gruffalo | Owl (voice) |
2009 | An Englishman in New York | Quentin Crisp |
2009 | 44 Inch Chest | Old Man Peanut |
2009 | Making History: Mel Brooks on Creating the World | Self (archive footage) |
2009 | Waking Sleeping Beauty | The Horned King (voice) (archive footage) |
2009 | Remembrance | Bellhop |
2009 | Ballybrando | Self |
2008 | Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | Professor Harold Oxley |
2008 | Outlander | Rothgar |
2008 | Hellboy II: The Golden Army | Trevor Bruttenholm |
2008 | The Oxford Murders | Arthur Seldom |
2008 | Recount | Warren Christopher |
2008 | Lecture 21 | Mondrian Kilroy |
2008 | New York, I Love You | Bellhop |
2008 | Verity Lambert: Drama Queen | |
2007 | The 50 Greatest Television Dramas | Self |
2007 | Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron | Professor Trevor 'Broom' Bruttenholm (voice) |
2007 | Boxes | Fanny's father |
2007 | Interview with John Hurt | Self |
2006 | Perfume: The Story of a Murderer | Narrator (voice) |
2006 | V for Vendetta | Adam Sutler |
2006 | Shooting Dogs | Christopher |
2006 | The Plot Against Harold Wilson | Narrator (voice) |
2006 | Whaledreamers | Self |
2005 | Manderlay | Narrator (voice) |
2005 | The Skeleton Key | Ben Devereaux |
2005 | Valiant | Felix (voice) |
2005 | Once Upon a Halloween | The Horned King |
2005 | The Proposition | Jellon Lamb |
2005 | Hiroshima | Narrator (voice) |
2005 | Short Order | |
2004 | Hellboy | Prof. Trevor 'Broom' Bruttenholm |
2004 | Hellboy: The Seeds of Creation | Self |
2004 | Shadowing the Third Man | Narrator (voice) |
2004 | Pride | Harry (voice) |
2004 | Alpha to Omega: Exposing 'The Osterman Weekend' | Self |
2003 | Owning Mahowny | Victor Foss |
2003 | The Beast Within: Making Alien | Self |
2003 | Meeting Che Guevara & the Man from Maybury Hill | Man from Maybury Hill |
2003 | Dogville | Narrator (voice) |
2002 | The Alien Saga | Narrator (voice) |
2002 | Miranda | Christian |
2002 | Crime and Punishment | Porfiry, chief investigator |
2002 | Bait | Jack Blake |
2002 | I, Claudius: A Television Epic | Self |
2001 | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | Mr. Ollivander |
2001 | Captain Corelli's Mandolin | Dr. Iannis |
2001 | Shaolin: Wheel of Life | Narrator (voice) |
2001 | The Hidden Wars of Desert Storm | Narrator (voice) |
2001 | Tabloid | Vince |
2001 | The Terrible Elephant Man Revealed | Self |
2000 | Krapp's Last Tape | Krapp |
2000 | Lost Souls | Father Lareaux |
2000 | The Tigger Movie | Narrator (voice) |
1999 | You're Dead... | Maitland |
1999 | All the Little Animals | Mr. Summers |
1999 | New Blood | Alan White |
1999 | If... Dog... Rabbit | Sean Cooper |
1998 | The Commissioner | James morton |
1998 | Love and Death on Long Island | Giles De'Ath |
1998 | The Climb | Chuck Langer |
1998 | Night Train | Michael Poole |
1997 | Bandyta | Babits |
1997 | Contact | S. R. Hadden |
1996 | Tender Loving Care | Dr. Turner |
1995 | Dead Man | John Scholfield |
1995 | Rob Roy | John Graham |
1995 | Wild Bill | Charley Prince |
1995 | On Jupiter | Narrator (voice) |
1995 | Saigon Baby | Jack Lee |
1995 | Two Nudes Bathing | Marquis de Prey |
1994 | Even Cowgirls Get the Blues | The Countess |
1994 | Second Best | Uncle Turpin |
1994 | Great Moments in Aviation | Rex Goodyear |
1994 | Thumbelina | Mr. Mole (voice) |
1994 | The World of Jim Henson | The Storyteller (archive footage) |
1994 | Rabbit Ears - Aladdin and the Magic Lamp | Narrator (voice) |
1993 | Monolith | Villano |
1992 | Dark at Noon | Anthony / Le Marquis |
1992 | Six Characters in Search of An Author | The Father |
1991 | King Ralph | Lord Percival Graves |
1991 | Red Fox | Archie Carpenter |
1991 | Journey to Knock | Alfred |
1991 | I Dreamt I Woke Up | Boorman's Alter Ego |
1991 | Lapse of Memory | Conrad Farmer |
1990 | Frankenstein Unbound | Dr. Joe Buchanan / Narrator (voice) |
1990 | The Field | Bird' O'Donnell |
1990 | Windprints | Charles Rutherford |
1990 | Resident Alien | Self - Actor |
1990 | Who Bombed Birmingham? | Chris Mullin |
1990 | Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: David Lynch | Self |
1990 | Paul McCartney: From Rio to Liverpool | Narrator (voice) |
1990 | Romeo.Juliet | La Dame aux Chats / Mercutio (voice) |
1989 | Scandal | Stephen Ward |
1989 | Little Sweetheart | Robert Burger |
1989 | David Macaulay: Pyramid | Khufu / Second French Explorer (voice) |
1988 | Deadline | Granville Jones |
1988 | The Bengali Night | Lucien Metz |
1987 | Spaceballs | John Hurt |
1987 | From the Hip | Douglas Benoit |
1987 | Aria | The Actor |
1987 | White Mischief | Gilbert Colville |
1987 | The Hunting of the Snark | The Narrator (voice) |
1987 | Vincent | (voice) |
1987 | Iceberg | Narrator (voice) |
1987 | Monolith | Narrator (voice) |
1987 | Frightmares | |
1986 | Jake Speed | Syd |
1986 | Rocinante | Bill |
1986 | Thames Film | |
1985 | After Darkness | Peter Hunningford |
1985 | The Black Cauldron | The Horned King (voice) |
1985 | The Strange Case of Yukio Mishima | Narrator (voice) |
1985 | Live Aid | Self |
1984 | Nineteen Eighty-Four | Winston Smith |
1984 | The Hit | Braddock |
1984 | Champions | Bob Champion |
1984 | Success Is the Best Revenge | Dino Montecurva |
1984 | Sunset People | Self |
1983 | The Osterman Weekend | Lawrence Fassett |
1983 | King Lear | The Fool |
1982 | The Plague Dogs | Snitter (voice) |
1982 | Partners | Kerwin |
1982 | Night Crossing | Peter Strelzyk |
1982 | Paul McCartney - Take It Away | |
1981 | History of the World: Part I | Jesus - The Roman Empire |
1980 | The Elephant Man | John Merrick |
1980 | Heaven's Gate | Billy Irvine |
1980 | An Evening with Quentin Crisp | Host |
1979 | Alien | Kane |
1978 | The Lord of the Rings | Aragorn (voice) |
1978 | Watership Down | Hazel (voice) |
1978 | Midnight Express | Max |
1978 | The Shout | Anthony Fielding |
1977 | East of Elephant Rock | Nash |
1977 | The Disappearance | Atkinson |
1977 | Three Dangerous Ladies | Lt. George Simmonds |
1977 | Spectre | Mitri Cyon |
1976 | Stream Line | Chandler |
1976 | The Peddler | Alec Cassell |
1975 | The Naked Civil Servant | Quentin Crisp |
1975 | The Ghoul | Tom Rawlings |
1974 | Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs | Malcolm Scrawdyke |
1974 | The Playboy of the Western World | Christopher Mahon (Christy Mahon) |
1972 | The Pied Piper | Franz |
1971 | 10 Rillington Place | Timothy Evans |
1971 | Mr. Forbush and the Penguins | Richard Forbush |
1969 | Sinful Davey | Davey Haggart |
1969 | Before Winter Comes | Lieutenant Pilkington |
1969 | In Search of Gregory | Daniel |
1967 | The Sailor from Gibraltar | John |
1966 | A Man for All Seasons | Richard Rich |
1964 | This Is My Street | Charlie |
1962 | The Wild and the Willing | Phil Corbett |
The StoryTeller | The Storyteller |
Year | TV Show | Role |
---|---|---|
2015 | The Last Panthers | Tom |
2012 | Labyrinth | Audric Baillard |
2012 | The Hollow Crown | The Chorus |
2011 | Human Planet | Narrator (voice) |
2011 | The Confession | Priest |
2011 | Planet Dinosaur | Narrator |
2009 | Creating the World of Harry Potter | Self - 'Mr. Garrick Ollivander' |
2008 | Merlin | Kilgharrah (voice) |
2007 | Masters of Science Fiction | Samswope |
2006 | The One Show | Self - Guest |
2005 | Doctor Who | The Doctor |
2004 | The Alan Clark Diaries | Alan Clark |
2004 | Who Do You Think You Are? | Self |
2002 | HypaSpace | Self |
2002 | Edge of the Universe | Narrator (voice) |
1999 | Watership Down | General Woundwort |
1998 | Parkinson | Self |
1995 | Picture Windows | Marquis de Prey |
1994 | Inside the Actors Studio | Self |
1993 | GMTV | Self |
1991 | Performance | The Father |
1989 | The Jim Henson Hour | |
1988 | The Storyteller | The Storyteller |
1983 | Natural World | Narrator |
1979 | Crime and Punishment | Raskolnikov |
1977 | The Hollywood Greats | |
1976 | I, Claudius | |
1976 | I, Claudius | Caligula |
1975 | The Sweeney | Tony Grey |
1974 | NOVA | Narrator |
1973 | Wessex Tales | Joshua Harlborough |
1971 | A Ghost Story for Christmas | James Parkin |
1971 | Great Performances | Narrator |
1970 | Play for Today | Alec Cassell |
1965 | Gideon's Way | Freddy Tisdale |
1956 | Armchair Theatre | Joe |
1944 | Golden Globe Awards | Self - Nominee |