John Hurt
Acting
Born: January 22, 1940 · Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England, UK
Died: January 25, 2017 (aged 77)
Highest Rated
Biography
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.
Known for
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
2001
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
2011
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
2010
Alien
1979
V for Vendetta
2006
Snowpiercer
2013
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
2008
Hellboy
2004
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
2008
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
2006
Contact
1997
Hercules
2014
Photos (11)
Movies (190)
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Mr Ollivander
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Ollivander
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
Ollivander
Alien
Kane
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Professor Harold Oxley
Spaceballs
John Hurt
V for Vendetta
Adam Sutler
Contact
S. R. Hadden
Thumbelina
Mr. Mole (voice)
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
Narrator (voice)
Dead Man
John Scholfield
The Lord of the Rings
Aragorn (voice)
The Tigger Movie
Narrator (voice)
Snowpiercer
Gilliam
Hercules
Cotys
The Skeleton Key
Ben Devereaux
Dogville
Narrator (voice)
The Elephant Man
John Merrick
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Dr. Iannis
Jackie
The Priest
The Gruffalo
Owl (voice)
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Trevor Bruttenholm
Outlander
Rothgar
Hellboy
Prof. Trevor 'Broom' Bruttenholm
The Black Cauldron
The Horned King (voice)
Immortals
Old Zeus
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Control
Midnight Express
Max
Melancholia
Dexter
A Man for All Seasons
Richard Rich
The Gruffalo's Child
The Owl (voice)
Watership Down
Hazel (voice)
Heaven's Gate
Billy Irvine
Only Lovers Left Alive
Christopher Marlowe
Nineteen Eighty-Four
Winston Smith
A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures
Grandpa Sammy (voice)
Sightseers
Jerusalem Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
New York, I Love You
Bellhop
Owning Mahowny
Victor Foss
Manderlay
Narrator (voice)
Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron
Professor Trevor 'Broom' Bruttenholm (voice)
Lost Souls
Father Lareaux
More Than Honey
Narrator (english voice)
Waking Sleeping Beauty
The Horned King (voice) (archive footage)
Miranda
Christian
The Proposition
Jellon Lamb
Valiant
Felix (voice)
King Ralph
Graves
Wild Bill
Charley Prince
History of the World: Part I
Jesus - The Roman Empire
The Oxford Murders
Arthur Seldom
Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor
The War Doctor
The Osterman Weekend
Lawrence Fassett
Rob Roy
John Graham
Second Best
Uncle Turpin
10 Rillington Place
Timothy Evans
The Plague Dogs
Snitter (voice)
White Mischief
Gilbert Colville
The Hit
Braddock
Brighton Rock
Phil Corkery
The Limits of Control
Guitar
Monolith
Villano
Thomas & Friends: Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure: The Movie
Sailor John (voice)
Scandal
Stephen Ward
Pride
Harry (voice)
44 Inch Chest
Old Man Peanut
Jayne Mansfield's Car
Kingsley Bedford
The World of Jim Henson
The Storyteller (archive footage)
Night Crossing
Peter Strelzyk
Shooting Dogs
Christopher
The Shout
Anthony Fielding
Doctor Who: Wish World & The Reality War
The Doctor (archive footage) (uncredited)
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
The Countess
Jake Speed
Syd
Recount
Warren Christopher
Frankenstein Unbound
Dr. Joe Buchanan / Narrator (voice)
The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot
The War Doctor (archive voice)
The Confession
Priest
Short Order
Felix
Doctor Who: The Husbands of River Song
The Doctor (War) (picture) (uncredited)
Damascus Cover
Miki
Before Winter Comes
Lieutenant Pilkington
Love and Death on Long Island
Giles De'Ath
Ultramarines: A Warhammer 40,000 Movie
Carnak
The Naked Civil Servant
Quentin Crisp
Once Upon a Halloween
The Horned King (voice) (archive sound)
That Good Night
Ralph
My Name Is Lenny
Leslie Salmon
The Bengali Night
Lucien Metz
Crime and Punishment
Porfiry, chief investigator
Hiroshima
Narrator (voice)
The Field
Bird' O'Donnell
Boxes
Fanny's father
Doctor Who at the Proms
The Doctor (War) (archive footage)
Success Is the Best Revenge
Dino Montecurva
The Pied Piper
Franz
Planet Dinosaur: Ultimate Killers
Narrator (voice)
Verity Lambert: Drama Queen
2008
Lou
Doyle
All the Little Animals
Mr. Summers
Champions
Bob Champion
New Blood
Alan White
V for Vendetta: Unmasked
Adam Sutler
Aria
The Actor
Benjamin Britten: Peace and Conflict
Narrator (voice)
The Alien Saga
Narrator (voice)
An Englishman in New York
Quentin Crisp
The Journey
Harry Patterson
The Snipist
The Ministry
I Dreamt I Woke Up
Boorman's Alter Ego
Romeo.Juliet
La Dame aux Chats / Mercutio (voice)
Poison Candy
Robert Burger
You're Dead...
Maitland
If... Dog... Rabbit
Sean Cooper
The Storyteller: The Luck Child
The Storyteller
Lecture 21
Mondrian Kilroy
Sinful Davey
Davey Haggart
Doctor Who: The Night of the Doctor
The War Doctor
Lapse of Memory
Conrad Farmer
Doctor Who at the Proms
The War Doctor (archive footage) (uncredited)
Tabloid
Vince
The Wild and the Willing
Phil Corbett
David Macaulay: Pyramid
Khufu / Second French Explorer (voice)
The Storyteller: The Three Ravens
The Storyteller
Great Moments in Aviation
Rex Goodyear
Vincent
Vincent Van Gogh (voice)
The Disappearance
Atkinson
Dark at Noon
Anthony / Le Marquis
Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs
Malcolm Scrawdyke
The Sailor from Gibraltar
John
Picture Windows: Two Nudes Bathing
Marquis de Prey
East of Elephant Rock
Nash
Thames Film
Narrator
This Is My Street
Charlie
Krapp's Last Tape
Krapp
Partners
Kerwin
The Storyteller: Fearnot
The Storyteller
Love at First Sight
Arthur
In Love with Alma Cogan
MC
Brute
Babits
The Storyteller: A Story Short
The Storyteller
Who Bombed Birmingham?
Chris Mullin
The Commissioner
James morton
The Strange Case of Yukio Mishima
Narrator (voice)
Mr. Forbush and the Penguins
Richard Forbush
Bait
Jack Blake
The Storyteller: Hans My Hedgehog
The Storyteller
Wimbledon The Official Film 2014
Narrator
Whistle and I'll Come to You
James Parkin
23 Degrees, 5 Minutes
Professor Orit
The Peddler
Alec Cassell
The Day of the Doctor: Cinema Intro
The War Doctor
Tender Loving Care
Dr. Turner
A Dinner of Herbs
Verse Reader
Ayamé
Narrator (voice)
The Ghoul
Tom Rawlings
The Hunting of the Snark
The Narrator
The Storyteller: Sapsorrow
The Storyteller
Stream Line
Chandler
The Storyteller: The True Bride
The Storyteller
From the Hip
Douglas Benoit
Paul McCartney: From Rio to Liverpool
Narrator (voice)
Night Train
Michael Poole
The Climb
Chuck Langer
King Lear
The Fool
Shaolin: Wheel of Life
Narrator (voice)
Deadline
Granville Jones
The Hidden Wars of Desert Storm
Narrator (voice)
The Alchemist's Letter
The Alchemist (voice)
Spectre
Mitri Cyon
Iceberg
Narrator (voice)
The Plot Against Harold Wilson
Narrator (voice)
Centenary: The BP Story
Narrator (voice)
Monolith
Narrator (voice)
After Darkness
Peter Hunningford
Three Dangerous Ladies
Lt. George Simmonds
Shadowing the Third Man
Narrator (voice)
ChickLit
Francis Bonar
The Journey – Stories from the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
Narrator
Windprints
Charles Rutherford
Red Fox
Archie Carpenter
Dmitri Shostakovich: A Man of Many Faces
Narator
Back to Utopia
Professor Peter Panludic (voice)
Meeting Che Guevara & the Man from Maybury Hill
Man from Maybury Hill
Rabbit Ears - Aladdin and the Magic Lamp
Narrator (voice)
Sailcloth
Man
A.K.A Nadia
347
In Search of Gregory
Daniel
Six Characters in Search of An Author
The Father
Break
Jack
TV Shows (37)
Doctor Who
The Doctor · 1 eps
Saturday Night Live
March Hare · 1 eps
Great Performances
Narrator · 1 eps
NOVA
Narrator · 1 eps
Play for Today
Alec Cassell · 1 eps
Natural World
Narrator · 2 eps
Merlin
Kilgharrah (voice) · 65 eps
ITV Playhouse
Guy Beresford · 1 eps
Screen Two
Rex Goodyear · 1 eps
Screen Two
Jack Lee · 1 eps
The Sweeney
Tony Grey · 1 eps
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
Bob · 1 eps
Performance
The Father · 1 eps
The Hollow Crown
The Chorus · 1 eps
ScreenPlay
Alfred · 1 eps
Playhouse Presents
The Ministry (voice) · 1 eps
I, Claudius
Caligula · 5 eps
The Storyteller
The Storyteller · 9 eps
NET Playhouse
Peter Heywood · 1 eps
Gideon's Way
Freddy Tisdale · 1 eps
The Jim Henson Hour
The Storyteller (archive footage) · 5 eps
A Ghost Story for Christmas
James Parkin · 1 eps
Watership Down
General Woundwort (voice) · 3 eps
Masters of Science Fiction
Samswope · 1 eps
Human Planet
Narrator (voice) · 8 eps
The Last Panthers
Tom · 6 eps
The Hollywood Greats
1 eps
Labyrinth
Audric Baillard · 2 eps
The Confession
Priest · 10 eps
Shades of Greene
Fred · 1 eps
Wessex Tales
Joshua Harlborough · 1 eps
The Alan Clark Diaries
Alan Clark · 6 eps
Armchair Theatre
Joe · 1 eps
Picture Windows
Marquis de Prey · 1 eps
Planet Dinosaur
Narrator · 6 eps
Edge of the Universe
Narrator (voice) · 3 eps
Crime and Punishment
Rodion Raskolnikov · 3 eps
Self / Appearances (29)
Golden Globe Awards
Self - Nominee · 1 eps
GMTV
Self · 1 eps
Parkinson
Self · 1 eps
Who Do You Think You Are?
Self · 1 eps
Muse of Fire
Self
Hannibal Hopkins & Sir Anthony
Self (archive footage)
Live Aid
Self
Inside the Actors Studio
Self · 1 eps
The Beast Within: Making Alien
Self
The 50 Greatest Television Dramas
Self
Hellboy: The Seeds of Creation
Self
Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: David Lynch
Self
I, Claudius: A Television Epic
Self
Check the Gate: Putting Beckett on Film
Self / Self - Krapp ("Krapp's Last Tape")
Henry Fonda for President
Self (archive footage)
Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film
Self
Ballybrando
Self
Doctor Who Live: The Afterparty
Self
Swan Lake 3D - Live from the Mariinsky Theatre
The Voice of the Winter Palace / Self
Making History: Mel Brooks on Creating the World
Self (archive footage)
The Terrible Elephant Man Revealed
Self
The Final Reel
Self - Narrator (voice)
Hello: A Portrait Of Leslie Phillips
Self / Stephen Ward
On Borrowed Time
Self
Alpha to Omega: Exposing 'The Osterman Weekend'
Self
Interview with John Hurt
Self
Resident Alien
Self - Actor
Whaledreamers
Self
Sunset People
Self