Ian McKellen
Born: 1939-05-25 in Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK
Known For: Acting
Biography
Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. He has played roles on the screen and stage in genres ranging from Shakespearean dramas and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. He is regarded as a British cultural icon and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. He has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, six Olivier Awards, and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards and five Emmy Awards. McKellen made his stage debut in 1961 at the Belgrade Theatre as a member of its repertory company, and in 1965 made his first West End appearance. In 1969, he was invited to join the Prospect Theatre Company to play the lead parts in Shakespeare's Richard II and Marlowe's Edward II. In the 1970s, McKellen became a stalwart of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre of Great Britain. He has earned five Olivier Awards for his roles in Pillars of the Community (1977), The Alchemist (1978), Bent (1979), Wild Honey (1984), and Richard III (1995). McKellen made his Broadway debut in The Promise (1965). He received the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus (1980). He was further nominated for Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare (1984). He returned to Broadway in Wild Honey(1986), Dance of Death (1990), No Man's Land (2013), and Waiting for Godot (2013), the latter two being a joint production with Patrick Stewart. McKellen achieved worldwide fame for his film roles, including the titular King in Richard III (1995), James Whale in Gods and Monsters (1998), Magneto in the X-Men films, Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast (2017) and Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) and The Hobbit (2012–2014) trilogies. Other notable film roles include A Touch of Love (1969), Plenty (1985), Six Degrees of Separation (1993), Restoration (1995), Flushed Away (2006), Mr. Holmes (2015), and The Good Liar (2019). McKellen came out as gay in 1988, and has since championed LGBT social movements worldwide. He was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in October 2014. McKellen is a cofounder of Stonewall, an LGBT rights lobby group in the United Kingdom, named after the Stonewall riots. He is also patron of LGBT History Month, Pride London, Oxford Pride, GayGlos, LGBT Foundation and FFLAG. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ian McKellen, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
2027
- The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum as Gandalf
2026
- Avengers: Doomsday as Magneto
- Ebenezer as Jacob Marley
- The Christophers as Julian Sklar
- Frank and Percy as Percy
- LS Lowry: The Unheard Tapes as L S Lowry
- Tea with Judi Dench featuring Ian McKellen as Self
2025
- Billy & Dom Eat the World as Self
- A World War II Fairy Tale: The Making of Michael Mann's 'The Keep' as Self (archive footage)
- Ken Dodd: A Legacy of Happiness
- Schadenfreude as Continuity Announcer
2024
- ted as Narrator (voice)
- The Critic as Jimmy Erskine
- Dragfox as Ginger Snap the Fox (Speaking) (voice)
- The Real Ken Dodd: The Man I Loved
- The Life and Death of Lily Savage as Self
- Hamlet as Hamlet
2023
- The One Note Man as Narrator (voice)
2022
- Freedom: 50 Years of Pride as Self
- Hamlet Within
- Quintessentially British as Self
2021
- Amol Rajan Interviews as Self - Interviewed Guest
- Infinitum: Subject Unknown as Dr. Charles Marland-White
- Hating Peter Tatchell as Self
- Great British Theatre
2020
2019
- The Good Liar as Roy Courtnay
- Cats as Gus, the Theatre Cat
- The Isle ... (Associate Producer)
- On Broadway as Self
2018
- Animal Crackers as Horatio P. Huntington (voice)
- All Is True as Earl of Southampton
- McKellen: Playing the Part as Self
- National Theatre Live: King Lear as King Lear
2017
- Beauty and the Beast as Cogsworth
- The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin as Self
- The Paul O'Grady Story as Self
- How a Kite Flies as Mr. Kite (voice)
- Edmund the Magnificent as Self - Narrator (voice)
2016
- Shakespeare Live! From the RSC as Self - Performer
- The Roof as And Even Yet Another Fan
- Judi Dench: All the World's Her Stage as Self
- National Theatre Live: No Man's Land as Spooner
- Play the Devil: Making Richard III
- All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film as Prospero's Speech Reader (voice)
- Shakespeare on Film
- Shakespeare on Stage, Screen and Elsewhere with Ian McKellen
2015
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as Self - Guest
- Mr. Holmes as Sherlock Holmes
- The Dresser as Norman
- Knights of Classic Drama at the BBC as Self (archive footage)
2014
- Late Night with Seth Meyers as Self - Guest
- Variety Studio: Actors on Actors as Self
- The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies as Gandalf the Grey
- X-Men: Days of Future Past as Magneto
- Trailblazer Honors as Self - Speaker
- Nelson Mandela Redrawn as Self
- Miss in Her Teens as The Prologue
- Double Take: Xavier & Magneto as Self
2013
- The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug as Gandalf the Grey
- Vicious as Freddie Thornhill
- The Wolverine as Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited)
- The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot as Self
- Muse of Fire as Self
- The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin as Self
- The Egg Trick as Magician
2012
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey as Gandalf the Grey
- Doctor Who: The Snowmen as The Great Intelligence (voice)
- London 2012: Paralympics Opening Ceremony as Self
2011
- Perspectives
- The Betty Driver Story as Self
- Looking for Lowry as Self
2010
- The Talk as Self
- A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation as Narrator (voice)
- Small-Time Revolutionary as Hamish Miller (voice)
2009
- Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen as Self - Guest
- The Prisoner as 2 / Curtis
- Theatreland as Self
2008
- King Lear as King Lear
2007
- The Graham Norton Show as Self - Guest
- The Golden Compass as Iorek Byrnison (voice)
- Stardust as Narrator (voice)
- The Art of Breaking Character as Self
- For the Love of God as The Jackdaw
- Guerrilla Distribution as Self
2006
- The One Show as Self - Guest
- The Da Vinci Code as Sir Leigh Teabing
- Flushed Away as The Toad (voice)
- Doogal as Zebedee (voice)
- Saint of 9/11 as Narrator
- The Making of 'The Two Towers' as Self
- X3: The Excitement Continues as Self
- The Making of 'The Return of the King' as Self
- Brett Ratner's X-Diaries as Self
- X-Men: The Last Stand as Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto
2005
- Extras as Ian McKellen
- Asylum as Dr. Peter Cleave
- The Magic Roundabout as Zebedee (voice)
- Ringers: Lord of the Fans as Self
- Neverwas as Gabriel Finch
- Eighteen as Jason Anders (voice)
- The Hobart Shakespeareans as Self
2004
- The Paul O'Grady Show
- Who Do You Think You Are? as Self
- Parkinson as Self - Guest
- A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King' as Self
- Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!! as Self
- Peter Tatchell: Just Who Does He Think He Is?
- My First Time as Narrator
2003
- Jimmy Kimmel Live! as Self
- Real Time with Bill Maher as Self
- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King as Gandalf
- Churchill as Self - Narrator (voice)
- Evolution X - The Making of X-Men
- Beyond the Movie: The Return of the King as Self
- The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men! Making X2 as Self
- X-Men: Premieres Around the World as Self
- Emile as Emile
- The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision as Self
- X2 as Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto
2002
- The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers as Gandalf
- Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway as Self
- The Fellowship of the Ring: From Book to Script as Self
- The Fellowship of the Ring: Scale as Self
- The Fellowship of the Ring: Cameras in Middle-earth as Self
- The Fellowship of the Ring: The Road Goes Ever On.. as Self
- The Fellowship of the Ring: The Fellowship of the Cast as Self
- The Fellowship of the Ring: Designing and Building Middle-earth + Weta Workshop + Costume Design as Self
2001
- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring as Gandalf
- Passage to Middle-Earth: The Making of 'The Lord of the Rings' as Self
- Quest for the Ring as Self
- Beyond the Movie: The Fellowship of the Ring as Self
- Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love as Narrator (voice)
2000
- X-Men: The Mutant Watch as Self - 'Magneto'
- Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man as Narrator (voice)
- Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed! as Self
- X-Men as Magneto
1999
- Family Guy as Dr. Cecil Pritchfield (voice)
- David Copperfield as Creakle
- The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale as Self
- After Stonewall as Self
1998
- Parkinson as Self
- Gods and Monsters as James Whale
- Apt Pupil as Kurt Dussander
- Swept from the Sea as Dr. James Kennedy
1997
- The View as Self - Guest
- HARDtalk
- Bent as Uncle Freddie
- A Bit Of Scarlet as Narrator
- Surviving Friendly Fire
1996
- TFI Friday
- Rasputin as Tsar Nicholas II
- An Evening with Lily Savage as Self
1995
- Richard III as Richard III
- Thin Ice as Ian McKellen
- Restoration as Will Gates
- Jack & Sarah as William
- Cold Comfort Farm as Amos Starkadder
1994
- Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras as Self
- The Shadow as Dr. Reinhardt Lane
- I'll Do Anything as John Earl McAlpine
- Inside the Actors Studio as Self
- David Macaulay: Roman City as Augustus Caesar (voice)
- Stonewall 25: Global Voices of Pride and Protest as Self
- To Die For as Quilt Documentary Narrator (voice)
- Age of Dissent as Self
1993
- Late Show with David Letterman as Self - Guest
- Late Night with Conan O'Brien as Self - Guest
- Last Action Hero as Death
- Tales of the City as Archibald Anson Gidde
- Six Degrees of Separation as Geoffrey
- And the Band Played On as Bill Kraus
- The Ballad of Little Jo as Percy Corcoran
- A Simple Matter of Justice as Self
- Armistead Maupin Is a Man I Dreamt Up as Narration (voice)
- Camp Christmas
1992
- Gladio as Aldo Moro (voice)
1990
- Have I Got News for You as Self
- Othello as Iago
1989
- The Simpsons as Ian McKellen (voice)
- Scandal as John Profumo
- Countdown to War as Adolf Hitler
1988
- Windmills of the Gods as Chairman
- Scarfe's Follies
1987
- Süleyman the Magnificent as Narrator
1984
1983
- The Keep as Dr. Theodore Cuza
- Walter and June as Walter
1982
- American Playhouse as Archibald Anson Gidde
- The Scarlet Pimpernel as Chauvelin
- Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare
- Walter as Walter
1981
- Pillar of Fire as Narrator
- Priest of Love as D.H. Lawrence
1980
- Dying Day as Antony Skipling
1979
- Every Good Boy Deserves Favour as Alexander Ivanov
- Macbeth as Macbeth
1978
1975
- Saturday Night Live as Self - Host
1974
- Playhouse as Alexander
- Graceless Go I as Tony
1972
- Country Matters as David Masterman
- Hedda Gabler as George Tesman
- Craven Arms as David Masterman
1971
- Film '72 as Self
1970
- Solo
- The Tragedy of King Richard II as King Richard II
- Edward II as King Edward
- Hamlet as Hamlet
1969
- Sesame Street as Self
- ITV Saturday Night Theatre as Lyov
- A Touch of Love as George
- Alfred the Great as Roger
- The Promise
1967
- ITV Playhouse as Tony
- Omnibus as Self - Reading Poetry
1966
- David Copperfield as David Copperfield
1965
- BBC Play of the Month as Captain Plume
- The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne as Wolf
1964
- The Wednesday Play as Wolf
1960
- Coronation Street as Mel Hutchwright
1956
- Tony Awards as Self - Winner
1953
- The Oscars as Self
1944
- Golden Globe Awards as Self - Presenter