10 Irish actors who almost won an Oscar before Cillian Murphy

summary

• An Irish actor has never won an Oscar for a leading role, although Saoirse Ronan, Paul Mescale and Colin Farrell received nominations.
• Notable Irish actors such as Liam Neeson, Michael Fassbender and Ruth Negga have received Oscar nominations but never won.
• Irish actors such as Kenneth Branagh and Barry Fitzgerald have won Oscars at the Academy Awards but never in leading roles.

Tea Oscar The prize is most sought after for anyone working in films, but until Cillian Murphy won the Oscar, no Irish actor or actress had won an Oscar for a leading role. The Academy Awards are incredibly prestigious, with only a handful of categories awarding Oscars each year, and few nominees vying to win the prestigious award. However, despite the amazing talent and many years of hard work, many people involved in cinema will never win an Oscar themselves.

And, while the Oscars are hosted in the US, there is plenty of representation and recognition, shining a light on talent from around the world. Every year, actors, directors and people involved in making films from a wide range of other countries are in the running for the Oscars, but despite solid representation in the industry, Irish actors have never won an Oscar for Best Leading Actor or Actress. Cillian Murphy may be the first Irish actor to achieve this career-defining award, but He was certainly not the first to be nominated

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Daniel Day-Lewis won three Oscars with three more nominations. Although he was born and raised in England, he has dual British-Irish citizenship.

10 Saoirse Ronan

Nominated in 2016 for her performance in Brooklyn

Saoirse Ronan became one of the youngest people to be nominated for an Oscar for a leading role when she appeared in the film. Brooklyn At the age of 21. However, Ronan was also recognized at the awards much earlier, at the age of just 13, when she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in 2008 for her role. Atonement. Ronan is an incredibly talented young woman, and after her nominations in 2008 and 2016, she was nominated again in 2018. Lady BirdAnd in 2020, for little women. Which could mean It’s only a matter of time before she wins.

9 Paul Maskall

Nominated in 2023 for his performance in Afterson

Paul Meskal is the latest nominee to be in the running for the 2023 Oscar for his performance. Afterson. The film is a coming-of-age story, where Meskel plays a young Scottish father on holiday with his child. The film is very emotional, and Mescal does a great job with the accent despite being the wrong type of Celt for the role. Mescal’s talent has only just begun to be recognized After he started getting credited acting jobs in 2019, but in just a few years, he now has over a dozen credits to his name and an Oscar nomination.

8 Colin Farrell

Nominated for his performance in Inishrin’s Banshees in 2023

That same year, a veteran Irish actor who had been a Hollywood fixture for some time was also vying for his first Oscar nomination. Colin Farrell has had a colorful career in films, appearing in everything Ben Affleck does. Daredevil As Bullseye, Robert Pattinson to play the penguin BatmanBut his first Oscar nomination came from a very different kind of movie. Banshees of Inisherin An Irish dramedy that manages Receive a total of nine nominations in 2023But due to stiff competition, the film went empty-handed.

7 Michael Fassbender

Nominated in 2016 for his performance in Steve Jobs

Michael Fassbender was born in Germany to an Irish mother and moved to the south-west of Ireland when he was just 2 years old. His acting career has seen him play a variety of roles X-Men: First Class To Prometheus, most placing him in the lead role. In 2015, he portrayed the late technological innovator and legend in a film titled, Steve Jobsfor which He received widespread recognition for his amazing performance. He was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in 12 years a slave In 2014.

6 Liam Neeson

Nominated in 1994 for his performance in Schindler’s List

Liam Neeson is possibly the most famous actor from Ireland before Cillian Murphy’s steady rise to Hollywood. Neeson acted taken And in its sequels he played the role of Qui-Gon Jin Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom MenaceRa’s al Ghul in Nolan’s dark night trilogy, and it was Aslan’s voice The Chronicles of Narnia Movies of the late 2000s. But before any of that, he had her Breakout role as Oskar Schindler Schindler’s List

. The role not only launched Neeson’s career, but earned him a nomination for Best Actor in 1994.

5 Ruth Negga

Nominated in 2017 for his performance in Loving

Ruth Negga was born in Ethiopia, but raised in Limerick, Ireland, before spending some time studying in London and then returning to attend college in Dublin, Ireland. She has continued her career in acting for TV and film since 2004, and in 2017, she received an Oscar nomination for her role. loving. Then there was Ruth First Irishman to be nominated for an Oscar in the lead role and has since continued to play lead roles in film and TV.

4 Stephen Rea

Nominated for his performance in The Crying Game in 1993

Stephen Rea began his career performing in stage productions in Ireland, before moving on to on-screen roles. Once again, their The breakout role was to see him nominated for an Oscar In 1993, when he played the role of Fergus The Crying Game. The film explores The Troubles in Northern Ireland, a story that may have had personal significance for Rea as he grew up in Belfast and lived through that dark period of history. Rhea has appeared in several major productions, viz Meeting with the Vampire, V for VendettaAnd Breakfast on PlutoBut mainly in supporting roles.

3 Richard Harris

Nominated in 1991 for his performance in the field

Richard Harris was nominated for two Oscars in 1964 This sports lifeAnd again in 1991 for This field. However, none of these were his most popular roles, and he continued a long and healthy career in Hollywood before his death in 2002. Richard Harris was an amazing genius who Albus played Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter films And many films were released posthumously, reflecting his commitment to his craft, working heavily in his final years.

2 Kenneth Branagh

Nominated for his performance in Henry V. in 1990

Kenneth Branagh has had a varied and illustrious career in Hollywood, tackling roles as a director, writer and actor and receiving critical acclaim for each. In 1990, Branagh was Nominated for both Best Director and Best Actor for his work Henry V But did not win a single award. Since then, Branagh has been nominated for his various contributions on several other occasions, until 2022, when he finally won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay with him. Belfast. Thus proving that persistent effort can yield the desired results, and winning one of the few Oscar wins for Ireland.

1 Barry Fitzgerald

Nominated in 1945 for his performance in Going My Way

(In 1945 Berry FitzGerald had the unique distinction of being the only actor in historyNominated for two Oscars, in two different categories for the same character In the same movie. Fitzgerald plays Father Fitzgibbon in the film Going My Way, and after his nomination, the rules and guidelines for the awards were tightened to prevent such an occurrence. While Fitzgerald did not win the Best Leading Actor category, he did win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, making him the only Irish actor to win for a supporting role.

Brenda Fricker then became the first Irish actress to win an Oscar in a supporting role in 1989 for her performance in My Left Foot, opposite Daniel Day-Lewis, which she also won.