Brían Francis O'Byrne (born 16 May 1967) is an Irish actor who works and lives in the United States. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for his role in the miniseries Mildred Pierce (2011) and won a BAFTA TV Award for his role in the drama series Little Boy Blue (2017).
Brían F. O'Byrne | |
|---|---|
| Born | 16 May 1967 Mullagh, County Cavan, Ireland |
| Education | Trinity College |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
O'Byrne has received five Tony Award nominations and won Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in the 2004 production of Frozen.
Early life and education
editO'Byrne was born in Mullagh, a village in the south-east of County Cavan, on 16 May 1967. He attended the Samuel Beckett Centre at Trinity College (T.C.D.) in Dublin. He moved to New York City in 1990, and was cast in the Irish Repertory Theatre production of Philadelphia, Here I Come![1]
Career
editO'Byrne first attracted notice for his performances in two plays by Martin McDonagh, The Beauty Queen of Leenane (1996) as Pato Dooley (for which he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play) and The Lonesome West (1997). He is known for taking on serious and dramatic roles, such as a serial killer in Frozen (1998) (for which he won a Tony Award) and a priest accused of child molestation in Doubt: A Parable (2004), for which he received a Tony Award nomination. O'Byrne also appeared as a priest in the 2004 film Million Dollar Baby. In May 2007, O'Byrne was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance as Alexander Herzen in Tom Stoppard's 2002 trilogy The Coast of Utopia. He appeared in the play Outside Mullingar by John Patrick Shanley on Broadway in 2014, and received a nomination for the 2014 Outer Critics Circle Award, Outstanding Actor in a Play.[2]
In 2011, O'Byrne was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for his performance in Mildred Pierce as Bert Pierce. O'Byrne was featured in the 2009–2010 ABC series FlashForward, in which he played Aaron Stark. The show was not renewed. FlashForward began airing in Ireland on 4 January 2010.[3]
In 2012, O'Byrne was cast in the ABC drama pilot Gilded Lilys created and produced by Shonda Rhimes.[4]
In 2017, O'Byrne appeared in Little Boy Blue as Steve Jones, the father of Rhys Jones who was murdered by gang members in 2007.
Personal life
editThis section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. (May 2019) |
O'Byrne was married to American actress Heather Goldenhersh, with whom he co-starred in the Broadway play Doubt: A Parable as well as Three Women.[5] The couple has two daughters. They separated in 2024.
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Avenue X | 'Sonny' | Short film |
| 1997 | Electricity | Graham Crouch | |
| The Fifth Province | Timmy | ||
| The Last Bus Home | Jessop | ||
| 2000 | An Everlasting Piece | George | |
| 2001 | Bandits | Darill Miller | |
| Disco Pigs | Gerry | ||
| The Grey Zone | SS-Untersturmfuhrer | ||
| Mapmaker | Richie Markey | ||
| 2003 | Easy | Mick McCabe | |
| Intermission | Mick | ||
| 2004 | Million Dollar Baby | Father Horvak | |
| 2005 | In an Instant | The Man | |
| The New World | Lewes | ||
| 2006 | Bug | Dr. Sweet | |
| 2007 | Before the Devil Knows You're Dead | Bobby | |
| No Reservations | Sean | ||
| 2009 | The International | The Consultant | |
| 2010 | Brooklyn's Finest | Detective Ronny Rosario | |
| 2011 | Season of the Witch | Grandmaster | Uncredited |
| 2013 | Medeas | Ennis | |
| 2014 | Jimmy's Hall | Commander O’Keefe | |
| Queen and Country | RSM Digby | ||
| 2020 | Sergio | Gil Loescher | |
| My Salinger Year | Hugh | ||
| 2022 | The Wonder | John Flynn | |
| 2024 | Conclave | Monsignor Raymond O'Malley | |
| 2025 | Dead of Winter | Tall Hunter |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Amongst Women | Luke | 4 episodes |
| 2001 | Oz | Padraig Connolly | 3 episodes |
| 2004 | The Blackwater Lightship | Larry | TV film |
| 2005 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Liam Connors | Episode: "Ghost" |
| 2007 | American Experience | Alexander Hamilton | Episode: "Alexander Hamilton" |
| 2007–08 | Brotherhood | Colin Carr | 18 episodes |
| 2009–10 | FlashForward | Aaron Stark | 17 episodes |
| 2010 | Medium | Clark Kerwin | Episode: "The People in Your Neighborhood" |
| 2011 | Mildred Pierce | Bert Pierce | 5 episodes |
| 2011–12 | Prime Suspect | Detective Reg Duffy | 13 episodes |
| 2013 | Gilded Lilys | Edwin Lily | Unsold TV pilot |
| 2013–14 | Love/Hate | D.I. Mick Moynihan | 11 episodes |
| 2015 | The Bastard Executioner | Baron Ventris | 3 episodes |
| Exposed | Quigg | Unsold TV pilot | |
| The Last Ship | Seán Ramsey | 8 episodes | |
| Saints & Strangers | John Billington, Sr. | 2 episodes | |
| 2015–16 | Aquarius | Ken Karn | 22 episodes |
| 2016–19 | The Magicians | Mayakovsky | 4 episodes |
| 2017 | Little Boy Blue | Steve Jones | 4 episodes |
| Mercy Street | Allan Pinkerton | 5 episodes | |
| Manhunt: Unabomber | Frank McAlpine | 6 episodes | |
| 2018 | Nightflyers | Auggie | Main role |
| 2019 | Hatton Garden | Basil | 4 episodes |
| 2020 | Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector | Peter Taylor / The Bone Collector | Main role |
| 2024 | Three Women | Mark Wilkin | 5 episodes |
| 2025 | The Abandons | Walter Paxton | Recurring role |
Awards and nominations
editReferences
edit- ↑ Harty, Patricia. "What Are You Like? Brían F. O’Byrne" irishamerica.com, April/May 2014
- ↑ Gans, Andres (22 April 2014). "64th Annual Outer Critics Circle Awards Nominations Announced; A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder Leads the Pack". Playbill.
- ↑ RTÉ.ie (29 December 2009). "FlashForward star talks about coming home". RTÉ.ie.
- ↑ Wightman, Catriona (20 February 2012). "Brian O'Byrne joins ABC's 'Gilded Lilys' pilot". Digital Spy.
- ↑ Chapman, Wilson; Grantham-Philips, Wyatte (11 February 2022). "Netflix Shares First Look at 'Russian Doll' Season 2; Showtime's 'Three Women' Adds New Cast (TV News Roundup)". Variety. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Winners and nominees: Brian F. O'Byrne". Tony Awards. Archived from the original on 30 June 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Gans, Andrew; Simonson, Robert (16 May 2004). "Wicked, Assassins, Henry IV, Wife Win Drama Desk Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on 19 February 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Hernandez, Ernio (2 May 2004). "Wicked, Wonderful Town, I Am My Own Wife Top 2004 Outer Critics Circle Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on 30 November 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Jones, Kenneth; Ku, Andrew (23 May 2005). "Doubt, Spamalot, Twelve Angry Men, La Cage Win 2005 Drama Desk Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on 25 April 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Hernandez, Ernio (8 May 2005). "Doubt and Spamalot Top Outer Critics Awards; O'Byrne, Jones, Butz and Clark Among Winners". Playbill. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ "Drowsy Chaperone and History Boys Big Winners at the 2006 Drama Desk Awards". Playbill. 22 May 2006. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ "Drama Desk Award winners 2007". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on 30 June 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Gans, Andrew (24 May 2007). "Outer Critics Circle Awards Are Presented by Clark, Young and Mitchell May 24". Playbill. Archived from the original on 12 April 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ "2007 Winners and nominees". Gotham Independent Film Awards. Archived from the original on 2 August 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Maxwell, Erin (17 December 2007). "Satellite Award winners announced". Variety. Archived from the original on 23 April 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ "63rd Primetime Emmy Awards Winners" (PDF). Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. 18 September 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 October 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ "2011 Primetime Emmy Nominations" (PDF). Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 October 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ "Drama Desk Award winners 2013". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on 30 June 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Gans, Andrew (12 May 2014). "64th Annual Outer Critics Circle Award Winners Announced; Gentleman's Guide Wins Four Awards". Playbill. Archived from the original on 6 April 2025. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
- ↑ Bakare, Lanre (13 May 2018). "Bafta TV awards 2018: full list of winners". The Guardian.
- ↑ "IFTA AWARDS 2025 WINNERS ANNOUNCED". IRISH film and Television Academy. 13 February 2025. Archived from the original on 3 June 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
