Brian Cox

At 77 years old, Brian Cox has this physical status:

Brian Denis Cox (born 1 June 1946) is a Scottish actor who works with the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he received acclaim for his portrayal of King Lear.

Cox has appeared in Super Troopers, The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, X2, Braveheart, Rushmore, Rise of the Apes, and Troy.

In 1986's Manhunter, he was the first actor to portray Hannibal Lecter on film.

On HBO's Succession, Cox stars as media magnate Logan Roy. Cox has been nominated for the Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Screen Actor Guild Awards as an Emmy Award winner.

Empire readers selected him the winner of the Empire Icon Award in 2006.

Early life

Cox was born in Dundee, Scotland, on June 1st, 1946, as the youngest of five children. He comes from a working-class Roman Catholic family of Irish and Scottish descent. Mary Ann Guillerline (née McCann), a spinner, had worked in the jute mills and suffered with several nervous breakdowns during Cox's youth. Charles McArdle Campbell Cox, his father, was a police officer and later a shopkeeper, and he died when Cox was eight years old. Cox was welcomed by his three elder sisters, including Betty, with whom Cox has remained close.

Cox was a student at St Mary's Forebank Primary School and St Michael's Junior Secondary School, both in Dundee, which he left at the age of 15. He began his training at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art at age 17, graduating in 1965 after being in Dundee Repertory Theatre for a few years.

Personal life

Caroline Burt, Cox's first wife, has been divorced from him. Margaret and Alan are twin brothers; the former is also an actor known for his appearances in Young Sherlock Holmes and as the young John Mortimer in Laurence Olivier's television film A Voyage Round My Father (1982)). In 2002, Cox married actress Nicole Ansari. They have two sons, Orson Jonathan Cox and Torin Kamran Cox, and they live in New York City. Cox also owns a home in Primrose Hill, London.

In 2007, Cox campaigned for Labour in the run-up to the Scottish Parliamentary elections in the run-up to the 2010 Scottish Parliamentary elections. However, he endorsed the Scottish National Party in the 2011 election due to the party's higher education reforms. Alistair Campbell said he was an active and committed Labour supporter all his life, but "you won't like this." the Iraq War was an ongoing and traumatic war. At the Yes Scotland campaign in May 2012, he spoke in favour of Scottish independence. On January 29, 2015, he resigned from the Labour Party after it had failed to conform to its founding principles, joined the Scottish National Party, which he believes was advocating Scotland's best interests and promoting Scotland's best interests. Despite stating that he is unlikely to recover to live in Scotland, in January 2020, he called for a second referendum on Scottish independence, saying Labour had "failed" in Scotland and that Scots were "organically" moving away from Scotland following the Brexit referendum.

In an interview with The Guardian, Cox said he supports the use of cannabis for recreational use: "It's absolutely amazing and I recommend it to everyone—get stoned."

In the New Year Honours List, Cox was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire on December 31, 2002. Honoris Causa was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of Dundee in 1994. The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland bestowed him an Honorary Doctorate of Drama in 2006. He was named an Honorary Doctor of Letters by Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh in July 2007 and was made an Honorary Doctor of Drama by Napier University in Edinburgh in July 2008. He was named an Honorary Doctor of Letters by Kingston University in southwest London in November 2011 for his continued contributions to drama education.

Cox was named as the 12th Rector of the University of Dundee by its students in February 2010 and re-elected in January 2013. He was elected head of the international jury at the Golden Unicorn Awards in December 2018.

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Acting career

Brian Cox began acting at age 14 at Dundee Repertory Theatre in 1961 and then as one of the founding members of the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, appearing in the first performance, The Servant O' Twa Maisters, in October 1965. He appeared in Peer Gynt (1967), directed by Bobby Hughes (1964), and made his West End debut in June 1967 as Orlando in As You Like It at the Vaindeville Theatre from 1966.

Cox is a seasoned Shakespeare performer who appeared in both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1983, he portrayed the Duke of Burgundy opposite Laurence Olivier, who appeared in King Lear in a title role. In 1984, he appeared as Inspector Nelson, the Royal Ulster Constabulary police chief, in the Royal Court's production of Rat in the Skull. He was named Best Actor in a New Play the following year. Edmund Darrell appeared in Eugene O'Neill's Strange Interlude, for which he received his first British Theatre Association Drama Award for Best Actor. In May, he made his off-Broadway debut, reprising his role as Inspector Nelson in Rat in the Public Theater's Skull. Misalliance (1984) and Fashion (1988) are two additional Laurence Olivier awards for Misalliance (1984) and Fashion (1988).

He received his second Laurence Olivier Award, this time as the best actor in a Revival, for his role as the title character in Titus Andronicus (1988). Cox later revealed that his Titus Andronicus appearance was the best he had ever seen on stage. His role in The Taming of The Shrew (1987) received rave reviews and was given another British Theatre Association Drama Award for Best Actor.

Cox moved from years of teaching and directing at the Moscow Arts Theatre School to a tour with the Royal National Theatre, resulting in a highly acclaimed role in King Lear (1990-1991). In The Lear Diaries (1995), which he wrote, King Lear's all-consuming role, he explored the emotional and physical challenges that came with his role as a player. King Lear is one of Shakespeare's most complicated roles, and Cox's portrayal opened a new light on this enigmatic figure's understanding.

He produced Open Air Theatre's Richard III chilling version, which was well-reced by observers. He appeared in one of the theatre's productions, The Music Man, as Professor Harold Hill during the same season.

In 1997, he appeared in Conor McPherson's St. Nicholas at the Bush Theatre in London, and in 1998, he returned to the off-Broadway stage, where he received a Lucille Lortel Award and an Outer Critics Circle nomination for his New York appearance. He appeared Marc in the Broadway production of Art in the same year.

Cox reunited with award-winning playwright Conor McPherson in 2000 on the production of Dublin Carol, in which he appeared as hysterical undertaker John Plunkett. In 2004, he appeared in Uncle Valiant for Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum Theatre. In 2005, he appeared in The Ride Down Mt. Morgan was a producer at the Los Angeles Theatre Works.

He appeared on Broadway from 2006 to 2007, playing Max at Tom Stoppard's Rock'n Roll, a role he reprised on Broadway until 2008. In 2011, Cox appeared on Broadway opposite in a revival of Jason Miller's That Championship Season. Jack's performance in The Weir Theatre in April 2013 is reprised at Wyndham's Theatre in January 2014. Cox appeared in a new production of Waiting for Godote for the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh's 50th anniversary in fall 2015. In 2016, Cox became co-artistic director of the Mirror Theater Ltd., a film premiere in New York City. Lyndon B. Johnson, Jr., appeared in Robert Shenkkan's The Great Society at the Vivian Beaumont Theater in 2019. He supervised Joshua Sobol's Sinners' UK premiere in 2020, titled The English Professor. I Love My Life, Mrs. Warren's Profession, The Master Builder, The Crucible, and Julius Caesar have all performed on stage.

In 1965, Cox appeared in Nelson on The Wednesday Playhouse and The Gamblers, making one-off appearances in Redcap, ITV Playhouse, and The Gamblers before taking lead roles in the Sex Olympics in 1968. Leon Trotsky appeared in Nicholas and Alexandra in 1971, his first film appearance was as Leon Trotsky. He appeared in numerous other television dramas in 1978 and 1982, as King Henry II of England in the acclaimed BBC2 drama serial The Devil's Crown.

Hannibal Lecktor was portrayed in Manhunter, the character's first appearance on film in 1986.

Andrew Neil was portrayed in a 1990 film based on Mordechai Vanunu's life story. He appeared in the comedy series Ideal Scoundrels and starred as a police investigator Kerrigan in the political thriller Hidden Agenda in the same year. In 1991, Owen Benjamin, the closeted father of a gay man, appeared in The Lost Language of Cranes, a BBC film set in the 1980s. At the 1993 BAFTA TV Awards, he was selected as the Best Actor for his appearance. In the ITV thriller Red Fox based on Gerald Seymour's international bestseller, he also played Geoffrey Harrison. Carl May appeared in another ITV adaptation in The Cloning of Joanna May, based on Fay Weldon's sci-fi book. In the first episode of Van der Valk's fifth season, he appeared as Stefan Szabo. In BBC's anthology collection of classic and contemporary plays, he appeared in "The Cutter and "The Director." In The Big Battalions, a film about three religious families of differing faiths, Carlton Heard appeared in Deceptions and as Edward Hoyland.

In 1993, he appeared as spymaster Major Hogan in two episodes of Sharpe and as Brother Shaw in Sean's Show. He was a P.O. He was a member of P.O. Garvey of the BBC's anthology collection Scene featuring plays and documentaries that were originally broadcast for educational use. In the same year, he appeared in an episode of Inspector Morse, where he portrayed Michael Steppings, a retired bookmaker whose daughter is in a permanent coma. He appeared in Iron Will alongside Kevin Spacey in 1994 as Angus Mcleague. In Royal Deceit, a Danish interpretation of Prince Amleth's Danish legend, he portrayed Aethelwine alongside Christian Bale and Hellen Mirren. In Grushko, a British-made crime drama set in Russia, he also played Colonel Grushko, "a policeman who sees greed and rapacity in Russia's new mood." Charlie King, a "street copper" who had a heart attack, appeared in The Negotiator.

He rose to fame in the mid-1990s thanks to his appearances in Rob Roy's as Killearn and Braveheart as Argyle Wallace in 1995. For his role in the former, he received a BAFTA Scotland Award nomination for Best Actor. He appeared in Witness Against Hitler in 1996, a true story of a Prussian intelligence officer and aristocrat who plotted to assassinate Hitler with his fellow devout Christians. In the same year, he appeared in Chain Reaction's Lyman Earl Collier, a violent CEO. Mr Smith, the CIA top gunman, appeared in The Glimmer Man as the CIA mastermind, as well as Nathan L. Jackson in The Long Kiss Goodnight as Nathan Waldman.

In 1997 Red Dwarf's "Stoke Me a Clipper," Cox appeared as a medieval king in a virtual reality game. He appeared alongside Morgan Freeman in the neo-noir psychological thriller Kiss the Girls, based on James Patterson's best-selling book. Nye Bevan appeared in the drama Food for Ravens and ranked IRA member Joe Hamill in the Irish sports drama The Boxer, as well as Daniel Day-Lewis. In 1998, he appeared as police captain Jeremiah Cassidy in Desperate Measures, Uncle Vladimir in the romantic drama Merchants of Venus, Clayton Blackstone in HBO's neo-noir film Poodle Springs, and in the drama Family Brood. In the same year as Bill Murray in Wes Anderson's Rushmore as the school headmaster, Dr. Nelson Guggenheim was born. The film is saved by the Library of Congress in 2016 due to its cultural, historical, and aesthetic significance. In 1999, he appeared alongside Owen Wilson as postal worker Doug Durwin in The Minus Man. He appeared in The Corruptor alongside Chow Yun-Fat and Mark Wahlberg, and in the sports drama For Love of the Game, Gary Wheeler appeared as Sean Wallace.

In 2000, Cox portrayed Lord Morton in Longitude, a dramatization of Dava Sobel's book. In The Invention of Dr. Morel, who invents a VR machine as a recreation of the woman he adored, he appeared as the title character. In Complicity, Johnny Lee Miller played Inspector McDunn, and Sidney McLoughlin in the romantic comedy Mad About Mambo. He received an Emmy Award as Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award as Best Actor for his role as Hermann Göring in Nuremberg. George Beneventi, a chip-shop-owning father who was befuddled by loan sharks, appeared in the Irish drama Saltwater as George Beneventi.

In 2001, he appeared in Super Troopers as Father O'Hagan. He received critical acclaim for his role as the pedophile Big John Harrigan in Michael Cuesta's L.I.E., as well as being nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Actor and Best Featured Male Actor of the Year. In Strictly Sinatra, he played Chisolm, a kind of enforcer who assists an aspiring singer who is keen on Frank Sinatra. Baron de Breteuil was also depicted in The Affair of the Necklace, which was based on the diamond necklace incident that ignited opposition against the French monarchy and led to the French Revolution.

Cox appeared in A Shot at Glory as Rangers manager Martin Smith in 2002. He appeared in the film Cyr in Bug, in which a diverse group is brought to a common end by a string of cause-and-effect chain reactions. In the sports drama The Rookie, based on Jim Morris' true story, he played Jim Morris, Sr. In the same year, he guest-starred as Harry Moon in two episodes of the critically acclaimed series Frasier, for which he would receive an Emmy Award as Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. In the blockbuster film The Bourne Identity, he coerced corrupt CIA official Ward Abbott, opposite Matt Damon. Michael O'Mara appeared in The Biographer as Michael O'Mara, and he also appeared as Richard Morgan in the supernatural horror drama The Ring, a remake of the 1998 Japanese film. It was one of the most successful horror remakes, paving the way for more English-version horror remakes. In 25th Hour, he played Edward Norton's father James Brogan and appeared in Spike Jonze's Adaptation as the true-life screenwriting coach, Robert McKee, who gave Nicolas Cage valuable advice in both his roles as Charlie Kaufman and Charlie's fictional twin brother, Donald. He received a Screen Actor Guild Award nomination as part of the latter's ensemble cast.

He appeared in Tobias, a murder mystery drama set in the medieval period, in 2003. In the direct-to-video crime drama Sin, William Stryker appeared in X2: X-Men United and Captain Oakes. In 2004, Cox portrayed a different, villainous version of King Agamemnon opposite Brad Pitt in Troy. In The Bourne Supremacy, the second iteration of the Bourne franchise, he reprised his role as Ward Abbott. He played Harry Sondheim, a journalist who doubts the guilt of four suspected terrorists in the short film Get the Picture. In episode 4 of BBC's sketch comedy series as a satire to popular culture, he portrayed King Lear. He was named at the 2004 BAFTA Scotland Awards with an Outstanding Achievement Award, as well as the 2004 Great Scot Awards with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 2005, Cox appeared in Blue/Orange, a BBC film adaptation of Joe Penhall's play about race, mental illness, and modern British life. In Woody Allen's psychological thriller Match Point, Alec Hewett played Alec Hewett, patriarch of the wealthy family. In Red Eye, he also played Rachel McAdams' father Joe Reisert. Doyle portrayed Doyle's mentor Dr. Joseph Bell in Arthur Conan Doyle's biography The Strange Case of Sherlock Holmes & Arthur Conan Doyle Doyle. The television film examined how Doyle invented Holmes and how he used Bell's techniques in his books. Gary Barker, a sports comedian, encouraged his nephew to register and watch a Special Olympics to solve their financial problems.

In 2006, Cox appeared in A Woman in Winter, which delves into the nature of obsessive love. Douglas Baxter, a boatyard owner and minister who befriends the atheist cyclist, is depicted in The Flying Scotsman, based on the life of Scottish amateur cyclist Graeme Obee. In the HBO series Deadwood, Jack Langrishe appeared as Jack Langrishe. Gabriel played Gabriel, the head of the intelligence agency in ITV's The Outsiders. Dr Finch, the psychiatrist of Burrough's mother and patriarch of an eccentric family to whom Burrough was sent to live in, was played in Running with Scissors, based on Augusten Burroughs' best-selling memoir about his childhood.

Melvin Belli, a prominent US prosecutor, appeared in David Fincher's mystery thriller Zodiac, based on Robert Graysmith's book that follows the Zodiac Killer's manhunt in 2007. He appeared in The Water Horse, Mr Kreeg in the anthology horror Trick 'r Treat, and Dr. Martin in Shoot on Sight based on Operation Kratos and Drosselmeyer in The Secret of the Nutcracker.

In 2008, Cox appeared in Red as Avery Ludlow, as well as institutionalized prisoner Frank Perry, the protagonist in Rupert Wyatt's film, The Escapist (2008), starring Joseph Fiennes, Dominic Cooper, and Damian Lewis. He received the BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Acting Performance in the latter year. Lewis Serrocold appeared in the ITV series Marple in 2009, closely based on Agatha Christie's books and short stories. In the Ridley Scott produced Tell-Tale, a film based on Edgar Allan Poe's short story The Tell Tale Heart, he starred Philip Van Doren. In The Take, he portrayed King Vesper Abaddon, the former king of Carmel who was loosely based on biblical King David and set in a modern absolut monarchy. In addition, he appeared in the Icelandic film The Good Heart and as Burt Macey in the crime drama Lost & Found. Dennis was also seen as Dennis in The Day of the Triffids, based on John Wyndham's best-selling post-apocalyptic book.

Reverend Kalahan, a cult leader and pastor whose death is the backdrop to the tale in As Good As Dead's crime thriller As Good as Dead's plot. In the television film On Expenses, Michael Martin portrayed former Speaker of the House of Commons Michael Martin. In the black comedy All at Sea, he also appeared as Wally, an old rogue who fulfills his dying wish for a sea burial. Cox appeared in RED as Laura Linney's father in the Showtime series The Big Coop and then as Ivan Simonov in RED.

In 2011, he appeared as Captain Rudolph Sharp in The Sinking of the Laconia, BBC Two's television film about the sinking of the British ocean liner RMS Laconia during World War II. In Coriolanus, a modern British film adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy, he co-starred Gerald Butler and Ralph Fiennes as a quietly good senator. In Ironclad, a war film set after the Magna Carta's ratification, he portrayed Baron William d'Aubigny, a lordly wool merchant against King John's tyranny. Hugo Weaving as Irving, a sociopathic con man and a Shakespearian actor, appeared on screen in American thriller The Key Man. He appeared in The Veteran as a British intelligence officer who sent a war soldier to track down a female contact infiltrating a group of alleged terrorists. In the science-fiction film Rise of the Apes, John Landon also appeared. Glover Boyd, the former policeman father of the protagonist in Citizen Gangster's Canadian biographical drama, appeared on his show Glover Boyd.

Cox appeared in The Straits as the patriarch of the Montebello family crime syndicate, Harry Montebello, in 2012. In the political film The Campaign, Raymond Huggins, an associate of two corrupt businessmen brothers, and Bill Ball in A Touch of Cloth, a parody of British police procedural dramas, he appeared as Raymond Huggins, an associate of two corrupt businessmen brothers. Lenny Fairburn, a former police officer and father of two fraternal detectives portrayed by Paul Bettany and Stephen Graham, appeared in Blood as Lenny Fairburn, a former officer and father of two fraternal detectives played by Lenny Fairburn. In the short film I Missed My Mother's Funeral, he also appeared as an old man.

In January 2013, Cox played the title character in the series Bob Servant. He said he played Servant, the Dundonian author's novel based on memories of his late brother Charlie. In RED 2, he reprised his role from the 2010 original film Ivan Simanov. In Blumenthal, he played the title role as Harold Blumenthal, who made his career out of parodying his family and died laughing at his own joke. He appeared in Believe as the legendary Scottish football manager Sir Matt Busby, who returned from retirement to mentor a group of young working-class boys. Sebastian, a principal in top memory detective company Mindscape (original name Anna), also appeared in Mindscape (original title Anna) as Sebastian, a detective in top memory detective company Mindscape, which uses psychics to assist in determining criminal cases. In The Curse of Edgar, an original docudrama based on Marc Dugain's bestseller book about Hoover's attempts to hold power away from the Kennedys, he portrayed FBI director J. Edgar Hoover. In November 2013, he appeared in An Adventure in Space and Time, a BBC television docudrama about the development of the British science-fiction series Doctor Who. Cox portrayed Canadian television executive Sydney Newman, the driving force behind the creation of the iconic program. He appeared in Tooned, an animated cartoon about Formula One racing, as an old mechanic, and as Magnus Bain in the crime thriller series Shetland (2013-2014), which was based on Ann Cleeves' books.

Cox appeared in The Anomaly as Lloyd Langham, Ian Somerhalder's father in the sci-fi thriller who undertook nightmarish experiments on the protagonist. He appeared in Reverend Andrew Clark's book "The People's Story" and in BBC's Cold War spy thriller series The Game as an MI5 superior codenamed "Daddy." He also appeared in Bob Servant's second series.

In 2015, he appeared in The Slap, an American interpretation of Christos Tsiolka's book, as Manolis Apostolou, the father of the main character played by Peter Sarsgaard. He appeared in the sci-fi comedy Pixels as a military heavyweight starring Adam Sandler, as well as in the Canadian revisionist western film Forsaken as a local gang leader. He appeared in Killing Thyme as a grumpy old man with a squandered body and a death wish.

Sir Michael Gifford, an aging Shakespearian actor, appeared in BBC's historical drama series adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's book War & Peace as General Mikhail Kutuzov in 2016. He was nominated for Best Actor at the BAFTA Scotland Awards for his portrayal of the former. For the same role, he received the Stony Brook Film Festival's Career Achievement Award. Jared Talbot, a ruthless, wealthy American rancher, and Josh Hartnett's estranged father, appeared in season 3 of Penny Dreadful. Jim Bryce appeared in Morgan's sci-fi thriller The Autopsy of Jane Doe as Tommy, and he appeared alongside Emile Hirsch in The Autopsy of Jane Doe. Bernardo Guadagni, an officer of the Signoria, was depicted in the first series of the Italian-British historical drama series Medici.

In 2017, he appeared as Marlon Brando in Urban Myths, a biographical comedy drama series in which each episode features a tale about popular culture icons. In June, Cox starred in the critically acclaimed historical war drama Churchill, as Winston Churchill in the title role.

In April 2018, Cox resurrects his role as Captain John O'Hagen in Super Troopers 2. Early drafts of the script excluded Cox's character from the film, with questions as to whether Cox will return or not for the sequel. Later, it was announced that he would return, and Cox himself joking that it was on the condition that he get a "big action scene with rockets and explosions." Rory MacNeil, a dying man who returns to his estranged son, appeared in The Etruscan Smile in May. He appeared in the first season of Succession, HBO's comedy drama, which premiered in June to rave reviews. Logan Roy, the patriarch of the dysfunctional Roy family and the billionaire producer of the multinational media and entertainment conglomerate Waystar RoyCo, was one of the first performers on the internet and entertainment conglomerate Waystar RoyCo. He appeared in James Franco's film The Pretenders in November.

In Strange But True, a drama interpretation of John Searles' book, he played William "Bill" Erwin in June 2019. He appeared in the romantic comedy Remember Me in August. Cox reprised his role in Succession's second season, earning him the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series and a nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series. The series has received acclaim for numerous accolades and nominations, including the British Academy Television Award for Best International Programme, the Golden Globe Award for Outstanding Drama Series, and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series. He appeared Father Reilly in the comedy drama The Last Right in the same year.

In the American neo-noir thriller Last Moment of Clarity, Cox appeared as Gilles in 2020. Milton Hunter, a well-known art dealer and stepfather, was transformed into a respected artist in The Bay of Silence by Milton Hunter. In 2021, he appeared in Separation's horror film Separation.

In November 2020, Cox was announced as the star of the "audio movie series" Unsinkable" beginning in 11 20-minute episodes; the crew was ordered to abandon ship, but the crew reboarded the ship to Britain with no charts or radio. In Wittgenstein's Poker as Bertrand Russell, he will also appear in The Jesuit, set against the Mexican underworld. In July 2021, it was revealed that Cox would appear in the film Prisoner's Daughter, which tells the tale of an ex-conservant who is trying to reconcile with his daughter and grandson. He added to executive produce Mending the Line and portraying a young injured soldier's ability to fly fish in the hopes of assisting him with his physical and emotional pain. In September, it was revealed that he would appear in The Independent, a young journalist who works with her idol (Cox) to reveal a massive plot.

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