Actor Gabriel Byrne: biography, personal life. Best movies and TV shows

Gabriel Byrne is an Irish actor whose star has caught fire thanks to the crime drama of the Coen brothers "Miller's Crossroads." In this picture, he embodied the image of the talented criminal Tom, a man of selfish and mean. "Patients", "Gothic", "The Man in the Iron Mask", "Mussolini: The Untold Story", "Vikings", "Ordinary Suspects" - well-known films and serials with his participation. What else can you tell about this person?

Gabriel Byrne: the beginning of the road

The future actor was born in Dublin, there was a joyful event in May 1950. Gabriel Byrne was born into a family of a worker and a nurse, among his relatives there are no people connected with the cinema world. He is the eldest of six children. Mother and father of Gabriel raised sons and daughters in the Catholic faith. As a child, the boy was thinking about the career of a priest, five years of training in the seminary.

The priest Gabriel Byrne never did, which he now does not regret. He was 16 years old when he was expelled for bad behavior. For some time, the young man was interrupted by casual earnings, then entered the Irish National University, where he began to study archeology.

A teacher, a cook, an archaeologist, a writer, a factory worker - in which only the profession did not try to find his vocation after Gabriel graduated from the university. The longest he worked as a teacher of Spanish language and literature, but this lesson soon bored the young man.

Theater

In 1976, Gabriel Byrne acquired the first experience of playing on stage. The young man began to participate in the productions of the experimental "Project Theater". Then he earned only forty dollars a week, but he finally had an occupation to his liking.

In 1978, Byrne smiled luck: he was taken to the troupe of the Dublin Abbey Theater, and a year later his collaboration with the Royal London Theater began. However, the actor gained fame thanks to roles in films and TV shows.

First roles

In 1978, Gabriel Byrne was on the set for the first time. The filmography of the actor began with a painting "Riding a cobblestone road." Then the young man received one of the key roles in the TV project "The Riordan Family", which tells about the everyday life of Irish peasants. In 1979, it was decided to close the series, which prompted Byrne to move to London.

For the first time, Gabriel managed to make himself known thanks to the picture "Escalibur", presented to the audience in 1981. In this drama, he played the role of King Uther, who is the father of the legendary Arthur. His hero was allocated a little screen time, but he remembered.

The roles of the 80s

In the 80's, Gabriel Byrne finally began to act actively, films and serials with his participation came out one by one. In "Hannah K." the actor brilliantly embodied the image of a clever diplomat from Israel, in the military drama "Fortress" he played the role of a German soldier. Byrne received his first major role in 1986. He played a journalist in the thriller "Protection of the Empire." The hero of Gabriel became an ambitious reporter, whose sensational article produces the effect of a bomb exploding.

In the painting "In the Gothic style" Byrne perfectly coped with the role of the arrogant Lord Byron. Also worth watching is the mini-series "Christopher Columbus", in which the actor embodied the image of the most famous traveler.

Movies and TV series of the 90's

In the 90s, Gabriel Byrne continued to work actively. Films and serials with his participation began to appear even more often, which is connected with the success of the film "Miller's Crossroads". The film of the Coen brothers tells about the everyday life of American gangsters. The hero of Gabriel is Tom Reagan, the cunning adviser to the mafia boss who always comes out of the water.

In a touching drama "To the West" Gabriel embodied the image of a suffering widower, who is forced alone to raise two children. In the "Assassin" his character became a secret agent, which can not be caught. In "Dangerous Woman" he depicts a man who has two mistresses. Professor of Philosophy Byrne became in the historical drama "Little Women". The actor played a secondary role in the film "Man in an Iron Mask."

It is impossible not to mention the "Suspicious persons" of Brian Singer. In this film, Gabriel tried on himself the image of swindler Dean Keaton.

What else to see

In the new century, Byrne is mainly photographed in psychological and historical dramas. "Spider", "Vanity Fair", "The Bridge of King Louis", "Attack on the 13th plot" - in all these pictures you can see the actor. In the drama "Wow-wow" he plays the role of an alcoholic father who tries to educate his son and has serious problems with women.

In the drama series "Treatment" he got the role of the psychotherapist Paul Weston, who has problems in his personal life due to obsession at work. In the Vikings, he brilliantly embodied the image of a jarl, opposed to Ragnar Lodbrock.

Personal life

Is Gabriel Byrne married? The biography of the actor testifies that he married twice. His first wife was the actress Ellen Barkin, whom Byrne met on the set of "The Lionheart". She bore him a son and daughter, but the union was not lasting. With his ex-wife, Gabriel has a wonderful relationship, he devotes much time to raising children.

At the moment he is married to Hannah Bet King, they have no common children yet.