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Simon Russell Beale

Acting

Born January 12, 1961 · Penang, Malaysia

Also known as 사이몬 러셀 빌 · Simon Russell-Beale · Simon Russell Beale CBE

Biography

Sir Simon Russell Beale CBE (born January 12, 1961) is an English actor. He is known for his appearances in film, television and theatre, and work on radio, on audiobooks and as a narrator. For his services to drama, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in 2019. He has spent much of his theatre career working in productions for both the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre. He has received ten Laurence Olivier Award nominations, winning three awards for his performances in Volpone (1996), Candide (2000), and Uncle Vanya (2003). For his work on the Broadway stage he has received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play nomination for his performance as George in the Tom Stoppard play Jumpers in 2004. For his role as Henry Lehman in The Lehman Trilogy, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play and was nominated for an Olivier Award. Beale has been described by The Independent as "the greatest stage actor of his generation". Beale made his film debut in Sally Potter's period drama Orlando (1992). He continued acting in films such as Persuasion (1995), Hamlet (1996), My Week with Marilyn (2011), The Deep Blue Sea (2011), Into the Woods (2014), and Mary Queen of Scots (2018). In 2017, he starred in Armando Iannucci's dark comedy The Death of Stalin playing Lavrentiy Beria for which he received the British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actor. He has also appeared in the television projects The Young Visiters (2003), Dunkirk (2004), and as Falstaff in the BBC made-for-television films Henry IV, Part I and Part II (2012). He was part of the main cast of Showtime's Penny Dreadful.

Awards & recognition

  • Knight Bachelor · 2019
  • honorary doctorate · 2010
  • Commander of the Order of the British Empire
  • Laurence Olivier Awards
  • European Film Award – People's Choice AwardBest European Film · 2018 · nominated
Show all 6 awards →
  • Tony AwardBest Actor in a Play · 2004 · nominated

Filmography38 titles

House of the Dragon

2022as Ser Simon Strong

Penny Dreadful

2014as Ferdinand Lyle

Royal Opera House: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

2011as The Duchess / Introduced by

Spooks

2002as William Towers

A Christmas Carol

2020as Scrooge's voice (voice)

The Hollow Crown

2012as Falstaff

Hamlet

1996as Second Gravedigger

Vanity Fair

as John Sedley

Douglas Is Cancelled

2024as Bently

Shakespeare Live! From the RSC

2016as Richard II

Deep Water

2006as Donald Crowhurst (voice)

Persuasion

1995as Charles Musgrove

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale

2025as Sir Hector Moreland

Mary & George

2024as Sir George Villiers

The Outfit

2022as Roy Boyle

The Death of Stalin

2017as Lavrenti Beria

Orlando

1992as Earl of Moray

Operation Finale

2018as David Ben-Gurion

My Week with Marilyn

2011as Cotes-Preedy

Radioactive

2019as Professor Lippmann

Mary Queen of Scots

2018as Robert Beale

American Experience

1988as John Adams (voice)

Operation Mincemeat

2021as Winston Churchill

Museo

2018as Frank Graves

Muse of Fire

2013as Self

An Ideal Husband

1999as Sir Edward

Thor: Love and Thunder

2022as Dionysus

Dunkirk

as Winston Churchill

Firebrand

2023as Stephen Gardiner

The Choral

2025as Sir Edward Elgar

Benediction

2021as Robbie Ross

Alice in Wonderland

1999as King Cedric of Hearts

The Legend of Tarzan

2016as Mr. Frum

The Deep Blue Sea

2011as Sir William Collyer

Into the Woods

2014as Baker's Father

My Cousin Rachel

2017as Couch

The Gathering

2003as Luke Fraser

Legacy

2013as Hookey