Doctor Who: Wish World & The Reality War
2025 · Movie
as The Doctor (archive footage) (uncredited)
John Hurt
1940-01-22
•
Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England, UK
Sir John Vincent Hurt (January 22, 1940 – January 25, 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. He came to prominence for his role as Richard Rich in the film A Man for All Seasons (1966) and gained BAFTA Award nominations for his portrayals of Timothy Evans in 10 Rillington Place (1971) and Quentin Crisp in television film The Naked Civil Servant (1975) – winning his first BAFTA for the latter. He played Caligula in the BBC TV series I, Claudius (1976). Hurt's performance in the prison drama Midnight Express (1978) brought him international renown and earned Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards, along with an Academy Award nomination. His BAFTA-nominated portrayal of astronaut Kane, in the science-fiction horror film Alien (1979), notably included a scene where an alien creature burst out of his chest, named by several publications as one of the most memorable moments in cinema history. Hurt earned his third competitive BAFTA, along with his second Oscar and Golden Globe nominations, as Joseph Merrick in David Lynch's biopic The Elephant Man (1980). Other significant roles during the 1980s included Bob Champion in biopic Champions (1984), Mr. Braddock in the Stephen Frears drama The Hit (1984), Winston Smith in Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) and Stephen Ward in the drama depicting the Profumo affair, Scandal (1989). Hurt was again BAFTA-nominated for his work in Irish drama The Field (1990) and played the primary villain, James Graham, in the epic adventure Rob Roy (1995). His later films include the Harry Potter film series (2001–11), the Hellboy films (2004 and 2008), supernatural thriller The Skeleton Key (2005), western The Proposition (2005), political thriller V for Vendetta (2005), action adventure Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008), sci-fi action Outlander (2008) and the Cold War espionage film Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011). Hurt reprised his role as Quentin Crisp in An Englishman in New York (2009), which brought his seventh BAFTA nomination. He portrayed the War Doctor in the BBC TV series Doctor Who's 50th anniversary special, "The Day of the Doctor", in 2013. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors; director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in the world". He possessed what was described as the "most distinctive voice in Britain", likened by The Observer to "nicotine sieved through dirty, moonlit gravel". His voice acting career encompassed films such as Watership Down (1978), The Lord of the Rings (1978), The Plague Dogs (1982), The Black Cauldron (1985), Dogville (2003) and Planet Dinosaur (2011) as well as BBC TV series Merlin (2008–2012). In 2012, he was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement BAFTA Award, in recognition of his "outstanding contribution to cinema". He was knighted in 2015 for his services to drama.
Filmography
Henry Fonda for President
2025 · Movie
as Self (archive footage)
Doctor Who at the Proms
2024 · Movie
as The Doctor (War) (archive footage)
Hannibal Hopkins & Sir Anthony
2021 · Movie
as Self (archive footage)
Ayamé
2018 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Damascus Cover
2017 · Movie
as Miki
The Journey
2017 · Movie
as Harry Patterson
That Good Night
2017 · Movie
as Ralph
My Name Is Lenny
2017 · Movie
as Leslie Salmon
Jackie
2016 · Movie
as The Priest
ChickLit
2016 · Movie
as Francis Bonar
No image
The Pity of War: The Loves and Lives of the War Poets
2016 · Movie
as Siegfried Sassoon
The Final Reel
2016 · Movie
as Self - Narrator (voice)
Back to Utopia
2016 · Movie
as Professor Peter Panludic (voice)
Dmitri Shostakovich: A Man of Many Faces
2015 · Movie
as Narator
The Alchemist's Letter
2015 · Movie
as The Alchemist (voice)
A.K.A Nadia
2015 · Movie
as 347
Thomas & Friends: Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure: The Movie
2015 · Movie
as Sailor John (voice)
Break
2015 · Movie
as Jack
Doctor Who: The Husbands of River Song
2015 · Movie
as The Doctor (War) (picture) (uncredited)
The Last Panthers
2015 · TV Show
as Tom
Hercules
2014 · Movie
as Cotys
Wimbledon The Official Film 2014
2014 · Movie
as Narrator
Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film
2014 · Movie
as Self
Doctor Who Live: The Afterparty
2013 · Movie
as Self
Jayne Mansfield's Car
2013 · Movie
as Kingsley Bedford
Snowpiercer
2013 · Movie
as Gilliam
Only Lovers Left Alive
2013 · Movie
as Christopher Marlowe
Benjamin Britten: Peace and Conflict
2013 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Muse of Fire
2013 · Movie
as Self
The Day of the Doctor: Cinema Intro
2013 · Movie
as The War Doctor
Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor
2013 · Movie
as The War Doctor
Doctor Who: The Night of the Doctor
2013 · Movie
as The War Doctor
Hello: A Portrait Of Leslie Phillips
2013 · Movie
as Self / Stephen Ward
The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot
2013 · Movie
as The War Doctor (archive voice)
Swan Lake 3D - Live from the Mariinsky Theatre
2013 · Movie
as The Voice of the Winter Palace / Self
Planet Dinosaur: Ultimate Killers
2012 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Sightseers
2012 · Movie
as Jerusalem Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
The Snipist
2012 · Movie
as The Ministry
More Than Honey
2012 · Movie
as Narrator (english voice)
Labyrinth
2012 · TV Show
as Audric Baillard
The Hollow Crown
2012 · TV Show
as The Chorus
Playhouse Presents
2012 · TV Show
as The Ministry (voice)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
2011 · Movie
as Ollivander
Melancholia
2011 · Movie
as Dexter
Immortals
2011 · Movie
as Old Zeus
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
2011 · Movie
as Control
The Gruffalo's Child
2011 · Movie
as The Owl (voice)
Sailcloth
2011 · Movie
as Man
The Confession
2011 · Movie
as Priest
On Borrowed Time
2011 · Movie
as Self
23 Degrees, 5 Minutes
2011 · Movie
as Professor Orit
The Journey – Stories from the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
2011 · Movie
as Narrator
In Love with Alma Cogan
2011 · Movie
as MC
Human Planet
2011 · TV Show
as Narrator (voice)
The Confession
2011 · TV Show
as Priest
Planet Dinosaur
2011 · TV Show
as Narrator
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
2010 · Movie
as Ollivander
Brighton Rock
2010 · Movie
as Phil Corkery
Ultramarines: A Warhammer 40,000 Movie
2010 · Movie
as Carnak
Lou
2010 · Movie
as Doyle
Whistle and I'll Come to You
2010 · Movie
as James Parkin
A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures
2010 · Movie
as Grandpa Sammy (voice)
No image
Behind Jim Jarmusch
2010 · Movie
as Self
Love at First Sight
2010 · Movie
as Arthur
The Limits of Control
2009 · Movie
as Guitar
The Gruffalo
2009 · Movie
as Owl (voice)
An Englishman in New York
2009 · Movie
as Quentin Crisp
44 Inch Chest
2009 · Movie
as Old Man Peanut
Making History: Mel Brooks on Creating the World
2009 · Movie
as Self (archive footage)
Waking Sleeping Beauty
2009 · Movie
as The Horned King (voice) (archive footage)
No image
Remembrance
2009 · Movie
as Bellhop
Ballybrando
2009 · Movie
as Self
Centenary: The BP Story
2009 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
2008 · Movie
as Professor Harold Oxley
Outlander
2008 · Movie
as Rothgar
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
2008 · Movie
as Trevor Bruttenholm
The Oxford Murders
2008 · Movie
as Arthur Seldom
Recount
2008 · Movie
as Warren Christopher
Lecture 21
2008 · Movie
as Mondrian Kilroy
New York, I Love You
2008 · Movie
as Bellhop
Verity Lambert: Drama Queen
2008 · Movie
Merlin
2008 · TV Show
as Kilgharrah (voice)
The 50 Greatest Television Dramas
2007 · Movie
as Self
Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron
2007 · Movie
as Professor Trevor 'Broom' Bruttenholm (voice)
Boxes
2007 · Movie
as Fanny's father
Interview with John Hurt
2007 · Movie
as Self
Masters of Science Fiction
2007 · TV Show
as Samswope
Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
2006 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
V for Vendetta
2006 · Movie
as Adam Sutler
Shooting Dogs
2006 · Movie
as Christopher
The Plot Against Harold Wilson
2006 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Whaledreamers
2006 · Movie
as Self
V for Vendetta: Unmasked
2006 · Movie
as Adam Sutler
Manderlay
2005 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
The Skeleton Key
2005 · Movie
as Ben Devereaux
Valiant
2005 · Movie
as Felix (voice)
Once Upon a Halloween
2005 · Movie
as The Horned King (voice) (archive sound)
The Proposition
2005 · Movie
as Jellon Lamb
Hiroshima
2005 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Short Order
2005 · Movie
as Felix
Doctor Who
2005 · TV Show
as The Doctor
No image
Hiroshima: The First Weapon of Mass Destruction
2005 · TV Show
as Narrator
Hellboy
2004 · Movie
as Prof. Trevor 'Broom' Bruttenholm
Hellboy: The Seeds of Creation
2004 · Movie
as Self
Shadowing the Third Man
2004 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Pride
2004 · Movie
as Harry (voice)
Alpha to Omega: Exposing 'The Osterman Weekend'
2004 · Movie
as Self
The Alan Clark Diaries
2004 · TV Show
as Alan Clark
Who Do You Think You Are?
2004 · TV Show
as Self
Owning Mahowny
2003 · Movie
as Victor Foss
The Beast Within: Making Alien
2003 · Movie
as Self
Meeting Che Guevara & the Man from Maybury Hill
2003 · Movie
as Man from Maybury Hill
Dogville
2003 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Check the Gate: Putting Beckett on Film
2003 · Movie
as Self / Self - Krapp ("Krapp's Last Tape")
The Alien Saga
2002 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Miranda
2002 · Movie
as Christian
Crime and Punishment
2002 · Movie
as Porfiry, chief investigator
Bait
2002 · Movie
as Jack Blake
I, Claudius: A Television Epic
2002 · Movie
as Self
No image
The Twilight Hour: Visions of Ireland's Haunted Past
2002 · Movie
as Self
No image
HypaSpace
2002 · TV Show
as Self
Edge of the Universe
2002 · TV Show
as Narrator (voice)
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
2001 · Movie
as Mr. Ollivander
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
2001 · Movie
as Dr. Iannis
Shaolin: Wheel of Life
2001 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
The Hidden Wars of Desert Storm
2001 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Tabloid
2001 · Movie
as Vince
The Terrible Elephant Man Revealed
2001 · Movie
as Self
Krapp's Last Tape
2000 · Movie
as Krapp
Lost Souls
2000 · Movie
as Father Lareaux
The Tigger Movie
2000 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
You're Dead...
1999 · Movie
as Maitland
All the Little Animals
1999 · Movie
as Mr. Summers
New Blood
1999 · Movie
as Alan White
If... Dog... Rabbit
1999 · Movie
as Sean Cooper
Watership Down
1999 · TV Show
as General Woundwort (voice)
The Commissioner
1998 · Movie
as James morton
Love and Death on Long Island
1998 · Movie
as Giles De'Ath
The Climb
1998 · Movie
as Chuck Langer
Night Train
1998 · Movie
as Michael Poole
Parkinson
1998 · TV Show
as Self
Brute
1997 · Movie
as Babits
Contact
1997 · Movie
as S. R. Hadden
Tender Loving Care
1996 · Movie
as Dr. Turner
Dead Man
1995 · Movie
as John Scholfield
Rob Roy
1995 · Movie
as John Graham
Wild Bill
1995 · Movie
as Charley Prince
No image
On Jupiter
1995 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
No image
Saigon Baby
1995 · Movie
as Jack Lee
Picture Windows: Two Nudes Bathing
1995 · Movie
as Marquis de Prey
Picture Windows
1995 · TV Show
as Marquis de Prey
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
1994 · Movie
as The Countess
Second Best
1994 · Movie
as Uncle Turpin
Great Moments in Aviation
1994 · Movie
as Rex Goodyear
Thumbelina
1994 · Movie
as Mr. Mole (voice)
The World of Jim Henson
1994 · Movie
as The Storyteller (archive footage)
Rabbit Ears - Aladdin and the Magic Lamp
1994 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Inside the Actors Studio
1994 · TV Show
as Self
Monolith
1993 · Movie
as Villano
GMTV
1993 · TV Show
as Self
Dark at Noon
1992 · Movie
as Anthony / Le Marquis
Six Characters in Search of An Author
1992 · Movie
as The Father
King Ralph
1991 · Movie
as Graves
Red Fox
1991 · Movie
as Archie Carpenter
No image
Journey to Knock
1991 · Movie
as Alfred
I Dreamt I Woke Up
1991 · Movie
as Boorman's Alter Ego
Lapse of Memory
1991 · Movie
as Conrad Farmer
Performance
1991 · TV Show
as The Father
Frankenstein Unbound
1990 · Movie
as Dr. Joe Buchanan / Narrator (voice)
The Field
1990 · Movie
as Bird' O'Donnell
Windprints
1990 · Movie
as Charles Rutherford
Resident Alien
1990 · Movie
as Self - Actor
Who Bombed Birmingham?
1990 · Movie
as Chris Mullin
Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: David Lynch
1990 · Movie
as Self
Paul McCartney: From Rio to Liverpool
1990 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Romeo.Juliet
1990 · Movie
as La Dame aux Chats / Mercutio (voice)
Scandal
1989 · Movie
as Stephen Ward
Little Sweetheart
1989 · Movie
as Robert Burger
David Macaulay: Pyramid
1989 · Movie
as Khufu / Second French Explorer (voice)
The Jim Henson Hour
1989 · TV Show
as The Storyteller (archive footage)
Deadline
1988 · Movie
as Granville Jones
The Bengali Night
1988 · Movie
as Lucien Metz
The Storyteller: Hans My Hedgehog
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: Fearnot
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: A Story Short
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: The Luck Child
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: The Soldier and Death
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: Sapsorrow
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: The Heartless Giant
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
The Storyteller: The True Bride
1988 · Movie
as The Storyteller
A Dinner of Herbs
1988 · Movie
as Verse Reader
The Storyteller
1988 · TV Show
as The Storyteller
Spaceballs
1987 · Movie
as John Hurt
From the Hip
1987 · Movie
as Douglas Benoit
Aria
1987 · Movie
as The Actor
White Mischief
1987 · Movie
as Gilbert Colville
The Hunting of the Snark
1987 · Movie
as The Narrator
Vincent
1987 · Movie
as (voice)
Monolith
1987 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Iceberg
1987 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
No image
Frightmares
1987 · Movie
Jake Speed
1986 · Movie
as Syd
No image
Rocinante
1986 · Movie
as Bill
Thames Film
1986 · Movie
as Narrator
ScreenPlay
1986 · TV Show
as Alfred
After Darkness
1985 · Movie
as Peter Hunningford
The Black Cauldron
1985 · Movie
as The Horned King (voice)
The Strange Case of Yukio Mishima
1985 · Movie
as Narrator (voice)
Live Aid
1985 · Movie
as Self
Screen Two
1985 · TV Show
as Rex Goodyear, Jack Lee
Nineteen Eighty-Four
1984 · Movie
as Winston Smith
The Hit
1984 · Movie
as Braddock
Champions
1984 · Movie
as Bob Champion
Success Is the Best Revenge
1984 · Movie
as Dino Montecurva
Sunset People
1984 · Movie
as Self
The Osterman Weekend
1983 · Movie
as Lawrence Fassett
King Lear
1983 · Movie
as The Fool
Natural World
1983 · TV Show
as Narrator
The Plague Dogs
1982 · Movie
as Snitter (voice)
Partners
1982 · Movie
as Kerwin
Night Crossing
1982 · Movie
as Peter Strelzyk
No image
Paul McCartney - Take It Away
1982 · Movie
as Self
History of the World: Part I
1981 · Movie
as Jesus - The Roman Empire
The Elephant Man
1980 · Movie
as John Merrick
Heaven's Gate
1980 · Movie
as Billy Irvine
No image
An Evening with Quentin Crisp
1980 · Movie
as Host
Alien
1979 · Movie
as Kane
Crime and Punishment
1979 · TV Show
as Rodion Raskolnikov
The Lord of the Rings
1978 · Movie
as Aragorn (voice)
Watership Down
1978 · Movie
as Hazel (voice)
Midnight Express
1978 · Movie
as Max
The Shout
1978 · Movie
as Anthony Fielding
East of Elephant Rock
1977 · Movie
as Nash
The Disappearance
1977 · Movie
as Atkinson
Three Dangerous Ladies
1977 · Movie
as Lt. George Simmonds
Spectre
1977 · Movie
as Mitri Cyon
The Hollywood Greats
1977 · TV Show
No image
The Sunday Drama
1977 · TV Show
as Dave
Stream Line
1976 · Movie
as Chandler
The Peddler
1976 · Movie
as Alec Cassell
No image
The Island
1976 · Movie
as Captain Simmonds
I, Claudius
1976 · TV Show
as Caligula
The Naked Civil Servant
1975 · Movie
as Quentin Crisp
The Ghoul
1975 · Movie
as Tom Rawlings
The Sweeney
1975 · TV Show
as Tony Grey
Saturday Night Live
1975 · TV Show
as March Hare
Shades of Greene
1975 · TV Show
as Fred
No image
Ten from the Twenties
1975 · TV Show
as Philip Repton
Little Malcolm and His Struggle Against the Eunuchs
1974 · Movie
as Malcolm Scrawdyke
No image
The Playboy of the Western World
1974 · Movie
as Christopher Mahon (Christy Mahon)
NOVA
1974 · TV Show
as Narrator
Wessex Tales
1973 · TV Show
as Joshua Harlborough
The Pied Piper
1972 · Movie
as Franz
10 Rillington Place
1971 · Movie
as Timothy Evans
Mr. Forbush and the Penguins
1971 · Movie
as Richard Forbush
No image
Green Julia
1971 · Movie
as Bob
A Ghost Story for Christmas
1971 · TV Show
as James Parkin
Great Performances
1971 · TV Show
as Narrator
No image
Film '72
1971 · TV Show
as Self
Play for Today
1970 · TV Show
as Alec Cassell
Sinful Davey
1969 · Movie
as Davey Haggart
Before Winter Comes
1969 · Movie
as Lieutenant Pilkington
In Search of Gregory
1969 · Movie
as Daniel
ITV Saturday Night Theatre
1969 · TV Show
as Bob
The Sailor from Gibraltar
1967 · Movie
as John
ITV Playhouse
1967 · TV Show
as Guy Beresford
A Man for All Seasons
1966 · Movie
as Richard Rich
NET Playhouse
1966 · TV Show
as Peter Heywood
Gideon's Way
1965 · TV Show
as Freddy Tisdale
This Is My Street
1964 · Movie
as Charlie
No image
Thursday Theatre
1964 · TV Show
as Orpheus
No image
First Night
1963 · TV Show
as Garry
The Wild and the Willing
1962 · Movie
as Phil Corbett
No image
Drama 61-67
1961 · TV Show
as Private Briggs, Tom
Armchair Theatre
1956 · TV Show
as Joe
Golden Globe Awards
1944 · TV Show
as Self - Nominee
