Ian McKellen
Acting • Born 1939-05-25
Biography
Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. He has played roles on the screen and stage in genres ranging from Shakespearean dramas and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. He is regarded as a British cultural icon and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. He has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, six Olivier Awards, and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards and five Emmy Awards. McKellen made his stage debut in 1961 at the Belgrade Theatre as a member of its repertory company, and in 1965 made his first West End appearance. In 1969, he was invited to join the Prospect Theatre Company to play the lead parts in Shakespeare's Richard II and Marlowe's Edward II. In the 1970s, McKellen became a stalwart of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre of Great Britain. He has earned five Olivier Awards for his roles in Pillars of the Community (1977), The Alchemist (1978), Bent (1979), Wild Honey (1984), and Richard III (1995). McKellen made his Broadway debut in The Promise (1965). He received the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus (1980). He was further nominated for Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare (1984). He returned to Broadway in Wild Honey(1986), Dance of Death (1990), No Man's Land (2013), and Waiting for Godot (2013), the latter two being a joint production with Patrick Stewart. McKellen achieved worldwide fame for his film roles, including the titular King in Richard III(1995), James Whale in Gods and Monsters (1998), Magneto in the X-Men films, Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast (2017) and Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) and The Hobbit (2012–2014) trilogies. Other notable film roles include A Touch of Love (1969), Plenty (1985), Six Degrees of Separation (1993), Restoration (1995), Flushed Away (2006), Mr. Holmes (2015), and The Good Liar (2019). McKellen came out as gay in 1988, and has since championed LGBT social movements worldwide. He was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in October 2014. McKellen is a cofounder of Stonewall, an LGBT rights lobby group in the United Kingdom, named after the Stonewall riots. He is also patron of LGBT History Month, Pride London, Oxford Pride, GayGlos, LGBT Foundation and FFLAG. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ian McKellen, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Filmography
218 credits
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Movie • 2001
Gandalf
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Movie • 2003
Gandalf
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Movie • 2002
Gandalf
The Da Vinci Code
Movie • 2006
Sir Leigh Teabing
Gods and Monsters
Movie • 1998
James Whale
The Golden Compass
Movie • 2007
Iorek Byrnison (voice)
Stardust
Movie • 2007
Narrator (voice)
Swept from the Sea
Movie • 1998
Dr. James Kennedy
Jack & Sarah
Movie • 1995
William
And the Band Played On
Movie • 1993
Bill Kraus
Six Degrees of Separation
Movie • 1993
Geoffrey
Neverwas
Movie • 2005
Gabriel Finch
Richard III
Movie • 1995
Richard III
Flushed Away
Movie • 2006
The Toad (voice)
Ian McKellen on Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others and YOU
Movie • 2020
The Scarlet Pimpernel
Movie • 1982
Chauvelin
Doogal
Movie • 2006
Zebedee (voice)
Asylum
Movie • 2005
Dr. Peter Cleave
The Shadow
Movie • 1994
Dr. Reinhardt Lane
Scandal
Movie • 1989
John Profumo
Cold Comfort Farm
Movie • 1995
Amos Starkadder
Apt Pupil
Movie • 1998
Kurt Dussander
Last Action Hero
Movie • 1993
Death
The Keep
Movie • 1983
Dr. Theodore Cuza
Macbeth
Movie • 1979
Macbeth
Plenty
Movie • 1985
Sir Andrew Charleson
Hamlet Within
Movie • 2022
Emile
Movie • 2003
Emile
X-Men
Movie • 2000
Magneto
X2
Movie • 2003
Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto
X-Men: The Last Stand
Movie • 2006
Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto
The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne
Movie • 1965
Wolf
An Evening with Lily Savage
Movie • 1996
Self
King Lear
Movie • 2008
King Lear
The Magic Roundabout
Movie • 2005
Zebedee (voice)
Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man
Movie • 2000
Narrator (voice)
Rasputin
Movie • 1996
Tsar Nicholas II
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Movie • 2012
Gandalf the Grey
Priest of Love
Movie • 1981
D.H. Lawrence
Gladio
Movie • 1992
Aldo Moro (voice)
Bent
Movie • 1997
Uncle Freddie
The Ballad of Little Jo
Movie • 1993
Percy Corcoran
Alfred the Great
Movie • 1969
Roger
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Movie • 2013
Gandalf the Grey
Walter
Movie • 1982
Walter
Richard II
Movie
Richard II
Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed!
Movie • 2000
Self
Saint of 9/11
Movie • 2006
Narrator
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Movie • 2014
Gandalf the Grey
Schadenfreude
Movie • 2025
Continuity Announcer
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Movie • 2014
Magneto
London 2012: Paralympics Opening Ceremony
Movie • 2012
Self
A Touch of Love
Movie • 1969
George
Theatreland
Movie • 2009
Himself
To Die For
Movie • 1994
Quilt Documentary Narrator (voice)
Surviving Friendly Fire
Movie • 1997
Walter and June
Movie • 1983
Walter
Muse of Fire
Movie • 2013
Self
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour
Movie • 1979
Alexander Ivanov
A Bit Of Scarlet
Movie • 1997
Narrator
Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare
Movie • 1982
The Critic
Movie • 2024
Jimmy Erskine
Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love
Movie • 2001
Narrator (voice)
Zina
Movie • 1985
Kronfeld
Miss in Her Teens
Movie • 2014
The Prologue
Othello
Movie • 1990
Iago
For the Love of God
Movie • 2007
The Jackdaw
The One Note Man
Movie • 2023
Narrator (voice)
All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film
Movie • 2016
Prospero's Speech Reader (voice)
Hamlet
Movie • 2024
Hamlet
Mr. Holmes
Movie • 2015
Sherlock Holmes
Peter Tatchell: Just Who Does He Think He Is?
Movie • 2004
Armistead Maupin Is a Man I Dreamt Up
Movie • 1993
Narration (voice)
Stonewall 25: Global Voices of Pride and Protest
Movie • 1994
Self
I'll Do Anything
Movie • 1994
John Earl McAlpine
The Wolverine
Movie • 2013
Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited)
The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot
Movie • 2013
Self
Animal Crackers
Movie • 2018
Horatio P. Huntington (voice)
Hamlet
Movie • 1970
Hamlet
The Hobart Shakespeareans
Movie • 2005
Himself
Untitled Anthony Hopkins Documentary
Movie
Self
Quintessentially British
Movie • 2022
Self
Nelson Mandela Redrawn
Movie • 2014
Self
Looking for Lowry
Movie • 2011
Himself
Knights of Classic Drama at the BBC
Movie • 2015
Self (archive footage)
The Life and Death of Lily Savage
Movie • 2024
Self
The Dresser
Movie • 2015
Norman
Doctor Who: The Snowmen
Movie • 2012
The Great Intelligence (voice)
Beauty and the Beast
Movie • 2017
Cogsworth
Edward II
Movie • 1970
King Edward
The Real Ken Dodd: The Man I Loved
Movie • 2024
Shakespeare Live! From the RSC
Movie • 2016
Self - Performer
The Promise
Movie • 1969
A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King'
Movie • 2004
Self
Beyond the Movie: The Return of the King
Movie • 2003
Self
Restoration
Movie • 1995
Will Gates
Hedda Gabler
Movie • 1972
George Tesman
Dragfox
Movie • 2024
Ginger Snap the Fox (Speaking) (voice)
The Roof
Movie • 2016
And Even Yet Another Fan
Evolution X - The Making of X-Men
Movie • 2003
The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men! Making X2
Movie • 2003
Self
The Art of Breaking Character
Movie • 2007
Self
Judi Dench: All the World's Her Stage
Movie • 2016
Self
National Theatre Live: No Man's Land
Movie • 2016
Spooner
X-Men: Premieres Around the World
Movie • 2003
Self
Quest for the Ring
Movie • 2001
Self
Passage to Middle-Earth: The Making of 'The Lord of the Rings'
Movie • 2001
Self
A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation
Movie • 2010
Narrator (voice)
The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin
Movie • 2017
Self
The Good Liar
Movie • 2019
Roy Courtnay
The Betty Driver Story
Movie • 2011
Self
The Paul O'Grady Story
Movie • 2017
Self
McKellen: Playing the Part
Movie • 2018
Himself
Cats
Movie • 2019
Gus, the Theatre Cat
National Theatre Live: King Lear
Movie • 2018
King Lear
Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!!
Movie • 2004
Self
All Is True
Movie • 2018
Earl of Southampton
David Macaulay: Roman City
Movie • 1994
Augustus Caesar (voice)
The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision
Movie • 2003
Self
Edmund the Magnificent
Movie • 2017
Self - Narrator (voice)
How a Kite Flies
Movie • 2017
Mr. Kite (voice)
Beyond the Movie: The Fellowship of the Ring
Movie • 2001
Self
The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale
Movie • 1999
Self
The Egg Trick
Movie • 2013
Magician
Hating Peter Tatchell
Movie • 2021
Self
Eighteen
Movie • 2005
Jason Anders (voice)
Small-Time Revolutionary
Movie • 2010
Hamish Miller (voice)
Ringers: Lord of the Fans
Movie • 2005
Self
The Tragedy of King Richard II
Movie • 1970
King Richard II
Countdown to War
Movie • 1989
Adolf Hitler
The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin
Movie • 2013
Self
Shakespeare on Stage, Screen and Elsewhere with Ian McKellen
Movie • 2016
Shakespeare on Film
Movie • 2016
Play the Devil: Making Richard III
Movie • 2016
X-Men: The Mutant Watch
Movie • 2000
Self - 'Magneto'
Infinitum: Subject Unknown
Movie • 2021
Dr. Charles Marland-White
Du Fu: China's Greatest Poet
Movie • 2020
On Broadway
Movie • 2019
Self
Scarfe's Follies
Movie • 1988
Camp Christmas
Movie • 1993
The Christophers
Movie • 2026
Julian Sklar
The Making of 'The Two Towers'
Movie • 2003
The Making of 'The Return of the King'
Movie • 2004
Self
Süleyman the Magnificent
Movie • 1987
Narrator
Freedom: 50 Years of Pride
Movie • 2022
Self
Ken Dodd: A Legacy of Happiness
Movie • 2025
Avengers: Doomsday
Movie • 2026
Magneto
Dragged Through Time
Movie • 2025
After Stonewall
Movie • 1999
Self
No Man's Land
Movie
Spooner
Dying Day
Movie • 1980
Antony Skipling
A World War II Fairy Tale: The Making of Michael Mann's 'The Keep'
Movie • 2025
Self (archive footage)
Guerrilla Distribution
Movie • 2007
Himself
The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum
Movie • 2027
Gandalf
Graceless Go I
Movie • 1974
Tony
My First Time
Movie • 2004
Narrator
Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol
Movie • 2026
Jacob Marley
Frank and Percy
Movie
Percy
Age of Dissent
Movie • 1994
Self
Mutant vs. Machine: The Making of 'X-Men: Days of Future Past'
Movie • 2015
Self
Craven Arms
Movie • 1972
David Masterman
LS Lowry: The Unheard Tapes
Movie • 2026
L S Lowry
The Fellowship of the Ring: Weta Workshop
Movie • 2002
Self
Inside the Actors Studio
TV • 1994
Self
The Simpsons
TV • 1989
Ian McKellen (voice)
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
TV • 2003
Self
The One Show
TV • 2006
Self - Guest
The View
TV • 1997
Self - Guest
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
TV • 2002
Self
The Paul O'Grady Show
TV • 2004
Armchair Thriller
TV • 1978
Anthony Skipling
BBC Play of the Month
TV • 1965
Captain Plume
The Oscars
TV • 1953
Self
Churchill
TV • 2003
Himself - Narrator (voice)
Vicious
TV • 2013
Freddie Thornhill
Who Do You Think You Are?
TV • 2004
Self
Extras
TV • 2005
Ian McKellen
Saturday Night Live
TV • 1975
Self - Host
An Audience with...
TV • 1978
Self
Great British Theatre
TV • 2021
David Copperfield
TV • 1999
Creakle
Windmills of the Gods
TV • 1988
Chairman
Playing Shakespeare
TV • 1984
Sesame Street
TV • 1969
Self
Trailblazer Honors
TV • 2014
Self - Speaker
ted
TV • 2024
Narrator (voice)
Late Night with Seth Meyers
TV • 2014
Self - Guest
The Graham Norton Show
TV • 2007
Self - Guest
The Prisoner
TV • 2009
2 / Curtis
Tales of the City
TV • 1993
Archibald Anson Gidde
The Graham Norton Show
TV • 2007
Self
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
TV • 2009
Self - Guest
Family Guy
TV • 1999
Dr. Cecil Pritchfield (voice)
Real Time with Bill Maher
TV • 2003
Self
Reunited Apart
TV • 2020
Self
Coronation Street
TV • 1960
Mel Hutchwright
Perspectives
TV • 2011
Amol Rajan Interviews
TV • 2021
Self - Interviewed Guest
Pillar of Fire
TV • 1981
Narrator
Parkinson
TV • 1998
Self
Have I Got News for You
TV • 1990
Self
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
TV • 2014
Self
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Presenter
Billy & Dom Eat the World
TV • 2025
Himself
Omnibus
TV • 1967
Self - Reading Poetry
Playhouse
TV • 1974
Alexander
BBC Play of the Month
TV • 1965
Simon Bliss
BBC Play of the Month
TV • 1965
Ross / T.E. Lawrence
BBC Play of the Month
TV • 1965
George Tesman
David Copperfield
TV • 1966
David Copperfield
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
TV • 1994
Self
The Wednesday Play
TV • 1964
Wolf
Golden Globe Awards
TV • 1944
Self - Winner
Country Matters
TV • 1972
David Masterman
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
TV • 2015
Self - Guest
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
TV • 1993
Self - Guest
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
TV • 2015
Self
HARDtalk
TV • 1997