Kenneth BranaghActor Evolution · YouTube
Kenneth Branagh
Oscar winner · Director · Actor
Known for
Kenneth Branagh is a Northern Irish actor and director long regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of Shakespeare on screen. As an actor he has ranged from classical roles to blockbusters such as 'Dunkirk' and 'Tenet', and plays detective Hercule Poirot in his 'Murder on the Orient Express' films. He made a celebrated directorial debut with 'Henry V' (1989) and has since directed everything from Shakespeare adaptations and Marvel's 'Thor' (2011) to the personal, acclaimed 'Belfast' (2021), which won him the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. His work is theatrical, literate and unashamedly emotional.
Kenneth Branagh
Oscar winner · Director · Actor
50 Movies · 12 Series
Known for
Kenneth Branagh is a Northern Irish actor and director long regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of Shakespeare on screen. As an actor he has ranged from classical roles to blockbusters such as 'Dunkirk' and 'Tenet', and plays detective Hercule Poirot in his 'Murder on the Orient Express' films. He made a celebrated directorial debut with 'Henry V' (1989) and has since directed everything from Shakespeare adaptations and Marvel's 'Thor' (2011) to the personal, acclaimed 'Belfast' (2021), which won him the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. His work is theatrical, literate and unashamedly emotional.
Movies
Plays Niels Bohr
Oppenheimer
2023
Plays Gilderoy Lockhart
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
2002
Plays Stuart
The Devil Wears Prada 2
2026
Director
Thor
2011
Plays Sator
Tenet
2020
Director
Cinderella
2015
Plays Nikolai Ustinov
Mayday
2026
Director
Plays Hercule Poirot
Death on the Nile
2022
Director
Plays Viktor Cherevin
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
2014
Plays Commander Bolton
Dunkirk
2017
Plays Henning von Tresckow
Valkyrie
2008
Director
Plays Hercule Poirot
Murder on the Orient Express
2017
Plays Miguel (voice)
The Road to El Dorado
2000
Director
Plays Hercule Poirot
A Haunting in Venice
2023
Plays Charles Dickens (voice)
The King of Kings
2025
Director
Belfast
2021
Plays Sir Laurence Olivier
My Week with Marilyn
2011
Plays Dr. Arliss Loveless
Wild Wild West
1999
Plays Lee Simon
Celebrity
1998
Director
Plays Benedick
Much Ado About Nothing
1993
Director
Artemis Fowl
2020
Plays Dormandy
The Boat That Rocked
2009
Director
Plays Victor Frankenstein
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
1994
Director
Plays Henry V
Henry V
1989
Plays Shawn Nolan (voice)
Fireheart
2022
Director
Plays Prince Hamlet
Hamlet
1996
Director
Plays Roman Strauss / Mike Church
Dead Again
1991
Plays Uncle Albert
Five Children and It
2004
Director
Plays William Shakespeare
All Is True
2018
Director
As You Like It
2006
Director
Plays Other Man on T.V.
Sleuth
2007
Plays Rick Magruder
The Gingerbread Man
1998
Plays Mark Snow
Prodigal
2011
Plays A. O. Neville
Rabbit-Proof Fence
2002
Plays Father Michael McKinnon
The Proposition
1998
Director
Plays Berowne
Love's Labour's Lost
2000
Director
The Magic Flute
2006
Plays Macbeth
National Theatre Live: Macbeth
2013
Plays Iago
Othello
1995
Plays James Moon
A Month in the Country
1987
Director
Plays Andrew Benson
Peter's Friends
1992
Plays Archie Rice
Branagh Theatre Live: The Entertainer
2016
Plays Steven Chesterman
Alien Love Triangle
2008
Director
Branagh Theatre Live: Romeo and Juliet
2016
Director
Plays Leontes
Branagh Theatre Live: The Winter's Tale
2015
Plays Periwig-maker (voice)
The Periwig-Maker
1999
Plays Peter McGowan
How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog
2002
Plays Rick
High Season
1987
Director
In the Bleak Midwinter
1995
Plays Mark Snow
Stars in Shorts
2012
TV Shows
Producer
Plays Kurt Wallander
Wallander
2008
Plays Abijah Fowler (voice)
BLUE EYE SAMURAI
2023
Plays Guy Pringle
Fortunes of War
1987
Plays Boris Johnson
This England
2022
Plays (voice)
The American Revolution
2025
Plays Jack Grant
The Boy in the Bush
1984
Plays Gordon Evans
Strange Interlude
1988
Plays Gordon Evans
American Playhouse
1982
Plays Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton
Shackleton
2002
Plays Colonel Tim Collins
10 Days to War
2008
Plays Oswald Alving
Theatre Night
1985
Plays Donal Davoren
Performance
1991
Latest Trailers
Watch Trailer
The Thomas Crown Affair
Full Filmography 70
Atonement
Michael Reid
2026
Mayday
Nikolai Ustinov
2026
The Devil Wears Prada 2
Stuart
2026
The American Revolution
(voice) · 6 episodes
2025
The King of Kings
Charles Dickens (voice)
2025
BLUE EYE SAMURAI
Abijah Fowler (voice) · 8 episodes
2023
A Haunting in Venice
Hercule Poirot · Director
2023
Oppenheimer
Niels Bohr
2023
This England
Boris Johnson · 6 episodes
2022
Photos
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Kenneth Branagh and where are they from?
Kenneth Branagh is 65 years old, born on December 10, 1960 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK.
What are the most famous roles of Kenneth Branagh?
Kenneth Branagh is best known for roles in Avengers: Infinity War, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Dunkirk.
How many movies has Kenneth Branagh been in?
Over a 45-year career (since 1981), Kenneth Branagh has appeared in 49 movies and 11 TV shows.
What was Kenneth Branagh's first movie?
The career of Kenneth Branagh began with Chariots of Fire (1981).
What is Kenneth Branagh's most recent movie or series?
Kenneth Branagh's most recent release is Atonement, which premiered on October 2, 2026.
What TV shows has Kenneth Branagh appeared in?
On television, Kenneth Branagh has appeared in BLUE EYE SAMURAI, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Graham Norton Show, Real Time with Bill Maher.
Does Kenneth Branagh have any upcoming projects?
Yes, Kenneth Branagh's upcoming work includes: Maverick: The Epic Adventures of David Lean (2026), The Thomas Crown Affair (2027).
Kenneth Branagh
1960-12-10 · Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh (born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at RADA in London and served as its president from 2015 to 2024. His accolades include an Academy Award, four BAFTAs, two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and an Olivier Award. He was appointed a Knight Bachelor in 2012 and was given Freedom of the City in his native Belfast in 2018. In 2020, he was ranked in 20th place on The Irish Times's list of Ireland's greatest film actors.
Branagh has directed and starred in several film adaptations of William Shakespeare's plays, including Henry V (1989), Much Ado About Nothing (1993), Othello (1995), Hamlet (1996), and As You Like It (2006). He was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor and Best Director for Henry V and Best Adapted Screenplay for Hamlet. He directed Swan Song (1992), which earned a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film. He also directed Peter's Friends (1992), Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994), Thor (2011), and Cinderella (2015). For his semi-autobiographical film Belfast (2021), he was nominated for the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Director and won Best Original Screenplay.
Branagh directed and starred as Hercule Poirot in the Hercule Poirot film series (2017–present). He has also acted in Celebrity (1998), Wild Wild West (1999), The Road to El Dorado (2000), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), and Valkyrie (2008). His portrayal of Laurence Olivier in My Week with Marilyn (2011) earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He played supporting roles in Christopher Nolan's films Dunkirk (2017), Tenet (2020), and Oppenheimer (2023).
Branagh has starred in the BBC1 series Fortunes of War (1987), the Channel 4 series Shackleton (2002), the television film Warm Springs (2005), and the BBC One series Wallander (2008–2016). He received a Primetime Emmy Award and an International Emmy Award for Best Actor for portraying SS leader Reinhard Heydrich in the HBO film Conspiracy (2001).