Andrew Scott (born 21 October 1976) is an Irish actor. He achieved widespread recognition for playing the role of Jim Moriarty in the BBC series Sherlock, a role that earnt him the BAFTA Television Award for Best Supporting Actor. Scott is also known for playing the Priest on the second series of Fleabag, receiving a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film and winning the Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. He won further acclaim playing the lead role of Garry Essendine in a 2019 production of Present Laughter staged at The Old Vic, for which he won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor.
Scott has received various other awards, including the Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre for his role in A Girl in a Car with a Man at the Royal Court Theatre.
Early life
Scott was born in Dublin on 21 October 1976, the son of Nora and Jim Scott. His mother was an art teacher, while his father worked at an employment agency. He has an older sister, Sarah, and a younger sister, Hannah. He was raised as a Catholic, but has since left the faith. He attended Gonzaga College while taking weekend classes at a drama school for children, and appeared in two ads on Irish television. At 17, he was chosen for a starring role in his first film, Korea. He won a bursary to art school, but elected to study drama at Trinity College Dublin, leaving after six months to join Dublin’s Abbey Theatre. He once stated to the London Evening Standard magazine that he always had a “healthy obsession” with acting.
Career
After filming a small part in Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan, Scott worked with film and theatre director Karel Reisz in the Gate Theatre, Dublin, production of Long Day’s Journey into Night taking the role of Edmund, the younger son, in the Eugene O’Neill play about a tortured American family in the early part of the 20th century. He won Actor of the Year at the Sunday Independent Spirit of Life Arts Awards 1998 and received an Irish Times Theatre Award 1998 nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
Scott appeared in the small part of Michael Bodkin in the film Nora, with Ewan McGregor, and in a television adaptation of Henry James’s The American, alongside Diana Rigg and Matthew Modine, before making his London theatre debut in Conor McPherson’s Dublin Carol with Brian Cox at the Royal Court Theatre. He was then cast in the BAFTA-winning drama Longitude, opposite Michael Gambon, and the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers. Scott has described the working atmosphere on Band of Brothers as “awful”.
In 2004, he was named one of European Film Promotions’ Shooting Stars. After starring in My Life in Film for the BBC, he received his first Olivier award for his role in A Girl in a Car with a Man at The Royal Court, and the Theatregoers’ Choice Award for his performance in the Royal National Theatre’s Aristocrats. He then created the roles of the twin brothers in the original Royal Court production of Christopher Shinn’s Dying City, which was later nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. In 2006, he made his Broadway debut opposite Julianne Moore and Bill Nighy in the Music Box Theater production of The Vertical Hour written by David Hare and directed by Sam Mendes, for which he was nominated for a Drama League Award.
In 2008, Scott appeared as Col. William Smith in the HBO miniseries John Adams, opposite Laura Linney and Paul Giamatti. Mamie Gummer, Meryl Streep’s daughter, played his wife. In 2009, he appeared in Sea Wall, a one-man show written especially for him by playwright Simon Stephens.
He starred alongside Ben Whishaw, Katherine Parkinson and Paul Jesson in a sell-out run of Cock at the Royal Court in late 2009, a production which won an Olivier Award in 2010. He has been seen in Foyle’s War as a prisoner determined to allow himself to hang for a crime he may not have committed, which was described in Slant magazine as a “standout performance.” Other film appearances included a role in Chasing Cotards (a short film made for IMAX), the short film, Silent Things and as Paul McCartney in the BBC film Lennon Naked. He also starred in the critically acclaimed 2010 film The Duel.
He is best known as Sherlock Holmes’ nemesis Jim Moriarty in the BBC drama series Sherlock. He had a guest role in the second series of Garrow’s Law playing a gay man on trial for sodomy. In 2010, he appeared with Lisa Dillon and Tom Burke in the Old Vic production of Noël Coward’s Design for Living.
In 2011, he played the lead role of Julian in Ben Power’s adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s epic Emperor and Galilean at the Royal National Theatre in London.
He had a part in BBC2’s original drama The Hour as Adam Le Ray, a failed, closeted actor.
In addition to his stage and TV work, Scott is also known for his voice acting in radio plays and audiobooks, such as the roles of Jay Gatsby in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Stephen Dedalus in James Joyce’s Ulysses.
In November 2013, Scott took part in the Royal National Theatre’s 50 Years on Stage, a theatrical event which consisted of excerpts from many plays over the National’s fifty-year run and was broadcast live on television. Scott performed a scene from Angels in America by Tony Kushner alongside Dominic Cooper.
In 2014 Scott took to the stage in Birdland, written by Simon Stephens and directed by Carrie Cracknell at the Royal Court Theatre, playing the central character of Paul, a rock star on the verge of a breakdown. Scott received positive reviews for the performance, with comments such as “beautifully played” and “pulls off the brilliant trick of being totally dead behind the eyes and fascinating at the same time, an appalling creature who’s both totem and symptom”.
In 2015, he appeared in the James Bond film Spectre, as Max Denbigh, a member of the British government intent on shutting down the Double-0 section.
In 2017, Scott’s performance in the title role of Hamlet won critical acclaim. The play was directed by Robert Icke and first produced at the Almeida Theatre. The production was filmed and broadcast on BBC Two at Easter 2018. Scott provided the voice of Obake in Big Hero 6: The Series.
Scott worked with the charity IdeasTap mentoring young actors and helping to start their careers, until the charity closed in June 2015 due to lack of funds.
In 2019, Scott played The Priest in series two of the award-winning BBC Three comedy-drama Fleabag. Also in 2019, he appeared in the Netflix anthology series Black Mirror, as the lead character Chris in the Season 5 episode “Smithereens”. In June to August 2019, Scott starred as the matinee idol Garry Essendine in Matthew Warchus’s revival of Noël Coward’s Present Laughter at the Old Vic in London. He has been cast as Colonel John Parry/Jopari/Stanislaus Grumman in the HBO/BBC adaptation of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials.
On 25 September 2019, it was announced that Scott had been cast as Tom Ripley in Ripley, a television series to be adapted from Patricia Highsmith’s Ripley novels.
Personal life
Scott is gay, and first commented publicly on his sexuality in an interview with The Independent in November 2013. He stated, “Mercifully, these days people don’t see being gay as a character flaw. But nor is it a virtue, like kindness. Or a talent, like playing the banjo. It’s just a fact. Of course, it’s part of my make-up, but I don’t want to trade on it.”
When asked in the same interview how he prepared his accent for the drama Legacy, in which he played a Soviet diplomat, Scott said, “There isn’t a huge amount of footage of Russians speaking English as a second language, so I started looking at Vladimir Putin videos on YouTube. But then Putin introduced anti-gay legislation this summer so—being a gay person—I switched to Rudolf Nureyev videos instead. It was another Nureyev defection of sorts!”
Scott was ranked at No. 22 on The Independent‘s Rainbow List 2014.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Korea | Eamonn Doyle | |
| 1997 | Drinking Crude | Paul | |
| 1998 | Saving Private Ryan | Soldier on the Beach | |
| The Tale of Sweety Barrett | Danny | ||
| 2000 | Nora | Michael Bodkin | |
| 2001 | I Was the Cigarette Girl | Tim | Short film |
| 2003 | Dead Bodies | Tommy McGann | |
| 2009 | The Duel | Ivan Andreich Laevsky | |
| 2010 | Chasing Cotards | Hart Elliot-Hinwood | Short film |
| Silent Things | Jake | Short film | |
| 2012 | Sea Wall | Alex | Short film |
| 2013 | Legacy | Viktor Koslov | |
| The Stag | Davin | ||
| 2014 | Locke | Donal | |
| Pride | Gethin Roberts | ||
| Jimmy’s Hall | Father Seamus | ||
| 2015 | Spectre | C (Max Denbigh) | |
| Victor Frankenstein | Inspector Roderick Turpin | ||
| 2016 | Alice Through the Looking Glass | Addison Bennett | |
| Swallows and Amazons | Lazlow | ||
| Denial | Anthony Julius | ||
| This Beautiful Fantastic | Vernon Kelly | ||
| 2017 | Handsome Devil | Dan Sherry | |
| The Hope Rooms | Sean | Short film | |
| The Delinquent Season | Chris | ||
| 2018 | A Dark Place | Donald Devlin | AKA Steel Country |
| 2019 | Cognition | Elias | Short film |
| 1917 | Lieutenant Leslie |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Budgie | Peter | Television film |
| 1998 | Miracle at Midnight | Michael Grunbaum | Television film |
| 1998 | The American | Valentin de Bellegarde | Television film |
| 2000 | Longitude | John Campbell | 4 episodes |
| 2001 | Band of Brothers | Pvt. John “Cowboy” Hall | Episode: “Day of Days” |
| 2003 | Killing Hitler | Sniper | Documentary film |
| 2004 | My Life in Film | Jones | 6 episodes |
| 2005 | The Quatermass Experiment | Vernon | Television film |
| 2007 | Nuclear Secrets | Andrei Sakarov | Episode: “Superbomb” |
| 2008 | John Adams | Col. William Smith | 4 episodes |
| 2008 | Little White Lie | Barry | Television film |
| 2010 | Foyle’s War | James Devereaux | Episode: “The Hide” |
| 2010 | Lennon Naked | Paul McCartney | Television film |
| 2010–2017 | Sherlock | James “Jim” Moriarty | 8 episodes |
| 2010 | Garrow’s Law | Captain Jones | Episode: “Episode #2.2” |
| 2011 | The Hour | Adam Le Ray | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Blackout | Dalien Bevan | 3 episodes |
| 2012 | The Scapegoat | Paul Spencer | Television film |
| 2012 | The Town | Mark Nicholas | 3 episodes |
| 2013 | Dates | Christian | Episode: “Jenny and Christian” |
| 2016 | The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses | King Louis | Episode: “Henry VI, Part 2” |
| 2016 | Earth’s Seasonal Secrets | Narrator | 4 episodes |
| 2017 | Quacks | Charles Dickens | Episode: “The Lady’s Abscess” |
| 2017-present | School of Roars | Narrator | Voice role |
| 2017–2018 | Big Hero 6: The Series | Obake (voice) | 11 episodes |
| 2018 | King Lear | Edgar | Television film |
| 2019 | Fleabag | The Priest | 6 episodes |
| 2019 | Black Mirror | Christopher Michael Gillhaney | Episode: “Smithereens” |
| 2019 | Modern Love | Tobin | Episode: “Hers Was a World of One” |
| 2019–present | His Dark Materials | Colonel John Parry / Jopari | 6 episodes |
| TBA | The Pursuit of Love | Lord Merlin | Upcoming series |
| TBA | Oslo | Terje Rød-Larsen | Television film |
| TBA | Ripley | Tom Ripley | 8 episodes |
Stage
| Year | Production | Character | Director | Company |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 199? | Brighton Beach Memoirs | Stan | Rita Tieghe | Andrew’s Lane, Dublin |
| 1996 | Six Characters in Search of an Author | The Son | John Crowley | Abbey Theatre |
| 1996 | The Marriage of Figaro | Cherubino | Brian Brady | Abbey Theatre |
| 1996 | A Woman of No Importance | Gerald Arbuthnot | Ben Barnes | Abbey Theatre |
| 1997 | Lonesome West | Father Welsh | Garry Hynes | Druid Theatre Co. |
| 1998 | Long Day’s Journey into Night | Edmund | Karel Reisz | The Gate, Dublin |
| 2000 | Dublin Carol | Mark | Ian Rickson | The Old Vic/Royal Court Theatre |
| 2000 | The Secret Fall of Constance Wilde | Lord Alfred Douglas | Patrick Mason | Abbey Theatre/Barbican, RSC |
| 2001 | The Coming World | Ed/Ty | Mark Brickman | Soho Theatre |
| 200? | Crave | B | Vicky Featherstone | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2002 | Original Sin | Angel | Peter Gill | Sheffield Crucible |
| 2002 | The Cavalcaders | Rory | Robin Lefevre | Tricycle Theatre |
| 2003 | Playing the Victim | Valya | Richard Wilson | Told by an Idiot |
| 2004 | A Girl in a Car with a Man | Alex | Joe Hill-Gibbins | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2005 | Aristocrats | Casimir | Tom Cairns | National Theatre Company |
| 2006 | Dying City | Craig/Peter | James McDonald | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2006–07 | The Vertical Hour | Philip Lucas | Sam Mendes | The Music Box, NY |
| 2008, 2018 | Sea Wall | Alex | George Perrin | The Bush Theatre and The Old Vic |
| 2009 | Roaring Trade | Donny | Roxana Silbert | Soho Theatre |
| 2009 | Cock | M | James McDonald | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2010 | Design for Living | Leo | Anthony Page | The Old Vic |
| 2011 | Emperor and Galilean | Julian | Jonathan Kent | Royal National Theatre |
| 2014 | Birdland | Paul | Carrie Cracknell | Royal Court Theatre |
| 2015 | The Dazzle | Langley Collyer | Simon Evans | Found111 |
| 2016 | Letters Live | Freemasons’ Hall | ||
| 2017 | Hamlet | Hamlet | Robert Icke | Almeida Theatre & Harold Pinter Theatre |
| 2019 | Present Laughter | Garry Essendine | Matthew Warchus | The Old Vic |
| 2020 | Three Kings | Patrick | Matthew Warchus | The Old Vic (Old Vic: In Camera) |
Awards and nominations
Film
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Actor in a Film | Dead Bodies | Won |
| 2004 | Berlin International Film Festival | Shooting Stars Award | Won | |
| 2014 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Actor in a Film | The Stag | Nominated |
| British Independent Film Award | Best Supporting Actor | Pride | Won | |
| 2015 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Film | Nominated | |
| 2018 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Film | Handsome Devil | Nominated |
Television
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | British Academy Television Award | Best Supporting Actor | Sherlock | Won |
| 2013 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Supporting Actor – Television | Won | |
| 2015 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Supporting TV Actor | Nominated | |
| 2017 | Irish Film & Television Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | The Hollow Crown | Nominated |
| 2020 | Satellite Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Miniseries or TV Film | Fleabag | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Award | Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film | Nominated | ||
| Critics’ Choice Television Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Won | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Award | Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series | Nominated | |||
| Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series | Black Mirror | Nominated | |
| Irish Film & Television Award | Best Actor in a Drama Series | Won |
Theatre
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Irish Times Theatre Award | Best Supporting Actor | Long Day’s Journey into Night | Nominated |
| 2005 | Laurence Olivier Award | Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre | A Girl in a Car with a Man | Won |
| 2007 | Drama League Award | Distinguished Performance | The Vertical Hour | Nominated |
| 2017 | Critics’ Circle Theatre Award | Best Shakespearean Performance | Hamlet | Won |
| 2018 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Actor | Nominated | |
| 2019 | Critics’ Circle Theatre Award | Best Actor | Present Laughter | Won |
| Evening Standard Theatre Award | Best Actor | Won | ||
| 2020 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Actor | Won |
Other
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | BBC Audio Drama Award | Best Supporting Actor | Referee | Won |
| 2013 | BBC Audio Drama Award | Best Actor | Betrayal | Won |