Jeremy John Irons

Biography

Jeremy John Irons was born on 19 September 1948 in Cowes on the Isle of Wight, England. He studied at Sherborne School in Dorset and trained formally at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He began his career in theatre—performing Shakespeare, classic and modern plays—before moving into television and film in the 1970s. His first major screen break came with the mini-series Brideshead Revisited (1981), and around the same time he co-starred in The French Lieutenant’s Woman. He has played a wide variety of roles: ambiguous or flawed characters, villains, romantic leads, historical figures. Among his most acclaimed work is his portrayal of Claus von Bülow in Reversal of Fortune, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. He has also won a Tony Award, multiple Emmys, and Golden Globes. Irons lent his voice to the character Scar in Disney’s The Lion King and appeared in films like Dead Ringers, Lolita, Die Hard: With a Vengeance, and The Mission. Off screen he has been involved in charitable causes and environmental awareness. Even decades into his career, he continues to take on challenging roles across theatre, television and film.