Bill Nighy
William Francis Nighy (born 12 December 1949) is an English actor. Known for his work on screen and stage, he has received numerous awards, including two BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award and nominations for an Academy Award and a Tony Award. Nighy started his career with the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool and made his London debut with the Royal National Theatre starting with The Illuminatus! in 1977. There he gained acclaim for his roles in David Hare's Pravda in 1985, Harold Pinter's Betrayal in 1991, Tom Stoppard's Arcadia in 1993, and Anton Chekov's The Seagull in 1994. He received a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor nomination for his performance in Blue/Orange in 2001. He made his Broadway debut in Hare's The Vertical Hour in 2006, and returned in the 2015 revival of Hare's Skylight earning a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play nomination. Early film roles include in the comedies Still Crazy (1998), and Blow Dry (1999) before his breakout role in Love Actually (2003) which earned him a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor. He soon gained recognition portraying Davy Jones in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series (2006-2007), and Viktor in the Underworld film series (2003-2009). Other films include Shaun of the Dead (2004), The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), The Constant Gardener (2005), Notes on a Scandal (2006), Hot Fuzz (2007), Valkyrie (2008), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 (2010), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012), About Time (2013), Emma (2020), and Living (2022), the last of these earning him his first career Academy Award nomination. Nighy has gained acclaim for his roles in television earning a British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his performance in BBC One series State of Play (2003), and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for the BBC film Gideon's Daughter (2007). He's also known for his roles in HBO's The Girl in the Café (2006) and PBS's Page Eight (2012).
Known For
Credits
- 2026 · Shelter as
- 2025 · Harlan Coben's Lazarus as Doctor Lazarus 'Dr L'
- 2025 · & Sons as Andrew
- 2025 · Bulk as (voice)
- 2024 · That Christmas as Lighthouse Bill (voice)
- 2024 · Joy as Patrick Steptoe
- 2024 · The Wild Robot as Longneck (voice)
- 2024 · Gracie & Pedro: Pets to the Rescue as Conrad (voice)
- 2024 · 10 Lives as Professor Craven (voice)
- 2024 · The First Omen as Cardinal Lawrence
- 2024 · The Beautiful Game as Mal
- 2023 · Role Play as Bob
- 2023 · Bloody Fury as Bloody's Consciousness (voice)
- 2022 · Living as Williams
- 2022 · LIGHT & MAGIC as Self (archive footage)
- 2022 · The Man Who Fell to Earth as Thomas Jerome Newton
- 2021 · Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2020 · Emma. as Mr. Woodhouse
- 2019 · World's Most Scenic Railway Journeys as Narrator (voice)
- 2019 · Pokémon Detective Pikachu as Howard Clifford
- 2018 · Ordeal by Innocence as Leo Argyll
- 2017 · The Bookshop as Mr. Brundish
- 2017 · Castlevania as Saint Germain (voice)
- 2016 · Dad's Army as Sergeant Wilson
- 2016 · Norm of the North as Socrates (voice)
- 2014 · Pride as Cliff
- 2014 · Late Night with Seth Meyers as Self
- 2014 · I, Frankenstein as Naberius
- 2013 · About Time as Dad
- 2013 · The World's End as The Network (voice)
- 2013 · Jack the Giant Slayer as General Fallon
- 2012 · Total Recall as Matthias
- 2012 · Wrath of the Titans as Hephaestus
- 2012 · The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel as Douglas Ainslie
- 2011 · Arthur Christmas as Grandsanta (voice)
- 2011 · Rango as Rattlesnake Jake (voice)
- 2011 · Chalet Girl as Richard Madsen
- 2010 · Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 as Rufus Scrimgeour
- 2010 · Wild Target as Victor Maynard
- 2009 · Astro Boy as Dr. Elefun / Robotsky (voice)
- 2009 · G-Force as Leonard Saber
- 2009 · The Boat That Rocked as Quentin
- 2009 · Underworld: Rise of the Lycans as Viktor
- 2008 · Valkyrie as Friedrich Olbricht
- 2008 · Slapper as Arnold Percy
- 2007 · Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End as Davy Jones
- 2007 · Hot Fuzz as Met Chief Inspector
- 2006 · Notes on a Scandal as Richard Hart
- 2006 · Flushed Away as Whitey (voice)
- 2006 · Stormbreaker as Alan Blunt
- 2006 · Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest as Davy Jones
- 2006 · Underworld: Evolution as Viktor
- 2005 · The Constant Gardener as Sir Bernard Pellegrin
- 2005 · The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as Slartibartfast
- 2005 · Doctor Who as Dr Black
- 2004 · Enduring Love as Robin
- 2004 · Shaun of the Dead as Phillip
- 2003 · Underworld as Viktor
- 2003 · Love Actually as Billy Mack
- 2003 · State of Play as Cameron Foster
- 2003 · The Lost Prince as Stamfordham
- 2002 · Timeshift as self (voice)
- 2002 · The Inspector Lynley Mysteries as Lockwood
- 2002 · AKA as Uncle Louis Gryffoyn
- 2001 · Richard & Judy as Self
- 2000 · Black Books as Man at bar
- 2000 · Longitude as Lord Sandwich
- 1998 · Still Crazy as Ray Simms
- 1998 · Parkinson as Self
- 1996 · True Blue as Jeremy Saville
- 1996 · Alive and Kicking as Tristan
- 1996 · Testament: The Bible in Animation as Belshazzar (voice)
- 1995 · Kavanagh Q.C. as Giles Culpepper QC
- 1994 · Wycliffe as David Cleeve
- 1994 · Being Human as Julian
- 1993 · The Maitlands as Roger Maitland
- 1993 · Peak Practice as Alan Sinclair
- 1993 · Unnatural Causes as Oliver Latham
- 1991 · Performance as Roger Maitland
- 1991 · Performance as Hugh Marriner
- 1991 · Absolute Hell as Hugh Marriner
- 1985 · Thirteen at Dinner as Ronald Marsh
- 1983 · Auf Wiedersehen, Pet as Jeffrey Grainger
- 1983 · Reilly: Ace of Spies as Goschen
- 1983 · Curse of the Pink Panther as ENT Doctor
- 1982 · Easter 2016 as Connor Mullan
- 1980 · Little Lord Fauntleroy as Officer
- 1980 · Fox as Colin Street
- 1979 · Deasey (Desperate) as Deasy
- 1979 · Minder as Oates
- 1976 · Occupy! as Player in Everyman Theatre Company, Liverpool
- 1974 · Playhouse as Bruno
- 1970 · Play for Today as Dave
- Future · 500 Miles as
- 2021 · Iberia's Woodlands: Life on the Edge as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2021 · World's Most Scenic River Journeys as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2020 · Minamata as Robert "Bob" Hayes
- 2019 · The Kindness of Strangers as Timofey
- 2019 · StarDog and TurboCat as Sinclair (voice)
- 2019 · Hope Gap as Edward
- 2019 · Sometimes Always Never as Alan
- 2017 · Red Nose Day Actually as Billy Mack
- 2017 · Their Finest as Ambrose Hilliard / Uncle Frank
- 2016 · The Limehouse Golem as John Kildare
- 2015 · The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel as Douglas Ainslie
- 2011 · Page Eight as Johnny Worricker
- 2011 · Astonish Me as The Professor
- 2009 · 10 Minute Tales as
- 2005 · Gideon's Daughter as Gideon Warner
- 2005 · Meerkat Manor as Narrator
- 2005 · Inside 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' as Self
- 2005 · The Girl in the Café as Lawrence
- 2004 · The Magic Roundabout as Dylan (voice)
- 2004 · He Knew He Was Right as Colonel Osborne
- 2003 · The Young Visiters as Earl of Clincham
- 2003 · Grumpy Old Men as Self
- 2003 · Canterbury Tales as James
- 2003 · I Capture the Castle as James Mortmain
- 2001 · Lucky Break as Roger
- 2001 · Blow Dry as Ray Robertson
- 2000 · Longitude as Lord Sandwich
- 1999 · Guest House Paradiso as Mr. Johnson
- 1999 · The Bass Player as
- 1999 · People Like Us as Will Rushmore
- 1997 · FairyTale: A True Story as Edward Gardner
- 1993 · Eye of the Storm as Tom Frewen
- 1992 · Chillers as Tom Dickenson
- 1990 · Antonia and Jane as Howard Nash
- 1989 · The Phantom of the Opera as Martin Barton
- 1989 · Mack the Knife as Tiger Brown
- 1988 · South Of The Border as Tony Freason
- 1988 · This Morning as Self
- 1985 · The Last Place on Earth as Cecil Meares
- 1984 · The Little Drummer Girl as Al
- 1981 · Eye of the Needle as Squadron Leader Blenkinsop
- 1980 · Fox as Colin Street
- 1980 · Death Watch as Katherine's Co-worker (uncredited)
- 1979 · Agony as Vincent Fish
- 1978 · Soldiers Talking, Cleanly as Bill
- Future · California Avenue as Jerry
- Future · Ride or Die as The Director
- 2025 · This Is the Beginning as
- 2024 · Kent: Garden of England as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2023 · Darkling as
- 2023 · Spectre of the Bear as Bennett (voice)
- 2023 · Norfolk & Suffolk: Coast & Country as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2022 · The Laughter & Secrets of Love Actually: 20 Years Later – A Diane Sawyer Special as Self
- 2021 · Christmas Magic at Kew Gardens as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2021 · Lotus: A New Dawn as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2021 · Buckley's Chance as Spencer
- 2020 · Katherine Jenkins Christmas Spectacular as Self
- 2015 · A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman as Self - 'Flushed Away' and 'Arthur Christmas'
- 2014 · National Theatre Live: Skylight as Tom Sergeant
- 2014 · Salting the Battlefield as Johnny Worricker
- 2014 · Turks & Caicos as Johnny Worricker
- 2013 · The Hungry Corpse as The Hungry Corpse
- 2013 · Great White Shark as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2013 · Dangerous Edge: A Life of Graham Greene as Graham Greene (voice)
- 2012 · London: The Modern Babylon as Spoken Quotations (voice)
- 2011 · Real Creatures of Dirt as Self / Rattlesnake Jake
- 2011 · The Man with the Stolen Heart as Narrator
- 2009 · Glorious 39 as Alexander Keyes
- 2009 · Live from Studio Five as Self
- 2009 · The Big Art Project as Narrator
- 2007 · Conclusive: We Made Hot Fuzz as Self
- 2006 · We Love Cigarettes as Narrator
- 2006 · Anatomy of a Global Thriller: Behind the Scenes of The Constant Gardener as Self
- 2005 · Don't Crash: The Documentary of the Making of the Movie of the Book of the Radio Series of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' as Self
- 2004 · Bottom Mindless Violence as Mr. Johnson (archive footage) (uncredited)
- 2004 · Ready When You Are, Mr McGill as Phil Parish
- 2004 · Peter Ustinov: The Parkinson Interviews as Self - Narrator
- 2004 · Burst as Maxwell's Fan 22
- 2003 · Life Beyond the Box: Norman Stanley Fletcher as Self - Narrator
- 2003 · Below Deck: An Interactive History Of Pirates as
- 2002 · Lawless Heart as Dan
- 1993 · Don't Leave Me This Way as John Tracey
- 1992 · A Masculine Ending as John Tracey
- 1990 · Making News as Sam Courtney
- 1985 · Hitler's SS: Portrait in Evil as Helmut Hoffmann
- Future · Heart of Darkness as (voice)
- Future · The Turning Door as (voice)
- Future · Welcome to Paradise as Hooker Duck Host (voice)
- 1982 · Under the Skin as Dave
- 1980 · Standing in for Henry as Bruno
- 1980 · Dreams of Leaving as William
- Future · Pink Sky at Night as Man