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).
Movie | Joy | Patrick Steptoe | 2025 |
Movie | Role Play | Bob | 2024-01-04 |
Movie | The Beautiful Game | Mal | 2024-03-22 |
Movie | The First Omen | Cardinal Lawrence | 2024-04-03 |
Movie | 10 Lives | Professor Craven (voice) | 2024-04-19 |
Movie | Dragonkeeper | Danzi (voice) | 2024-04-11 |
Movie | Gracie and Pedro: Pets to the Rescue | Conrad (voice) | 2024-05-01 |
Series | Norfolk & Suffolk: Coast & Country | Narrator | 2023-09-06 |
Movie | Living | Williams | 2022-11-04 |
Movie | The Laughter & Secrets of 'Love Actually': 20 Years Later | Self | 2022-11-29 |
Series | The Man Who Fell to Earth | Thomas Jerome Newton | 2022-04-24 |
Series | World's Most Scenic River Journeys | Narrator | 2021-04-02 |
Series | Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty | Self - Narrator (voice) | 2021-06-05 |
Movie | Lotus: A New Dawn | Self - Narrator | 2021-07-28 |
Movie | Buckley's Chance | Spencer | 2021-06-24 |
Series | Iberia's Woodlands: Life on the Edge | Self - Narrator (voice) | 2021-06-29 |
Series | Iberia's Woodlands | 他自己 | 2021-06-29 |
Movie | Emma. | Mr. Woodhouse | 2020-02-13 |
Movie | Minamata | Robert "Bob" Hayes | 2020-03-13 |
Movie | Katherine Jenkins Christmas Spectacular | Self | 2020-12-01 |
Movie | Sometimes Always Never | Alan | 2019-03-14 |
Movie | Pokémon Detective Pikachu | Howard Clifford | 2019-05-03 |
Movie | The Kindness of Strangers | Timofey | 2019-12-12 |
Movie | Hope Gap | Edward | 2019-10-03 |
Series | World's Most Scenic Railway Journeys | Narrator (voice) | 2019-10-25 |
Movie | StarDog and TurboCat | Sinclair (voice) | 2019-12-06 |
Series | Ordeal by Innocence | Leo Argyll | 2018-04-01 |
Series | The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale | Himself | 2018-02-18 |
Movie | Red Nose Day Actually | Billy Mack | 2017-03-24 |
Movie | Their Finest | Ambrose Hilliard / Uncle Frank | 2017-02-19 |
Movie | The Bookshop | Mr. Brundish | 2017-11-10 |
Series | Castlevania | Saint Germain (voice) | 2017-07-07 |
Movie | Norm of the North | Socrates (voice) | 2016-01-14 |
Movie | Dad's Army | Sergeant Wilson | 2016-02-05 |
Movie | The Limehouse Golem | John Kildare | 2016-10-18 |
Movie | A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman | Self - 'Flushed Away' and 'Arthur Christmas' | 2015-12-26 |
Movie | The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel | Douglas Ainslie | 2015-02-26 |
Movie | I, Frankenstein | Naberius | 2014-01-22 |
Movie | Turks & Caicos | Johnny Worricker | 2014-03-20 |
Movie | National Theatre Live: Skylight | Tom Sergeant | 2014-07-24 |
Movie | Salting the Battlefield | Johnny Worricker | 2014-03-27 |
Movie | Pride | Cliff | 2014-09-12 |
Movie | Dangerous Edge: A Life of Graham Greene | Graham Greene (voice) | 2013-01-01 |
Movie | Jack the Giant Slayer | General Fallon | 2013-02-27 |
Movie | Great White Shark | Self - Narrator (voice) | 2013-05-24 |
Movie | About Time | Dad | 2013-09-04 |
Movie | The World's End | The Network (voice) | 2013-07-18 |
Movie | The Hungry Corpse | The Hungry Corpse | 2013-06-26 |
Movie | The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel | Douglas Ainslie | 2012-02-23 |
Movie | Total Recall | Matthias | 2012-08-02 |
Movie | Wrath of the Titans | Hephaestus | 2012-03-28 |
Movie | London: The Modern Babylon | Spoken Quotations (voice) | 2012-08-03 |
Movie | Rango | Rattlesnake Jake (voice) | 2011-03-02 |
Movie | Chalet Girl | Richard Madsen | 2011-02-02 |
Movie | Astonish Me | The Professor | 2011-07-26 |
Movie | Arthur Christmas | Grandsanta (voice) | 2011-11-10 |
Movie | Page Eight | Johnny Worricker | 2011-08-28 |
Movie | Real Creatures of Dirt | Self / Rattlesnake Jake | 2011-07-15 |
Movie | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 | Rufus Scrimgeour | 2010-11-17 |
Movie | Wild Target | Victor Maynard | 2010-06-17 |
Movie | Underworld: Rise of the Lycans | Viktor | 2009-01-22 |
Movie | Glorious 39 | Alexander Keyes | 2009-11-20 |
Movie | The Boat That Rocked | Quentin | 2009-04-01 |
Series | The Big Art Project | Narrator | 2009-05-10 |
Movie | Astro Boy | Dr. Elefun (voice) | 2009-10-15 |
Series | Live from Studio Five | Self | 2009-09-14 |
Movie | G-Force | Leonard Saber | 2009-07-24 |
Movie | A Fox's Tale | Ringmaster (voice) | 2008-04-17 |
Movie | Valkyrie | Friedrich Olbricht | 2008-12-25 |
Movie | Slapper | Arnold Percy | 2008-06-21 |
Movie | Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End | Davy Jones | 2007-05-19 |
Movie | Hot Fuzz | Met Chief Inspector | 2007-02-14 |
Movie | We Love Cigarettes | Narrator | 2006-06-29 |
Movie | Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest | Davy Jones | 2006-07-06 |
Movie | Underworld: Evolution | Viktor | 2006-01-12 |
Movie | Anatomy of a Global Thriller: Behind the Scenes of The Constant Gardener | Self | 2006-01-10 |
Movie | Stormbreaker | Alan Blunt | 2006-07-21 |
Movie | Flushed Away | Whitey (voice) | 2006-10-22 |
Movie | Notes on a Scandal | Richard Hart | 2006-12-25 |
Series | The One Show | Self | 2006-08-14 |
Movie | The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy | Slartibartfast | 2005-04-28 |
Movie | The Magic Roundabout | Dylan (voice) | 2005-02-02 |
Movie | The Girl in the Café | Lawrence | 2005-06-25 |
Series | Doctor Who | Dr Black | 2005-03-26 |
Movie | 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' | Self | 2005-09-05 |
Series | Meerkat Manor | Narrator | 2005-09-02 |
Movie | Gideon's Daughter | Gideon Warner | 2005-10-21 |
Movie | Inside 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' | Self | 2005-07-05 |
Movie | The Constant Gardener | Sir Bernard Pellegrin | 2005-08-31 |
Movie | Burst | Maxwell's Fan 22 | 2004-01-01 |
Movie | Shaun of the Dead | Phillip | 2004-04-09 |
Series | He Knew He Was Right | Colonel Osborne | 2004-04-18 |
Movie | Enduring Love | Robin | 2004-10-29 |
Movie | Love Actually | Billy Mack | 2003-09-07 |
Series | State of Play | Cameron Foster | 2003-05-18 |
Series | The Lost Prince | Stamfordham | 2003-01-19 |
Movie | Ready When You Are, Mr McGill | Phil Parish | 2003-01-01 |
Movie | I Capture the Castle | James Mortmain | 2003-05-09 |
Movie | Underworld | Viktor | 2003-09-19 |
Movie | Life Beyond the Box: Norman Stanley Fletcher | Narrator | 2003-12-29 |
Series | Canterbury Tales | James | 2003-09-11 |
Movie | The Young Visiters | Earl of Clincham | 2003-12-26 |
Movie | Below Deck: An Interactive History Of Pirates | 2003-12-02 | |
Series | Grumpy Old Men | Self | 2003-10-10 |
Movie | AKA | Uncle Louis Gryffoyn | 2002-01-19 |
Series | Timeshift | self (voice) | 2002-10-10 |
Series | The Inspector Lynley Mysteries | Lockwood | 2002-04-08 |
Movie | Lawless Heart | Dan | 2002-06-28 |
Movie | Blow Dry | Ray Robertson | 2001-03-01 |
Series | Richard & Judy | Self | 2001-11-26 |
Movie | Lucky Break | Roger | 2001-08-24 |
Series | Black Books | Man at bar | 2000-09-29 |
Series | Longitude | Lord Sandwich | 2000-01-02 |
Movie | Longitude | Lord Sandwich | 2000-01-02 |
Series | Total Recall 2070 | Matthias Lair | 1999-01-05 |
Movie | Guest House Paradiso | Mr. Johnson | 1999-12-03 |
Series | People Like Us | Will Rushmore | 1999-09-20 |
Movie | Still Crazy | Ray Simms | 1998-10-30 |
Movie | FairyTale: A True Story | Edward Gardner | 1997-10-24 |
Series | Testament: The Bible in Animation | Belshazzar (voice) | 1996-12-11 |
Movie | Alive and Kicking | Tristan | 1996-11-08 |
Movie | True Blue | Jeremy Saville | 1996-11-15 |
Series | Kavanagh Q.C. | Giles Culpepper QC | 1995-01-03 |
Movie | Being Human | Julian | 1994-05-06 |
Series | Wycliffe | David Cleeve | 1994-07-24 |
Movie | Unnatural Causes | Oliver Latham | 1993-01-02 |
Series | Peak Practice | Alan Sinclair | 1993-05-10 |
Movie | Don't Leave Me This Way | John Tracey | 1993-05-30 |
Movie | The Maitlands | Roger Maitland | 1993-11-13 |
Movie | A Masculine Ending | John Tracey | 1992-04-12 |
Movie | Absolute Hell | Hugh Marriner | 1991-10-05 |
Series | Performance | Roger Maitland | 1991-02-22 |
Movie | Antonia and Jane | Howard Nash | 1990-01-01 |
Series | Making News | Sam Courtney | 1990-01-16 |
Series | Chillers | Tom Dickenson | 1990-04-14 |
Movie | The Phantom of the Opera | Martin Barton | 1989-11-04 |
Movie | Mack the Knife | Tiger Brown | 1989-11-01 |
Series | South Of The Border | Tony Freason | 1988-10-25 |
Movie | Hitler's SS : Portrait In Evil | Helmut Hoffmann | 1985-02-17 |
Movie | Thirteen at Dinner | Ronald Marsh | 1985-09-19 |
Series | The Last Place on Earth | Cecil Meares | 1985-02-18 |
Movie | The Little Drummer Girl | Al | 1984-10-19 |
Movie | Curse of the Pink Panther | ENT Doctor | 1983-08-12 |
Series | Reilly: Ace of Spies | Goschen | 1983-09-05 |
Series | Auf Wiedersehen, Pet | Jeffrey Grainger | 1983-11-11 |
Movie | Under the Skin | Dave | 1982-01-19 |
Movie | Easter 2016 | Connor Mullan | 1982-05-18 |
Series | Bergerac | Barry | 1981-10-18 |
Movie | Eye of the Needle | Squadron Leader Blenkinsop | 1981-07-24 |
Movie | Dreams of Leaving | William | 1980-01-17 |
Movie | Death Watch | Katherine's Co-worker (uncredited) | 1980-01-23 |
Movie | Little Lord Fauntleroy | Officer | 1980-12-01 |
Movie | Fox | Colin Street | 1980-03-10 |
Series | Fox | Colin Street | 1980-03-10 |
Series | Agony | Vincent Fish | 1979-03-11 |
Series | Minder | Oates | 1979-10-29 |
Movie | Soldiers Talking, Cleanly | Bill | 1978-12-05 |
Movie | Occupy! | Player in Everyman Theatre Company, Liverpool | 1976-01-01 |