Ian McKellen British Actor Born 1939 in Burnley

Ian McKellen (25 May 1939, Burnley) is a British actor. Audiences know him from The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003).

Early life

He attended Bolton School and St Catharine's College.

Career

The earliest of his listed screen credits is David Copperfield, from 1966. His 1980s credits include The Keep (1983) and Plenty (1985). During the 1990s, he worked on Last Action Hero (1993, as Death) and Gods and Monsters (1998, as James Whale). Work from the 2000s includes The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002, as Gandalf) and The Da Vinci Code (2006, as Leigh Teabing). The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012, as Gandalf) and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013, as Gandalf) are among his 2010s credits.

In total, 56 films and 3 TV series are listed from 1966 to 2025. Fantasy is the most frequent genre among his listed titles (14), followed by action (11) and drama (8). The list ends, for now, with The Christophers (2025). Of his 16 titles with worldwide box-office figures on record, Beauty and the Beast (2017) has the highest, at $1.26 billion. Beyond acting, the credits show him as writer on Richard III.

Cate Blanchett appears in six of his listed titles, including The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014). Other co-stars who recur in his credits are Peter Jackson (six titles) and Christopher Lee (five titles). Peter Jackson directed six of his titles on record. Bryan Singer is credited as director on three of them, including X-Men (2000) and X2 (2003). Genres on record for him include shakespearean comedy.

Recognition

He won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play in 1981 for Amadeus. Ian McKellen also has received the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (1996) for Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny and the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1979). His nominations include the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1999 for Gods and Monsters. Altogether, 25 wins and 5 nominations are listed.

Public roles

He is listed as affiliated with Stonewall.