Ian McKellen

87, from Burnley, Lancashire, England, UK

Artwork for Beauty and the BeastImage of Ian McKellen

Biography

Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. He is the recipient of six Laurence Olivier Awards, a Tony Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a BIF Award, two Saturn Awards, four Drama Desk Awards and two Critics' Choice Awards. He has also received two Academy Award nominations, eight BAFTA film and TV nominations and five Emmy Award nominations. McKellen's work spans genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. His notable film roles include Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies and Magneto in the X-Men films.

Timeline

2027Future projects

  • Poster for The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum

    Gandalf

2026Aged 87

2025Aged 86

2024Aged 85

  • Poster for Hamlet

    Hamlet

  • Poster for The Life and Death of Lily Savage

    Self

  • Poster for The Real Ken Dodd: The Man I Loved

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for Dragfox

    Ginger Snap the Fox (Speaking) (voice)

  • Poster for The Critic

    Jimmy Erskine

2023Aged 84

  • Poster for The One Note Man

    Narrator (voice)

2022Aged 83

  • Poster for Hamlet Within

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for Freedom: 50 Years of Pride

    Self

  • Poster for Quintessentially British

    Self

2021Aged 82

  • Poster for Infinitum: Subject Unknown

    Dr. Charles Marland-White

  • Poster for Hating Peter Tatchell

    Self

2020Aged 81

  • Poster for Du Fu: China's Greatest Poet

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for Ian McKellen on Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others and YOU

    (Unknown)

2019Aged 80

  • Poster for On Broadway

    Self

  • Poster for The Good Liar

    Roy Courtnay

  • Poster for Cats

    Gus, the Theatre Cat

  • Poster for The Isle

    Associate Producer

2018Aged 79

  • Poster for McKellen: Playing the Part

    Self

  • Poster for Animal Crackers

    Horatio P. Huntington (voice)

  • Poster for National Theatre Live: King Lear

    King Lear

  • Poster for All Is True

    Earl of Southampton

2017Aged 78

  • Poster for Edmund the Magnificent

    Self - Narrator (voice)

  • Poster for The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin

    Self

  • Poster for Beauty and the Beast

    Cogsworth

  • Poster for How a Kite Flies

    Mr. Kite (voice)

  • Poster for The Paul O'Grady Story

    Self

2016Aged 77

2015Aged 76

  • Poster for Mr. Holmes

    Sherlock Holmes

  • Poster for Mutant vs. Machine - The Making of 'X-Men: Days of Future Past'

    Self

  • Poster for X-Men: Unguarded

    Self

  • Poster for The Dresser

    Norman

  • Poster for Knights of Classic Drama at the BBC

    Self (archive footage)

2014Aged 75

  • Poster for Miss in Her Teens

    The Prologue

  • Poster for X-Men: Days of Future Past

    Magneto

  • Poster for Nelson Mandela Redrawn

    Self

  • Poster for X-Men: Reunited

    Self

  • Poster for Double Take: Xavier & Magneto

    Self

  • Poster for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

    Gandalf the Grey

2013Aged 74

  • Poster for The Egg Trick

    Magician

  • Poster for The Wolverine

    Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited)

  • Poster for Muse of Fire

    Self

  • Poster for The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot

    Self

  • Poster for The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin

    Self

  • Poster for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

    Gandalf the Grey

2012Aged 73

  • Poster for London 2012: Paralympics Opening Ceremony

    Self

  • Poster for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

    Gandalf the Grey

  • Poster for Doctor Who: The Snowmen

    The Great Intelligence (voice)

2011Aged 72

  • Poster for The Betty Driver Story

    Self

  • Poster for Looking for Lowry

    Self

2010Aged 71

  • Poster for A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation

    Narrator (voice)

  • Poster for Small-Time Revolutionary

    Hamish Miller (voice)

2009Aged 70

  • Poster for Theatreland

    Self

2008Aged 69

  • Poster for King Lear

    King Lear

2007Aged 68

2006Aged 67

  • Poster for Doogal

    Zebedee (voice)

  • Poster for Saint of 9/11

    Narrator

  • Poster for The Da Vinci Code

    Sir Leigh Teabing

  • Poster for X-Men: The Last Stand

    Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto

  • Poster for Flushed Away

    The Toad (voice)

2005Aged 66

  • Poster for Eighteen

    Jason Anders (voice)

  • Poster for Ringers: Lord of the Fans

    Self

  • Poster for The Magic Roundabout

    Zebedee (voice)

  • Poster for The Hobart Shakespeareans

    Self

  • Poster for Asylum

    Dr. Peter Cleave

  • Poster for Neverwas

    Gabriel Finch

2004Aged 65

  • Poster for Peter Tatchell: Just Who Does He Think He Is?

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for The Making of 'The Return of the King'

    Self

  • Poster for Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!!

    Self

  • Poster for My First Time

    Narrator

  • Poster for A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King'

    Self

2003Aged 64

  • Poster for Emile

    Emile

  • Poster for X-Men: Premieres Around the World

    Self

  • Poster for Evolution X - The Making of X-Men

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for The Making of 'The Two Towers'

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for X2

    Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto

  • Poster for The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men! Making X2

    Self

  • Poster for Beyond the Movie: The Return of the King

    Self

  • Poster for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

    Gandalf

  • Poster for The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision

    Self

2002Aged 63

  • Poster for The Fellowship of the Ring: From Book to Script

    Self

  • Poster for The Fellowship of the Ring: Designing and Building Middle-earth + Weta Workshop + Costume Design

    Self

  • Poster for The Fellowship of the Ring: The Fellowship of the Cast

    Self

  • Poster for The Fellowship of the Ring: Cameras in Middle-earth

    Self

  • Poster for The Fellowship of the Ring: Scale

    Self

  • Poster for The Fellowship of the Ring: The Road Goes Ever On..

    Self

  • Poster for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

    Gandalf

2001Aged 62

  • Poster for Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love

    Narrator (voice)

  • Poster for Quest for the Ring

    Self

  • Poster for Passage to Middle-Earth: The Making of 'The Lord of the Rings'

    Self

  • Poster for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

    Gandalf

  • Poster for Beyond the Movie: The Fellowship of the Ring

    Self

2000Aged 61

  • Poster for Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man

    Narrator (voice)

  • Poster for X-Men: The Mutant Watch

    Self - 'Magneto'

  • Poster for X-Men

    Magneto

  • Poster for Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed!

    Self

1999Aged 60

  • Poster for After Stonewall

    Self

  • Poster for The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale

    Self

1998Aged 59

  • Poster for Swept from the Sea

    Dr. James Kennedy

  • Poster for Gods and Monsters

    James Whale

  • Poster for Apt Pupil

    Kurt Dussander

1997Aged 58

  • Poster for A Bit Of Scarlet

    Narrator

  • Poster for Surviving Friendly Fire

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for Bent

    Uncle Freddie

1996Aged 57

  • Poster for Rasputin

    Tsar Nicholas II

  • Poster for An Evening with Lily Savage

    Self

1995Aged 56

  • Poster for Cold Comfort Farm

    Amos Starkadder

  • Poster for Jack & Sarah

    William

  • Poster for Richard III

    Richard III

  • Poster for Restoration

    Will Gates

1994Aged 55

  • Poster for I'll Do Anything

    John Earl McAlpine

  • Poster for David Macaulay: Roman City

    Augustus Caesar (voice)

  • Poster for The Shadow

    Dr. Reinhardt Lane

  • Poster for Age of Dissent

    Self

  • Poster for Stonewall 25: Global Voices of Pride and Protest

    Self

  • Poster for To Die For

    Quilt Documentary Narrator (voice)

1993Aged 54

  • Poster for Last Action Hero

    Death

  • Poster for Armistead Maupin Is a Man I Dreamt Up

    Narration (voice)

  • Poster for The Ballad of Little Jo

    Percy Corcoran

  • Poster for And the Band Played On

    Bill Kraus

  • Poster for A Simple Matter of Justice

    Self

  • Poster for Six Degrees of Separation

    Geoffrey

  • Poster for Camp Christmas

    (Unknown)

1992Aged 53

  • Poster for Gladio

    Aldo Moro (voice)

1990Aged 51

  • Poster for Othello

    Iago

1989Aged 50

  • Poster for Scandal

    John Profumo

  • Poster for Countdown to War

    Adolf Hitler

1988Aged 49

  • Poster for Scarfe's Follies

    (Unknown)

1987Aged 48

  • Poster for Süleyman the Magnificent

    Narrator

1985Aged 46

  • Poster for Plenty

    Sir Andrew Charleson

  • Poster for Zina

    Kronfeld

1983Aged 44

  • Poster for Walter and June

    Walter

  • Poster for The Keep

    Dr. Theodore Cuza

1982Aged 43

  • Poster for Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare

    (Unknown)

  • Poster for Walter

    Walter

  • Poster for The Scarlet Pimpernel

    Chauvelin

1981Aged 42

  • Poster for Priest of Love

    D.H. Lawrence

1980Aged 41

1979Aged 40

  • Poster for Macbeth

    Macbeth

  • Poster for Every Good Boy Deserves Favour

    Alexander Ivanov

1974Aged 35

1972Aged 33

1970Aged 31

  • Poster for The Tragedy of King Richard II

    King Richard II

  • Poster for Edward II

    King Edward

  • Poster for Hamlet

    Hamlet

1969Aged 30

1965Aged 26

  • Poster for The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne

    Wolf

Year unknown

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