Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. He has played roles on the screen and stage in genres ranging from Shakespearean dramas and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. He is regarded as a British cultural icon and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. He has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, six Olivier Awards, and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards and five Emmy Awards.
McKellen made his stage debut in 1961 at the Belgrade Theatre as a member of its repertory company, and in 1965 made his first West End appearance. In 1969, he was invited to join the Prospect Theatre Company to play the lead parts in Shakespeare's Richard II and Marlowe's Edward II. In the 1970s, McKellen became a stalwart of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre of Great Britain. He has earned five Olivier Awards for his roles in Pillars of the Community (1977), The Alchemist (1978), Bent (1979), Wild Honey (1984), and Richard III (1995). McKellen made his Broadway debut in The Promise (1965). He received the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus (1980). He was further nominated for Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare (1984). He returned to Broadway in Wild Honey(1986), Dance of Death (1990), No Man's Land (2013), and Waiting for Godot (2013), the latter two being a joint production with Patrick Stewart.
McKellen achieved worldwide fame for his film roles, including the titular King in Richard III (1995), James Whale in Gods and Monsters (1998), Magneto in the X-Men films, Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast (2017) and Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003) and The Hobbit (2012–2014) trilogies. Other notable film roles include A Touch of Love (1969), Plenty (1985), Six Degrees of Separation (1993), Restoration (1995), Flushed Away (2006), Mr. Holmes (2015), and The Good Liar (2019).
McKellen came out as gay in 1988, and has since championed LGBT social movements worldwide. He was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in October 2014. McKellen is a cofounder of Stonewall, an LGBT rights lobby group in the United Kingdom, named after the Stonewall riots. He is also patron of LGBT History Month, Pride London, Oxford Pride, GayGlos, LGBT Foundation and FFLAG.
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| # | Name | Character | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum (2027) | Gandalf | - | - |
| 2 | The Christophers (2026) | Julian Sklar | - | - |
| 3 | Avengers: Doomsday (2026) Trending movies | Magneto | - | - |
| 4 | The Critic (2024) | Jimmy Erskine | - | - |
| 5 | Infinitum: Subject Unknown (2021) | Dr. Charles Marland-White | - | - |
| 6 | The Good Liar (2019) | Roy Courtnay | 7.3 | |
| 7 | Cats (2019) | Gus, the Theatre Cat | 5.1 | |
| 8 | National Theatre Live: King Lear (2018) | King Lear | - | - |
| 9 | McKellen: Playing the Part (2018) | Self | - | - |
| 10 | Animal Crackers (2018) | Horatio P. Huntington (voice) | 7 | |
| 11 | All Is True (2018) | Earl of Southampton | 4 | |
| 12 | The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin (2017) | Self | 3 | |
| 13 | Beauty and the Beast (2017) | Cogsworth | 7.5 | |
| 14 | The Roof (2016) | And Even Yet Another Fan | - | - |
| 15 | National Theatre Live: No Man's Land (2016) | Spooner | - | - |
| 16 | Mr. Holmes (2015) | Sherlock Holmes | 6.6 | |
| 17 | The Dresser (2015) | Norman | - | - |
| 18 | X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) Top 100 by FilmGator | Magneto | 8.1 | |
| 19 | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014) Oscars 2015 | Gandalf the Grey | 7.4 | |
| 20 | Muse of Fire (2013) | Self | - | - |
| 21 | The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot (2013) | Self | - | - |
| 22 | The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin (2013) | Self | - | - |
| 23 | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013) Top 100 by FilmGator | Gandalf the Grey | 7.9 | |
| 24 | The Wolverine (2013) | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited) | 6.7 | |
| 25 | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) Top 100 by FilmGator | Gandalf the Grey | 8 | |
| 26 | King Lear (2008) | King Lear | - | - |
| 27 | For the Love of God (2007) | The Jackdaw | 6 | |
| 28 | The Golden Compass (2007) Oscars 2008 | Iorek Byrnison (voice) | 6.3 | |
| 29 | Stardust (2007) | Narrator (voice) | 7.3 | |
| 30 | The Da Vinci Code (2006) | Sir Leigh Teabing | 6.8 | |
| 31 | X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto | 6.7 | |
| 32 | Flushed Away (2006) | The Toad (voice) | 6.7 | |
| 33 | Doogal (2006) | Zebedee (voice) | - | - |
| 34 | The Magic Roundabout (2005) | Zebedee (voice) | 6 | |
| 35 | Ringers: Lord of the Fans (2005) | Self | - | - |
| 36 | Asylum (2005) | Dr. Peter Cleave | - | - |
| 37 | Neverwas (2005) | Gabriel Finch | 6.5 | |
| 38 | Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!! (2004) | Self | - | - |
| 39 | X2 (2003) | Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto | 7.4 | |
| 40 | Emile (2003) | Emile | 1 | |
| 41 | The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men! Making X2 (2003) | Self | - | - |
| 42 | The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) Top 100 by FilmGator | Gandalf | 8.9 | |
| 43 | Beyond the Movie: The Return of the King (2003) | Self | - | - |
| 44 | The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision (2003) | Self | - | - |
| 45 | The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) Oscars 2003 | Gandalf | 8.7 | |
| 46 | Passage to Middle-Earth: The Making of 'The Lord of the Rings' (2001) | Self | - | - |
| 47 | The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) Top 100 by FilmGator | Gandalf | 8.8 | |
| 48 | Beyond the Movie: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) | Self | 7 | |
| 49 | Quest for the Ring (2001) | Self | - | - |
| 50 | X-Men: The Mutant Watch (2000) | Self - 'Magneto' | 6 | |
| 51 | X-Men (2000) | Magneto | 7.5 | |
| 52 | Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed! (2000) | Self | 7 | |
| 53 | The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale (1999) | Self | - | - |
| 54 | Gods and Monsters (1998) Oscars 1999 | James Whale | 3.5 | |
| 55 | Apt Pupil (1998) | Kurt Dussander | 6.8 | |
| 56 | Swept from the Sea (1998) | Dr. James Kennedy | 9.5 | |
| 57 | Bent (1997) | Uncle Freddie | 6 | |
| 58 | Rasputin (1996) | Tsar Nicholas II | - | - |
| 59 | Richard III (1995) | Director / Writer | 8.5 | |
| 60 | Cold Comfort Farm (1995) | Amos Starkadder | 6 | |
| 61 | Restoration (1995) | Will Gates | 7 | |
| 62 | Jack & Sarah (1995) | William | - | - |
| 63 | I'll Do Anything (1994) | John Earl McAlpine | 3 | |
| 64 | The Shadow (1994) | Dr. Reinhardt Lane | 6.8 | |
| 65 | And the Band Played On (1993) | Bill Kraus | 7 | |
| 66 | Six Degrees of Separation (1993) | Geoffrey | 7.3 | |
| 67 | Last Action Hero (1993) | Death | 6.5 | |
| 68 | The Ballad of Little Jo (1993) | Percy Corcoran | - | - |
| 69 | Othello (1990) | Iago | - | - |
| 70 | Scandal (1989) | John Profumo | - | - |
| 71 | Plenty (1985) | Sir Andrew Charleson | 2 | |
| 72 | The Keep (1983) | Dr. Theodore Cuza | 5.4 | |
| 73 | The Scarlet Pimpernel (1982) | Chauvelin | - | - |
| 74 | Priest of Love (1981) | D.H. Lawrence | - | - |
| 75 | Macbeth (1979) | Macbeth | - | - |
