Profile photo of Brian Cox

Brian Cox

Brian Denis Cox (born June 1, 1946) is a Scottish actor. A classically trained Shakespearean actor, he is known for his work on stage and screen. His numerous accolades include two Laurence Olivier Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award, as well as a nomination for a British Academy Television Award. In 2003, he was appointed to the Order of the British Empire at the rank of Commander. Cox trained at the Dundee Repertory Theatre before becoming a founding member of the Royal Lyceum Theatre. He went on to train as a Shakespearean actor, starring in numerous productions with the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he gained recognition for his portrayal of King Lear. Cox received two Laurence Olivier Awards for Best Actor for his roles in Rat in the Skull (1984), for Royal Court, and Titus Andronicus (1988). He received two more Olivier Award nominations for Misalliance (1986) and Fashion (1988). Known as a character actor in film, he played Robert McKee in Spike Jonze's Adaptation (2002) and William Stryker in X2 (2003). For his starring role in L.I.E. (2001), he received an Independent Spirit Award nomination. His other notable films include Manhunter (1986), Iron Will (1994), Braveheart (1995), The Boxer (1997), The Rookie (2002), Troy (2004), Match Point (2005), The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (2007), Coriolanus (2011), Pixels (2015), and Churchill (2017). Cox won the Primetime Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series for his portrayal of Hermann Göring in the television film Nuremberg (2001). The following year, he guest starred on the NBC sitcom Frasier, earning his second Emmy nomination in 2002. He portrayed Jack Langrishe in the HBO series Deadwood. He starred as Logan Roy on the HBO series Succession (2018-2023), for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series and was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Actor in a Drama Series.

Filmography

2026
Glenrothan

as Sandy

Movie
2025
The Electric State

as Popfly (voice)

Movie
2024
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim

as Helm Hammerhand (voice)

Movie
2024
That Christmas

as Santa (voice)

Movie
2022
The Independent

as Nick Booker

Movie
2016
The Autopsy of Jane Doe

as Tommy Tilden

Movie
2015
Pixels

as Admiral Porter

Movie
2011
Rise of the Planet of the Apes

as John Landon

Movie
2010
RED

as Ivan Simanov

Movie
2009
Fantastic Mr. Fox

as Action 12 Reporter (voice)

Movie
2007
Zodiac

as Melvin Belli

Movie
2005
Red Eye

as Joe Reisert

Movie
2004
The Bourne Supremacy

as Ward Abbott

Movie
2004
Troy

as King Agamemnon

Movie
2003
X2

as William Stryker

Movie
2002
The Ring

as Richard Morgan

Movie
2002
The Bourne Identity

as Ward Abbott

Movie
1996
The Glimmer Man

as Mr. Smith

Movie
1996
Chain Reaction

as Lyman Earl Collier

Movie
1995
Braveheart

as Argyle Wallace

Movie
1986
Manhunter

as Dr. Hannibal Lecktor

Movie
2018
Succession

as Logan Roy

TV Show