One of England's most versatile character actors, Jim Broadbent has been giving reliably excellent performances on the stage and screen for years. Particularly known for his numerous collaborations with director Mike Leigh, Broadbent was shown to superlative effect in Leigh's Topsy-Turvy, winning the Venice Film Festival's Volpi Cup for his portrayal of British lyricist and playwright W.S. Gilbert.
Born in Lincolnshire, England, in 1949, Broadbent trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. Following his 1972 graduation, he began his professional career on the stage, performing with the Royal National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and as part of the National Theatre of Brent, a two-man troupe he co-founded that performed reduced histories. In addition to his theatrical work, Broadbent did steady work on television, acting for such directors as Mike Newell and Stephen Frears.
Broadbent made his film debut in 1978 with a small part in Jerzy Skolimowski's The Shout. He went on to work with such directors as Stephen Frears (The Hit, 1984) and Terry Gilliam (Time Bandits [1981], Brazil [1985]), but it was through his collaboration with Leigh that Broadbent first became known to an international film audience. In 1991, he starred in Leigh's Life Is Sweet, a domestic comedy that cast him as a good-natured cook who dreams of running his own business.
Broadbent gained further visibility the following year with substantial roles in Neil Jordan's The Crying Game and Newell's Enchanted April, and he could subsequently be seen in such diverse fare as Woody Allen's Bullets Over Broadway (1994), Widows' Peak (1994), Richard Loncraine's highly acclaimed adaptation of Shakespeare's Richard III (1996), and Little Voice (1998), the last of which cast him as a seedy nightclub owner. Appearing primarily as a character actor in these films, Broadbent took center stage for Leigh's Topsy-Turvy (1999), imbuing the mercurial W.S. Gilbert with emotional complexity and comic poignancy. Roles in Bridget Jones's Diary, Moulin Rogue, and Iris made 2001 quite a marquee year for Broadbent; the actor earned both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his affecting turn in Iris.
He remained one of the most respected actors of his generation and continued to work steadily for directors all over the world. In 2002 he was cast in Martin Scorsese's epic historical drama Gangs of New York. In 2003 he took a cameo part in Bright Young Things. In 2004 he returned for the Bridget Jones sequel, and took a bit part in Mike Leigh's Vera Drake. He worked in a number o animated films including Doogal, Valiant, and Robots. In 2007 he had the title role in Longford, a historical drama about the infamous Moor Murders, and the next year he was part of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls.
He became part of the Harry Potter family with Half-Blood Prince, and played King William in the costume drama The Young Victoria, all in 2009. In 2010 he reunited with Mike Leigh and earned excellent reviews yet again for Another Year, and the next year he helped support Meryl Streep to an Oscar play the dutiful husband to The Iron Lady.
| Title | Year | Editors' Rating | User Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Closed Circuit
Actor |
2013 | NOT YET RELEASED | ||
| 2013 | ||||
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Cloud Atlas
Actor |
2012 | |||
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Arthur Christmas
Voice |
2011 | |||
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Exile
Actor |
2011 | |||
| 2011 | ||||
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The Iron Lady
Actor |
2011 | |||
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Animals United
Voice |
2010 | |||
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Another Year
Actor |
2010 | |||
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Any Human Heart
Actor |
2010 | |||
| 2009 | ||||
|
Inkheart
Actor |
2009 | |||
|
Perrier's Bounty
Actor |
2009 | |||
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The Damned United
Actor |
2009 | |||
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The Young Victoria
Actor |
2009 | |||
| 2008 | ||||
|
Hot Fuzz
Actor |
2007 | |||
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Tales of the Riverbank
Voice |
2007 | |||
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When Did You Last See Your Father?
Actor, Director |
2007 | |||
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Art School Confidential
Actor |
2006 | |||
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Free Jimmy
Voice |
2006 | |||
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Longford
Actor |
2006 | |||
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The Street: Series 01
Actor |
2006 | |||
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Robots
Voice |
2005 | |||
| 2005 | ||||
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Valiant
Voice |
2005 | |||
| 2004 | ||||
| 2004 | ||||
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Doogal
Voice |
2004 | |||
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Pride
Voice |
2004 | |||
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Tooth
Actor |
2004 | |||
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Vanity Fair
Actor |
2004 | |||
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Vera Drake
Actor |
2004 | |||
| 2003 | ||||
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The Young Visiters
Actor, Executive Producer |
2003 | |||
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Gangs of New York
Actor |
2002 | |||
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Nicholas Nickleby
Actor |
2002 | |||
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The Gathering Storm
Actor |
2002 | |||
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The King's Beard
Voice |
2002 | |||
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Bridget Jones's Diary
Actor |
2001 | |||
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Iris
Actor |
2001 | |||
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Moulin Rouge
Actor |
2001 | |||
| 1999 | ||||
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Topsy-Turvy
Actor |
1999 | |||
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Little Voice
Actor |
1998 | |||
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The Avengers
Actor |
1998 | |||
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Smilla's Sense of Snow
Actor |
1997 | |||
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The Borrowers
Actor |
1997 | |||
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Brambley Hedge
Actor |
1996 | |||
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The Secret Agent
Actor |
1996 | |||
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Richard III
Actor |
1995 | |||
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Rough Magic
Actor |
1995 | |||
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Bullets Over Broadway
Actor |
1994 | |||
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Prince Cinders
Voice |
1994 | |||
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Princess Caraboo
Actor |
1994 | |||
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The Wedding Gift
Actor |
1994 | |||
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Widows' Peak
Actor |
1994 | |||
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Enchanted April
Actor |
1992 | |||
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The Crying Game
Actor |
1992 | |||
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Life Is Sweet
Actor |
1990 | |||
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Van Gogh
Actor |
1990 | |||
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Erik the Viking
Actor |
1989 | |||
| 1989 | ||||
| 1988 | ||||
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Vroom
Actor |
1988 | |||
| 1987 | ||||
| 1986 | ||||
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The Good Father
Actor |
1986 | |||
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Brazil
Actor |
1985 | |||
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The Insurance Man
Actor |
1985 | |||
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The Hit
Actor |
1984 | |||
| 1983 | ||||
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Birth of a Nation
Actor |
1982 | |||
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The Dogs of War
Actor |
1981 | |||
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Time Bandits
Actor |
1981 | |||
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The Passage
Actor |
1979 | |||
|
The Shout
Actor |
1978 | |||
| 1977 |













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