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Brían F. O'Byrne

Acting Born May 16, 1967 Mullagh, County Cavan, Ireland 24 credits

Biography

Brían Francis O'Byrne (born 16 May 1967) is an Irish actor who works mostly in the United States. He was born in Mullagh, County Cavan.  O'Byrne first attracted notice for his performances in the Martin McDonagh plays The Beauty Queen of Leenane (1996) as Pato Dooley (for which he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play) and The Lonesome West (1997). He is known for taking on serious and dramatic roles, such as a serial killer in Frozen (1998) (for which he won a Tony Award) and a priest accused of child molestation in Doubt (2004), for which he received a Tony nomination. O'Byrne also appeared as a priest in the 2004 film Million Dollar Baby. In May 2007, O'Byrne was nominated for a Tony Award for his performance as Alexander Herzen in Tom Stoppard's 2002 trilogy The Coast of Utopia. In 2011, he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for his performance in Mildred Pierce as Bert Pierce.

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Known for

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

as Liam Connors

Prisoner

as Harrison Dempsey

American Experience

as Alexander Hamilton

Manhunt

as Frank McAlpine
Film

Dead of Winter

as Tall Hunter
Film

Million Dollar Baby

as Father Horvak
Film

Conclave

as O'Malley

Full filmography

  • Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) as Liam Connors
  • Prisoner (2026) as Harrison Dempsey
  • American Experience (1988) as Alexander Hamilton
  • The Last Ship (2014) as Sean Ramsey
  • Oz (1997) as Padraic Connelly
  • The Magicians (2015) as Mayakovsky
  • Manhunt (2017) as Frank McAlpine
  • FlashForward (2009) as Aaron Stark
  • Dead of Winter (2025) as Tall Hunter
  • Million Dollar Baby (2004) as Father Horvak
  • Brotherhood (2006) as Colin
  • Conclave (2024) as O'Malley
  • The Abandons (2025) as Walter Paxton
  • Mildred Pierce (2011) as Bert Pierce
  • Love/Hate (2010) as Inpector Mick Moynihan
  • Aquarius (2015) as Ken Karn
  • Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector (2020) as The Bone Collector
  • Nightflyers (2018) as Auggie
  • Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) as Bobby Lasorda
  • The Bastard Executioner (2015) as Baron Ventris
  • Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) as Larry
  • Prime Suspect (2011) as Reg Duffy
  • The New World (2005) as Lewes
  • The International (2009) as The Consultant