Colin Firth is an English actor who has had an extensive career both on stage, screen and television, having received an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Volpi Cup, as well as nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards. Firth's films have grossed more than $4 billion from over 50 releases worldwide.
Firth started his career in the mid-1980s establishing himself as one of the "Brit Pack" of rising young British actors He made his film debut in the romantic historical drama Another Country (1984) followed by roles in A Month in the Country (1987), Valmont (1989), The English Patient (1996), and Shakespeare in Love (1998). He established himself as a romantic comedy lead starring as Mark Darcy in Bridget Jones film series (2001–2025), Jamie Bennett in Love Actually (2003), and Harry Bright in Mamma Mia (2008) and its 2018 sequel. He also acted in the films Relative Values (2000), The Importance of Being Earnest (2002), Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003), What a Girl Wants (2003), and Nanny McPhee (2005).
Firth portrayed King George VI in The Kings Speech (2010) which earned him numerous accolades including the Academy Award for Best Actor. He was previously nominated for his role as a gay man grieving the loss of his partner in A Single Man (2009). He then acted in the spy thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), the musical fantasy Mary Poppins Returns (2018), the war drama 1917 (2019), the children's film The Secret Garden (2020), the romantic drama Supernova (2020), the war drama Operation Mincemeat (2021), the drama Empire of Light (2022), and the science fiction thriller Disclosure Day (2026). During this time he also produced the films Eye in the Sky (2015), and Loving (2016).
On television, Firth earned stardom and acclaim for his portrayal of Mr. Darcy in the BBC television adaptation of Jane Austen's romance Pride and Prejudice (1995). He was Primetime Emmy Award-nominated for his portrayals of Dr Wilhelm Stuckart in the BBC war drama film Conspiracy (2001), and Michael Peterson in the HBO limited series The Staircase (2022). He was BAFTA TV Award-nominated for his performances as Robert Lawrence in the BBC drama film Tumbledown (1988) and Jim Swire in the Sky Atlantic limited series Lockerbie: A Search for Truth (2025).
Acting credits Film + Year Title Role Director Notes 1984 Another Country Tommy Judd Marek Kanievska 1985 1919 Young Alexander Scherbatov Hugh Brody 1987 Tom Birkin Pat O'Connor The Secret Garden Adult Colin Craven Alan Grint 1989 Apartment Zero Adrian LeDuc Martin Donovan Valmont Valmont Miloš Forman 1991 Femme Fatale Joseph Prince Andre R. Guttfreund Wings of Fame Brian Smith Otakar Votocek 1993 Richard Courtois Leslie Megahey Also known as The Advocate 1994 Playmaker Michael Condron / Ross Talbert Yuri Zeltser 1995 Circle of Friends Simon Westward Pat O'Connor 1996 Geoffrey Clifton Anthony Minghella 1997 Jess Clark Jocelyn Moorhouse Fever Pitch Paul Ashworth David Evans 1998 Shakespeare in Love Lord Wessex John Madden 1999 My Life So Far Edward Pettigrew Hugh Hudson Matthew Field Peter Schwabach 2000 Relative Values Peter Ingleton Eric Styles 2001 Bridget Jones's Diary Mark Darcy Sharon Maguire 2002 Jack Worthing Oliver Parker 2003 Girl with a Pearl Earring Johannes Vermeer Peter Webber Hope Springs Colin Ware Mark Herman Love Actually Jamie Bennett Richard Curtis What a Girl Wants Henry Dashwood Dennie Gordon 2004 Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason Mark Darcy Beeban Kidron Trauma Ben Slater Marc Evans 2005 Nanny McPhee Cedric Brown Kirk Jones Where the Truth Lies Vince Collins Atom Egoyan 2007 Aurelius Antonius Doug Lefler And When Did You Last See Your Father? Blake Morrison Anand Tucker Then She Found Me Frank Helen Hunt St Trinian's Geoffrey Thwaites Oliver Parker & Barnaby Thompson In Prison My Whole Life Himself Marc Evans Producer only 2008 Richard Bratton Griffin Dunne Mamma Mia! Harry Bright Phyllida Lloyd Easy Virtue Jim Whittaker Stephan Elliott Genova Joe Michael Winterbottom 2009 Fred Robert Zemeckis Dorian Gray Lord Henry Wotton Oliver Parker George Falconer Tom Ford St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold Geoffrey Thwaites Oliver Parker & Barnaby Thompson 2010 King George VI Tom Hooper Main Street Gus LeRoy John Doyle Steve Steve Rupert Friend Short film 2011 Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Bill Haydon Tomas Alfredson 2012 Stars in Shorts Steve Rupert Friend Segment: Steve Gambit Harry Deane Michael Hoffman 2013 Arthur Newman Arthur Newman / Wallace Avery Dante Ariola 2014 The Railway Man Eric Lomax Jonathan Teplitzky Devil's Knot Ron Lax Atom Egoyan Magic in the Moonlight Stanley / Wei Ling Soo Woody Allen Before I Go to Sleep Ben Lucas Rowan Joffé Kingsman: The Secret Service Harry Hart / Agent Galahad Matthew Vaughn 2015 Eye in the Sky— Gavin Hood Producer only 2016 Genius Maxwell Perkins Michael Grandage Loving— Jeff Nichols Producer only Bridget Jones's Baby Mark Darcy Sharon Maguire 2017 Kingsman: The Golden Circle Harry Hart / Agent Galahad Matthew Vaughn 2018 The Happy Prince Reggie Turner Rupert Everett The Mercy Donald Crowhurst James Marsh Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again Harry Bright Ol Parker Kursk David Russell Thomas Vinterberg Mary Poppins Returns William Weatherall Wilkins / Wolf (voice) Rob Marshall 2019 Greed Himself Michael Winterbottom 1917 General Erinmore Sam Mendes 2020 The Secret Garden Lord Archibald Craven Marc Munden Supernova Sam Harry Macqueen 2021 Mothering Sunday Mr. Godfrey Niven Eva Husson Operation Mincemeat Ewen Montagu John Madden 2022 Empire of Light Donald Ellis Sam Mendes 2023 Rye Lane Burrito Maker Raine Allen-Miller CameoBarbie Mr. Darcy Greta Gerwig Archival footage 2024 Someone's Daughter, Someone's Son — Lorna Tucker Narrator only 2025 Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy Mark Darcy Michael Morris 2026 Disclosure Day Noah Scanlon Steven Spielberg TBA Count di Stefano Tom Ford Post-production Lorna Tucker Filming Alex Comfort Sharon Maguire Filming
Television + Year Title Role Director Notes 1984 Crown Court PC Franklin Gareth Morgan Episode: "Citizens: Part 1" Camille Armand Duval Desmond Davis Television film 1985 Dutch Girls Neil Truelove Giles Foster 1986 Lost Empires Richard Herncastle Alan Grint Television miniseries 1987 Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Pat Hobby Teamed with Genius Rene Wilcox Rob Thompson PBS Shorts Special Adult Colin Craven Alan Grint Hallmark Hall of Fame 1988 Tumbledown Robert Lawrence Richard Eyre Television film 1991 Out of the Blue Alan Nick Hamm Play for television 1992 Hostages John McCarthy David Wheatley Television film – HBO 1994 Master of the Moor Stephen Whalby Marc Evans Television film – UK Freddie Page Karel Reisz Play for television – UK 1995 Pride and Prejudice Fitzwilliam Darcy Simon Langton Television miniseries Charles Holroyd Katie Mitchell Play for television – UK 1997 Nostromo Charles Gould Alastair Reid Television miniseries 1999 Blackadder: Back & Forth William Shakespeare Paul Weiland Television shortThe Turn of the Screw The Master Ben Bolt Masterpiece Theatre 2000 Donovan Quick Donovan Quick/Daniel Quinn David Blair Television film 2001 Conspiracy Wilhelm Stuckart Frank Pierson Television film – HBO We Know Where You Live Himself Declan Lowney Benefit for Amnesty International Fourplay Allen Portland Mike Binder Television film – HBO, also known as Londinium 2004 Saturday Night Live Himself Beth McCarthy-Miller Episode: "Colin Firth/Norah Jones" 2006 Born Equal Mark Armitage Dominic Savage Television film – UK 2017 Red Nose Day Actually Jamie Richard Curtis & Mat Whitecross Television short film 2022 The Staircase Michael Peterson Antonio Campos Miniseries 2025 Lockerbie: A Search for Truth Jim Swire Otto Bathurst 2026 Young Sherlock Sir Bucephalus Hodge Guy Ritchie Series Paul Lohser Tom ShanklandLuke Snellin Upcoming series
Theatre Year Title Role Playwright Venue 1983 Another Country Guy Bennett Julian Mitchell Queen's Theatre, West End 1984 The Doctor's Dilemma Louis Dubedat George Bernard Shaw Churchill Theatre, Bromley 1985 The Lonely Road Felix Arthur Schnitzler The Old Vic, London 1987 Desire Under the Elms Eben Eugene O'Neill Greenwich Theatre, London 1991 The Caretaker Aston Harold Pinter Comedy Theatre, West End 1993 Chatsky Chatsky Alexander Griboyedov Almeida Theatre, London 1999 Three Days of Rain Walker/Ned Richard Greenberg Donmar Warehouse, London
See also List of awards and nominations received by Colin Firth
References