Cillian Murphy has never been one to chase the spotlight, but lately, the spotlight refuses to let him go. Fresh off his Academy Award win for OPPENHEIMER, the Irish actor is already deep into his next transformation, this time as a struggling teacher in Netflix’s reform school drama STEVE. It’s a deliberately unglamorous role, the kind Murphy gravitates toward when everyone else expects him to capitalize on his newfound Hollywood heat with something flashier, more commercial, more obvious.
Murphy’s approach to his craft has always been about stripping away rather than adding on. Even after the cultural earthquake that was OPPENHEIMER, a film that dominated conversations from red carpets to college campuses and turned a three-hour historical drama about theoretical physics into an unlikely box office juggernaut, he remains fundamentally unchanged. That Christopher Nolan collaboration, their sixth together spanning over two decades, didn’t just earn Murphy his first Oscar; it cemented a creative partnership that has become one of modern cinema’s most fascinating ongoing experiments in trust and transformation.
The director-actor relationship between Nolan and Murphy is built on something rare in an industry obsessed with brands and franchises: genuine artistic curiosity. From Murphy’s early days playing Scarecrow in BATMAN BEGINS to the haunted soldier in DUNKIRK, Nolan has consistently seen past the piercing blue eyes and sharp cheekbones to find something darker, more complex, more interesting. OPPENHEIMER was simply the fullest expression of that vision, giving Murphy the space to inhabit J. Robert Oppenheimer’s brilliance and moral anguish in ways that felt both intimate and epic.
Now, with STEVE, Murphy returns to smaller-scale storytelling, playing an educator navigating the chaos and heartbreak of a last-chance British reform school. It’s the kind of role that asks him to be human-sized again, to find drama in classrooms and corridors rather than in the fate of nations. For an actor who started his journey in Cork, Ireland, dreaming of music careers before stumbling into theater, this oscillation between the monumental and the modest feels entirely natural. Murphy has never forgotten that acting, at its core, is about connection, about finding the universal in the specific, whether you’re playing the father of the atomic bomb or a teacher trying to reach troubled kids.
The OPPENHEIMER phenomenon was something else entirely, though, a reminder that sometimes the right film arrives at exactly the right moment. It became more than a movie; it was a cultural event that sparked debates about science, morality, and responsibility, that had people reading biographies and revisiting history, that proved audiences still hunger for ambitious, intelligent cinema. Murphy rode that wave with characteristic grace, accepting his Oscar with quiet gratitude, never letting the noise distort who he is or what he values.
What makes Murphy’s recent trajectory so compelling is his refusal to be defined by any single success. The Oscar sits on a shelf somewhere, sure, but he’s already moved on, already searching for the next character who will demand something different from him. STEVE represents that search, a deliberate pivot away from prestige and toward the messy, unglamorous work of portraying ordinary lives under extraordinary pressure. It’s Murphy reminding everyone that the work matters more than the recognition, that transformation is the point, not the podium.
In an era when most actors leverage an Academy Award into franchises and paydays, Murphy is doing something quietly radical: he’s staying curious, staying hungry, staying true to the instincts that brought him from Cork music venues to Hollywood’s biggest stages. The partnership with Nolan will likely continue; their creative chemistry is too rare to abandon. But Murphy isn’t waiting around for the next prestige project to validate him. He’s already in the classroom with STEVE, already finding new ways to disappear into someone else’s skin, already proving that the best response to extraordinary success is simply to keep working, keep searching, keep becoming.
🏆 RIVALS just scooped the International Emmy for Best Drama Series!
The Disney+ hit starring Irish talents Aidan Turner and Victoria Smurfit brought home the gold for this deliciously scandalous 1980s romp through the world of wealthy media types.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
From THE COMMITMENTS to THE TUDORS to KIN, @mariadoylekennedy has built a career that defies categories.
In a brand new interview with The Irish Examiner, Maria opens up about the artists and art that shaped her creative journey—from her Dublin roots to international screens and stages.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
🎠From Shakespeare to a Beatle: Paul Mescal is doing the impossible!
Oscar-nominated Irish actor Paul Mescal is taking on TWO iconic roles that prove he`s one of the most fearless actors working today.
Watch Paul`s latest interview at irishfilmtv.com.
Kerry Condon`s brief but powerful performance in TRAIN DREAMS is pitch perfect.
She inhabits her character with quiet competence, moving through a male-dominated world with both caution and grace.
Watch now on @netflix!
🎬 HAMNET stars to receive Vanguard Award at the Palm Springs International Film Awards!
A stunning meditation on love`s fragility and art`s power to transform suffering into transcendence. This is Irish talent at its absolute finest on the world stage.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Netflix just quietly dropped a crime thriller you`ve been sleeping on, and Brendan Gleeson`s performance alone makes it mandatory viewing.
MR MERCEDES, Stephen King`s dark detective series that somehow flew under the radar, is finally streaming – and it`s everything fans of slow-burn psychological thrillers have been craving.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Andrew Scott is about to steal another movie and we`re absolutely here for it! 🔍
The trailer for WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY has dropped, and our beloved Irish actor is joining Daniel Craig`s Benoit Blanc for what looks like the most deliciously twisted instalment yet.
Scott plays bestselling author Lee Ross, one of several suspects in a seemingly impossible murder that rocks a small town`s religious community.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
From GLADIATOR II`s arena to the quiet forests of Maine collecting folk songs on wax cylinders—Paul Mescal`s latest role in THE HISTORY OF SOUND might be his most vulnerable yet.
Now on @amazonprime, the film follows Lionel, a shy musician from a Kentucky farm in the 1910s, who meets David White (Josh O`Connor) at the New England Conservatory.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
For more than two decades, Domhnall Gleeson has carved out one of the most diverse and compelling careers in contemporary cinema.
Watch Domhnall break down his career in his latest @esquire interview!
Link in bio ❤️
Adapted from Louise Kennedy`s bestselling novel, TRESPASSES stars Gillian Anderson as executive producer and cast member.
Kennedy praises the "ear-perfect, sexy script" and "gorgeously melancholic aesthetic vision" that brings her Women`s Prize-shortlisted novel to life.
Premieres Sunday 9pm on Channel 4, more at irishfilmtv.com.
THE IRIS AFFAIR is a high-stakes chase thriller that turns Italy into a deadly playground where genius meets danger.
Created by LUTHER mastermind Neil Cross, this Sky Original delivers cinematic tension where trust is fatal and every move could be your last. Two minds. One secret. No escape.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
** NEW TRAILER ALERT **
Roadside Attractions has unveiled the first trailer for H IS FOR HAWK, and it`s breathtaking. Brendan Gleeson appears as the father whose absence shapes everything, bringing his signature depth to a role that haunts the entire film.
Watch now at irishfilmtv.com.
🎬 HAMNET has officially overtaken Paul Thomas Anderson`s ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER as the Oscar frontrunner!
Chloé Zhao`s Shakespeare-inspired drama now leads with a 96.8% chance of nomination, fueled by its Telluride buzz and Toronto People`s Choice win.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
The DERRY GIRLS creator is back with HOW TO GET TO HEAVEN FROM BELFAST — and it`s the show Lisa McGee says she`s always wanted to make. 🍀
Three childhood friends. One mysterious death. A wake that goes sideways. Eight episodes of chaos, secrets, and arguments about eyelash extensions.
More at irishfilmtv.com.
Pierce Brosnan trades his 007 tuxedo for raw, devastating drama in CURTAIN CALL—arriving on digital November 10.
Starring opposite Jessica Lange, Brosnan continues his brilliant pivot from action hero to serious character actor, exploring the heartbreaking reality of dementia in the theatre world.
Watch trailer on irishfilmtv.com.
