Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE (born May 25, 1939) is an English actor. He is the recipient of six Laurence Olivier Awards, a Tony Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a BIF Award, two Saturn Awards, four Drama Desk Awards and two Critics' Choice Awards. He has also received two Academy Award nominations, eight BAFTA film and TV nominations and five Emmy Award nominations. McKellen's work spans genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. His notable film roles include Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies and Magneto in the X-Men films.
Golden Globe Awards
Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film
Known For
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
(2001)
Gandalf the Grey
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
(2003)
Gandalf the White
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
(2014)
Gandalf the Grey
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(2002)
Gandalf the White
X-Men: Days of Future Past
(2014)
Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto
Beauty and the Beast
(2017)
Cogsworth
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
(2012)
Gandalf the Grey
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
(2013)
Gandalf the Grey
The Da Vinci Code
(2006)
Sir Leigh Teabing
Flushed Away
(2006)
The Toad (voice)
The Golden Compass
(2007)
Iorek Byrnison (voice)
Mr. Holmes
(2015)
Sherlock Holmes
Stardust
(2007)
Narrator (voice)
Last Action Hero
(1993)
Death
X-Men: The Mutant Watch
(2000)
Self - 'Magneto'
Animal Crackers
(2017)
Horatio P. Huntington (voice)
Full Filmography
Acting
The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne
(1965)
Wolf
Alfred the Great
(1969)
Roger
The Promise
(1969)
A Touch of Love
(1969)
George
The Tragedy of King Richard II
(1970)
King Richard II
Edward II
(1970)
King Edward
Hamlet
(1970)
Hamlet
Hedda Gabler
(1972)
George Tesman
The Vanishing Army
(1978)
Macbeth
(1979)
Macbeth
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour
(1979)
Alexander Ivanov
Priest of Love
(1981)
D.H. Lawrence
Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare
(1982)
Walter
(1982)
Walter
The Scarlet Pimpernel
(1982)
Chauvelin
The Keep
(1983)
Dr. Theodore Cuza
Walter and June
(1983)
Walter
Plenty
(1985)
Sir Andrew Charleson
Zina
(1985)
Kronfeld
Countdown to War
(1989)
Adolf Hitler
Scandal
(1989)
John Profumo
Othello
(1990)
Iago
Gladio
(1992)
Aldo Moro (voice)
Last Action Hero
(1993)
Death
Armistead Maupin Is a Man I Dreamt Up
(1993)
Narration (voice)
Six Degrees of Separation
(1993)
Geoffrey
And the Band Played On
(1993)
Bill Kraus
The Ballad of Little Jo
(1993)
Percy Corcoran
The Shadow
(1994)
Dr. Reinhardt Lane
I'll Do Anything
(1994)
John Earl McAlpine
Stonewall 25: Global Voices of Pride and Protest
(1994)
David Macaulay: Roman City
(1994)
Augustus Caesar (voice)
To Die For
(1994)
Quilt Documentary Narrator (voice)
Cold Comfort Farm
(1995)
Amos Starkadder
Richard III
(1995)
Richard III
Jack & Sarah
(1995)
William
Restoration
(1995)
Will Gates
Rasputin
(1996)
Tsar Nicholas II
An Evening with Lily Savage
(1996)
Self
Bent
(1997)
Uncle Freddie
A Bit Of Scarlet
(1997)
Narrator
Surviving Friendly Fire
(1997)
Apt Pupil
(1998)
Kurt Dussander
Gods and Monsters
(1998)
James Whale
Swept from the Sea
(1998)
Dr. James Kennedy
The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale
(1999)
Self
Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man
(2000)
Narrator (voice)
Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed!
(2000)
Self
X-Men
(2000)
Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto
X-Men: The Mutant Watch
(2000)
Self - 'Magneto'
Beyond the Movie: The Fellowship of the Ring
(2001)
Self
Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love
(2001)
Narrator (voice)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
(2001)
Gandalf the Grey
Quest for the Ring
(2001)
Self
A Passage to Middle-earth: Making of 'Lord of the Rings'
(2001)
Self
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(2002)
Gandalf the White
X-Men: Premieres Around the World
(2003)
Self
Émile
(2003)
Emile
X2
(2003)
Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
(2003)
Gandalf the White
The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision
(2003)
Self
Film Collectibles: Capturing Movie Memories
(2003)
Himself
Peter Tatchell: Just Who Does He Think He Is?
(2004)
Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!!
(2004)
Self
The Magic Roundabout
(2005)
Zebedee (voice)
The Hobart Shakespeareans
(2005)
Himself
Ringers: Lord of the Fans
(2005)
Self
Asylum
(2005)
Dr. Peter Cleave
Neverwas
(2005)
Gabriel Finch
Eighteen
(2005)
Jason Anders (voice)
Saint of 9/11
(2006)
Narrator
X-Men: The Last Stand
(2006)
Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto
Doogal
(2006)
Zebedee (voice)
Flushed Away
(2006)
The Toad (voice)
The Da Vinci Code
(2006)
Sir Leigh Teabing
For the Love of God
(2007)
The Jackdaw
The Golden Compass
(2007)
Iorek Byrnison (voice)
Stardust
(2007)
Narrator (voice)
King Lear
(2008)
King Lear
Theatreland
(2009)
Himself
Small-Time Revolutionary
(2010)
Hamish Miller (voice)
Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy
(2010)
Self (archive footage)
Lady Grey London
(2010)
A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation
(2010)
Narrator (voice)
Looking for Lowry
(2011)
Himself
The Betty Driver Story
(2011)
Himself (as Sir Ian McKellan)
Doctor Who: The Snowmen
(2012)
The Great Intelligence (voice)
London 2012: Paralympics Opening Ceremony
(2012)
Himself
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
(2012)
Gandalf the Grey
The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot
(2013)
Himself
Muse of Fire
(2013)
Self
The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin
(2013)
Self
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
(2013)
Gandalf the Grey
The Wolverine
(2013)
Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited)
The Egg Trick
(2013)
Magician
Miss in Her Teens
(2014)
The Prologue
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
(2014)
Gandalf the Grey
X-Men: Days of Future Past
(2014)
Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto
Nelson Mandela Redrawn
(2014)
Self
The Dresser
(2015)
Norman
Mr. Holmes
(2015)
Sherlock Holmes
Knights of Classic Drama at the BBC
(2015)
Self (archive footage)
The Roof
(2016)
And Even Yet Another Fan
National Theatre Live: No Man's Land
(2016)
Spooner
Shakespeare on Film
(2016)
Play the Devil: Making Richard III
(2016)
Shakespeare on Stage, Screen and Elsewhere with Ian McKellen
(2016)
Judi Dench: All the World's Her Stage
(2016)
Self
All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film
(2016)
Prospero's Speech Reader (voice)
Shakespeare Live! From the RSC
(2016)
Self - Performer
Edmund the Magnificent
(2017)
Self - Narrator (voice)
How a Kite Flies
(2017)
Mr. Kite (voice)
The Paul O'Grady Story
(2017)
Himself
The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin
(2017)
Self
Animal Crackers
(2017)
Horatio P. Huntington (voice)
Beauty and the Beast
(2017)
Cogsworth
All Is True
(2018)
Earl of Southampton
National Theatre Live: King Lear
(2018)
King Lear
McKellen: Playing the Part
(2018)
Himself
On Broadway
(2019)
Self
Cats
(2019)
Gus, the Theatre Cat
The Good Liar
(2019)
Roy Courtnay
Du Fu: China's Greatest Poet
(2020)
Ian McKellen on Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others and YOU
(2020)
Infinitum: Subject Unknown
(2021)
Dr. Charles Marland-White
Hating Peter Tatchell
(2021)
Self
Quintessentially British
(2022)
Self
Hamlet Within
(2022)
Amol Rajan Interviews Ian McKellen
(2022)
Self
The Critic
(2023)
Jimmy Erskine
The One Note Man
(2023)
Narrator (voice)
The Life and Death of Lily Savage
(2024)
Self
Hamlet
(2024)
Hamlet
Production
Writing