Cillian Murphy Recruited His Literal “Acting Hero” For ‘Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man’

Cillian Murphy has had an insane run over the last few years, making the jump from Birmingham’s favorite gangster to winning an Oscar for Christopher Nolan‘s ‘Oppenheimer.’ Earlier this year, he suited up as Tommy Shelby one more time for the ‘Peaky Blinders‘ movie, but the real magic happened behind the scenes.

For ‘Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man,’ which came out on March 20, 2026, Murphy got to live out a total fanboy dream. The actor brought on a legendary actor he has loved since childhood. Read on to learn about the man in question!

Cillian Murphy Collaborated With His Favorite Star

In ‘Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man,’ Cillian Murphy cast his longtime creative inspiration and hero. It’s none other than Tim Roth, an English actor who starred in ‘Pulp Fiction.’ He has also won a BAFTA award and received nominations for both the Golden Globe and the Academy Awards.

Related: How Cillian Murphy’s ’28 Days Later’ Pulled Off The Empty London Scenes Before Modern CGI Became The Norm

In an interview with Radio Times, Murphy spoke candidly about his idol. “Tim Roth is one of my favorite actors, and we’d worked together before, and I was able to ask him to come and play in this one. He’s brilliant in the film!” he said.

The actor elaborated that Roth was “an acting hero of mine, growing up.” He added, “Even before I became an actor, his films were massive for me. I once gave him an award in Dublin and embarrassed him. [I] just spoke about every film. And then I was lucky enough to make a film with him about ten years ago, a smaller film called Broken.”

Set in North London, the 2012 film ‘Broken’ took its inspiration from ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ Roth took on the role of a young girl’s father. He comes across a brutal attack by a neighbor on a man accused of s–ual harassment.

The movie received mixed reviews, while Murphy and Roth received multiple nominations for their roles. Meanwhile, in the ‘Peaky Blinders’ movie, Roth portrayed John Beckett. The character is a ruthless enemy to Murphy’s Tommy Shelby and the movie’s primary antagonist.

He’s a scammer who devises a plan to crash Britain’s economy by spreading counterfeit banknotes alongside Adolf Hitler’s forces. Coming head-to-head with a childhood hero was indeed a dream-come-true moment for Murphy, who had a wonderful run in Hollywood in the last few years.

The Meteoric Rise Of An Irish Actor

For the last five years, Cillian Murphy has been ruling the industry. After his brilliant performance in John Krasinski’s horror film ‘A Quiet Place Part II,’ Murphy’s career soared. His journey culminated in an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in ‘Oppenheimer.’

In Case You Missed It: Cillian Murphy On Why Tommy Shelby’s Story Had To End In Tragedy

However, these milestones came after two decades in his career. It all began with a Golden Globe nomination for his role in ‘Breakfast on Pluto.’ Before becoming one of Hollywood’s biggest stars, the Irish actor had already built quite a few credits.

These included his breakthrough role in Danny Boyle’s zombie thriller ’28 Days Later,’ followed by performances in Wes Craven’s thriller ‘Red Eye’ and Danny Boyle’s sci-fi film ‘Sunshine.’

Then, a long-standing creative partnership between Murphy and Nolan began with ‘Batman Begins.’ The duo has worked on a total of six movies, including ‘Inception’ and ‘Dunkirk.’ However, the most brilliant step in the actor’s career came when he started playing Tommy Shelby in 2013.

Six violent seasons of the acclaimed BBC series featured performances by elite talents. These included Helen McCrory, Sam Neill, Tom Hardy, and Adrien Brody. Cut to the present, Murphy keeps himself busy with plenty of other big Hollywood projects lined up.

Fans will be able to see the actor reprise his role in the third installment of the ‘A Quiet Place’ universe, starring alongside Emily Blunt. Additionally, Murphy will likely return in the third part of ’28 Years Later,’ written by Alex Garland.

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