Ian McDiarmid
Biography
Ian McDiarmid is a Scottish actor and director who made his stage debut in Hamlet in 1972 and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1974, appearing in many Shakespeare plays. He won an Olivier Award for Insignificance in 1982 and a Tony Award for Faith Healer in 2006. From 1990 to 2001 he served as an artistic director of the Almeida Theatre in London with Jonathan Kent and directed plays there. He is best known as Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars franchise, playing the role in Return of the Jedi (1983) and returning for The Phantom Menace (1999), Attack of the Clones (2002), Revenge of the Sith (2005), and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019). His other films include Gorky Park (1983), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988), Restoration (1995), Sleepy Hollow (1999), and The Lost City of Z (2017). On television he played Porfiry Petrovich in Crime and Punishment (2002) and appeared as Darth Sidious in Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022).
82years old
Turns 83 on August 11in 303 days
- Born Carnoustie
- Star sign: LeoThe sign runs July 23 to August 22
Movie Career
- Films
- 19
- Career span
- 46 years1976 to 2022
Photos
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Getting ready for a role
McDiarmid was 37 when he took the part of Harry Hackamore, a Howard Hughes-type figure, in Sam Shepard's play Seduced. Prosthetics, a false beard and long fingernails aged him enough to persuade George Lucas and Richard Marquand he could play a much older character in close-up, which helped him win Palpatine.
Early training
In 1968 the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama gave McDiarmid a gold medal for his work, the first of many theater honors he received. He attributed winning it to taking the dull jobs young actors do to survive.
Behind the camera
McDiarmid and Jonathan Kent ran London's Almeida Theatre as artistic directors from 1990 until 2001, drawing actresses such as Glenda Jackson and Claire Bloom and actors such as Kevin Spacey and Ralph Fiennes, and left the venue in good shape.
Ian McDiarmid movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
- Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith2005 Action, Adventure, Fantasyas Supreme Chancellor Palpatine
IMDb rating 7.7934K votes
- Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace1999 Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fias Senator Palpatine
IMDb rating 6.5939K votes
- Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones2002as Supreme Chancellor Palpatine
IMDb rating 6.6832K votes
Most often with
George Lucas directed three of these films. Three actors appear in five of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
Ewan McGregor's page
Frank Oz's page
Anthony Daniels's page
Ahmed Best's page
Christopher Lee's page
Liam Neeson's page
All films by George Lucas
Also three films together5 more actors
- Natalie PortmanStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
- Hayden ChristensenObi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's Return (2022), Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) and Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
- Oliver Ford DaviesStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
- Silas CarsonStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005), Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002) and Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
- Pernilla AugustStar Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002), The Beginning: The Making of Star Wars Episode I (2001) and Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Box office
What Ian McDiarmid's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$4.5 billion
12 of the 19 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 19 films: 12 worldwide figure; 6 never in cinemas; 1 figure not found.
- 12Worldwide figure
- 6Never in cinemas
- 1Figure not found
Highest grossing
The eight biggest films earned 99% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$1.1B23.9% of the total
- 2$1.0B23.3% of the total
- 3$850M18.9% of the total
- 4$649M14.5% of the total
- 5$573M12.7% of the total
- 6$206M4.6% of the total
- 7$42M0.9% of the total
- 8$16M0.4% of the total
$35.1 millionfrom the other 4 films with a worldwide figure, 1% of the total
Awards
Three awards and honors from 1982 to 2006, one of them major.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tony Awards | |||
| 2006 | Best Featured Actor in a Play | Faith Healer | Won |
| Other honors | |||
| 2006 | Theatre World Award | Faith Healer | Won |
| 1982 | Laurence Olivier Awards | Insignificance | Won |
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.