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John Mills

John Mills

45 movies on Netflix

Biography

John Mills was an English actor whose screen career stretched across seven decades and more than 120 films. Born in Norfolk in 1908, he began on the London stage in 1929, and his first screen appearance came in The Midshipmaid (1932). He became known for an appealing everyman quality and for guileless, wounded war heroes, appearing in films including In Which We Serve (1942), This Happy Breed (1944), The Way to the Stars (1945), Ice Cold in Alex (1958) and Tunes of Glory (1960), the last bringing him a Venice Best Actor award. He starred as Pip in Great Expectations (1946) and as Captain Scott in Scott of the Antarctic (1948), and later in Hobson's Choice (1954) and Swiss Family Robinson (1960). His portrayal of a village idiot in Ryan's Daughter (1970) won him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He was knighted in 1976 and received a BAFTA Fellowship in 2002.

97years old at death

  • Born Watts Naval School
  • Died Denham
  • Star sign: PiscesThe sign runs February 19 to March 20
  • Lewis Ernest Watts Mills (birth name)Also credited as Sir John Mills

Movie Career

Films
45
Career span
71 years1939 to 2010

Genres

First and latest

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  1. Behind the award

    Mills took the part of the village idiot in Ryan's Daughter, a 1970 film, which was a total change from what he normally did. His performance in that role earned him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar.

  2. Big break

    In Singapore, Noël Coward watched Mills perform in Journey's End and then wrote him a letter of introduction that Mills could use once he was back in London.

  3. First role

    In 1929, Mills began his professional acting career at the London Hippodrome in The Five O'Clock Girl, and a cabaret act came next.

  4. Behind the camera

    Mills turned producer with The History of Mr Polly in 1949, an adaptation of the H. G. Wells novel that he called his favorite film.

  5. A first

    Jack Cardiff, the cinematographer, shot Mills's final cinema role, a tramp in Lights 2. Their previous collaboration had been Scott of the Antarctic in 1948.

John Mills movies on Netflix

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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  1. Gandhi1982 Biography, Drama, Historyas The Viceroy

    IMDb rating 8.0247K votes

  2. Great Expectations1946 Drama, Romanceas Pip

    IMDb rating 7.829K votes

  3. Swiss Family Robinson1960as Father Robinson

    IMDb rating 7.120K votes

  4. When the Wind Blows1986as Jim Bloggsvoice

    IMDb rating 7.715K votes

  5. Hobson's Choice1954as William Mossop

    IMDb rating 7.710K votes

  6. Ice Cold in Alex1958as Captain Anson

    IMDb rating 7.77.6K votes

  7. Ryan's Daughter1970as Michael

    IMDb rating 7.412K votes

  8. In Which We Serve1942as Ordinary Seaman Blake / Shorty Blake

    IMDb rating 7.27.2K votes

Most often with

David Lean directed five of these films, Richard Attenborough three and J. Lee Thompson two. Hayley Mills appears in five of them, more than any other actor. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Hayley Mills, 5 films togetherSee the 5 films with Hayley MillsTrevor Howard, 4 films togetherSee the 4 films with Trevor HowardHarry Andrews, 4 films togetherSee the 4 films with Harry AndrewsLaurence Olivier, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Laurence OlivierDeborah Kerr, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Deborah KerrEdward Fox, 3 films togetherSee the 3 films with Edward FoxDavid LeanDirector, 5 filmsSee the 5 films by David LeanRichard AttenboroughDirector, 3 filmsSee the 3 films by Richard AttenboroughJ. Lee ThompsonDirector, 2 filmsSee the 2 films by J. Lee Thompson

Films together

Box office

What John Mills's films earned in cinemas worldwide.

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Combined worldwide box office

$435 million

14 of the 45 films have a worldwide figure.

Of the 45 films: 14 worldwide figure; 5 us gross only; 5 never in cinemas; 21 figure not found.

  • 14Worldwide figure
  • 5US gross only
  • 5Never in cinemas
  • 21Figure not found

Top grosser

Bean1997as Chairman$251 million

Highest grossing

The eight biggest films earned 98% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.

  1. 1
    Bean1997as Chairman
    $251M57.8% of the total
  2. 2
    Gandhi1982as The Viceroy
    $78M17.9% of the total
  3. 3
    Swiss Family Robinson1960as Father Robinson
    $40M9.3% of the total
  4. 4
    Ryan's Daughter1970as Michael
    $31M7.1% of the total
  5. 5
    War and Peace1956as Platon Karataev
    $12M2.8% of the total
  6. 6
    Who's That Girl1987as Montgomery Bell
    $7.3M1.7% of the total
  7. 7
    In Which We Serve1942as Ordinary Seaman Blake / Shorty Blake
    $4.5M1.0% of the total
  8. 8
    Operation Crossbow1965as Gen. Boyd
    $3.7M0.9% of the total
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939), $3.3 millionZulu Dawn (1979), $1.9 millionSahara (1983), $1.4 millionGreat Expectations (1946), $420,000Hobson's Choice (1954), $210,000When the Wind Blows (1986), $5,274

$7.2 millionfrom the other 6 films with a worldwide figure, 2% of the total

Awards

Seven awards and honors from 1960 to 2002, two of them major.

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John Mills's awards and nominations, grouped by award
YearAwardFilmResult
Academy Awards
1971Best Supporting ActorRyan's DaughterWon
Venice Film Festival
Volpi Cup for Best ActorWon
Other honors
2002Disney LegendsHonored
1976Knight BachelorWon
1967Silver Shell for Best ActorWon
1960Commander of the Order of the British EmpireWon
Critics' Circle Award for Distinguished Service to the ArtsWon

Online

Official profiles and reference pages.

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