Hugh O'Conor (born 19 April 1975) is an Irish actor, writer, director, and photographer. In 2020, he was listed as number 49 on The Irish Times list of Ireland's greatest film actors.
Career His first film appearance was opposite Liam Neeson in the 1985 movie Lamb.
He won a Young Artist Award in 1990 for his role in the Oscar-winning film My Left Foot, in which he portrayed the childhood days of Christy Brown, an Irishman born with cerebral palsy, who could control only his left foot. The film was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture, and won two: Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Actor and Brenda Fricker for Best Supporting Actress. In his acceptance speech, Day-Lewis said he "shared Christy's life with a remarkable young actor called Hugh O'Conor".
He starred in Benjamin Ross' The Young Poisoner's Handbook as murderer Graham Young, which won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in 1995.
He was nominated as part of the cast for Outstanding Performance by a Cast at the 2001 SAG-AFTRA awards for his performance as Pére Henri in Chocolat (2000). The film was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture. It was also nominated for eight BAFTAs and four Golden Globes, both including Best Picture.
In 2007, he was nominated for Best Actor at the Irish Film and Television Awards for his performance as James Van Der Bexton in Tony Herbert's Speed Dating (2006).
His short film Corduroy was selected for competition as part of the Generation 14Plus presentation at the 60th Berlinale in Berlin. It received the award for Best Fiction/Experimental Film at the 2010 Clones Film Festival.
In 2011, his music videos for I Draw Slow (Swans) and The Whileaways (Dear My Maker) were nominated for the Irish Music Video awards.
He was part of the creative and performing team for RTE's sketch comedy Your Bad Self (2010), along with Domhnall Gleeson and Amy Huberman; the show won Best Entertainment at the 2011 Irish Film and Television Awards.
His photograph Beckah, Dublin Airport was shortlisted and exhibited at the National Gallery of Ireland as part of the inaugural Hennessy Portrait Prize in 2014.
In 2014, he received the Best Supporting Actor award at the Irish Times Theatre Awards for his performance as the Fool in Selina Cartmell's production of King Lear at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin.
In 2018, his feature debut Metal Heart and animated short film The Overcoat premiered at the 2018 Galway Film Fleadh. Jordanne Jones won the Bingham Ray award for Best Newcomer. The Overcoat won Best Animated Sequence.
In 2018, he received the Jim Sheridan Award for Achievement in Irish Film at the Irish Screen America film festival in Los Angeles.
He received the Dublin Film Critics' Circle Maverick award at the 2019 Dublin International Film Festival. The Overcoat received a special mention.
He was nominated for the Independent Spirit award at the 2019 Santa Barbara International Film Festival for Metal Heart.
Personal life O'Conor was born on 19 April 1975 in Dublin, Ireland, and is the son of noted Irish pianist John O'Conor.
He studied drama at the Samuel Beckett Centre in Trinity College Dublin, and received a Fulbright scholarship to attend NYU Film School.
Filmography
+Film Year Title Role Notes1985LambOwen Kane1986Rawhead RexRobbie Hallenbeck1988DaBoy Charlie1989My Left FootYoung Christy Brown1993Red HotYuri1993King Louis1994Words Upon the Window PaneCabin Boy1995Graham Young1996Paul1997Sawdust TalesIsaac2000Hotel SplendideStanley Smith2000ChocolatFather Henri2002DeathwatchAnthony Bradford2003Coney Island BabySatchmo2003Il compagno americanoMuffa2003BloomStephen Dedalus2004BlueberryYoung Mike BlueberryAKA, Renegade2005Mr. Henry CavendishShort film2005GeorgeShort film2007BotchedDmitry2007Speed DatingJames Van Der Bexton2007Waiting for DublinTwickers2008FlickJohnny 'Flick' Taylor2008Summer of the Flying SaucerFather Burke2008Detective2008Annoying Guy (voice)Short film2010Miss Remarkable & her CareerBoyfriend (voice)Short film2010Reuniting the RubinsYona Rubin2011Killing BonoGary2013The StagFionnan2013A Terrible BeautyLt. Arthur Dickson2015Shem the Penman Sings AgainJames Joyce2015Pilgrimage Brother Cathal 2016Handsome DevilDr. Eoin Mee2016 Property of the StateFr. Joe Walsh2017Mary ShelleySamuel Taylor Coleridge2018Sonja The White SwanWinnie2019FritziVoice of Dad
+Television Year Title Role Notes1984Jim DonovanEpisode: "Oweneen the Sprat"1991Perfect ScoundrelsLiamEpisode: "The Carpetbaggers"199830 Years to LifeVinnie DawsonTV film2002Fergus's WeddingSex Shop AssistantEpisode: "1.3"2005ShowbandsKarlTV film2006Showbands IIKarlTV film2007Northanger AbbeyJames MorlandTV film200810 Days to WarMagooEpisode: "Our Business Is North"2009Psych WardDanny O'HaganRecurring role (4 episodes)2009Wild DecembersThe CrockTV film2010Your Bad Self6 episodes2010LewisFather JasperEpisode: "The Dead of Winter"2010Three Wise WomenTomTV film2011Garrow's LawCathal FoleyEpisode: "3.2"2012Saving the TitanicJonathan ShepherdTV film2012Moone BoyElfEpisode: "Dark Side of the Moone"2013Ripper StreetEaglesEpisode:In My Protection2013Lt. Arthur DicksonTV film2015The Frankenstein ChroniclesJames Hogg2016The FallDr. LucasSeries 32019ResistanceDr. Laurence Moore
Film and television as writer and director Year Title Notes 2018 Metal Heart Director, film 2010 Your Bad Self Writer, TV series 2009 Corduroy 2008 Spacemen Three 2001 Guilty of Love Also producer
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