The TV show that left Cillian Murphy “heartbroken” when it ended: “That’s my favourite”
Cillian Murphy has spent the vast majority of his career on the big screen, wowing audiences in the likes of 28 Days Later, Batman Begins, Breakfast on Pluto, A Quiet Place Part II, and Oppenheimer.
However, he has also spent much of the last 15 years playing one of the most popular TV characters in recent memory, proving that he is as fascinated by long-form television storytelling as many of his movie star peers. Indeed, even though Murphy has only starred in one television series since becoming famous, the fact that he has led the show for six seasons speaks to how highly he regards it.
In truth, he pursued the role of gang leader Tommy Shelby in Steven Knight’s Peaky Blinders with a vigour unusual for the actor, precisely because he loved the idea of playing a character over a much longer period than he was used to in movies. “It’s just very unusual and very compelling, and the character, Tommy Shelby, is kind of an enigma,” Murphy told the BBC in 2012.
Adding: “I haven’t done television in many, many years, and there’s kind of a golden age with television now. For actors to get to explore characters over the course of six hours is a real treat, especially when you have writing of that calibre.”
After over a decade walking in Shelby’s impeccably-tailored shoes, Murphy revealed that his experiment in television had gone exactly as he wanted. “I’ve never had that experience of growing older with a character or being able to inhabit it to a point where the character starts thinking for you in the performance,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “That happened toward, certainly, series four, five, and six. It was definitely the character who was in control of the vehicle, if you know what I mean.”
Interestingly, while playing Shelby for six seasons and the upcoming spinoff movie on Netflix, Murphy must have made it a point to explore other shows that comprised the new golden age of TV. In fact, in 2024, he revealed that his favourite show of recent years was another story of a powerful family, filled to the brim with themes of conquest, greed, betrayal, and ruthlessness. However, unlike the saga of the Shelbys and their dominance of post-First World War Birmingham, England, this show was set in modern-day New York City and followed a family in control of a media empire.
Heartwarmingly, Murphy became such a dedicated fan of HBO’s Succession that he admitted to feeling starstruck when he met some of the cast at an awards ceremony not long after it concluded its fourth and final season. While it sounds crazy that the Oscar-winning Irishman would be nervous around Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin, or even Brian Cox, the power of watching those incredible performers play Kendall, Shiv, Roman, and Logan Roy for years on his TV must have had a profound effect.
“I met some of the guys from Succession,” Murphy beamed when he spoke to Variety. “That’s my favourite show on the telly. I’m so heartbroken that it’s finished.”
Murphy’s fandom of one of the greatest shows of the last decade was music to the ears of his fans, as it reinforced his brilliant taste within the medium. However, confessing that he was “heartbroken” that creator Jesse Armstrong chose to end the Roy clan’s story after four seasons and 39 episodes was also incredibly relatable. After all, a large swathe of the show’s fanbase also felt there was much more gas in the show’s tank, and that it may have cut bait too early.
