Born: October 5, 1967
Age: 56
Birthplace: Ely, Cambridgeshire, England

Guy Edward Pearce (born 5 October 1967)[2] is an English-born Australian actor.[3] He is known for having starred in the role of Mike Young in the Australian television series Neighbours and in films such as The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994), L.A. Confidential (1997), Memento (2000), The Count of Monte Cristo (2002), The Road (2009), The King's Speech (2010), Prometheus (2012), and Iron Man 3 (2013). In Australian cinema, he has appeared in The Proposition (2005), Animal Kingdom (2010), The Rover (2014), Holding the Man (2015) and The Wizards of Aus (2016). He has won a Primetime Emmy Award and received nominations for Golden Globe Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, and AACTA Awards. Since 2012, he has played the title role in the TV adaptations of the Jack Irish stories by Australian crime writer Peter Temple.
Pearce was born in Ely, Cambridgeshire, UK.[4] His mother, Anne Pickering (born 1940), was from County Durham, England; she was a schoolteacher specialising in needlework and home economics. His father, Stuart Pearce (1932-1976), was a New Zealand-born RAF Squadron leader and a Hawker Siddeley Harrier test pilot.When Pearce was three years old, his father took the job of Chief Test pilot for the Australian Government Aircraft Factories, relocating the family to Geelong, Victoria where his mother taught at Matthew Flinders Girls High school. When Pearce was age 8, his father died in an accident at Avalon Airport while taking off in an extended-range version of the GAF Nomad.[5][6][7][2]
Pearce attended Geelong College, a local private school, and was a member of the Geelong Society of Dramatic Arts (GSODA) Junior Players. At the age of 16, he was a competitive amateur bodybuilder, leading to the title of Junior Mr. Victoria. He also took part in fencing. He lived in Box Hill North, Victoria in the late 1980s while working on the Australian drama series Neighbours.
Pearce starred in several theatre productions when he was young. At 17 years of age, while still at school at Geelong College, he landed his first film role; a part in "Life and Study at University", a promotion for university study produced and directed by Peter Lane of Deakin University.
Pearce transitioned to television when he was cast in the Australian soap opera Neighbours in 1985, playing the role of Mike Young for several years. Pearce also found roles in other television series such as Home and Away (1988) and Snowy River: The McGregor Saga (1993).
Pearce at the 2007 Toronto International Film FestivalThe director/producer/writer Frank Howson cast Pearce in his first three films, Heaven Tonight, Hunting, and Flynn, and paid for him to go to the Cannes Film Festival in 1991 for the premiere of the Howson-directed Hunting. The accompanying Howson-funded publicity campaign brought Pearce to the attention of the international film industry. He made his first major film breakthrough shortly after, with his role as a drag queen in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert in 1994. Since then, he has appeared in several US productions including L.A. Confidential, Ravenous, Rules of Engagement, Memento, The Count of Monte Cristo, and The Time Machine.
Pearce portrayed pop artist Andy Warhol in Factory Girl and Harry Houdini in Death Defying Acts. He also appeared in The Road and in Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler.[8]
Pearce continues to perform in Australian films, such as The Hard Word (2002) and The Proposition (2005), written by fellow Australian Nick Cave.
In January 2009, Pearce returned to the stage after a seven-year absence.[9] He performed in the Melbourne Theatre Company's production of Poor Boy, a play with music, co-written by Matt Cameron and Tim Finn.[9]
Wax figure at Madame Tussauds in Sydney portraying Pearce as Felicia JollygoodfellowIn 2010, he appeared as David Prince of Wales, who became King Edward VIII, in The King's Speech. He is the eponymous lead in the Australian TV miniseries Jack Irish, an adaptation of the detective novels of author Peter Temple broadcast on the ABC network in 2012. In May 2012, Pearce was cast to star in David Michôd's The Rover. In 2013, Pearce played the villain character Aldrich Killian in Iron Man 3.
Pearce had a supporting role in Neil Armfield's romantic-drama film Holding the Man, as Dick Conigrave. The 2015 film stars Ryan Corr and Craig Stott, with supporting performances from Pearce, Anthony LaPaglia and Geoffrey Rush. Holding the Man was adapted from Timothy Conigrave's 1995 memoir of the same name.
Next to acting, Guy has a lifelong passion for music and songwriting. He released his first album, Broken Bones, in November 2014.[10] Pearce appeared in a documentary special celebrating Neighbours' 30th anniversary titled Neighbours 30th: The Stars Reunite, which aired in Australia and the UK in March 2015.[11][12]
Pearce will release his second studio album The Nomad in 2018.[13]
This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately. |
Pearce appeared in Australian band Silverchair's music video for "Across the Night" and in Razorlight's video for "Before I Fall to Pieces." He recorded the soundtrack for A Slipping-Down Life, singing and playing guitar on cover versions of songs by Ron Sexsmith, Vic Chesnutt and Robyn Hitchcock.
On 18 September 2011, Pearce won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for his work in Mildred Pierce as Monty Beragon opposite Kate Winslet.
Pearce married his childhood sweetheart,[14] psychologist Kate Mestitz, in March 1997.[15] In October 2015, Pearce confirmed he and Mestitz had ended their marriage after 18 years.[16]
An Australian rules football fan who supports the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League, Pearce has done media work with the club, including a documentary narration.
He supports a number of charitable organisations for many causes such as animal rights, animal welfare and protecting the Earth's ecology.[17]
Pearce and his actress girlfriend Carice van Houten had their first child, son Monte, in August 2016.[18][19][20]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1990 | Heaven Tonight | Paul Dysart | |
1991 | Hunting | Sharp | |
1994 | The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert | Adam Whitely/Felicia Jollygoodfellow | |
1996 | Dating the Enemy | Brett | |
1997 | Flynn | Errol Flynn | |
1997 | L.A. Confidential | Ed Exley | Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
1998 | Brand New World | Jimmy Compton | aka Woundings New York International Independent Film Award for Best Actor |
1999 | Ravenous | Capt. John Boyd | |
1999 | A Slipping-Down Life | Drumstrings Casey | |
2000 | Rules of Engagement | Maj. Mark Biggs | |
2000 | Memento | Leonard Shelby | San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Satellite Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama Saturn Award for Best Actor |
2002 | The Hard Word | Dale | Nominated—Film Critics Circle of Australia Award for Best Actor |
2002 | The Time Machine | Alexander Hartdegen | |
2002 | The Count of Monte Cristo | Fernand Mondego | |
2002 | Till Human Voices Wake Us | Dr. Sam Franks | |
2004 | Two Brothers | Aidan McRory | |
2005 | The Proposition | Charlie Burns | Nominated—Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Film Critics Circle of Australia Award for Best Actor Inside Film Award for Best Actor |
2006 | First Snow | Jimmy Starks | |
2006 | Factory Girl | Andy Warhol | |
2008 | Death Defying Acts | Harry Houdini | Nominated—Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role |
2008 | Winged Creatures | Dr. Bruce Laraby | |
2008 | Traitor | Roy Clayton | |
2008 | Bedtime Stories | Kendall | |
2009 | In Her Skin | Mr. Barber | aka I Am You |
2009 | The Road | The Veteran | |
2009 | The Hurt Locker | Staff Sergeant. Matt Thompson | Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Ensemble Cast Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble |
2010 | The King's Speech | King Edward VIII | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actor |
2010 | Animal Kingdom | Det. Nathan Leckie | Nominated—Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role |
2011 | 33 Postcards | Dean Randall | Nominated—AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role |
2011 | Don't Be Afraid of the Dark | Alex Hirst | |
2011 | Seeking Justice | Simon | |
2012 | Lockout | Marion Snow | |
2012 | TED 2023 | Peter Weyland | Viral video |
2012 | Prometheus | ||
2012 | Lawless | Charley Rakes | |
2013 | Breathe In | Keith Reynolds | |
2013 | Iron Man 3 | Aldrich Killian | |
2013 | Hateship, Loveship | Ken Gaudette | |
2014 | The Rover | Eric | Nominated—AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role |
2015 | Results | Trevor | |
2015 | Holding the Man | Dick Conigrave | |
2015 | Lorne | Lorne | Short film |
2015 | Equals | Jonas | |
2016 | Genius | F. Scott Fitzgerald | |
2016 | Brimstone | The Reverend | |
2017 | Alien: Covenant | Peter Weyland | |
2018 | Swinging Safari | Keith Hall | |
2018 | The Catcher Was a Spy | Robert Furman | |
2018 | Spinning Man | Evan Birch | |
2018 | Mary Queen of Scots | William Cecil | Post-production |
2018 | Domino | Post-production | |
2020 | Bloodshot | Dr. Emil Harting |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1986-89 | Neighbours | Mike Young | 496 episodes |
1991 | Home and Away | David Croft | 12 episodes |
1994-96 | Snowy River: The McGregor Saga | Rob McGregor | 65 episodes Nominated—Logie Award for Most Popular Actor (1996) |
1997 | The Devil Game | Michael | Movie |
1997 | Halifax f.p: Deja Vu | Daniel & Richard Viney | Movie |
2009 | Spicks and Specks | Himself | Quiz Show: 1 episode |
2011 | Mildred Pierce | Monty Beragon | HBO miniseries Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor - Series, Miniseries or Television Film Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor - Series, Miniseries or Television Film Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie |
2012 | Jack Irish: Bad Debts | Jack Irish | Movie |
2012 | Jack Irish: Black Tide | Jack Irish | Movie |
2014 | Sean Saves the World | Liam Stone | Episode: "The Dark Sean Rises" |
2014 | Jack Irish: Dead Point | Jack Irish | Movie |
2015 | Neighbours 30th: The Stars Reunite | Himself | Documentary |
2015 | Between a Frock and a Hard Place | Himself | Documentary |
2016-18 | Jack Irish | Jack Irish | 2 Six-part series |
2016 | The Wizards of Aus | Morgan Wright | TV series/web series |
2017 | When We Rise | Cleve Jones | ABC miniseries |
2018 | The Innocents | Halvorson | Netflix series |
[ Source: Wikipedia ]