Brían F. O'Byrne Biography

Fast Facts

• First name is pronounced Bree'un
• Grew up in a rural area in Ireland and was not exposed to theater or film in his youth (saw only three movies by age 17) and did not plan to become an actor
• Began acting in college because his two best friends were in theater
• Won a green card in a lottery in 1989, which paved the way for his entrance to acting in the U
• S
• , where he joined the Irish Repertory Theatre and soon won a role in Philadelphia, Here I Come! Big break came when cast in Martin McDonagh's play The Beauty Queen of Leenane in Galway, Ireland, after the original actor became sick the third day of rehearsal; show debuted on Broadway in 1998
• Divides time equally between lead roles on Broadway (Doubt; Frozen; The Coast of Utopia) and supporting roles in TV (Oz; Brotherhood; FlashForward) and film (Million Dollar Baby; Bug; Before the Devil Knows You're Dead)