Barry Keoghan is taking the international stage of TV and film by storm. So, in the runup to the 2023 Oscars, we’re going to take a look at the top five Barry Keoghan performances so far.
It’s evident that Barry Keoghan has an incredible career in the TV and film industry ahead of him. He just won a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the critically acclaimed The Banshees of Inisherin.
Some of us will remember him from his younger performances in TV, while some might only have heard of him in recent years.
To celebrate the success and rise of Dublin man Barry Keoghan, let’s take a look at his top five performances so far.
5. Love/Hate (2010-2014) – a small but memorable role
Keoghan’s role in the Irish TV series Love/Hate might have been small, but it is certainly memorable. Love/Hate ran for five seasons between 2010 and 2014.
It follows the stories of the lives of local Dubliners living the harsh reality of Dublin’s criminal underworld. Starring Robert Sheehan, Killian Scott, and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Barry Keoghan graced the show for six episodes of the fourth season.
The reason we’ve included his performance in Love/Hate as one of the best Barry Keoghan performances so far is because he played the character so scarily well.
He plays one of Nidge’s (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor) henchmen and plays the heartless, remorseless character of Wayne extremely well. He appears in one of the most horrifically memorable scenes from the show. If you know, you know.
4. Dunkirk (2017) – a poignant portrayal of war
Keoghan only plays a small role in Dunkirk, but he gives one of the strongest and most emotional performances in the entire film.
Dunkirk has a star-studded cast, including Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Harry Styles, and other huge names. The film follows the story of the Dunkirk evacuation during an arduous WWII battle with German forces.
As we said previously, Keoghan plays a small part in the movie, but one of the scenes in particular that he appears in is one of the most poignant.
His part in the movie seems to reflect the needless death caused by war and the results of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), something that wasn’t known or talked about at the time. This is certainly one of the best Barry Keoghan performances so far that you should watch.
3. American Animals (2018) – misguided search for the American Dream
American Animals stars Barry Keoghan, Evan Peters, Jared Abrahamson and Blake Jenner as four intelligent and well-off college students who plot to pull off an audacious heist that involves stealing rare and valuable books from the school library.
A mix of fiction and reality, the four boys live an ordinary life in Kentucky. That is until a visit to Transylvania University, where Lipka (Evan Peters) comes up with the idea to steal the rarest and most valuable books from the school.
A story of misguided attempts to live the American Dream, this is certainly one of Barry Keoghan’s performances you should check out.
2. The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2018) – Keoghan takes on an eerie role
Starring Keoghan, Colin Farrell and Nicole Kidman, The Killing of a Sacred Deer sees Keoghan take on another sinister role.
Farrell plays a highly-regarded cardiovascular surgeon who seemingly has the perfect life with his doting wife and two children living in their spotless home.
However, everything is thrown into uncertainty when Keoghan’s character, Martin, is taken in by the family. Martin becomes a negative and terrorising influence on the family, eventually leading to the family’s demise.
1. The Banshees of Inisherin (2022) – the best Barry Keoghan performance so far
The Banshees of Inisherin has to take the top spot of the best Barry Keoghan performances so far. We say so far because we know that this man has a hell of a lot more to give to the world of TV and film.
In the movie, Keoghan plays Dominic, a likeable, simple-minded character who lives with his horrible, abusive father.
You feel sympathy for Dominic throughout the entire film, and this is hugely down to Keoghan’s portrayal of the character.
It’s no surprise that Barry Keoghan just won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor, and we predict his Oscar nomination in the same category could well go in his favour.
