Bryan Larkin

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Bryan Larkin
Born (1973-08-07) 7 August 1973 (age 52)
OccupationsActor, filmmaker
Years active2002–present

Bryan Larkin (born 7 August 1973) is a Scottish actor, writer, producer and [1] self-taught filmmaker. He was awarded the Trailblazer award at the Edinburgh International Film Festival [2] in 2009. He is best known for his role of SAS Captain in London Has Fallen , directed by Babak Najafi, and the leading role of Dolokhov in Outpost: Rise of the Spetsnaz . [3]

Contents

Early life

Larkin was born in Glasgow and grew up in East Kilbride in Scotland to parents Frank Larkin and Andrine Larkin. He has one sister, Gillian. He trained at Langside college in Glasgow. [1] He is a self-taught filmmaker and writer. His first short film, Reflections of a Life, as writer and director, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004.[ citation needed ]

Career

Larkin's career has been marked by playing on the duality of vulnerable but tough types. His performances often demonstrate a depth and complexity to otherwise two-dimensional characters. This work can be further validated in his choice of roles in action films Battleground, written and directed by Neil MacKay, and Outpost: Rise of the Spetsnaz , by Scotland-born screenwriter Rae Brunton.

After guest roles in Scottish TV shows Taggart , Rebus and River City , he wrote and starred in the short film SCENE, [4] for which he won a BAFTA Scotland Award for his performance. He later played the lead role of Joe Cullen in the BAFTA Scotland winning film Running in Traffic opposite Kenneth Cranham. [5] He shares a second BAFTA Scotland Award with the film's co-producers, Marc Twynholm and Abigail Howkins. [6] Running in Traffic also received its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2009.

His television appearances include Doctors , playing the guest lead role of Axel Hayley in the episode "The Messenger", [7] as well as the role of Geordie in season one of Outlander . In 2015, he played the recurring character of Eddie in series three of Shetland for BBC Scotland, opposite Game of Thrones star Ciarán Hinds.

He played the role of Robert Eldridge Dean in the American depression-era film The Red Machine, [8] written and directed by Alec Boehm and Stephanie Argy, and the lead role of Mitch in the action film Battleground, written and directed by Neil MacKay [9] In 2015, he appeared in the Scottish/Irish horror film Let Us Prey opposite Liam Cunningham and Pollyanna McIntosh.

In 2016, he appeared opposite Gerard Butler in London Has Fallen , in the role of SAS commander Will Davies. [10] The film was directed by Babak Najafi and was released on 4 March by Millennium Films, under their recently revived Gramercy Pictures label.

In 2017, he was cast as the lead antagonist, Ernest Hunt, in the Hong Kong film Chasing the Dragon (Chinese: 追龍), previously known as King of Drug Dealers. It stars Donnie Yen and Andy Lau, and is directed by Jason Kwan and Wong Jing. Larkin is believed to have largely improvised many of his scenes. His overall performance was highly praised, [11] arguably because Westerners rarely get so much screen time in Hong Kong films. This allowed him to portray more facets of Hunt's character. One reviewer claimed that his performance was "uneven"; Larkin stated: "No character ever is... That's dull.I wanted to show Hunt's sociopathic, and villainous side, both quietly and bombastically. Otherwise he would appear one dimensional".

His work as a motion-capture and voice artist includes AAA titles Horizon Zero Dawn , Blood & Truth , Killzone: Mercenary and Quantum Break .

Larkin also appeared in a co-starring role in Vixxena. Critics considered Larkin one of the few highlights in the movie. Larkin was also set to reprise his role as the SAS commander opposite Gerard Butler in Angel Has Fallen, but reportedly owing to story development the shooting script no longer featured his character.

He further appeared in the History Channel's sixth series of Vikings series as Wiglaf, a Saxon warrior who led the battle against Ivor the Boneless.

Larkin is also currently developing his own projects, namely the Dead End series, in which he plays a nameless assassin known as "The Contractor". Larkin has created, produced, written and co-directed the series. The central storyline follows Larkin's character across Asia, the United Kingdom and Los Angeles in his pursuit of the key players in a global human trafficking ring. The trilogy has been released at international film festivals and has collected more than 40 awards to date and received positive reviews for its acting, story and technical achievements. [12]

in 2020, he was cast in The Point Men , formerly known by its working title of The Negotiation, opposite South Korean actors Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin, in the supporting role of Abdullah. The film received a theatrical release across South Korea from 18 January 2023. [13]

in 2021, he was cast in Paramount Pictures' forthcoming Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves , in the role of Chancellor Norixius. The film was scheduled for theatrical release on 3 March 2023.

In 2022, he returned to South Korea to commence shooting of Netflix series Narco-Saints opposite Park Hae-soo, Ha Jung-woo and Hwang Jung-min. It is co-written and directed by Yoon Jong-bin.

Awards and nominations

YearNominated workAwardCategoryResult
2006SCENE BAFTA Scotland Best First Time PerformanceWon
2009 Running in Traffic BAFTA Scotland New Talent AwardsBest ProducerWon
2009Running in Traffic Edinburgh International Film Festival Trailblazer AwardWon

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2002 Just Around the CornerGareth
2003 Taggart Erwin BaxterTV series
2003Room for the NightPonce
2003Solid AirNiall
2004Reflections of a LifeAlan
2005Miracle of SilencePalsy man in Cafe
2006As far as you've comeBilly
2006SCENE.Nathan/Gary/Actor
2007 Rebus Charlie GuthrieTV series
2009An Act of TerrorColin Parker
2009 Running in Traffic Joe Cullen
2009Miles AwayGill
2009The Red MachineRobert Eldridge Dean
2011A Portentous DeathHusband
2011 River City Callum DuffTV series
2011Fast RomanceDoctor Gates
2011The CrewsGrassie
2011 Young James Herriot DetectiveTV series
2012BattlegroundMitch
2012 Lip Service BankerTV series
2012To Our Bright White HeartsBruce Callaghan
2013 Outpost: Rise of the Spetsnaz Dolokhov
2013 Killzone: Mercenary Voice of ISA Assault / HelghastVideo game
2013 Powerstar Golf Voice of HenryVideo game
2014 Let Us Prey PC Jack Warnock
2014 Outlander GeordieTV series
2015 Doctors Axel HayleyTV series
2016 Shetland EddieTV series
2016 London Has Fallen Captain Will Davies
2016 Quantum Break Voice: VariousVideo game
2017 I Am Vengeance Marshall
2017 Horizon Zero Dawn Bajund, Jun, Kimik, KudivVideo game
2017 Chasing the Dragon Ernest Hunt
2020 Vikings WiglafTV series
2022 Narco-Saints DEA ChiefTV series
2023 Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Chancellor Norixius

References

  1. 1 2 http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/local-news/bryan-rising-star-hollywood-2421851/%5B%5D Daily Record Article 15 October 2013
  2. https://www.edfilmfest.org.uk/industry/trailblazers/2009/bryan-larkin/ Archived 11 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine Trailblazer Profiles at the Edinburgh International Film Festival
  3. http://thespoilist.com/interview-outpost-rise-of-the-spetsnaz-star-bryan-larkin/ Interview with Bryan Larkin from The Spoilist
  4. "Scottish Screen news archive 2006". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  5. "And its lights, camera, action . . . outside a pub in Pollokshaws!". Evening Times. 30 December 2007.
  6. "BAFTA Scotland New Talent Awards: Winners in 2009". 12 March 2009.
  7. "BBC One - Doctors, Series 16, the Messenger".
  8. Harvey, Dennis (20 October 2009). "The Red Machine". Variety. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  9. http://thehorrorhotel.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/review-battleground-2011.html_/%5B%5D The Horror Hotel review of Battleground/
  10. London Has Fallen Official Trailer,
  11. Mike, Outwest. "Chasing The Dragon". Flash Bang Film Reviews. Mike Outwest. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  12. "The action elite". theactionelite.com. 17 February 2020. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  13. 강민경. "[공식] 황정민·현빈의 공통 목표…'교섭', 내년 1월 18일 개봉". n.news.naver.com (in Korean). Retrieved 23 November 2023.