Michael Collins - The Cast

Liam Neeson as Michael Collins
Julia Roberts as Kitty Kiernan
Aidan Quinn as Harry Boland
Alan Rickman as Eamonn De Valera
Stephen Rea as Ned Broy
Charles Dance as Soames
Ian Hart as Joe O'Reilly

Academy Award-nominee LIAM NEESON (Michael Collins) most recently starred with Meryl Streep in Barbet Schroeder's adaptation of the Rosellen Brown novel, "Before and After." Last year, Neeson starred in the title role opposite Jessica Lange in Michael Caton-Jones' "Rob Roy."
The Irish-born actor originally sought a career as a teacher, attending Queens College, Belfast. In 1976, Neeson joined the prestigious Lyric Players Theatre in Belfast, making his professional acting debut in Joseph Plunkett's "The Risen People." After two years with the Lyric Players, he joined the famed repertory company of the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. Neeson appeared in the Abbey Theatre Festival's production of Brian Friel's "Translations" and a production of Sean O'Casey's "The Plough and the Stars" for the Royal Exchange Theater, receiving the Best Actor Award.
In 1980, John Boorman spotted him playing Lennie in John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" and cast him in his saga of the Arthurian legend, "Excalibur." Neeson then returned to London, performing in a play for Granada Television and a feature film, "Knife Edge," co-starring Colin Blakely.
He has appeared in made-for-television movies and television series in both the United Kingdom and the United States, including "Merlin and the Sword" with Malcolm McDowell; "Ellis Island"; Sidney Sheldon's "If Tomorrow Comes"; Barbara Taylor Bradford's "A Woman of Substance" and the sequel, "Hold the Dream"; "Sworn to Silence"; and the BBC production "Sweet As You Are," with Miranda Richardson.
Neeson has appeared in more than 20 films, including Dino De Laurentiis' epic remake of "The Bounty," directed by Roger Donaldson and co-starring Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins; the critically-acclaimed "Lamb," for which he received an Evening Standard Drama Award nomination; Andrei Konchalovsky's "Duet For one," co-starring Julie Andrews; "A Prayer for the Dying" with Mickey Rourke and Bob Hoskins; and Roland Joffe's "The Mission," co-starring Robert De Niro and Jeremy Irons.
Neeson next starred opposite Cher in Peter Yates' courtroom drama "Suspect;" in Neil Jordan's "High Spirits," co-starring Peter O'Toole and Daryl Hannah; opposite Diane Keaton in "The Good Mother"; and in Sam Raimi's fantasy-thriller, "Darkman."
Neeson then appeared with Joanne Whalley-Kilmer in David Leland's gritty contemporary drama "Crossing the Line." In 1992 he starred as both a Nazi engineer in David Seltzer's "Shining Through" opposite Michael Douglas and Melanie Griffith; and as a disgraced policeman accused of murder in "Under Suspicion" with Laura San Giacomo. Following that, he appeared in Woody Allen's "Husbands and Wives" and in "Leap of Faith," starring Steve Martin and Debra Winger. Neeson also starred opposite Jodie Foster and Natasha Richardson in Michael Apted's "Nell."
Neeson made his Broadway debut in 1993 in the Roundabout Theater's revival of Eugene O'Neill's 1921 drama "Anna Christie." Co-starring Natasha Richardson, the play garnered him a Tony Award nomination. Neeson's passion for the classics was once again rewarded critically in the American Playhouse production of Edith Wharton's "Ethan Frome."
Having portrayed Oskar Schindler in Steven Spielberg's highly acclaimed "Schindler's List," Neeson was nominated for an Oscar, a Golden Globe and BAFTA Award in the best leading actor category.

JULIA ROBERTS (Kitty Kiernan) has starred in many of Hollywood's most successful films and has earned two Academy Award nominations. She first came to audiences' attention with her critically acclaimed role in "Mystic Pizza," then in "Steel Magnolias," leading to her first Oscar nomination. Her next film, "Pretty Woman," was the top-grossing film of 1990 and brought Roberts her second nomination.
Her memorable performance in "Pretty Woman" was followed by a series of successful films including "Flatliners," "Sleeping With the Enemy," "Dying Young," "Hook," "The Pelican Brief" and "Something to Talk About"; collectively, her films have earned more than one-and-a-half billion dollars.
Roberts will next be seen in another supporting role in Woody Allen's "Everyone Says I Love You." She is currently filming the highly anticipated romantic comedy "My Best Friend's Wedding," directed by P.J. Hogan and co-starring Dermot Mulroney and Cameron Diaz.

AIDAN QUINN (Harry Boland) next stars opposite Courteney Cox and Anthony LaPaglia in the black comedy "Commandments" for Ivan Reitman. He recently starred as Richmond in "Looking For Richard," a film which presents and analyzes Shakespeare's Richard III.
Quinn starred with Anthony Hopkins, Brad Pitt and Julia Ormond in "Legends of the Fall," an epic period drama. He was also seen last fall in Kenneth Branagh's "Frankenstein" as Captain Walton.
Born in Chicago, the second of five children, Quinn was raised by immigrant parents from Birr, Ireland. After high school, Quinn traveled to his ancestral country, where he began acting, performing in lunchtime theater. Soon after, he made his stage debut back in Chicago in "The Man in 605."
Quinn eventually made his way to New York, debuting off-Broadway in Sam Shepard's acclaimed drama "Fool for Love." He played the title role in a modern-day "Hamlet" directed by Robert Falls that won the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Production of the Year before doing another Shepard play, "A Lie of the Mind."
In 1984 Quinn launched his motion picture career as a motorcycle-riding rebel in "Reckless," co-starring Daryl Hannah. Since then, Quinn has appeared in more than 15 films, demonstrating his extensive range of talents. He played the unwitting projectionist in "Desperately Seeking Susan" and Robert De Niro's brother in "The Mission" before receiving an Emmy nomination for his wrenching portrayal of an AIDS victim seeking his father's love in the NBC drama "An Early Frost," the first movie made about the disease.
Quinn made his directing bow with "A Worker's Life," written by and starring John Turturro. In 1987 he starred in the PBS/American Playhouse production of Arthur Miller's "All My Sons," segueing into "A Streetcar Named Desire," a Broadway production from which he garnered a Theater World Award.
A film role opposite Richard Dreyfuss and Emilio Estevez in "Stakeout" was followed by a starring performance in "Robinson Crusoe."
Quinn earned his first ACE nomination for his work in "HBO's A Perfect Witness," opposite Brian Dennehy and Stockard Channing, and his second for his performance in "A Private Matter" for HBO. He also starred in "Lies of the Twins" for Showtime, opposite Isabella Rossellini.
Quinn's additional film credits include "Haunted," based on the novel by James Herberg; "The Lemon Sisters," "The Handmaid's Tale," "The Playboys," "Benny & Joon," "Blink," "Avalon" and Hector Bebenco's "At Play in the Fields of the Lord."
He recently completed production on "Jackal," in which he stars with Ben Kingsley.

ALAN RICKMAN (Eamon De Valera) is one of Britain's most respected actors for screen and stage. His film career began with John McTiernan's "Die Hard" and continued with "The January Man," "Quigley Down Under," "Closetland" and "Bob Roberts." For his work in "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves," "Truly, Madly, Deeply." and "Close My Eyes," he won the BAFTA Award and Evening Standard Best Film Actor Award. His most recent credits include "Mesmer" (Montreal Film Festival Best Actor Award), "An Awfully Big Adventure" and "Sense and Sensibility" (BAFTA nomination).
Rickman's credits for television include "The Barchester Chronicles," "Pity in History," "Busted," and "Benefactors," all for the BBC. For Showtime he appeared opposite Laura Dern in "Fallen Angels" and, for HBO, played the title role in "Rasputin" (Emmy nomination for Best Actor).
Rickman's stage appearences have been mainly in contemporary theater. His work for the Royal Court includes "The Seagull" and "The Grass Widow." Performances for the Royal Shakespeare Company include "As You Like It," "Troilus and Cressida" and "Les Liaisons Dangereuses," which he performed in Stratford, London and New York (receiving a Tony nomination).
His most recent stage appearances were in "Tango at the End of Winter" at the Edinburgh Festival and "Hamlet" at the Riverside Studios.

STEPHEN REA (Ned Broy) continues his long-standing working relationship with Neil Jordan on "Michael Collins" , this is his fifth motion picture with the writer/ director. An Academy Award nominee for his performance in Jordan's "The Crying Game," Rea subsequently also starred in "Interview With The Vampire." Other recent credits include "Angie" and "Pret A Porter."
Belfast born Rea's other motion picture roles include "Devil And The Deep Blue Sea," "Princess Caraboo," "Bad Behavior," "Life Is Sweet," "The Doctor And The Devils" and "The House." His other performances for Neil Jordan were in "The Company Of Wolves," "Angel" and "The Butcher Boy," which recently wrapped production. Other upcoming projects include a feature film for England's Channel 4, "Further Gesture," and "Trojan Eddie," another Channel 4 production.
Television credits include "Shadow of a Gunman," "Days of Hope," "The Plough And The Stars," "Four Days In July" and the upcoming "Crime of the Century" for HBO.
In 1980, Rea formed the Field Day Theatre Company with the respected Irish playwright Brian Friel. He has acted in all Field Day's productions, including "Double Cross," "Pentecost," "Saint Oscar" and "Uncle Vanya," and directed the company's production of "Three Sisters." Other principal theatre includes "Playboy Of The Western World" at the National Theatre in London, "Aristocrats" at Dublin's Abbey Theatre and the Hampstead Theatre's production of "Someone Who'll Watch Over Me," which transferred to Broadway. Currently, Rea is preparing to appear at the Royal Court Theatre in Harold Pinter's "Ashes to Ashes."

CHARLES DANCE (Soames) has recently been seen in "The Last Action Hero," "Shortcut to Paradise" and "Exquisite Tenderness " Dance's other motion picture credits include "Aliens III," "Century" and "Pascali's Island."
Born in Worcestershire, England, Dance made his motion picture debut in the James Bond movie "For Your Eyes Only," followed by his acclaimed portrayal of legendary film director D.W. Griffith in the Taviani Brothers' "Good Morning Babylon" in 1986. His work for television includes the award-winning series "The Jewel In The Crown" for Granada Television, "The McGuffin" for the BBC, and "Phantom Of The Opera" for NBC.
Dance trained as a graphic designer before being drawn to acting through his work as a stagehand in a London theatre. In 1975 he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he has appeared in "Henry V," "Coriolanus" and "As You Like It."

IAN HART (Joe O'Reilly) received widespread critical acclaim for recent performances in "Land and Freedom" and "The Englishman Who Went Up A Hill And Came Down A Mountain." In 1995, his performance in the Belfast thriller "Nothing Personal" received the Best Supporting Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival.
Liverpool-born Hart has the distinction of having played Beatle John Lennon in two different films, "The Hours And Times" and "Backbeat." Other motion picture credits include "Clockwork Mice" and "The Hollow Reed."
For television, Hart has appeared in the BBC productions "The Monocled Mutineer," "The Marksman" and "A View Of Harry Clarke," and in "The Brothers McGregor" and "The Travelling Man" for Granada Television. Theatre work includes productions of "Woyczek" and "Dog Day Afternoon."

A Special Note From Director Neil Jordan
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