CILLIAN MURPHY

BY: Georgia Davis

To say season five of Peaky Blinders ended on a cliffhanger is an understatement. The show’s leading man Tommy Shelby (played by the incomparable Cillian Murphy) was poised to kill himself when the screen went black on season five. 

In fact, the BBC/Netflix series was supposed to end after five seasons, but it appears it will be around at least through season six. The creators are working on a seventh season, but who knows if that will air. But, more importantly, season six could be the end of Tommy Shelby. That leads to one question: What is Cillian Murphy up to?

The answer: not too much honestly. But that’s how Murphy prefers it. He told GQ last year that he has spent his decades-long career trying to avoid stardom. But when you’re that good, stardom is difficult to evade. 

“I never wanted to see my name over a title of a movie,” he said. “None of that shit ever entered my thinking, ever.”

Even though he doesn’t seek the flashy, leading roles, he always stands out among the ensemble. Take the Christopher Nolan movies he’s done. In Batman Begins, he played the troubled Scarecrow in a compelling and, frankly, psychotic manner. And in Inception, he brought depth and humanity to a seemingly cold role. Not to mention he has likely the most dialogue in the nearly-silent war movie Dunkirk.

Cillian keeps a tight lip on his upcoming projects, which could be due to the fact he doesn’t have social media. He’s set to appear in John Krasinski’s sequel horror film A Quiet Place II. In it, he plays the mysterious Emmett in the world where it kills to make noise. His character is rugged — Murphy sports an untamable beard. 

Then, Murphy will lend his voice to Kensuke’s Kingdom. The animated film is set on a remote Pacific island where a boat is shipwrecked. Murphy will voice the father with Sally Hawkins and Ken Wantanabe also voice acting. 

Though we might have to wait until the end of 2021 to find out what happens to Tommy Shelby, we know that Cillian Murphy is set for life.