Jonathan Pryce is one of the most respected British actors alive. Pryce has been giving acclaimed performances on screen and stage since the 1970s and is still doing great work today. Pryce is perhaps a little underrated because he’s simply so prolific; he seemingly appears in a few major films every year. He’s been an icon for multiple generations. If older viewers remember his Olivier Award-winning performance as Hamlet, younger audiences may know him as the wicked High Sparrow from Game of Thrones. Pryce is a familiar face, and he’s only just being recognized as one of the best of his generation. After countless years of snubs, Pryce finally received his first Academy Award nomination in 2020. The quality of the films he is in doesn't mean his work is less valuable. In fact, it says a lot about an actor if they can come out of G.I. Joe: Retribution or Bedtime Stories with any dignity.
Pryce will next be seen in the espionage thriller All the Old Knives, but he’s currently working on one of the biggest projects of his career. He will take on the role of Prince Phillip in the final two seasons of The Crown. Here are the seven most essential Jonathan Pryce performances.
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Sam Lowry in Brazil (1985)
Terry Gilliam’s surrealist science-fiction satire, Brazil, is one of the most visually stunning films ever made. Gilliam crafted a nightmarish vision of an overpopulated, highly polluted future that’s under the complete control of greedy corporate leaders. Pryce stars as the lowly bureaucrat Sam Lowry, who experiences strange visions of a mysterious woman and a pending revolution. Gilliam is incredibly committed to the complex visual language, and it's impressive that any of the performances stand out at all. Pryce provides an emotional core to the story that wouldn’t have been there otherwise.
James Lingk in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)
Glengarry Glen Ross simply has one of the greatest ensemble casts of all time. The film centers on the decline of a real estate firm after the corporate motivational trainer Blake (Alec Baldwin) informs them they must close more deals. Sheldon Levene (Jack Lemmon), Richard Roma (Al Pacino), Dave Moss (Ed Harris), and George Aaronow (Alan Arkin) all contemplate their failures. Pryce is the type of actor who can stand out amidst a packed ensemble. In a revealing scene, Roma takes advantage of the ignorant salesman James Lingk (Pryce). Pryce shows the ramifications that Lingk faces after his new investment; he’s just another victim of the system.
Elliot Carver in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
Elliot Carver is strangely a Bond villain who is both wildly over-the-top and eerily prophetic of real-world developments. The head of a leading media empire, Carver uses his vast resources to provoke an international conflict that he can cover with his assets. It’s an amusing, but not an inaccurate caricature of Rupert Murdoch. During his encounters with Pierce Brosnan’s James Bond, Pryce has a blast chewing the scenery. He transitions from being a charismatic media icon into a playfully ridiculous antagonist.
Seamus O'Rourke in Ronin (1998)
John Frankenheimer’s action thriller Ronin is the type of old-fashioned spy movie that Hollywood simply doesn’t make anymore. Ronin’s characters aren’t anything special, but the cast does a great job at fleshing out their roles beyond stereotypes. A film that stars such honorable heroes as Sam Regazolli (Robert De Niro), Vincent (Jean Reno), and Dierdre (Natascha McElhone) required a truly memorable villain. Pryce showed he was up to the task; his character, Seamus O’Rourke, is Diedre’s traitorous IRA handler. His cruelty towards Diedre makes her relationship with Sam all the more impactful.
King James in The New World (2005)
Terrence Malick’s epic period piece, The New World, does a great job at making iconic historical figures feel like real people. The film centers on the relationships between Pocahontos (Q'orianka Kilcher), John Wolfe (Christian Bale), and John Smith (Colin Farrell) during the founding of Jamestown in the early 1600s. The film shows that these people who’ve been endlessly documented in history books had real, primal desires. In only a brief performance, Pryce shows the pride of King James.
Joe Castleman in The Wife (2018)
Glenn Close nearly won her first Academy Award for The Wife after seven previous nominations; she lost in a shocking upset to Oliva Colman for The Favourite. While awards pundits were quick to complain about how overdue Close was, the real crime of the ceremony was that Pryce wasn’t even recognized for his equally impactful work in the film. He starred in The Wife as the acclaimed author Joe Castleman, who has just received word that he has won the Pulitzer Prize. Over the course of his honors, it is revealed that his wife Joan (Close) has been the secret author behind his work for nearly his entire career. Pryce makes the story even more infuriating; he’s openly prideful and continues to hide behind excuses as he denies the claims.
Pope Francis in The Two Popes (2019)
After a lengthy career and many honors, Pryce finally received his first and only Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance as Pope Francis in The Two Popes. It couldn’t have been more deserving. The film centers on the papal transition of power after Pope Benedict (Anthony Hopkins) resigns amidst revelations about the Catholic Church’s coverup of sexual abuse. While the film depicts a major historical event, the central relationship is surprisingly playful. Pryce and Hopkins show an inspiring friendship between two men from different walks of life who must consider how their decisions will impact a massive portion of the worldwide population.
