Charles Laughton
Acting
Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was an English-American stage and film actor, director, producer and screenwriter. Laughton was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future wife Elsa Lanchester, with whom he lived and worked until his death. He played a wide range of classical and modern parts, making an impact in Shakespeare at the Old Vic. His film career took him to Broadway and then Hollywood, but he also collaborated with Alexander Korda on notable British films of the era, including The Private Life of Henry VIII, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of the title character. He portrayed everything from monsters and misfits to kings. Among Laughton's biggest film hits were The Barretts of Wimpole Street, Mutiny on the Bounty, Ruggles of Red Gap, Jamaica Inn, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and The Big Clock. In his later career, he took up stage directing, notably in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, and George Bernard Shaw's Don Juan in Hell, in which he also starred. He directed one film, the thriller The Night of the Hunter. Daniel Day-Lewis cited Laughton as one of his inspirations, saying: "He was probably the greatest film actor who came from that period of time. He had something quite remarkable. His generosity as an actor, he fed himself into that work. As an actor, you cannot take your eyes off him."
Known for
Acting84
movieLost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau
2014
Self (archive footage)
movieMonster Madness: The Golden Age of the Horror Film
2014
Dr. Moreau (archive footage)
movie1939: Hollywood's Greatest Year
2009
Self (archive footage)
movieMonster by Moonlight! The Immortal Saga of 'The Wolf Man'
1999
Self (archive footage)
movieAbbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld
1994
Self (archive footage)
moviePreminger: Anatomy of a Filmmaker
1991
actor 'Advise and 'Consent' (archive footage) (uncredited)
movieHollywood Scandals and Tragedies
1988
(archive footage) (uncredited)
movieHollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
1983
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
movieDead Men Don't Wear Plaid
1982
(in "The Bribe") (archive footage)
movieOops, Those Hollywood Bloopers!
1982
Self (archive footage)
movieThe Horror Show
1979
(archive footage)
movieHollywood: The Dream Factory
1972
Self (archive footage)
movieThe Epic That Never Was
1969
Tiberius Claudius (archive footage)
movieAdvise & Consent
1962
Senator Seabright Cooley
movieSpartacus
1960
Sempronius Gracchus
movieUnder Ten Flags
1960
Admiral Russell
movieIn the Presence of Mine Enemies
1960
Rabbi Adam Heller
tvStartime
1959
Self – Co-Host
movieWitness for the Prosecution
1957
Sir Wilfrid
tvThe Steve Allen Show
1956
Self - Guest
tvMGM Parade
1955
Self
movieHobson's Choice
1954
Henry Horatio Hobson
movieYoung Bess
1953
King Henry VIII
movieSalome
1953
King Herod
tvGeneral Electric Theater
1953
Edwin Kensington / Henry Denry / M. Hamel
movieAbbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd
1952
Capt. William Kidd
movieO. Henry's Full House
1952
Soapy (segment "The Cop and the Anthem")
movieThe Strange Door
1951
Sire Alain de Maletroit
movieThe Blue Veil
1951
Fred K. Begley
movieThe Man on the Eiffel Tower
1949
Inspector Jules Maigret
movieThe Art Director
1949
Self - from 'The Big Clock' (archive footage) (uncredited)
movieThe Bribe
1949
J.J. Bealer
movieThe Girl from Manhattan
1948
The Bishop
movieThe Big Clock
1948
Earl Janoth
movieArch of Triumph
1948
Ivon Haake
movieOn Our Merry Way
1948
Reverend
movieThe Paradine Case
1947
Judge Lord Thomas Horfield
movieLeben des Galilei
1947
Galileo Galilei
movieBecause of Him
1946
John Sheridan
movieCaptain Kidd
1945
Captain Kidd
movieThe Suspect
1945
Philip Marshall
movieThe Canterville Ghost
1944
Sir Simon de Canterville / The Ghost
movieThe Man from Down Under
1943
Jocko Wilson
movieThis Land Is Mine
1943
Albert Lory
movieForever and a Day
1943
Bellamy
movieStand by for Action
1942
Rear Admiral Stephen Thomas
movieTales of Manhattan
1942
Charles Smith
movieIt Started with Eve
1941
Jonathan Reynolds
movieThey Knew What They Wanted
1940
Tony Patucci
movieThe Hunchback of Notre Dame
1939
The Hunchback Quasimodo
movieJamaica Inn
1939
Sir Humphrey Pengallan
movieSt. Martin's Lane
1938
Charles Staggers
movieVessel of Wrath
1938
Ginger Ted
movieI, Claudius
1937
Claudius
movieRembrandt
1936
Rembrandt van Rijn
movieMutiny on the Bounty
1935
Captaine Bligh
movieLes Misérables
1935
Inspector Emile Javert
movieRuggles of Red Gap
1935
Marmaduke Ruggles
movieThe Barretts of Wimpole Street
1934
Edward Moulton-Barrett
movieWhite Woman
1933
Horace H. Prin
movieThe Private Life of Henry VIII
1933
Henry VIII
movieThe Clerk
1933
Phineas V. Lambert
movieThe Sign of the Cross
1932
Emperor Nero Claudius Caesar
movieIsland of Lost Souls
1932
Dr. Moreau
movieIf I Had a Million
1932
Phineas V. Lambert
moviePayment Deferred
1932
William Marble
movieThe Old Dark House
1932
Sir William Porterhouse
movieDevil and the Deep
1932
Cmdr. Charles Sturm
movieDown River
1931
Captain Grossman
movieComets
1930
Himself
movieWolves
1930
Captain Job
moviePiccadilly
1929
A Continental Visitor
movieBlue Bottles
1928
Burglar
movieDaydreams
1928
Lecherous Boarder / Ram Das in Dream Sequence
movieThe Tonic
1928
Father of the Family
Production3
Crew2
movieSt. Martin's Lane
1938
Additional Writing
Writing2
movieThe Night of the Hunter
1955
Screenplay
Directing1
movieThe Night of the Hunter
1955
Director