Luke Kirby
Luke Kirby | |
|---|---|
 Kirby in 2012 | |
| Born | Luke Farrell Kirby (1978-06-29) June 29, 1978 |
| Education | National Theatre School of Canada |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2000–present |
Luke Farrell Kirby (born June 29, 1978) is a Canadian actor.[1] He played the role of Lenny Bruce in the Amazon Prime Videocomedy-drama series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. In 2024, he starred as Chuck Brooks in the Peabody Award winning film Out of My Mind from Disney+.[2]
Early life
Kirby was born in Hamilton, Ontario, to American parents. His mother is from Brooklyn, New York City, and his father grew up "along the eastern seaboard."[3] His parents moved from New York City to Canada in 1974. He studied drama at the National Theatre School of Canada, a theatre conservatory focusing on classical works, and graduated in 2000.[4]
Career
Kirby has performed since his teens, after he was accepted at The National Theatre School of Canada. He graduated in May 2000, and after two auditions began working on two separate projects: the CBS/Alliance mini-seriesHaven, and director Léa Pool's feature Lost and Delirious (2001).
Soon after, he portrayed Morgan in the Factory Theatre's production of Geometry in Venice in Toronto, a performance that brought him a Best Actor nomination at the Dora Mavor Moore Awards. This was quickly followed by the role of Patroclus in Theatre for a New Audience's 2001 production of Troilus and Cressida, directed by Peter Hall in New York City.
In 2006, Kirby performed in the Women's Project Theater production of Jump/Cut.[5] His other theatre credits include Judith Thompson's premiere of Habitat at Canadian Stage, and Daniel Brooks premiere of The Good Life at the Tarragon Theatre (both in Toronto). His latest theatre venture was in New York City, where he had the lead role in Defender of the Faith (Irish Repertory Theatre).[6][7]
Kirby's first feature film role was that of Jake Hollander in Lost and Delirious (2001), followed by Halloween: Resurrection (2002), where he played Jim.[8] His other film credits include lead roles in Peter Wellington's feature Luck and Mambo Italiano[9] directed by Émile Gaudreault. Mambo Italiano received a gala presentation at the 2003 Toronto International Film Festival to a standing ovation, and earned Kirby a Canadian Comedy Award Nomination. He then played a part written for him in the feature film Shattered Glass, produced by Cruise/Wagner. In 2007, he had the lead role of Ray Dokes opposite Rachael Leigh Cook and Keith Carradine in the Canadian feature All Hat.[10] In 2009, he appeared opposite Lindsay Lohan in Labor Pains.
In television, one of Kirby's favourite roles was in the TMN/Showcase mini-series Slings & Arrows, featuring Canadian actors and directed by his friend Peter Wellington. Kirby was nominated for a Gemini Award for his role in Sex Traffic, a mini-series for Channel 4 and CBC that aired in the fall of 2004 under British director David Yates. That year, Kirby received a second Gemini nomination for his guest-star role in the dramatic series The Eleventh Hour. In the fall of 2005, he was a series regular in HBO's Tell Me You Love Me, directed by Patricia Rozema, whose first season aired in September 2007. He starred as Jimmy Burns in the 2009–2010 Canwest Global series Cra$h & Burn.
In 2017, Kirby joined the cast of the award-winning Amazon Prime Videocomedy-drama series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, portraying comedian Lenny Bruce, for which he received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. In 2025 he played Jack McMillan in the Amazon Prime Videocomedy-drama series Étoile.
From December 2019 through January 2020, Kirby starred in the off-Broadway play Judgment Day at New York's Park Avenue Armory.
Filmography
Film
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released. |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Lost and Delirious | Jake Hollander | |
| 2002 | Halloween: Resurrection | Jim | |
| 2003 | Mambo Italiano | Angelo Barberini | |
| Shattered Glass | Rob Gruen | ||
| Luck | Shane Bradley | ||
| 2004 | Window Theory | Brad | |
| The Human Kazoo | Zacharia | Short film | |
| 2005 | The Greatest Game Ever Played | Frank Hoyt | |
| 2007 | All Hat | Ray Dokes | |
| The Stone Angel | Leo | ||
| 2009 | Labor Pains | Nick Steinwald | |
| 2011 | Take This Waltz | Daniel | |
| 2012 | The Samaritan | Ethan | |
| 2013 | The Boston Post | Sam | Short film |
| Empire of Dirt | Russell | ||
| 2014 | True Man | Client | Short film |
| 2015 | Touched with Fire | Marco | |
| Sure Thing | Bill | Short film | |
| 2017 | A Dog's Purpose | Jim Montgomery | |
| Another Kind of Wedding | Misha | ||
| 2018 | Little Woods | Bill | |
| 2019 | Glass | Pierce | |
| 2020 | Percy | Peter Schmeiser | |
| 2021 | No Man of God | Ted Bundy | |
| 2022 | The Independent | Lucas Nicoll | |
| 2023 | Boston Strangler | F. Lee Bailey | |
| Dark Harvest | Officer Jerry Ricks | ||
| 2024 | Out of My Mind | Chuck | |
| Turn Me On | Founder | ||
| 2025 | Terror Keeps You Slender | The Photographer | Short film |
| TBA | Close to Nowhere† | TBA |
Television
| † | Denotes television programs that have not yet aired. |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Give Me Your Soul... | Narrator | Television documentary |
| 2001 | Haven | Daniel Weinzweig | Television film |
| 2003–2005 | Slings & Arrows | Jack Crew | Main role (season 1), guest role (season 2) |
| 2004 | Sex Traffic | Callum Tate | Television miniseries |
| 2005 | Bury the Lead | Josh Casey | Episode: "Hit Delete" |
| It's Me...Gerald | Dr. Dan | Episode: "How Do You Know You've Hit Bottom?" | |
| 2006 | Northern Town | Brian | Main role |
| 2007 | Tell Me You Love Me | Hugo | 8 episodes |
| 2009 | Flashpoint | Evan Hewson | Episode: "Last Dance" |
| Law & Order | Bobby Amato | Episode: "The Drowned and the Saved" | |
| Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Andre Haslum | Episode: "Folie a Deux" | |
| 2009–2010 | Cra$h & Burn | Jimmy Burn | Main role |
| 2012–2014 | Republic of Doyle | Clyde Cowley | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Elementary | Aaron Ward | Episode: "The Rat Race" |
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Braden Leddy | Episode: "Vanity's Bonfire" | |
| 2013 | Person of Interest | Chris Beckner | Episode: "2 Pi R" |
| Blue Bloods | Detective Wolf Landsman | Episode: "Men in Black" | |
| 2013–2016 | Rectify | Jon Stern | Main role |
| 2015 | The Astronaut Wives Club | Max Kaplan | Main role |
| Show Me a Hero | Edwin E. McAmis | Episode: "Episode 2" | |
| The Good Wife | Harry McGrath | Episode: "Cooked" | |
| 2017–2023 | The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel | Lenny Bruce | Main role (season 4), recurring role (seasons 1–3, and 5) |
| 2017 | The Good Fight | Harry McGrath | Episode: "Self Condemned" |
| Bull | Harry Kemp | Episode: "Dirty Little Secrets" | |
| 2018 | Blindspot | Christophe Bruyere / Junior | 2 episodes |
| 2018–2019 | The Deuce | Gene Goldman | Main role (seasons 2–3) |
| 2018 | Sorry for Your Loss | Tripp | Episode: "Welcome to Palm Springs" |
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Andrew Leibowitz | Episode: "Hell's Kitchen" | |
| 2019 | The Twilight Zone | Dylan | Episode: "Not All Men" |
| Tales of the City | Tommy Nelson | 2 episodes | |
| 2020 | Little Voice | Jeremy | 4 episodes |
| 2021–2022 | Gossip Girl | Davis Calloway | 11 episodes |
| 2022 | Panhandle | Bell Prescott | Main role; also producer |
| 2023 | The Company You Keep | Jones Malone | Episode: "Against All Odds" |
| Dr. Death | Dr. Nathan Gamelli | Main role (season 2) | |
| 2025 | Étoile | Jack McMillan | Main role |
| 2026 | The Last Thing He Told Me | TBA | Post-production |
Podcasts
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Marvel's Wastelanders: Doom | Maximus | Episode: "Chapter One: A Super Hero Walks into a Bar" |
| 2023 | Supreme: The Battle for Roe | Roy Lucas | 4 episodes |
| The Downloaded | Dr. Jurgen Haas | 10 episodes |
Theatre credits
| Year | Play | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Geometry in Venice | Morgan | Factory Theatre |
| Troilus and Cressida | Patroclus / Deiphobus | American Place Theatre | |
| Habitat | Sparkle | Bluma Appel Theatre | |
| 2002 | The Good Life | Gord | Tarragon Theatre Mainspace |
| 2006 | Jump/Cut | Dave | Julia Miles Theater |
| 2007 | Defender of the Faith | Thomas | Irish Repertory Theatre |
| 2013–2014 | Too Much, Too Much, Too Many | Pastor Hidge | Black Box Theatre |
| 2019–2020 | Judgement Day | Thomas Hudetz | Wade Thompson Drill Hall |
Awards and nominations
References
- ^"Luke Kirby". Northernstars.ca. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
- ^"Out of My Mind". The Peabody Awards. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
- ^"Interview with Luke Kirby by Vittorio Carli". ReelMovieCritic.com. Archived from the original on 5 January 2004. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^"Alumni, Acting: 2000-2009". National Theatre School of Canada. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012.
- ^"Jump/Cut (New York Premiere)". WP Theater. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^Finkle, David. "Defender of the Faith review". Theatre Mania. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^Jameson-Sammartano, Patricia. "An IRA Family Unravels In Defender of the Faith". The Wild Geese Today. Archived from the original on 22 December 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^"Halloween: Resurrection". The Movie Spoiler. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^Fischer, Paul. "Canada's BiG Gay Italian Fat Wedding Comedy Strikes Universal Chord". Female Magazine. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
- ^"Straight Shooter: The horse opera All Hat talks tough but fails to deliver". cbc.ca. Archived from the original on 6 January 2009. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- ^"Louise Pitre and Conleth Hill Among Dora Award Winners in Toronto". Playbill. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"Nominations & Awards Archives". Canadian Comedy Awards. 2004. Archived from the original on 2 August 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
- ^ ab"Gemini Awards (2005)". IMDb. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"Gemini Awards (2010)". IMDb. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"2013 ACTRA Awards in Toronto Winners". ACTRA. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Nominees/Winners". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Nominees/Winners". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"2022, 28th Annual Awards". Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Nominees/Winners". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^"Hollywood Critics Association's Creative Arts Category Nominations for the 2023 HCA TV Awards". Hollywood Critics Association. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
External links
- Luke Kirby at IMDb
- Luke Kirby at the Internet Off-Broadway Database (archived)
