Christopher Plummer on screen and stage explained

Christopher Plummer (1929–2021) was a Canadian film, television and stage actor. On stage, Plummer's most notable roles were that of Cyrano de Bergerac in Cyrano (1974) and as John Barrymore in Barrymore. He won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for these two roles. On film, Plummer is known for portraying Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music (1965).^[1]

Plummer won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Mike Mills' film Beginners (2011). He also appeared in Waterloo (1970), The Man Who Would Be King (1975), Malcolm X (1992), and A Beautiful Mind (2001). He portrayed journalist Mike Wallace in The Insider (1999), author Leo Tolstoy in The Last Station (2009), Arthur Case in Inside Man (2006), and J. Paul Getty in All the Money in the World (2017). Plummer had provided his voice for two animated films: the Don Bluth film An American Tail (1986) and the Pixar film Up (2009).^[2]

At the time of his death, he had been filming season 2 of Departure. He was set to play the lead in a film adaptation of King Lear to be filmed in summer 2021, but he died in February, thus being unable to take part in the film.^{[3] [4]}

Film

Year! scope="col"

Title	Role	Notes
1958	Stage Struck	Joe Sheridan
	Wind Across the Everglades	Walt Murdock
1964	data-sort-value="Fall of the Roman Empire, The"	The Fall of the Roman Empire	Commodus
1965	data-sort-value="Sound of Music, The"	The Sound of Music	Captain Georg von Trapp
	Inside Daisy Clover	Raymond Swan
1966	Triple Cross	Eddie Chapman
1967	data-sort-value="Night of the Generals, The"	The Night of the Generals	Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
	Oedipus the King	Oedipus
1968	Nobody Runs Forever	Sir James Quentin
1969	Battle of Britain	Squadron Leader Colin Harvey
	data-sort-value="Royal Hunt of the Sun, The"	The Royal Hunt of the Sun	Atahualpa
	Lock Up Your Daughters!	Lord Foppington
1970	Waterloo	Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
1973	data-sort-value="Pyx, The"	The Pyx	Sergeant Jim Henderson
1974	data-sort-value="Happy Prince, The"	The Happy Prince	The Happy Prince	Short film
1975	data-sort-value="Spiral Staircase, The"	The Spiral Staircase	Dr. Joe Sherman
	data-sort-value="Return of the Pink Panther, The"	The Return of the Pink Panther	Sir Charles Litton
	Conduct Unbecoming	Major Alastair Wimbourne
	data-sort-value="Man Who Would Be King, The"	The Man Who Would Be King	Rudyard Kipling
	data-sort-value="Day That Shook the World, The"	The Day That Shook the World	Archduke Ferdinand of Austria
1976	Aces High	Captain 'Uncle' Sinclair
1977	data-sort-value="Assignment, The"	The Assignment	Captain Behounek
	data-sort-value="Disappearance, The"	The Disappearance	Deverell
1978	data-sort-value="Silent Partner, The"	The Silent Partner	Harry Reikle
	International Velvet	John Seaton
1979	Starcrash	The Emperor
	Murder by Decree	Sherlock Holmes
	Hanover Street	Paul Sellinger
1980	Somewhere in Time	William Fawcett Robinson
1981	Eyewitness	Joseph
		Professor Lakos
1984	Lily in Love	Fitzroy Wynn / Roberto Terranova
	Dreamscape	Bob Blair
	Highpoint	James Hatcher
	Ordeal by Innocence	Leo Argyle
1986	data-sort-value="Boy in Blue, The"	The Boy in Blue	Knox
	data-sort-value="Boss' Wife, The"	The Boss' Wife	Mr. Roalvang
	An American Tail	Henri	Voice	^[5]
	data-sort-value="Steadfast Tin Soldier, The"	The Steadfast Tin Soldier	Narrator
	Vampire in Venice	Professor Paris Catalano
1987	Dragnet	Reverend Jonathan Whirley
	I Love N.Y.	John Robertson Yeats
	data-sort-value="Man Who Planted Trees, The"	The Man Who Planted Trees	Narrator
	data-sort-value="Gnomes' Great Adventure, The"	The Gnomes' Great Adventure	Narrator
1988	Light Years	Metamorphis
	Shadow Dancing	Edmund Beaumont
	data-sort-value="Making of a Legend: Gone with the Wind, The"		Narrator	Documentary
1989	Souvenir	Ernst Kestner
	Mindfield	Dr. Satorius
1990	Where the Heart Is	Jerry
	Red Blooded American Girl	Dr. John Alcore
	Money	Martin Yahl
1991	Firehead	Colonel Garland Vaughn
	Rock-a-Doodle	The Grand Duke of Owls	Voice
	Dragon and Slippers	Pelican	Voice
		General Chang
1992	Liar's Edge	Harry Weldon
	Impolite	Naples O'Rorke
	Malcolm X	Chaplain Gill
1994	Wolf	Raymond Alden
	Crackerjack	Ivan Getz
1995	Dolores Claiborne	Detective John Mackey
	12 Monkeys	Dr. Goines
1996	data-sort-value="Conspiracy of Fear, The"	The Conspiracy of Fear	Joseph Wakeman
1997	Babes in Toyland	Barnaby Crookedman	Voice
1998	data-sort-value="First Christmas, The"	The First Christmas	Narrator
	Blackheart	Holmes
	data-sort-value="Clown at Midnight, The"	The Clown at Midnight	Mr. Caruthers
1999	Hidden Agenda	Ulrich Steiner
		Narrator
	data-sort-value="Insider, The"	The Insider	Mike Wallace
2000	Dracula 2000	Abraham Van Helsing
2001	Lucky Break	Graham Mortimer
	data-sort-value="Beautiful Mind, A"	A Beautiful Mind	Dr. Rosen
	Full Disclosure	Robert Lecker
2002	Ararat	David
	Nicholas Nickleby	Ralph Nickleby
2003	data-sort-value="Gospel of John, The"	The Gospel of John	Narrator
	Blizzard	Santa Claus
	Cold Creek Manor	Mr. Massie
2004	National Treasure	John Adams Gates
	Alexander	Aristotle
2005	Must Love Dogs	Bill Nolan
	Syriana	Dean Whiting
	data-sort-value="New World, The"	The New World	Captain Christopher Newport
2006	Inside Man	Arthur Case
	data-sort-value="Lake House, The"	The Lake House	Simon Wyler
2007	Man in the Chair	'Flash' Madden
	Closing the Ring	Jack Etty
	Emotional Arithmetic	David Winters
	Already Dead	Dr. Heller
2009	Caesar and Cleopatra	Julius Caesar	Also executive producer
	Up	Charles Muntz	Voice
	My Dog Tulip	J.R. Ackerley	Voice
	data-sort-value="Last Station, The"	The Last Station	Leo Tolstoy
	9	1	Voice
	data-sort-value="Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, The"	The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus	Dr. Parnassus
2010	Beginners	Hal Fields
2011	Priest	Monsignor Orelas
	Barrymore	John Barrymore
	data-sort-value="Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The"	The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo	Henrik Vanger
2013	data-sort-value="Legend of Sarila, The"	The Legend of Sarila	Croolik	Voice
2014	Elsa & Fred	Fred Barcroft
	Hector and the Search for Happiness	Professor Coreman
	data-sort-value="Forger, The"	The Forger	Joseph Cutter
2015	Danny Collins	Frank Grubman
	Pixies	Pixie King	Voice
	Remember	Zev Guttman / Otto Wallisch
2016	data-sort-value="Exception, The"	The Exception	Kaiser Wilhelm
	Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom	Dr. West	Voice
2017	Elegy	Narrator	Short film	^[6]
	data-sort-value="Man Who Invented Christmas, The"	The Man Who Invented Christmas	Ebenezer Scrooge
	data-sort-value="Star, The"	The Star		Voice
	All the Money in the World	J. Paul Getty
	Howard Lovecraft & the Undersea Kingdom	Dr. West, Pixie King
2018	Boundaries	Jack Jaconi
	Howard Lovecraft and the Kingdom of Madness	Dr. Jeffrey West	Voice
2019	Cliffs of Freedom	Thanasi
	Knives Out	Harlan Thrombey
	data-sort-value="Last Full Measure, The"	The Last Full Measure	Frank Pitsenbarger
2023	Heroes of the Golden Masks	Rizzo	Voice, posthumous release

Television

Year! scope="col"

Title	Role	Notes
1953	Broadway Television Theatre	Michael O'Leary	Episode: "Dark Victory"
1955	Kraft Television Theatre	Robert Carr	Episode: "The King's Bounty"
	Producers' Showcase	Christian de Neuvillette	Episode: "Cyrano de Bergerac"
1956	General Electric Theater	Walter Shelley	Episode: "A Letter from the Queen"
	data-sort-value="Alcoa Hour, The"	The Alcoa Hour	Bruce Quealy	Episode: "Even the Weariest River"
1957–1958	Omnibus	Thomas Mendip / Oedipus	2 episodes
1957–1961	DuPont Show of the Month	Various roles	2 episodes
1958	Little Moon of Alban	Kenneth Boyd	Television film
1959	Johnny Belinda	Dr. Jack Pelletier	Television film
	data-sort-value="Doll's House, A"	A Doll's House	Torvald Helmer	Television film
	data-sort-value="Philadelphia Story, The"	The Philadelphia Story	Mike Connor	Television film
1960	NBC Sunday Showcase	Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.	2 episodes
	Captain Brassbound's Conversion	Captain Brassbound	Television film
1961	Playdate	Himself	13 episodes
	Time Remembered	Prince Albert	Television film
1962	Cyrano de Bergerac	Cyrano de Bergerac	Television film
1964	Hamlet at Elsinore	Hamlet	Television film
1968	data-sort-value="Secret of Michelangelo, The"	The Secret of Michelangelo	Narrator	TV documentary
1971	Don Juan in Hell	Don Juan	Television film
1974	Witness to Yesterday	Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington	Episode: "The Duke of Wellington"
	After the Fall	Quentin	Television film
1976	data-sort-value="Moneychangers, The"	The Moneychangers	Roscoe Heyward	Miniseries, 4 episodes
1977	Silver Blaze	Sherlock Holmes	Television film
	Jesus of Nazareth	Herod Antipas	Miniseries, 2 episodes
1979	Riel	Sir John A. Macdonald	Television film
1980	Desperate Voyage	Burrifous	Television film
	data-sort-value="Shadow Box, The"	The Shadow Box	Brian	Television film
1981	When the Circus Came to Town	Duke Royal	Television film
1981	Dial M for Murder	Tony Wendice	Television film
1982	Little Gloria... Happy at Last	Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt	Miniseries, 2 episodes
1983	data-sort-value="Scarlet and the Black, The"	The Scarlet and the Black	Colonel Herbert Kappler	Television film
	data-sort-value="Thorn Birds, The"	The Thorn Birds	Archbishop Vittorio Contini-Verchese	Miniseries, 3 episodes
	Prototype	Dr. Carl Forrester	Television film
1985	Rumpelstiltskin	Narrator	Television film
	data-sort-value="Velveteen Rabbit, The"	The Velveteen Rabbit	Narrator	Television film
1986	Crossings	Armand DeVilliers	Miniseries, 3 episodes
	Spearfield's Daughter	Lord Jack Cruze	Television film
1987	data-sort-value="Hazard of Hearts, A"	A Hazard of Hearts	Sir Giles Staverley	Television film
	data-sort-value="Cosby Show, The"	The Cosby Show	Jonathan Lawrence	Episode: "Shakespeare"
	data-sort-value="World of David the Gnome, The"	The World of David the Gnome	Narrator	English version
1988–1991	Madeline	Narrator	6 episodes
1989	Nabokov on Kafka	Vladimir Nabokov	Television short
1990	data-sort-value="Ghost in Monte Carlo, A"	A Ghost in Monte Carlo	The Grand Duke Ivan	Television film
1990–1993	Counterstrike	Alexander Addington	65 episodes
1991	Young Catherine	Sir Charles Williams	Miniseries, 3 episodes
	data-sort-value="Marriage: Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz, A"	A Marriage: Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz	Alfred Stieglitz	Television film
	Berlin Lady	Wilhem Speer	6 episodes
	data-sort-value="First Circle, The"	The First Circle	Victor Abakumov	Television film
1992	Secrets	Mel Wexler	Television film
1993	data-sort-value="Stranger in the Mirror, A"	A Stranger in the Mirror	Clifton Lawrence	Television film
1993–1995	Madeline	Narrator	33 episodes
1995	Harrison Bergeron	John Klaxon	Television film
1996	We the Jury	Wilfred Fransiscus	Television film
	Skeletons	Reverend Carlyle	Television film
1997	data-sort-value="Arrow, The"	The Arrow	George Hees	Miniseries, 2 episodes
1998	Winchell	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Television film
2000	Nuremberg	Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe	Miniseries, 2 episodes
	data-sort-value="Dinosaur Hunter, The"	The Dinosaur Hunter	Hump Hinton	Television film
	Possessed	Archbishop Hume	Television film
	American Tragedy	F. Lee Bailey	2 episodes
2001	Leo's Journey	Narrator	Television film
	On Golden Pond	Norman Thayer	Television film
2002	Night Flight	Harry 'Flash' Peters	Television film
	Agent of Influence	John Watkins	Television film
2003	Odd Job Jack	Magnus The Maker	Episode: "Holyland"
2005	Our Fathers	Cardinal Bernard Law	Television film
	Miracle Planet	Narrator	6 episodes
	Four Minutes	Archie Mason	Television film
2006	American Experience	Narrator / James Tyrone	Episode: "Eugene O'Neill"
2008	data-sort-value="Summit, The"	The Summit	P. J. Aimes	Miniseries, 2 episodes
2013	Muhammad Ali's Greatest Fight	John Marshall Harlan II	Television film
2019–2021	Departure	Howard Larson	12 episodes
2020	Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time	Himself - Video Clue Presenter	1 episode

Theatre

Year! scope="col"

Title	Role	Venue
1954	data-sort-value="Starcross Story, The"	The Starcross Story	George Phillips	Royale Theatre, Broadway
1954	Home is the Hero	Manchester Monagham	Booth Theatre, Broadway
1955	data-sort-value="Dark is Light Enough, The"	The Dark is Light Enough	Count Peter Zichy	ANTA Theatre, Broadway
1955	data-sort-value="Lark, The"	The Lark	Warwick	Longacre Theatre, Broadway
1956	Henry V	Henry V	Stratford Film Festival
1956	Night of the Auk	Lewis Roheman	Playhouse Theatre, Broadway
1958	J.B.	Nickles	ANTA Playhouse, Broadway
1963	data-sort-value="Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, The"	The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui	Arturo Ui	Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, Broadway
1965	data-sort-value="Royal Hunt of the Sun, The"	The Royal Hunt of the Sun	Francisco Pizarro	ANTA Theatre, Broadway
1971	Amphitryon 38	Jean Giraudoux	National Theatre, London Directed by Laurence Olivier
1973	data-sort-value="Good Doctor, The"	The Good Doctor	Performer	Eugene O'Neill Theatre, Broadway
1974	Cyrano	Cyrano de Bergerac	Palace Theatre, Broadway
1978	Drinks Before Dinner	Edgar	The Public Theatre, Off-Broadway
1982	Othello	Iago	Winter Garden Theatre, Broadway
1988	Macbeth	Macbeth	O'Keefe Centre, Toronto Ontario	^[7]
1988	Macbeth	Macbeth	Mark Hellinger Theatre, Broadway
1994	No Man's Land	Spooner	Roundabout Theater Company, Broadway	^[8]
1997	Barrymore	John Barrymore	Music Box Theatre, Broadway	^[9]
2004	King Lear	King Lear	Vivian Beaumont Theatre, Broadway	^[10]
2007	Inherit the Wind	Henry Drummond	Lyceum Theatre, Broadway	^[11]
2008	Caesar and Cleopatra	Julius Caesar	Stratford Festival
2010	data-sort-value="Tempest, The"	The Tempest	Prospero	Stratford Festival

Video games

Year! scope="col"

Title	Voice role	Notes
2000		General Chang	Live action
2009	Up	Charles Muntz
2011		Arngeir
2012		Charles Muntz

See also

• List of awards and nominations received by Christopher Plummer

References

• Web site: Christopher Plummer – Filmography . . July 16, 2017.
• Web site: Christopher Plummer on Rotten Tomatoes . . November 19, 2017.

External links

• Christopher Plummer at Allmovie
  • • Christopher Plummer at Rotten Tomatoes

Notes and References

1. News: At 80, Plummer has arrived at his 'Station'. The Boston Globe . January 31, 2010. Judy Abel. July 25, 2012.
2. News: Corliss. Richard. Up, Up and Away: Another New High for Pixar. November 22, 2013. Time. May 28, 2009. Richard Corliss.
3. News: Christopher Plummer set to film season 2 of 'Departure' from his home due to pandemic . City News . Toronto . Victoria Ahearn . The Canadian Press . 9 October 2020 .
4. News: Des McAnuff on the 'King Lear' film Christopher Plummer was 'very passionate about' . The Canadian Press . 6 February 2021 . Yahoo News . February 8, 2021 . February 14, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210214224820/https://ca.news.yahoo.com/des-mcanuff-king-lear-film-090000618.html . dead .
5. Web site: Christopher Plummer (Visual voices guide).
6. Web site: 2017-08-01. The Long Dark Inspires a Short Film, With Christopher Plummer's Help. 2021-02-05. pastemagazine.com. en.
7. Web site: TobySimkin . 1988-03-08 . Macbeth (1988 Toronto) - Toby Simkin ★ Broadway . 2023-06-16 . en-US.
8. Web site: No Man's Land. Variety. January 28, 1994. May 22, 2020.
9. Web site: Tony-Winner Christopher Plummer Starts Barrymore Tour, July 11. Playbill.com. July 11, 1998. May 22, 2020.
10. Web site: Christopher Plummer Is Shakespeare's Mad Monarch as King Lear Begins at Beaumont. Playbill.com. February 11, 2004. May 22, 2020.
11. Web site: Plummer and Dennehy to Inherit the Wind on Broadway. Playbill.com. October 5, 2006. May 22, 2020.