| Dónall Ó Héalai | |
| Birth Date: | 28 November 1987 |
| Birth Place: | Inverin, County Galway, Ireland |
| Nationality: | Irish |
| Occupation: | Actor |
| Agent: | Curtis Brown[1] |
| Years Active: | 2006–present |
Dónall Ó Héalai (in Irish ˈd̪ˠoːnˠəl̪ˠ oː ˈheːlˠiː/) (born 5 March 1987) is an Irish actor and voice actor. He was named a 2020 Screen International Star of Tomorrow[2] and twice nominated for best leading actor in film at the Irish Film and Television awards in 2020 and 2022.[3] [4] He was also the recipient of the Wilde Card award at the Oscar Wilde awards in Los Angeles in 2022 [5] [6] as well as one to watch in 2021 by The Irish Examiner.[7]
Ó Héalai was born in the Gaeltacht village of Inverin, County Galway and grew up in Inverin and Spiddal. He began acting at the age of 14 at a local youth club.[8] He completed his secondary education as a boarding student at St Jarlath's College in Tuam.[9] [10]
He graduated from Maynooth University. He was awarded the Dr. H.H Stewart Literary Prize during his studies.[11] He went on to train at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York and Bow Street Academy in Dublin.[12] [13]
In 2006, Ó Héalai made his onscreen debut as a teenager in the recurring role of Jeaic in season 1 of the TG4 coming-of-age family series Aifric.
Ó Héalai played Otis in the 2019 American psychological thriller Impossible Monsters.[14] [15] That same year, he starred as Colmán Sharkey in the Irish-language period drama film Arracht, which won Best Irish film at 2020 Dublin International Film Festival (DIFF) and the Audience Award at the 2020 Glasgow Film Festival.[16] In addition to receiving critical acclaim, Ó Héalai won the Aer Lingus Discovery Award at the DIFF as well as receiving a Best Actor nomination at the IFTAs.
Ó Héalaí stars as John Cunliffe in the Irish-language film Foscadh, an adaptation of the social novel The Thing About December by Donal Ryan.[17] Foscadh is the Irish submission for Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards.
A native speaker of Irish, Ó Héalaí founded the cultural initiative Celtic Consciousness and, in 2018, gave a TEDxBerkeley talk on the Irish Language and Beauty.[18]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Skint | Billy | Short film |
| 2014 | Sínte | Seán | Short film |
| 2015 | My Name is Emily | Young Policeman | |
| Pursuit | Oisín | ||
| Traders | Kicker | ||
| 2016 | Catch 22 | Mikey | |
| 2017 | Loud Places | Garrett | |
| 2019 | Impossible Monsters | Otis | |
| Arracht | Colmán Sharkey | ||
| 2021 | Foscadh | John Cunliffe | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Aifric | Jeaic | 5 episodes |
| 2010–2011 | Seacht | Quinn | 3 episodes |
| 2013 | The Siege 1922 | Various | Television film |
| 2011–2014 | Corp & Anam | John Glynn / Garda Óg | 3 episodes |
| TBA | North Sea Connections | Shane McDonagh | Upcoming |
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Irish Screen America | Rising Star Award | Sínte | [20] [21] | |
| 2020 | Dublin International Film Festival | Aer Lingus Discovery Award | Arracht | [22] | |
| Irish Film & Television Awards | Actor in a Leading Role – Film | ||||