Skip to content
MovieCove
James McAvoy

James McAvoy

Actor, also director and producer · Born April 21, 1979 (47) · Glasgow, Scotland, UK

BAFTA Award winner · Golden Globe nominee · 1 other major award body

James McAvoy (born April 21, 1979) is a Scottish actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in The Near Room (1995) and appeared mostly on television until 2003, when his feature film career began. His notable television work includes the thriller State of Play, science fiction miniseries Frank Herbert's Children of Dune and the channel 4s BAFTA award-winning series Shameless (British TV series). He has performed in several West End productions and has received four nominations for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor, and has also done voice work for animated films including Gnomeo & Juliet, its sequel Sherlock Gnomes, and Arthur Christmas. In 2003, McAvoy appeared in a lead role in Bollywood Queen, then in another lead role as Rory in Inside I'm Dancing in 2004. This was followed by a supporting role, as the faun Mr. Tumnus, in The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005). His performance in Kevin Macdonald's drama The Last King of Scotland (2006) garnered him several award nominations, including the BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor. The critically acclaimed romantic drama war film Atonement (2007) earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination and his second BAFTA nomination. He later appeared as a newly trained assassin in the action thriller Wanted (2008). In 2011, McAvoy portrayed Professor Charles Xavier in the superhero film X-Men: First Class, a role he reprised in X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), Deadpool 2 (2018), and Dark Phoenix (2019). McAvoy starred in the crime comedy-drama film Filth (2013), for which he won Best Actor in the British Independent Film Awards. In 2016, he portrayed Kevin Wendell Crumb, a man with 23 alternate personalities, in M. Night Shyamalan's Split, for which he received critical acclaim, and later reprised the role for the sequel Glass (2019). Since 2019, he has portrayed Lord Asriel Belacqua in the BBC/HBO fantasy series His Dark Materials.

Read more

Biography from TMDB.

Born
April 21, 1979 (47)
From
Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Works as
Actor, also director and producer
Titles
54 on MovieCove · 74 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Down 11% in 30 days

What are James McAvoy's films like?

Across their 45 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Self.

Genres

Drama9 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 61st percentile
: browse their Drama movies
Action8 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 69th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Action movies
Comedy6 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 66th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Biography4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 79th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Biography movies
Adventure3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 81st percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Animation3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 41st percentile
: browse their Animation movies
Crime3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 73rd percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Crime movies
Documentary2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 65th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies
Horror2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 50th percentile
: browse their Horror movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
26%
Self
24%
Morality
18%
Society
12%
Survival
11%
Power
6%
Ideas
4%
Identity8 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love8 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds7 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose6 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival6 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty5 titles, browse their movies with this themeMemory5 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 41 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 12 · Serious 8 · Dark 21

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 13 · Stylized 21 · Heightened 7

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 7 · Charged 11 · Intense 23

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 15 · Shifting 20 · Whiplash 6

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 22 · Some laughs 13 · Funny 6

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 12 · Even-paced 25 · Relentless 4

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 11 · Engaged 23 · Full focus 7

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

Easy watch 9 · Affecting 16 · Heavy 16

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 25 · Open-ended 13 · Ambiguous 3

Roles they play

37 analyzed roles

Usually the Hero: 22 of 37 analyzed roles.

Hero
22 of 37
Mentor
5 of 37
Shadow
4 of 37
Trickster
3 of 37
Shapeshifter
1 of 37
Herald
1 of 37
Ally
1 of 37
Show the 37 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
27
Melancholic
16
Joyful
10
Dread
9
Romantic
9
Other
52

How their films linger

Bittersweet19 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful16 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 12 with a twist

  • Happy13
  • Bittersweet21
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous10

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch James McAvoy's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 37 of their 54 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (9).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for James McAvoy's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

74 credits, 54 with a MovieCove page; 24 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Faith (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    as Michael

  • California Schemin'(2025)

    Director · as Anthony

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Pose(2025)

    as Thomas

    Midcredits score: 13th percentile of all films

  • Lions Uncut: Australia 2025 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    as Narrator

  • The Space Between Attack and Decay (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    as Narrator

  • Speak No Evil(2024)

    as Paddy

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • The Book of Clarence(2023)

    as Pontius Pilate

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • The Sandman(2022)

    Show 1 episode · as Golden Haired Man (voice)

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows

  • The Bubble(2022)

    as James McAvoy

    Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all films

  • The Sands Between (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    as Man

  • My Son(2021)

    as Edmond Murray

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • Together(2021)

    as He

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • The Gruffalo and Me: The Remarkable Julia Donaldson (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    as reader

  • The Bridge(2020)

    Show 13 episodes · as Narrator

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all shows

  • National Theatre Live: Cyrano de Bergerac (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    as Cyrano de Bergerac

  • His Dark Materials(2019)

    Show 12 episodes · as Lord Asriel

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all shows

  • It: Chapter Two(2019)

    as Bill Denbrough

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • X-Men: Dark Phoenix(2019)

    as Charles Xavier / Professor X

    Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films

  • Glass(2019)

    as Patricia / Dennis / Hedwig / The Beast / Barry / Heinrich / Jade / Ian / Mary Reynolds / Norma / Jalin / Kat / B.T. / Kevin Wendell Crumb / Mr. Pritchard / Felida / Luke / Goddard / Samuel / Polly

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films

  • Watership Down(2018)

    Show 2 episodes · as Hazel (voice)

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows

  • Once Upon a Deadpool(2018)

    as Charles Xavier / Professor X (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Deadpool 2(2018)

    as Charles Xavier (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Sherlock Gnomes(2018)

    as Gnomeo (voice)

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Submergence(2017)

    as James More

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Atomic Blonde(2017)

    as David Percival

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Split(2016)

    as Dennis / Patricia / Hedwig / The Beast / Kevin Wendell Crumb / Barry / Orwell / Jade

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • X-Men: Apocalypse(2016)

    as Professor Charles Xavier

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • Victor Frankenstein(2015)

    as Victor Frankenstein

    Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all films

  • The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Her(2013)

    as Conor

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him(2013)

    as Conor

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films

  • X-Men: Days of Future Past(2014)

    as Charles Xavier

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them(2014)

    as Conor Ludlow

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • Muppets Most Wanted(2014)

    as UPS Guy

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all films

  • Filth(2013)

    Producer · as Bruce

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Trance(2013)

    as Simon

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • Welcome to the Punch(2013)

    as Max Lewinsky

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films

  • Arthur Christmas(2011)

    as Arthur (voice)

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • 50/50(2011)

    Thanks

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • X-Men: First Class(2011)

    as Charles Xavier (24 Years)

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • The Conspirator(2010)

    as Frederick Aiken

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • Gnomeo & Juliet(2011)

    as Gnomeo (voice)

    Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films

  • The Last Station(2009)

    as Valentin Bulgakov

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films

  • Wanted(2008)

    as Wesley Gibson

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Becoming Jane(2007)

    as Tom Lefroy

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Atonement(2007)

    as Robbie Turner

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all films

  • Starter for 10(2006)

    as Brian Jackson

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Penelope(2006)

    as Johnny/Max

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • The Last King of Scotland(2006)

    as Dr. Nicholas Garrigan

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe(2005)

    as Mr. Tumnus

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • ShakespeaRe-Told: Macbeth (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    as Joe Macbeth

  • ShakespeaRe-Told(2005)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows

  • Strings(2004)

    as Hal

    Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all films

  • Rory O'Shea Was Here(2004)

    as Rory O'Shea

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • Wimbledon(2004)

    as Carl Colt

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Shameless(2004)

    Show 17 episodes · as Steve McBride

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all shows

  • Bright Young Things(2003)

    as Simon Balcairn

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films

  • State of Play (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 6 episodes · as Dan Foster

  • Early Doors (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 6 episodes · as Liam

  • Frank Herbert's Children of Dune (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 3 episodes · as Leto Atreides II

  • Bollywood Queen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    as Jay

  • Foyle's War(2002)

    Show 1 episode · as Ray Pritchard

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows

  • White Teeth (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Show 4 episodes · as Josh Malfen

  • White Teeth (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    as Josh Malfen

  • The Inspector Lynley Mysteries(2001)

    Show 1 episode · as Gowan Ross

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all shows

  • The Pool(2001)

    as Mike

    Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all films

  • Band of Brothers(2001)

    Show 1 episode · as James W. Miller

    Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all shows

  • Murder in Mind (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Show 1 episode · as Martin Vosper

  • Lorna Doone (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    as Sergeant Bloxham

  • Lorna Doone (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    Show 2 episodes · as Sergeant Bloxham

  • Regeneration(1997)

    as Anthony Balfour

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • The Near Room (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    as Kevin

  • The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Show 3 episodes · Actor

  • Control (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    as Dr. Conway

  • Fear the Reaper (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Actor

Career shape

Star power in the 99th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 74 titles, 72 of them dated from 1992 to 2026; peak year 2012.

Biggest box office

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

$746M worldwide

Highest rated

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Midcredits 97th

Most popular right now

The Graham Norton Show (2007)

Film career

MilestoneNomination
19922026

Peak 2012 · fewer prominent film roles lately. Top draw in 35 MovieCove titles. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting73 of 74: 71 only acting, 2 with another role · typical Midcredits score71stDirecting1 of 74: 0 only directing, 1 with another roleProducing1 of 74: 0 only producing, 1 with another roleOther crew1 of 74: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1990s3 · acting2000s28 · acting2010s26 · 25 acting · 2 crew2020s15 · 15 acting · 1 crew

Billing

usually 1st · top billed in 53% of 40 roles
97071217

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

Awards

a BAFTA Award and 1 other major award from 5 major nominations, 2006–2008.

WinNomination
  1. 2008
    • Golden Globe, nominated · Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Leading Actor
  2. 2007
    • BAFTA Award, nominated · Best Actor in a Supporting Role
    • +1 other major body · 1 win
      • Cannes award, won · Male Revelation
  3. 2006
    • BAFTA Award, won

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do James McAvoy's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 71st percentile, the median of all 45; across their 41 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 68th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

68thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 41

Approval · how many liked their films

70thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 41

Reach · how many have seen their films

93rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 41

Midcredits score across 54 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up24
  • 50th to 74th18
  • 25th to 49th5
  • Below 25th7

Shape of the crowd

31 of their 54 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved9
  • Divisive1
  • Cult Classic2
  • Crowd Pleaser31
  • Broadly Agreed5
  • Mixed6

Most divisive · actor

Pose (2025)

97th percentile spread · 57% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

Midcredits 97th · 90% liked

Reviewers score the acting 76/100 in their films, across 39 reviewed titles; fans 84, detractors 54. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is James McAvoy's work okay for kids?

Across up to 34 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, profanity and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore28 titles13–90 · median 65 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity34 titles12–69 · median 34 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity31 titles17–82 · median 48 · moderateheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs28 titles15–50 · median 31 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense26 titles13–83 · median 62 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does James McAvoy work with?

People who share at least 2 of James McAvoy's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Nicholas Hoult shares the most, 6.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers