Robert Sheehan

Irish actor Robert Sheehan experienced a rapid rise to stardom in the early millennium thanks to rebellious roles in English and Irish film and television productions like "Red Riding" (Channel 4 2009) and "Misfits" (Channel 4 2009-2013), which led to a feature role in the would-be blockbuster "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" (2013). Sheehan began acting on screen as a teenager in 2003, but it would be six more years before he drew favorable notices for his work in "Red Riding" and the young adult favorite "Misfits." Newly minted as a star, Sheehan worked steadily, if not always successfully, on TV and in features, but the failure of his big screen efforts "Season of the Witch" (2011) and "City of Bones" kept him from vaulting to international fame. Sheehan's willingness to mix big-budget projects with small, more intimate dramas seemed to indicate that his full-fledged breakout was only a project away.

Born Robert Michael Sheehan on January 7, 1988 in Port Laoise, the capital of County Laois, Ireland, he was the youngest of three children by Joe Sheehan, a police officer, and his wife, Maria. Sheehan became interested in acting at the age of ten after being cast as the lead in the play "Oliver with a Twist," a comedic take on the Charles Dickens novel. Four years later, he landed his first feature film role as a student at a brutal Irish boys' school in the drama "Song for a Raggy Boy" (2003). The experience convinced him to make acting his profession, and after a brief stint at the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, Sheehan began appearing regularly on television in the United Kingdom. Roles on "Young Blades" (PAX 2005) and "The Tudors" (Showtime 2007-2010) preceded his breakout turns as a young male prostitute on the gripping politics-based miniseries "Red Riding" (2009) and as a delinquent imbued with the power of immortality in the science fiction series "Misfits." Sheehan received nominations from both the Irish and British Film and Television Awards for his performance in 2010 and 2011, respectively. After earning critical praise for his performance as a novice Irish gangster in the miniseries "Love/Hate" (RTE 2010), Sheehan left "Misfits" for a supporting role in the film "Season of the Witch" (2011), which marked his first appearance in an American feature. The project was panned, and his subsequent appearance in a 2011 production "The Playboy of the Western World" at the Old Vic in London drew mixed reviews. Sheehan rebounded with performances in a slew of UK features and television, including the comedy "Killing Bono" (2011) and the series "Me and Mrs. Jones" (BBC One 2012). The following year, he was cast as one of the male leads in "The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones" (2013), a German-Canadian film version of the first book in the fantasy novel series by Cassandra Clare. The picture was not well received, which canceled plans for a subsequent franchise.