John Kavanagh

Actor Jan 1 (age 80) Dublin, Ireland 1970–2026 (56 year career)

6.7 avg rating

Biography

John Kavanagh (born 1946, Dublin, Ireland) is an Irish character actor who was a member of the Abbey Theatre company for ten years (1967–1977) before going freelance. He has worked in over 20 films and numerous TV series since 1970. His film credits include Braveheart (1995), The Butcher Boy (1997), Dancing at Lughnasa (1998), Florence Foster Jenkins (2016), and The Last Duel (2021). On television he is best known for playing The Seer / Pope Leo IV in Vikings (2013–2020) and Vikings: Valhalla (2…

Known For

Film

Braveheart

Craig

Film

The Last Duel

Le Gris' Priest

Film

The Tudors

Cardinal Lorenzo Campeggio

Film

Florence Foster Jenkins

Arturo Toscanini

Film

Alexander

Parmenion

Film

The Black Dahlia

Emmett Linscott

Film

In Secret

Inspector Michaud

Film

The Butcher Boy

Dr. Boyd

Filmography

Acting (77)

Movies (61)

Bucking Fastard

2026

6.0

One Sweet Hour

2026 Upcoming

as Tommy

Nov 16

Baltimore

2024

as Sir Alfred Beit

6.0

Der Irland-Krimi: Zerrissene Seelen

as Arthur Browne

The Last Duel

as Le Gris' Priest

Riverdance: The Animated Adventure

2021

as Gatekeeper (voice)

Supervized

as Windsor

Deposits

as Narrator (voice)

Lost Memories

2017

as Dad

Florence Foster Jenkins

as Arturo Toscanini

In Secret

as Inspector Michaud

Horse

as Junior

The Stag

2013

as Fionan and Little Kevin's Dad

The Invisible Woman

as Reverend Benham

The Runway

Closing the Ring

as Reverend Smith

The Black Dahlia

as Emmett Linscott

The Tiger's Tail

as Harry

Alexander

as Parmenion

The Wonderful Story of Kelvin Kind

The Halo Effect

as Stan

Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor

as Judge Shippen

Mystics

as Gerry the Barman

Pete's Meteor

as Sergeant Maloney

Puckoon

as Haggerty

Sinners

as Frank

Last Days in Dublin

Vicious Circle

as Charlie Rice

The Butcher Boy

as Dr. Boyd

Dancing at Lughnasa

as Father Carlin

The Informant

as IRA Chief

Some Mother's Son

as Cardinal

Samuel Beckett: As the Story Was Told

1996

as Voice

Braveheart

as Craig

Circle of Friends

as Brian Mahon

Sharpe's Sword

as Father Curtis

Shadow of a Gunman

as Adolphus Grigson

Widows' Peak

1994

as Canon Murtagh

6.4

Bad Company

1993

as Patrick Molloy

Love Lies Bleeding

1993

as Sean Kerrigan

Into the West

1992

as Hartnett

6.4

Arise and Go Now

1991

as Father Dade

Children of the North

1991

as Seamus Reilly

7.7

Events at Drimaghleen

1991

as Superintendent O'Kelly

Fools of Fortune

1990

as Johnny Lacy

6.5

Who Bombed Birmingham?

1990

as Z

8.5

August Saturday

1990

as Tom Crosbie

The Storyteller: A Story Short

1988

as Beggar

Joyriders

1988

as Manager

Bellman and True

as Donkey

The Fantasist

as Robert Foxley

The Price

as Kearney

Cal

1984

as Skeffington

5.8

Children in the Crossfire

The Country Girls

as James

Attracta

as Mr. Devereux

The Ballroom of Romance

1982

as Bowser Egan

7.4

Revival: Pearse's Concept of Ireland

1980

as Patrick Pearse

A Week in the Life of Martin Cluxton

as Priest

The McKenzie Break

Weeks

as Jim

Television (16)

Vikings: Valhalla

as The Seer

Peacock

as Georgia's Boss

Vikings: Athelstan's Journal

as The Seer

Vikings

as Pope Leo IV

Titanic: Blood and Steel

as Edward Carson

Father & Son

as John O'Connor

The Tudors

as Cardinal Lorenzo Campeggio

7.8

The Tudors

2007

as Cardinal Campeggio

Rebel Heart

as Eugene O'Brien

Scarlett

as Jamie O'Hara

Sharpe

as Father Curtis

Performance

as Adolphus Grigson

The Storyteller

as Beggar

ScreenPlay

as Sean Kerrigan

Lovejoy

as Hennessey

The Price

as Kearney