John Noble | |
|---|---|
 Noble in 2012 | |
| Born | (1948-08-20)20 August 1948 (age 76) |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, voice actor, theatre director |
| Years active | 1988-present |
| Spouse | Penny Noble |
| Children | 3, includingSamantha Noble |
John Noble (born 20 August 1948)[1] is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles asDenethor inThe Lord of the Rings film trilogy (2001–2003), andDr. Walter Bishop in theFox science fiction seriesFringe (2008–2013). His other television credits include the supernatural dramaSleepy Hollow (2013–2017) and the police proceduralElementary (2015–2019).
Noble has also lent his distinctively deep voice to animated and video game projects, most notably as Leland Monroe inRockstar Games'L.A. Noire (2011),Unicron in the animated seriesTransformers: Prime (2010–2013), andScarecrow in theDC Comics gameBatman: Arkham Knight (2015).
Noble's early acting career started in theater throughout the 1970s and 1980s.[1] For 10 years, he was an artistic director for the Stage Company of South Australia.[1] Noble was a Trustee of theAdelaide Festival Centre and chairman of theAdelaide Festival of the Arts.[1] In 1979, he starred inErrol Flynn's Great Big Adventure Book for Boys at theEdinburgh Festival in Scotland.[1] In 1984, Noble received a nomination by South Australian PremierJohn Bannon, for theYoung Australian of the Year award.[1]
Noble at age 40 made his film debut in the 1988 horror filmThe Dreaming.[1]
He made occasional appearances on the television seriesAll Saints. His performance asDenethor, son of Ecthelion, inThe Lord of the Rings trilogy resulted in his becoming better known to international audiences. He played Russian Consul Anatoly Markov in the sixth season of the US television series24.
He won awards when starring as eccentric scientist Walter Bishop in the television seriesFringe for 5 seasons (2008–2013).[1]Noble played Morland Holmes, father ofSherlock Holmes, inElementary.[2] He was a series regular for season 4 with guest appearances in seasons 6 and 7.[2]
Noble has also donevoice acting, usually portraying villains. He voiced the Dragon Spirit inM. Night Shyamalan's filmThe Last Airbender (2010), appeared as Real Estate tycoon Leland Monroe inRockstar Games'L.A. Noire (2011),[3] and provided the voice forUnicron in the animated seriesTransformers: Prime and its conclusion filmTransformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising. Noble also voiced the Diviner in the 2021 animated seriesStar Trek: Prodigy. In 2024, he played an alternate version of the Diviner called Ilthuran.
Noble has done voice-over work for numerousDC Comics projects, including the animated filmSuperman: Unbound (2013) as thesupervillainBrainiac, the video gameBatman: Arkham Knight (2015) as the primary antagonistScarecrow,[4] and the television seriesLegends of Tomorrow as the demonMallus. Additionally, Noble appeared as himself in theLegends of Tomorrow episode "Guest Starring John Noble".
On February 21, 2025 Noble made his debut on season two of theApple TV+ showSeverance in the sixth episode, titled "Attila," playing the role of a character named Cecil Fields.[5] Fields is ahomosexual man who is married toChristopher Walken's character, Burt Goodman, who is often identified as "Burt G."[6][7][8]
Noble divides his time between residences inNew York City andSydney,Australia, with wife Penny Noble. They have three children, including actressSamantha Noble. In 2011, Noble's hobbies were reported to be "music, painting, and narration".[9] He studiestheoretical physics and requested that the writers ofFringe always keep things grounded in what could be scientifically feasible.[10]
In 2012, Noble was diagnosed withosteoporosis. His charity, Noble Bones, helps to raise awareness of the disease.[11]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Police Rescue | Sergeant | Episode: "Hostage" |
| 1993 | Time Trax | Mr. Michaels | Episode: "One on One" |
| 1997 | Big Sky | Graham James | Episode: "Future Past and Present" |
| 1998 | Water Rats | Dr. Harry | Episode: "Epiphany" |
| 1998–2004 | All Saints | Dr. John Madsen | 32 episodes |
| 1999 | Airtight | Sorrentino | Television film |
| 2000 | Tales of the South Seas | Christian Ambrose | Episode: "Trent in Love" |
| 2000 | Virtual Nightmare | Dad | Television film |
| 2001 | Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World | Inspector Robert Anderson | Episode: "The Knife" |
| 2001 | The Bill | Commander Warren | Episode: "Beech on the Run" |
| 2001–2006 | Home and Away | Dr. Helpman | 9 episodes |
| 2002 | Young Lions | Adam Gallagher | 4 episodes |
| 2002 | Stingers | Michael Kranz | Episode: "Disgraceful Conduct" |
| 2002 | The Outsider | Fergus Hunter | Television film |
| 2004 | The Mystery of Natalie Wood | Irving Pichel | Television film |
| 2002 | Superfire [it] | Paul Baylis | Television film |
| 2006 | Stargate SG-1 | Meurik | Episode: "Camelot" |
| 2007 | Journeyman | Wine Connoisseur | Episode: "Winterland" |
| 2007 | The Unit | The CEO | Episode: "Pandemonium – Part 2" |
| 2007 | 24 | Anatoly Markov | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Pirate Islands: The Lost Treasure of Fiji | Blackheart | 13 episodes |
| 2008–2013 | Fringe | Walter Bishop / Walternate | 100 episodes Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television Nominated—Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film(2008–09) Nominated—Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor on Television(2010, 2012–13) |
| 2011–2012 | Dark Matters: Twisted But True | Himself | 16 episodes |
| 2011 | Transformers: Prime | Unicron | Voice, 3 episodes[12] |
| 2013 | The Good Wife | Matthew Ashbaugh | 2 episodes |
| 2013 | Transformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising | Unicron | Voice, television film[12] |
| 2013–2017 | Sleepy Hollow | Henry Parrish | 22 episodes |
| 2013 | Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries | Edward Stanley | Episode: "Murder Under The Mistletoe" |
| 2014 | Rake | Clayton Post | 2 episodes |
| 2014 | Devil's Playground | Bishop McNally | 6 episodes |
| 2015 | Forever | Aubrey Griffin | Episode: "The Last Death of Henry Morgan" |
| 2015–2019 | Elementary | Morland Holmes | 16 episodes |
| 2017–2018 | Legends of Tomorrow | Mallus, himself | 7 episodes |
| 2017–2018 | Salvation | Nicholas Tanz | 7 episodes |
| 2017 | The Librarians | Monsignor Vega | Episode: "And the Dark Secret", season 4 |
| 2018 | The Blacklist | Raleigh Sinclair III | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | The Resident | Elliot Festervan | Episode: "Broker and Broker" |
| 2020 | Hunters | Frederic Hauser | Episode: "The Pious Thieves" |
| 2020 | The Boys | Sam Butcher | Episode: "Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker" |
| 2021 | Debris | Otto | Episode: "Celestial Body" |
| 2021–2024 | Star Trek: Prodigy | The Diviner/Ilthuran | Voice; 28 episodes[12] |
| 2021 | Cowboy Bebop | Caliban | 3 episodes |
| 2023 | Totally Completely Fine | Wilkinson | 3 episodes |
| 2023 | Fired on Mars | Falco | Voice; episode: "Marsiversary" |
| 2024 | Twilight of the Gods | Odin | Voice role |
| 2025 | Severance | Fields | Season 2 |
| Year | Title | Voice role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | The Saboteur | Bishop | [12] |
| 2011 | L.A. Noire | Leland Monroe | |
| 2013 | Infinity Blade III | The Worker of Secrets | |
| 2015 | Batman: Arkham Knight | Jonathan Crane / Scarecrow |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
