MICHAEL FASSBENDER

Michael Fassbender (born 2 April 1977) is a German-Irish actor of stage and screen whose career includes roles in both independent and blockbuster films. His feature film debut was in the fantasy war epic 300 (2007) as a Spartan warrior; his earlier roles included various stage productions, as well as starring roles on television such as in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers (2001) and the Sky One fantasy drama Hex (2004–05). He first came to prominence for his biographical role as IRA activist Bobby Sands in the historical drama Hunger (2008), for which he won a British Independent Film Award for Best Actor. Subsequent roles included the independent film Fish Tank (2009), earning his second BIFA nomination; as a Royal Marines lieutenant in the Quentin Tarantino war film Inglourious Basterds (2009); as Edward Rochester in the 2011 film adaptation of Jane Eyre; as psychiatry innovator Carl Jung in historical drama A Dangerous Method (2011); as a sentient android in the Ridley Scott science fiction film Prometheus (2012); and in the musical comedy-drama Frank (2014) as an eccentric musician loosely inspired by Frank Sidebottom. 

In 2011, Fassbender debuted as the Marvel Comics antihero Magneto in the prequel X-Men: First Class; he would go on to share the role with Ian McKellen in X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), and reprise it again in X-Men: Apocalypse (2016). Also in 2011, Fassbender's performance as a sex addict in Shame received critical acclaim. He won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival and was nominated for Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards. In 2013, his role as slave owner Edwin Epps in slavery epic 12 Years a Slave was similarly praised, earning him his first Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. 12 Years a Slave marked Fassbender's third collaboration with Steve McQueen, who also directed Hunger and Shame. In 2013, Fassbender appeared in another Ridley Scott film, The Counselor. In 2015, he portrayed Steve Jobs in the Danny Boyle-directed biopic of the same name, and played Macbeth in Justin Kurzel's adaptation of William Shakespeare's play. For the former, he has received Academy Award, BAFTA, Golden Globe and SAG nominations for Best Actor. As well as acting, Fassbender produced the 2015 western Slow West which he also starred in.