John Kavanagh
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- Jan 1, 1946 (age 80)
- Place of birth
- Dublin, Ireland
- Credits
- 76
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 (2022–2024), and Cardinal Lorenzo Campeggio in The Tudors (2007–2008). He received a Drama Desk Award nomination (1989) for Juno and the Paycock. He is also a singer, having played the lead in the Irish stage production of Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris in the 1970s. No other personal details are publicly confirmed.
Known for
Braveheart
1995Movie
Craig
Vikings
2013TV
Pope Leo IV, The Seer (voice), The Seer
The Last Duel
2021Movie
Le Gris' Priest
Alexander
2004Movie
Parmenion
Florence Foster Jenkins
2016Movie
Arturo Toscanini
The Black Dahlia
2006Movie
Emmett Linscott
Filmography
One Sweet Hour
2026Movie
Tommy
Bucking Fastard
2026Movie
Mr. Westmoreland
Der Irland-Krimi: Zerrissene Seelen
2024Movie
Arthur Browne
Baltimore
2024Movie
Sir Alfred Beit
Peacock
2022TV
Georgia's Boss
Vikings: Valhalla
2022TV
The Seer
The Last Duel
2021Movie
Le Gris' Priest
Riverdance: The Animated Adventure
2021Movie
Gatekeeper (voice)
Supervized
2019Movie
Windsor
Deposits
2017Movie
Narrator (voice)
Lost Memories
2017Movie
Dad
Florence Foster Jenkins
2016Movie
Arturo Toscanini
Vikings: Athelstan's Journal
2015TV
The Seer (archive footage), The Seer
Horse
2014Movie
Junior
In Secret
2014Movie
Inspector Michaud
The Invisible Woman
2013Movie
Reverend Benham
The Stag
2013Movie
Fionan and Little Kevin's Dad
Vikings
2013TV
Pope Leo IV, The Seer (voice), The Seer
Titanic: Blood and Steel
2012TV
Edward Carson
The Runway
2010Movie
Father & Son
2009TV
John O'Connor
Closing the Ring
2007Movie
Reverend Smith
The Tudors
2007TV
Cardinal Campeggio, Cardinal Lorenzo Campeggio
The Tiger's Tail
2006Movie
Harry
The Black Dahlia
2006Movie
Emmett Linscott
Alexander
2004Movie
Parmenion
The Halo Effect
2004Movie
Stan
The Wonderful Story of Kelvin Kind
2004Movie
Mystics
2003Movie
Gerry the Barman
Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor
2003Movie
Judge Shippen
Pete's Meteor
2002Movie
Sergeant Maloney
Sinners
2002Movie
Frank
Puckoon
2002Movie
Haggerty
Last Days in Dublin
2001Movie
Rebel Heart
2001TV
Eugene O'Brien
Vicious Circle
1999Movie
Charlie Rice
Dancing at Lughnasa
1998Movie
Father Carlin
The Butcher Boy
1998Movie
Dr. Boyd
The Informant
1997Movie
IRA Chief
Some Mother's Son
1996Movie
Cardinal
Samuel Beckett: As the Story Was Told
1996Movie
Voice
Shadow of a Gunman
1995Movie
Adolphus Grigson
Braveheart
1995Movie
Craig
Sharpe's Sword
1995Movie
Father Patrick Curtis
Circle of Friends
1995Movie
Brian Mahon
Scarlett
1994TV
Jamie O'Hara
Widows' Peak
1994Movie
Canon Murtagh
Love Lies Bleeding
1993Movie
Sean Kerrigan
Bad Company
1993Movie
Patrick Molloy
Sharpe
1993TV
Father Curtis
Into the West
1992Movie
Hartnett
Children of the North
1991Movie
Seamus Reilly
Performance
1991TV
Adolphus Grigson
Arise and Go Now
1991Movie
Father Dade
Events at Drimaghleen
1991Movie
Superintendent O'Kelly
August Saturday
1990Movie
Tom Crosbie
Fools of Fortune
1990Movie
Johnny Lacy
Who Bombed Birmingham?
1990Movie
Z
Joyriders
1988Movie
Manager
The Storyteller: A Story Short
1988Movie
Beggar
The Storyteller
1988TV
Beggar
Bellman and True
1987Movie
Donkey
The Fantasist
1986Movie
Robert Foxley
ScreenPlay
1986TV
Tom Crosbie, Superintendent O'Kelly, Father Dade, Sean Kerrigan
Lovejoy
1986TV
Hennessey
The Price
1985Movie
Kearney
The Price
1985TV
Kearney
Children in the Crossfire
1984Movie
Cal
1984Movie
Skeffington
The Country Girls
1983Movie
James
Attracta
1983Movie
Mr. Devereux
The Ballroom of Romance
1982Movie
Bowser Egan
Revival: Pearse's Concept of Ireland
1980Movie
Patrick Pearse
A Week in the Life of Martin Cluxton
1971Movie
Priest
The McKenzie Break
1970Movie
Weeks
Movie
Jim