Barry Keoghan (which is pronounced “kee-own,” by the way) has been a major factor of critics and audiences’ radar for years, especially after giving a chilling performance in The Killing of a Sacred Deer in 2017. Yet, since making his comic book movie debut in the Eternals cast, the Dublin, Ireland, native is beginning to receive a level of attention that I predict will soon go off the charts.
I also believe that with his growing popularity, his newfound fans will be eager to take a look at some of the talented actor’s earlier, lesser-known work or even revisit a few favorites they may not have initially realized he was a part of at the time. Allow us to point you in the right direction with the following list of great Barry Keoghan movies (and one TV show) you can stream and / or digitally rent now, starting with the aforementioned, blockbuster epic that nudged him further toward the A-list.
Eternals (Disney+)
A diverse group of ageless, heroic beings whom each possess their own unique super powers are forced to reunite after a thousand years apart, and hiding in plain sight, when their ancient enemy - a race of creatures known as the Deviants - reemerge to wreak havoc on Earth.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: As previously mentioned, Barry Keoghan made his comic book movie debut as the mind controller Druig, who is just about the most hot-headed and cynical member of the titular superhero group in 2021’s Eternals - one of the most visually stunning Marvel movies yet, from Academy Award-winning co-writer and director Chloé Zhao.
Stream Eternals on Disney+.
Rent/Buy Eternals on Amazon.
Dunkirk (Netflix, HBO Max)
Hundreds of thousands of young soldiers originating from the Allied armies of the United Kingdom, Belgium, and France are left stranded and desperate for rescue on the beaches of a French port town and become surrounded from the sea and air by the German Army.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: In 2017, before trying his hand at acting in comic book movies, Barry Keoghan was directed by someone well-versed in the genre - The Dark Knight Trilogy helmer Christoper Nolan - in his technically masterful, fact-based thriller, Dunkirk, in the somewhat brief, but impactful, role of a fictional English teenage civilian named George, who aspires to help his country.
Stream Dunkirk on Netflix.
Stream Dunkirk on HBO Max.
Rent/Buy Dunkirk on Amazon.
The Killing Of A Sacred Deer (Netflix)
Years after a routine operation unexpectedly turns fatal, a surgeon (Colin Farrell) meets the late patient’s teenage son (Barry Keoghan) and befriends him, practically making him a member of his family, only to come to the horrific realization that the seemingly innocent young man may actually be a threat to them all.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: In the same year that he made his memorable appearance in Dunkirk, Barry Keoghan gave, arguably, the most memorable, but undeniably most chilling and definitive, performance of his career yet in the A24-produced The Killing of a Sacred Deer, which might also be the most disturbing effort from Greek co-writer and director, Yorgos Lanthimos.
Stream The Killing Of A Sacred Deer on Netflix.
Rent/Buy The Killing Of A Sacred Deer on Amazon.
Stay (Tubi, Peacock, IMDb TV)
When a Canadian woman (former Orange is the New Black cast member Taylor Schilling) makes the unexpected discovery that she is pregnant, her older, Irish boyfriend (two-time Emmy nominee Aidan Quinn) does not take kindly to the news, forcing them to reconsider what they truly want in life and whether or not their otherwise blissful romance can survive the decision.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: Years before playing another badgering youth with more sinister intent in The Killing of a Sacred Deer, Barry Keoghan played an Irish teen named Sean Meehan who pesters his way into the life of Quinn’s curmudgeonly adult lead in 2013’s Stay - a drama that examines the choices we sometimes have to make for the ones we love and our willingness to commit to them.
Stream Stay on Tubi.
Stream Stay on Peacock.
Stream Stay on IMDb TV.
Rent/Buy Stay on Amazon.
Trespass Against Us (Showtime)
After a heist unexpectedly goes wrong, a man (Academy Award nominee Michael Fassbender) tries to protect himself and his family from capture by the authorities while struggling to break free from the damaging influence of his veteran criminal father (Brendan Gleeson).
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: In 2016, Barry Keoghan shared the screen with fellow European-born, Hollywood heavies Michael Fassbender and Brendan Gleeson in Trespass Against Us - the feature-length debut of Adam Smith that boasts an impressive combination of dysfunctional family drama and intense crime thriller, with some shades of dark comedy.
Stream Trespass Against Us on Showtime.
Rent/Buy Trespass Against Us on Amazon.
American Animals (Amazon Prime, Hulu, Tubi, Pluto TV)
Four sharp, male college students decide to take on the roles of their favorite characters from cinematic crime thrillers and hatch a bizarre plan to rob their own campus library in 2004 Kentucky.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: In 2018, Barry Keoghan shared the screen with another Marvel movie star (X-Men movies’ Quicksilver and WandaVision cast member Evan Peters), as well as Blake Jenner and Jared Abrahamson in another heist flick called American Animals - a unique hybrid of a dramatization and a documentary analysis of the actual crime that inspired it, featuring interviews with the real people involved.
Stream American Animals on Amazon Prime.
Stream American Animals on Hulu.
Stream American Animals on Tubi.
Stream American Animals on Pluto TV.
Rent/Buy American Animals on Amazon.
Black ‘47 (Amazon Rental)
A Irish member of the British Army (James Frecheville) returns to see his family at home, where he bears witness to the brutal hardships plaguing his country during the time of the Great Famine, and vows to something about it, in 1847 Ireland.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: Also in 2018, Barry Keoghan shared the screen with yet another former Marvel movie star (Captain America: The First Avenger’s Red Skull actor Hugo Weaving), as well as famed Oscar-winner Jim Broadbent and other power-house talents, in Black ’47 - a stunning, violent tale of historical fiction from director Lance Daly.
Chernobyl (HBO Max)
Employees at a nuclear power plant in the northern Ukraine risk their lives to contain a disaster and prevent further damage after a huge explosion erupts in 1986.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: In 2019, Barry Keoghan played yet another fictional character in a dramatization of a devastating historical event (namely a Russian named Pavel, who volunteered to help clean up in the aftermath of the crisis) in two episodes of Chernobyl - an HBO original limited series that offers a brutally graphic recreation of the infamous tragedy from creator Craig Mazin.
Stream Chernobyl on HBO Max.
Buy Chernobyl on Amazon.
The Shadow Of Violence (Netflix)
As he is trying to reconnect with his ex-lover in an effort to be closer to his son, a former boxer (Cosmo Jarvis) who has gained a reputation in Ireland as the brutal enforcer for a family of notorious drug dealers has his loyalty tested when they ask him to commit an unspeakable act.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: Executive produced by his Trespass Against Us co-star, Michael Fassbender, 2019’s The Shadow of Violence (also known as Calm with Horses) is another intense crime thriller starring Barry Keoghan as a young man on the wrong side of the law who works closely with Cosmo Jarvis’ Douglas “Arm” Armstrong on his increasingly violent assignments.
Stream The Shadow Of Violence on Netflix.
Rent/Buy The Shadow Of Violence on Amazon.
The Green Knight (Showtime)
After battling a bizarre warrior of imposing size with green skin (The Witch’s Ralph Ineson), King Arthur’s rebellious nephew (Dev Patel) is cursed with a prophecy that, in order to protect himself, sets him off on a quest that sees him face haunting spirits, bloodthirsty giants, unmerciful thieves, and his own personal demons.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Barry Keoghan: In writer and director David Lowery’s thrilling, A24-produced, 2021 retelling of a classic, medieval fantasy tale, Barry Keoghan makes a couple of appearances in The Green Knight cast, as a scavenger who robs Dev Patel’s Sir Gawain, that are as memorably menacing as they are brief, much like his mysterious, unofficially named role in a certain comic book movie released in 2022.
Stream The Green Knight on Showtime.
Rent/Buy The Green Knight on Amazon.
Before his completely unrecognizable turn in The Batman, Barry Keoghan almost made his DC Comics adaptation debut as the title character of FX’s series based on Y: The Last Man, before dropping out to star in Eternals. I would consider that a smart move considering how the show was cancelled before completing its first season, unfortunately. The actor will next reunite with Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson for Martin McDonough’s The Banshees of Inisherin and is currently filming the Apple TV+ miniseries Master of the Air.
