Stuart Townsend


Stuart Townsend is an Irish actor. His most notable portrayals are of the characters Lestat de Lioncourt in the 2002 film adaptation of Anne Rice's Queen of the Damned, and Dorian Gray in the 2003 film adaptation of Alan Moore's The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

Early life and career

Townsend was born in Howth, County Dublin, the son of Lorna Hogan, an Irish model, and Peter Townsend, an English professional golfer.
He attended the Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin where he made his non-professional stage debut in the school's 1993 production of Colin Teevan's Tear Up The Black Sail. His professional stage debut was in 1994's True Lines, directed by John Crowley. True Lines was first performed in Kilkenny; it later moved to the Dublin Theatre Festival and on to the Bush Theatre in London.
Townsend's early film roles were in Irish short films such as Godsuit and Summertime. His first part in a feature length film was Trojan Eddie, a 1996 Anglo-Irish co-production. In 1997 he landed a lead role in the British film Shooting Fish.
After his appearance as the seducer in the title role of About Adam, he started to be noticed in the United States by critics and the public alike. In mid-2000, he briefly returned to the London stage in the Tennessee Williams play Orpheus Descending, starring as Val Xavier, alongside Helen Mirren as Lady Torrance. He appeared in big budget films, including Queen of the Damned, as the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt, and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen as Dorian Gray.
Townsend was hired to play the part of Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, but was replaced by Viggo Mortensen the day before principal photography began. According to Townsend:
In 2005, he starred alongside Gabrielle Union in Night Stalker, the remake of the 1974 ABC TV series . He played the part of Carl Kolchak, an investigative reporter looking into his wife's murder. Night Stalker was abruptly cancelled by ABC after six episodes due to bad viewing figures. He was cited as "too young" by many reviewers and fans of the original series comparing him to Darren McGavin in the original series.
The same year, he played a guest starring role on NBC's Will & Grace as the pansexual pastry chef of Karen Walker who seduces her, Will Truman, and later Karen's maid Rosario. He also made an uncredited cameo in 2005's live-action Æon Flux film. Townsend starred alongside Ryan Reynolds in the 2007 comedy Chaos Theory.
He made his directorial debut with the 2007 film Battle in Seattle which is a portrayal of the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999 World Trade Organization which was undermined by anti-globalisation protesters. The film's cast included Charlize Theron, Ray Liotta and Woody Harrelson, but enjoyed only limited release and no blockbuster support.
He was set to play Fandral in Kenneth Branagh's Thor, but was replaced in January 2010, due to unspecified creative differences.
Townsend also starred in the ABC thriller, Betrayal and starred in the second season of Salem.

Personal life

Townsend's father, Peter, was a golfer, who played in the 1969 and 1971 Ryder Cups.
Townsend has a brother, Dylan Townsend, and sister, Chloe Townsend, from his father's first marriage to Lorna Townsend, who died in 1994 of a brain hemorrhage. Townsend has two half-siblings, Hugo and Ella, from his father's second marriage, to Swedish-born Sofia.
Townsend dated actress Charlize Theron after meeting her on the set of 2002's Trapped. The couple lived together in Los Angeles and Ireland. They said they considered themselves married without an actual marriage, with Townsend stating, "We didn't have a ceremony. I don't need a certificate or the state or the church to say otherwise. So no, there's no big official story on a wedding, but we are married.... I consider her my wife and she considers me her husband." Theron split from Townsend when they came back on day two of a planned ten-day holiday in Mexico in January 2010.
In May 2015, Townsend's brother confirmed that Stuart had settled down in Costa Rica, where he had bought some land and was living with a woman from that country, who was expecting their second child at that time. Townsend is the father of two children, Desmond Townsend and Ezra Townsend. According to sources, Stuart had quit his acting career and become a full-time owner of a car garage in Costa Rica, though he did return to television in 2017, with a role in an episode of , and in 2018 shot his scenes for the film The Martini Shot and signed to star in the film Grace and Grit.

Filmography

Films

YearFilmRoleNotes
1993GodsuitJohn Slattery
1996Trojan EddieDermot
1997Shooting FishJez
1997Under the SkinTom
1998Resurrection ManVictor Kelly
1999Simon MagusDovid Bendel
1999WonderlandTim
1999The Venice ProjectLark/Gippo the Fool
1999Mauvaise passeTom
2000About AdamAdam
2002Queen of the DamnedLestat de Lioncourt
2002TrappedWilliam Jennings
2003ShadeVernon
2003The League of Extraordinary GentlemenDorian Gray
2004Head in the CloudsGuy Malyon
2005The Best ManOlly Pickering
2005Æon FluxMonican Rebel
2007Chaos TheoryBuddy Endrow
2008Battle in SeattleWriter and director
2009Maggie HillTerrence James
2013A Stranger in ParadisePaul

Television

YearSeriesRoleNotes
1995SummertimeAndrewMain role
2005Will & GraceEdward the pastry Chef1 episode
2005Night StalkerCarl KolchakMain role
2005–2009Robot ChickenAnnouncer, Lucky Charms Leprechaun, Ron Weasley4 episodes
2011–2012'XIIIMain role
2013BetrayalJack McAllisterSeries regular
2015ElementaryDel GrunerGuest Appearance
2015SalemDr. Samuel Wainwright7 episodes
2017'Declan TraskGuest

Awards and nominations