Born July 27, 1977 in County Cork, Ireland, Rhys Myers led a tumultuous childhood after his father abandoned his family when the actor was only two-and-a-half. His troubles accumulated as he grew older, culminating with his being kicked out of school at the age of sixteen. Rhys Myers took to hanging about in pool halls, where he was discovered by a casting agent. The agent encouraged him to audition for the film The War of the Buttons; when Rhys Myers failed to get the part, he gave up on acting. However, he was soon asked to do some commercials, which in turn led to his film debut with a small role in A Man of No Importance (1994). A starring role as an errant runaway in The Disappearance of Finbar followed, as did a brief but memorable turn as the assassin of the titular hero in Michael Collins (1996).
After more film work, including a supporting role as Brad Renfro's nemesis in Telling Lies in America, Rhys Myers landed the lead in Todd Haynes' much-anticipated Velvet Goldmine. Despite the hype surrounding the director's celebration of and requiem for the early-1970s glam rock scene, as well as the presence of actors Christian Bale, Toni Collette, and Ewan McGregor, the film fared poorly with critics and audiences alike. However, Rhys Myers continued to stay busy, making The Governess with Minnie Driver the same year and Michael Radford's B. Monkey the next (the film would eventually be released the following year). In 1999, he starred in a number of high-profile projects: in addition to Mike Figgis' The Loss of Sexual Innocence, he appeared as part of a Hot Young Things line-up in Ang Lee's Ride With the Devil, starring with such up-and-comers as Tobey Maguire and Skeet Ulrich, and then turned his talents to interpreting Shakespeare in Titus, Julie Taymor's adaptation of Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus.
--Rebecca Flint, All Movie Guide
IRELAND