Colm J. Meaney (; Irish: Colm Ó Maonaigh; born 30 May 1953) is an Irish actor. Known for his performances across screen and stage, he has received seven nominations from the Irish Film & Television Academy, winning twice for 2001's… Colm J. Meaney (; Irish: Colm Ó Maonaigh; born 30 May 1953) is an Irish actor. Known for his performances across screen and stage, he has received seven nominations from the Irish Film & Television Academy, winning twice for 2001's How Harry Became a Tree, and 2016's The Journey. Other film credits include Roddy Doyle's Barrytown franchise, Con Air, Layer Cake, The Damned United, Get Him to the Greek, and The Snapper, for which he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical, and won the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actor at the 1993 Chicago International Film Festival.
On television, Meaney is best known for his portrayal of Chief Petty Officer Miles O'Brien in both Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994) and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993–1999), appearing in a total of 225 episodes. Other television credits include five seasons as Thomas C. Durant on the AMC western Hell on Wheels (2011–2016), James Burbage on the TNT historical fiction series Will (2017), and Finn Wallace on the Sky Atlantic crime series Gangs of London (2020). Meaney's numerous guest appearances include roles on Moonlighting, MacGyver, Murdoch Mysteries, Law & Order, The Simpsons, and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Also a veteran of the theatre, Meaney has starred on Broadway and the West End in Eugene O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh and A Moon for the Misbegotten, Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and Hugh Whitemore's Breaking the Code. Additionally, he has appeared in numerous productions with the National Theatre of Ireland, including Sean O'Casey's Juno and the Paycock, The Silver Tassie, and The Shadow of a Gunman.
In 2020, Meaney was ranked 24th on The Irish Times list of "The 50 Greatest Irish Film Actors of All Time". In 2025, he received the Irish Film & Television Academy's Lifetime Achievement Award.
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