Happy Birthday Martin Freeman: Exploring His Top 10 Roles As Actor Turns 53

From Sherlock Holmes to The Hobbit to Black Panther, Martin Freeman has won hearts in several roles over the years. On his 53rd birthday, we explore his top 10 roles to witness mesmerizing performances once again

Updated on Sep 08, 2024  |  10:57 AM IST |  72.4K
YouTube/BBC/Warner Bros. Pictures/Universal Pictures
Martin Freeman’s Top 10 Roles (PC: YouTube/BBC/Warner Bros. Pictures/Universal Pictures)

From the TV screen to the big screen of Hollywood, the journey has not been easy for Martin Freeman. But his acting prowess and versatility took him ahead. He has repeatedly won the hearts of the audience with his great comic timing and sardonic humor. He has often challenged himself in diverse genres such as romantic, comedy, horror, and survival and proved his mettle as an actor.

Be it a cameo or a lead or a side character, Freeman has managed to grasp attention in any role. Moreover, he also won prestigious awards like Emmy, BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild Award for his prominent comic skill and humor. On his 53rd birthday, we explore 10 of his most remarkable and unforgettable roles.

Cargo


Cargo is a survival horror movie based on the events of a zombie outbreak. Although this movie is considered underrated, it is a secret treasure. Martin Freeman's performance as Andy Rose is mind-blowing. This thriller movie depicts a post-apocalyptic situation. A terrible epidemic is spreading in rural Australia.

As a result, people are turning into zombies within 48 hours. Andy and Kay are a married couple constantly trying to protect their child from the zombie virus outbreak. Freeman in the role of Andy Rose gives his best performance.

As a loving father, he is trying to save not only his own child but also other children in this terrible moment. Andy is infected with a virus that could take his life but he doesn't let his humanity slip away. In the face of everything being wiped out, even after being infected, how they change their habits and keep themselves alive is captured in the movie. 

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Captain America: Civil War


Martin Freeman's first MCU project was Civil War. Though his role in the movie is short, it is also impactful because Freeman was preparing for his next Black Panther role at the time. Freeman played a member of the CIA's Joint Counter Tourism Center in MCU’s Civil War movie. 

Although the character of Agent Everett Kay Ross is short-lived, Freeman portrays him accurately with his impeccable acting skills. Ross is employed by an American organization working with superheroes and controlling their powers. Ross's brief appearance in the film is intended to expand his role in future films. 

Sherlock


This TV series is inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's timeless detective novel franchise Sherlock Holmes. Everyone knows about Detective Sherlock Holmes and his best friend Dr. Watson. In this series, we see Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman as Watson.

While Cumberbatch is certainly incredible as the highly intelligent detective Sherlock Holmes, Freeman as Watson gives him a worthy accompaniment. Freeman brilliantly embodies the loyalty, modesty and patience of Sherlock Holmes’ friend through his character.

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Watson's flamboyant yet calm onscreen presence won over the audience. Benedict and Freeman make Sherlock Holmes and Watson's characters memorable and make it into IMDb's 20 best TV series of all time.

The Hobbit trilogy


Freeman's career graph further peaked after he appeared in The Hobbit trilogy. In 2010, Freeman was nominated for the role of The Hobbit in The Hobbit series. Bilbo Baggins played the biggest role in the franchise at the time.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, a trilogy consisting of The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies proved to be a huge success. In all three of these movies, Freeman’s portrayal of The Hobbit’s character was full of magnetic adventure and heroism. He gave his best life-turning performance in these three movies.

Fans of The Lord Of The Rings loved the franchise so much that the trilogy has the highest rating on Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic. Moreover, Martin's fine acting skills bring out a great uniqueness in The Hobbit character that makes the role unforgettable for a lifetime.

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The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy


The film is inspired by Douglas Adams' unforgettable creation The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy Book. This movie is a treasure trove for those viewers whose hearts race behind the sci-fi stories of space expeditions. Martin Freeman's portrayal of Arthur Dent is bound to leave fans impressed.

Douglas Adams' breakthrough comedy novel, loved by readers, is able to capture the hearts of the audience through the movie in several small ways. The comic captures are nicely blossomed through Arthur's character. The character of Arthur is here to represent humanity.

Through a series of events, Arthur learns that his planet is in danger. And to save this planet, he joins hands with his alien friend and starts traveling in intergalactic space. In short, if you're looking for a fun character movie with a bit of a sci-fi twist, then Freeman is sure to delight you with his portrayal of Arthur.

The World’s End


Freeman's choice of characters has always surprised the audience. This 2013 science fiction and comedy film is the third and final film of the Three Flavours Cornetto after Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. In the movie we see some miscreants trying to replace humans with androids.

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To prevent that, Garry King assembled a group of his childhood friends to complete the Golden Mile, which consisted of 12 pubs. Martin shows impressive acting skills in this movie as Oliver-O-Man.While Freeman doesn't have much to do as Oliver-O-Man as compared to his other roles, the skills he does show are endearing.

Love Actually


Love Actually is a comedy romance film consisting of ten different stories. We see 10 different types of classical love story narratives in the film. The movie was a box office success and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

According to the separate storylines of this film, we see John and Judi who are professional stand-ins. Both of them are comfortable in simulating intimate scenes. Although their sense of comfort is not only confined to the set but gradually spills over into real-life love. And finally, through their engagement, love blossoms.

Freeman portrays the role of John while Judi is played by Joanna Bacon. The duo have great on-screen chemistry and their romance is brilliantly fleshed out, making their appearance in the movie even more memorable.

The Office


Full of humor, this television sitcom is very close to everyone's heart. Although Martin's character is not the main one in the sitcom, his character is enough to leave an impression on the audience. Martin plays Tim Canterbury, a sales representative at the Slough branch of Wernharm Hogg paper merchant.

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Tim's character is the bearer of composure and normalcy in a frantic office environment full of silliness and humor. Tim's humor is self-deprecating and ironic. He is well-known throughout the office for his good manners. Every character in The Office is very close to people's hearts and Tim's name will definitely be included in that list. 

Hot Fuzz


Even in a small cameo role, The Hobbit actor left a memorable mark in the movie Hot Fuzz. In the movie, Freeman plays a Metropolitan Police Sergeant. In a very brief cameo role, the actor doesn't have much to do but oddly enough he keeps it worthwhile.

Hot Fuzz is the second and most successful film of the Three Flavours Cornetto  trilogy. Simon Pegg, Nick Forrest, Jim Broadband, Perry Considine and many other well-known and famous Hollywood actors have worked in this movie alongside Freeman.

Black Panther


Although Black Panther is primarily considered to be Chadwick Bosman's film, Freeman once again managed to win over viewers with his part. In 2018, this movie became the second highest-grossing film of the year. Moreover, it became an important sequel for Marvel with record-breaking box office success as well as critical acclaim.

Freeman played CIA Ross in the movie. Ross is injured protecting Nakia during the Vibranium sale and is brought to Wakanda by T'challa. Freeman has great comic timing here as Ross which meshes very well with the script.

However, the Marvel Universe didn't want Ross to be just a comic relief, so he was portrayed as a skilled agent. Meanwhile, Ross also plays an important role in Black Panther's sequel Wakanda Forever. In the Academy Award-winning movie Black Panther, Martin's character Ross managed to catch the eye for his outstanding acting skills in a crowd of talented characters.

ALSO READ: Was Jenna Ortega Comfortable About Filming Controversial Miller's Girl Scene With Martin Freeman? Intimacy Coach Reveals Amid Online Backlash

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