Anthony Boyle makes Arthur Guinness’s private unhappiness matter amid the family scheming. We rate his feel for the person inside a historical role, and his ability to remain distinct within a busy ensemble.
Fi1m perspective
In the family scenes of House of Guinness (2025), Anthony Boyle makes Arthur’s private unhappiness worth stopping for. It could easily become another complication to hurry past on the way to a scandal, but he gives it enough weight to hold our attention. We felt for Arthur more than we expected, because Boyle made the hurt behind the scheming credible. He is a strong reason to watch the series, especially when its pacing becomes uneven and the performances have to keep us interested.
His work has moved from the stage prominence of Scorpius Malfoy in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (2016) towards a succession of historical screen roles. Geoffrey Bache Smith in Tolkien (2019) was an early film part; Major Harry Crosby in Masters of the Air (2024) gave his work wider exposure. He also played Brendan Hughes in Say Nothing (2024), before taking the lead as Arthur Guinness. These are different assignments, but period drama has become a substantial part of his work.
The physical detail and precision with accents in Masters of the Air help make a historical figure feel lived in. That kind of work can become conspicuous, and we would not want it to be the whole reason for watching him. In House of Guinness, what matters more is the feeling he creates alongside Emily Fairn’s Anne. Both make the family’s private distress credible, while Louis Partridge’s Edward and Fionn O’Shea’s Benjamin help keep the siblings distinct.
The pleasure here is in seeing actors give different weight to grievances that could otherwise become repetitive. Boyle is effective within that company, and the family scenes are a better introduction to him than a list of leading roles. The series has energy and period spectacle, but neither quite settles the uneven pacing; our recommendation rests on the cast. Start there for Boyle and Fairn, with some patience for the stretches when the storytelling does less to earn it.
Biography
Anthony Boyle (born 8 June 1994) is an Irish actor from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff, graduating in 2016, and began his career on the London stage.
Boyle rose to prominence originating the role of Scorpius Malfoy in the West End and Broadway productions of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (2016), winning the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and receiving a Tony Award nomination. His screen credits include Game of Thrones (2014), Derry Girls (2018), Tolkien (2019), Tetris (2023), Masters of the Air (2024) and Say Nothing (2024). He stars as Arthur Guinness in the series House of Guinness (2025).
