---
name: "Anthony Perkins"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/anthony-perkins"
fi1m_id: "anthony-perkins"
imdb_id: "nm0000578"
tmdb_id: 7301
wikidata_id: "Q193146"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "4 April 1932"
died: "12 September 1992"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 81
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-20T02:56:39.255781+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Anthony Perkins

## Identity

Anthony Perkins

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/anthony-perkins
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** anthony-perkins
- **IMDb ID:** nm0000578
- **TMDB ID:** 7301
- **Wikidata ID:** Q193146
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Perkins, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q193146, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000578/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/7301

Actor. Born 4 April 1932 in New York City, New York, USA. Died 12 September 1992.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 4 April 1932, New York City, New York, USA
- **Died:** 12 September 1992
- **Active:** 1956–1960
- **Also known as:** Tony Perkins, Антони Перкинс
- **Golden Globes:** 2 Golden Globes (2 won)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 81, as actor, over 2 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1950s 72 (1), 1960s 90 (1)
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Perkins, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q193146, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000578/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/7301

## Streaming the US now

- **AMC+:** [*Psycho*](https://film.one/film/psycho.md) (90)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Anthony Perkins

> We prize Anthony Perkins for making politeness look like hard work, without losing our sympathy for the person struggling with it. *Psycho* defined his career; its quiet conversations explain why he deserves the attention.

In the parlour in *Psycho* (1960), Anthony Perkins makes Norman Bates work at being polite. He wants the conversation to go well so badly that an ordinary exchange becomes hard to relax into. We felt uneasy, then sorry for him, because the strain makes his need for kindness painfully clear. Leigh’s Marion notices enough to keep us alert, and Alfred Hitchcock lets the encounter hold our attention without hurrying towards a shock.

His early work had already made sensitivity part of his appeal. *Friendly Persuasion* (1956) helped establish him, and *Fear Strikes Out* (1957) gave him a leading role as a baseball player struggling with inner conflict. *Psycho* changed the course of his career, after which he worked extensively in Europe during the 1960s. As Josef K. in Orson Welles’s *The Trial* (1962), he carried that nervous intensity into a different sort of threatening situation.

The difficulty was that later casting so often asked for some version of Norman again. That repetition narrowed the public impression of Perkins, obscuring the sensitive leading man of the earlier films. He returned to the part in *Psycho II* (1983), then both starred in and directed *Psycho III* (1986), before appearing in *Psycho IV* (1990). Those returns make it tempting to let one character account for the whole actor. We would start by looking more closely at what he did the first time.

That history can also encourage the wrong way of watching *Psycho*: waiting for each awkward moment to confirm what we think we know. Perkins gives us a lonely man whose effort to be agreeable deserves attention in itself. Hitchcock’s film occasionally labours the mystery, but the conversation with Leigh needs no explanation to hold us. If its surprises are familiar, watch it again for the courtesy, the embarrassment and the difficulty of keeping an ordinary conversation going.

## Biography

Anthony Perkins (4 April 1932 – 12 September 1992) was an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's *Psycho* (1960), a role he reprised in *Psycho II* (1983), *Psycho III* (1986, which he also directed) and *Psycho IV: The Beginning* (1990).

Perkins made his film debut in *The Actress* (1953). He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for *Friendly Persuasion* (1956) and appeared on Broadway in *Tea and Sympathy* (1955). His other notable films include *On the Beach* (1959), *The Trial* (1962), *Catch-22* (1970) and *Murder on the Orient Express* (1974). He co-wrote the screenplay for *The Last of Sheila* (1973) with Stephen Sondheim.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, biography.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Psycho* (1960), Fi1m 90, as Norman Bates — [page](https://film.one/film/psycho.md)
- *Friendly Persuasion* (1956), Fi1m 72, as Josh Birdwell — [page](https://film.one/film/friendly-persuasion.md)

## Complete filmography (71)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Fifty Shades of Erotica* (2015), as (archive footage)
- *In the Deep Woods* (1992), as Paul Miller, P.I.
- *The Naked Target* (1992), as El Mecano
- *Patricia Highsmith's Tales* (1992), series, as Host
- *A Demon in My View* (1991), as Arthur Johnson
- *Psycho IV: The Beginning* (1990), as Norman Bates
- *The Ghost Writer* (1990), as Anthony Strack
- *I'm Dangerous Tonight* (1990), as Buchanan
- *Daughter of Darkness* (1990), as Anton
- *Edge of Sanity* (1989), as Dr. Henry Jekyll / Jack "The Ripper" Hyde
- *Lucky Stiff* (1988), Director
- *Joan Rivers and Friends Salute Heidi Abromowitz* (1988), as Anthony Perkins
- *Destroyer* (1988), as Robert Edwards
- *Napoleon and Josephine: A Love Story* (1987), series, as Talleyrand
- *The Making Of Psycho III* (1986), Director
- *Psycho III* (1986), as Norman Bates · Director
- *Crimes of Passion* (1984), as Reverend Peter Shayne
- *The Glory Boys* (1984), series, as Jimmy
- *Psycho II* (1983), as Norman Bates
- *The Sins of Dorian Gray* (1983), as Henry Lord
- *For the Term of His Natural Life* (1983), series, as Reverend James North
- *Double Negative* (1980), as Lawrence Miles
- *North Sea Hijack* (1980), as Lou Kramer
- *The Black Hole* (1979), as Dr. Alex Durant
- *Twice a Woman* (1979), as Alfred
- *Winter Kills* (1979), as John Cerruti
- *Les Misérables* (1978), as Javert
- *First, You Cry* (1978), as Arthur Heroz
- *Remember My Name* (1978), as Neil Curry
- *Mahogany* (1975), as Sean McAvoy
- *Murder on the Orient Express* (1974), as Hector MacQueen
- *Lovin' Molly* (1974), as Gid
- *The Last of Sheila* (1973), Writer
- *The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean* (1972), as Reverend LaSalle
- *Play It as It Lays* (1972), as B.Z.
- *Ten Days' Wonder* (1971), as Charles Van Horn
- *Someone Behind the Door* (1971), as Laurence Jeffries
- *How Awful About Allan* (1970), as Allan
- *WUSA* (1970), as Rainey
- *Catch-22* (1970), as Chaplain Capt. A.T. Tappman
- *The Male Animal* (1968), as Tommy Turner
- *Pretty Poison* (1968), as Dennis Pitt
- *The Champagne Murders* (1967), as Christopher Belling
- *Evening Primrose* (1966), as Charles Snell
- *Is Paris Burning?* (1966), as Sgt. Warren
- *ABC Stage 67* (1966), series, as Charles Snell
- *BBC Play of the Month* (1965), series, as Tommy Turner
- *The Fool Killer* (1965), as Milo Bogardus
- *Agent 38-24-36* (1964), as Harry Compton / Nicolas Sergueivitch Miloukine
- *The Sword and the Balance* (1963), as Johnny Parsons
- *Five Miles to Midnight* (1962), as Robert Macklin
- *The Trial* (1962), as Josef K.
- *Phaedra* (1962), as Alexis Kyrilis
- *Goodbye Again* (1961), as Philip Van der Besh
- *Psycho* (1960), as Norman Bates — Fi1m 90, [page](https://film.one/film/psycho.md)
- *Tall Story* (1960), as Ray Blent
- *On the Beach* (1959), as Lt. Peter Holmes
- *Green Mansions* (1959), as Abel
- *The Matchmaker* (1958), as Cornelius Hackl
- *Desire Under the Elms* (1958), as Abel Cabot
- *The Tin Star* (1957), as Ben Owens
- *This Angry Age* (1957), as Joseph Dufresne
- *The Lonely Man* (1957), as Riley Wade
- *Fear Strikes Out* (1957), as Jimmy Piersall
- *Friendly Persuasion* (1956), as Josh Birdwell — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/film/friendly-persuasion.md)
- *Windows* (1955), series, as Benji
- *The Actress* (1953), as Fred Whitmarsh
- *General Electric Theater* (1953), series, as West Wind
- *Goodyear Television Playhouse* (1951), series, as Joey
- *Studio One* (1948), series, as Clyde Smith
- *Kraft Television Theatre* (1947), series, as Willie

## Gallery

- ![Anthony Perkins embracing Brigitte Bardot in a publicity still for Une ravissante idiote (2022)](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-3e52305c7694.jpg) Anthony Perkins embracing Brigitte Bardot in a publicity still for Une ravissante idiote (2022) — Unredited, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/APerkinsBBardotPublicity.jpg/1280px-APerkinsBBardotPublicity.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Anthony Perkins in a Paramount publicity still, circa. 1960](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-3fe0bc3a245e.jpg) Anthony Perkins in a Paramount publicity still, circa. 1960 — Unknown (Paramount Pictures), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/APerkinsPublicityStill.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Anthony Perkins (left) with Tab Hunter at Watson Webb's Lake Arrowhead Retreat on a private date, circa. 1956 (2022)](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-865b3c47c7e4.jpg) Anthony Perkins (left) with Tab Hunter at Watson Webb's Lake Arrowhead Retreat on a private date, circa. 1956 (2022) — Uncredited, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/APerkinsTHunterDate.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Collectie / Archief : Fotocollectie Anefo Reportage / Serie : Anthony Perkins Beschrijving : acteurs, Perkins, Anthony Datum : 5 augustus 1983 Trefwoorden : act](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-c7c35ec47d86.jpg) Collectie / Archief : Fotocollectie Anefo Reportage / Serie : Anthony Perkins Beschrijving : acteurs, Perkins, Anthony Datum : 5 augustus 1983 Trefwoorden : act — Rob Croes for Anefo, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7c/Acteurs%2C_Perkins%2C_Anthony%2C_Bestanddeelnr_932-6625.jpg/1280px-Acteurs%2C_Perkins%2C_Anthony%2C_Bestanddeelnr_932-6625.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Anthony Perkins](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-84b23f670a3f.jpg) Anthony Perkins — Image via TMDB
- ![Anthony Perkins](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-c1cf48113894.jpg) Anthony Perkins — Image via TMDB
- ![Anthony Perkins](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-52b24fbd6f4e.jpg) Anthony Perkins — Image via TMDB
- ![Collectie / Archief : Fotocollectie Anefo Reportage / Serie : Anthony Perkins Beschrijving : acteurs, portretten, Perkins, Anthony Datum : 5 augustus 1983 Trefw](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-0a81b2f807b3.jpg) Collectie / Archief : Fotocollectie Anefo Reportage / Serie : Anthony Perkins Beschrijving : acteurs, portretten, Perkins, Anthony Datum : 5 augustus 1983 Trefw — Rob Croes for Anefo, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c2/Acteurs%2C_portretten%2C_Perkins%2C_Anthony%2C_Bestanddeelnr_932-6626.jpg/1280px-Acteurs%2C_portretten%2C_Perkins%2C_Anthony%2C_Bestanddeelnr_932-6626.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Anthony Perkins (right) and Robert Morse (left) dressed in drag in The Matchmaker (1958)](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-653210f54463.png) Anthony Perkins (right) and Robert Morse (left) dressed in drag in The Matchmaker (1958) — Paramount Pictures, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Anthony-Perkins-Drag.png/1280px-Anthony-Perkins-Drag.png?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Anthony Perkins](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-fec55b5ae8b0.jpg) Anthony Perkins — Image via TMDB
- ![Anthony Perkins](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-15ff2ed75422.jpg) Anthony Perkins — Image via TMDB
- ![Anthony Perkins](https://film.one/media/person/59193/gallery-4def368e0d2e.jpg) Anthony Perkins — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 1957: Best Supporting Actor (nominated), for *Friendly Persuasion*

### Golden Globes — 2 won

- 1957: Golden Globe Awards (won)
- 1957: New Star of the Year – Actor (won)

### Cannes Film Festival — 2 won

- 1961: Palme d'Or (won)
- 1961: Best Actor (won), for *Goodbye Again*

### Other awards — 3 won, 1 nominated

- Donostia Award 1991: Donostia Award (won)
- Edgar Awards 1974: Edgar Awards (won)
- Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play 1958: Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play (nominated)
- Theatre World Award 1955: Theatre World Award (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/anthony-perkins