Michael Sheen catches a familiar voice, then finds the pleasure its owner takes in persuading people. We rate his brisk intelligence, though The Queen shows how easily a script can leave that confidence unchallenged.
Fi1m perspective
In The Queen (2006), Michael Sheen's Tony Blair enjoys recognising the right response before anyone else does. Sheen makes that satisfaction engaging, giving Blair a brisk, persuasive energy without quite hiding his pleasure in his own judgement. We enjoyed his exchanges with Helen Mirren, because his eagerness gives her tightly controlled performance something to resist. Stephen Frears makes good use of the pairing: Sheen gives us a reason to follow the disagreement over duty and public feeling, rather than merely wait for it to be resolved.
Playing Blair became his screen breakthrough, beginning with The Deal (2003) and continuing through The Queen to The Special Relationship (2010), all written by Peter Morgan. The early portrayal could lean towards caricature; in The Queen, Sheen finds more to do with Blair's confidence. That development matters for an actor so often cast as someone the audience already recognises. David Frost in Frost/Nixon (2008) and Brian Clough in The Damned United (2009) extended that speciality, with the Clough film another Morgan collaboration.
Morgan gives him plenty to play, but The Queen also lets Blair off too lightly. The screenplay gives Blair such a secure grasp of the public mood that the disagreement can feel weighted in his favour. Sheen holds our attention; we still wanted the writing to question his confidence as closely as it questions the Queen's. His ability to make a public figure personable is a strength, but it should not settle the film's judgement of that person.
The later television work offers a useful change from these familiar public faces, with Dr William Masters in Masters of Sex (2013) and Aziraphale opposite David Tennant in Good Omens (2019). The latter gives him space for lighter, fantastical acting, away from the need to satisfy an audience's memory of a real person. He has continued to move between film, television and theatre, rather than leave one behind for another. Start with The Queen, and keep an eye on how often the script agrees with its most confident man.
Biography
Michael Sheen is a Welsh actor. Born in Newport, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and worked primarily in theatre during the 1990s. His stage roles included appearances in productions such as Romeo and Juliet, Peer Gynt, The Seagull, Henry V and Caligula, the last of which earned him an Olivier Award nomination.
Sheen became more widely known for screen work in the 2000s. He portrayed Tony Blair in the television film The Deal (2003) and reprised the role in the film The Queen (2006) and The Special Relationship (2010). He played Brian Clough in The Damned United (2009). Other notable screen credits include Frost/Nixon (2008), Tron: Legacy (2010) and Masters of Sex (2013–2016). He has received BAFTA and Emmy nominations for his performances.
