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Colin O'Donoghue
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General Information
Gender: Male
Birthday: January 26, 1981
Age: 43
Birthplace: Drogheda, County Louth, Ireland
Nationality: Irish
Social Networks: Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Other Information
Eye Color: Bright Blue
Occupation(s): Actor
Musician
Education: local schools
The Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin
Talents: Acting
Singing
Family & Friends
Family: Con O'Donoghue (father)
Mary O'Donoghue (mother)
Allen O'Donoghue (brother)
Ethan James O'Donoghue(son)
Millie O'Donoghue (daughter)
Harry O'Donoghue (cousin)
Relationships: Helen O'Donoghue (wife)
Series Information
Character: Captain Killian 'Hook' Jones / Rogers / Wish Verse Captain Hook / Lieutenant Killian Jones
First appearance: The Crocodile
Last appearance: Leaving Storybrooke

Colin O'Donoghue is an Irish actor and musician, best known for portraying Captain Killian "Hook" Jones on the ABC TV show Once Upon a Time. He appeared in the horror thriller film The Rite (2011) as a skeptical novice priest, Michael Kovak. He portrayed the character of Douxie Casperan in the Guillermo del Toro animated series Tales of Arcadia for Netflix. He is also portraying Gordon Cooper on Disney+ Original Series The Right Stuff. He starred in Dolly Parton's Heartstrings as J.J. Sneed.

View the Colin O'Donoghue Gallery.[]

Early Life and Education[]

O'Donoghue, the son of Con and Mary O'Donoghue, was born and raised in Drogheda, County Louth, in a Roman Catholic family. He attended local schools, and later The Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin. At age 17, he went to Paris for a month to learn French.

Career[]

O'Donoghue's early career was mainly split between theatre and television work in Ireland and the UK. In 2003, he won the Irish Film and Television Award for "Best New Talent" for his role as Norman in "Home For Christmas".

In 2009, he appeared as Duke Philip of Bavaria in an episode of season 3 of the Showtime historical-fiction series The Tudors. He made his Hollywood film debut alongside Anthony Hopkins in the horror thriller film The Rite (2011). He made an audition video for The Rite in a friend's home studio in Drogheda and sent it to the United States. He plays guitar and sings in a band called The Enemies, formed in 2003 in Ireland.

In 2012, O'Donoghue was cast as Captain Hook/Killian Jones, love interest of the main heroine Emma Swan, in the second season of the hit ABC series Once Upon a Time. In 2014, O'Donoghue was cast as the main character in The Dust Storm, an independent film set in Nashville, Tennessee as a musician named Brennan.

Christina Perri wrote a song, "The Words", which she dedicated to Colin's character (Captain Hook) in Once Upon a Time.

In December 2018, O'Donoghue was cast in an episode of the Netflix anthology drama series, Heartstrings.

The Enemies[]

O'Donoghue was part of the five-piece Irish band, "The Enemies", which was formed in 2003 by O'Donoghue and a close friend, Ronan McQuillan. The Enemies released their self-titled debut EP on 7 March 2011 prior to their self-funded first album on track. He played guitar and sang backing vocals on the band's first EP and debut album.

Although the band was unsigned, it was commissioned by General Motors to record tracks for their "Chevy route 66" online campaign. The band worked on the music for Coca-Cola's "5BY20" project. Their debut album Sounds Big on the Radio was to be released in March 2013, which was later scheduled for 2014. In May 2013, he announced he was leaving the band due to the filming schedule of Once Upon a Time.

Awards[]

For his role in Home for Christmas, he was awarded Best New Talent at the 1st Irish Film & Television Awards, held on 1 November 2003.

Podcast host[]

O'Donoghue has been the co-host of The Sync Report podcast since 2022, his first episode airing in February 2022 and featuring Steve Vai as guest. His fellow co-hosts are American film producer Rose Ganguzza and music supervisor Jason P. Rothberg.

Personal life[]

O'Donoghue married his wife Helen, a schoolteacher, in 2009, shortly after his appearance on The Tudors. The couple have been together since they were eighteen and have two children: a son and a daughter.

Filmography[]

Film[]

Year Title Role Notes
2003 Call Girl Brendan Short film
2006 24/7 Nick Short film
2009 The Euthanizer Ben Short film
2011 The Rite Michael Kovak
2012 Storage 24 Mark
2016 The Dust Storm Brennan
2016 Carrie Pilby Professor David Harrison
2018 What Still Remains Peter
2021 Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans Douxie (voice)
2022 Luck Gerry (voice)

Television[]

Year Title Role Notes
2001 Rebel Heart Rowe Miniseries; episode 1
2002 Home for Christmas Norman Quested Television film
2004 Love Is the Drug Peter 2 episodes
2005 Proof Jamie 2 episodes
Fair City Emmet Fitzgerald 3 episodes
2006–08 The Clinic Conor Elliott 11 episodes
2009 The Tudors Duke Philip of Bavaria Episode: "The Undoing of Cromwell"
Wild Decembers Young guard Television film
2011 Identity John Bloom Television pilot
2012–18 Once Upon a Time Captain Hook/Killian Jones Main role (season 2–6)
Guest Role (season 7)
Wish Hook/Rogers Guest role (season 6)
Main Role (season 7)
2018 Trollhunters Douxie (voice) 3 episodes
2019 3Below: Tales of Arcadia 2 episodes
Dolly Parton's Heartstrings JJ Sneed Episode: "JJ Sneed"
2020 The Right Stuff Gordon Cooper Main role
Wizards: Tales of Arcadia Douxie (voice)
2022 The Great North Dr. Callahan (voice) 1 episode: "Cillian Me Softly Adventure"

Video games[]

Year Title Role Source
2020 Trollhunters: Defenders of Arcadia Douxie (voice)

Music videos[]

Year Title Artist(s) Role Source
2015 "The Words" Christina Perri Love interest

Theatre[]

Year Title Role Theatre Location
Aoife and Isobel Project Theatre Dublin, Ireland
TheDream of a Summer Day Storytellers Theatre Company Dublin, Ireland
Eclipse Olivier Theatre London, England
Eugene Onegin – The Roadshow Something Different Theatre Company Oxford, England
Leaving Quarehawks Theatre Company Monaghan, Ireland
Moonlight Mickey's Calipo Theatre Company Drogheda, Ireland
Othello Second Age Theatre Company Dublin, Ireland
Outlying Islands Island Theatre Company Chicago, US
Sky Road Theatre Royal Waterford, Ireland
The Taming Of The Shrew Rough Magic Theatre Company Dublin, Ireland
Walking the Road Axis Theatre Vancouver, Canada
What the Dead Want Project Theatre Dublin, Ireland

Awards and nominations[]

Year Group Award Result Notes
2003 Irish Film and Television Awards Best New Talent Won Home for Christmas
2014 People's Choice Awards Favorite On-Screen Chemistry shared with: Jennifer Morrison Nominated Once Upon a Time
2015 Teen Choice Awards Choice TV Liplock shared with: Jennifer Morrison Nominated Once Upon a Time
2016 Teen Choice Awards Choice TV Liplock shared with: Jennifer Morrison Won Once Upon a Time
2017 Teen Choice Awards Choice TV Liplock shared with: Jennifer Morrison Nominated Once Upon a Time
2017 Teen Choice Awards Choice Scene Stealer Nominated Once Upon a Time

Trivia[]

  • He is a guitarist for the band The Enemies, a five piece band from O'Donoghue's native Ireland.
  • Appears in Christina Perri's "The Words" music video.
  • At the age of 16 went to Paris for a month to learn to speak French.
  • He played Duke Philip of Bavaria in a season 3 episode of Showtime's The Tudors.
  • He married Helen O'Donoghue in 2009; they had a son and a daughter together. He also has a brother named Allen who is an author.
  • He appeared opposite Ginnifer Goodwin on Once Upon a Time.
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