To mark the occasion for St. Patrick’s Day, we’ve decided to look into some of the best Irish stars. Scroll through and see if your favorite made the top five!
Maureen O’Hara
No list of Irish stars would be complete without the late great Maureen O’Hara. Born in Dublin, O’Hara made her way to Hollywood in 1939 to star in the film adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Though she enjoyed a decades-long career in Hollywood, O’Hara never forgot her Irish roots.
“I’ve always been a tough Irish lass,” O’Hara once said.
“My heritage has been my grounding, and it has brought me peace,” she added in another interview.
O’Hara is sadly no longer with us, as she died in 2015 at the age of 95. However, she will always live on through her incredible film work. O’Hara will certainly always be one lass that Ireland is very proud of!
Related: Maureen O’Hara Risked It All To Speak Out About Hollywood’s Sexual Predators
Cillian Murphy
A modern Hollywood star who hails from Ireland is Cillian Murphy, 48. He was born in Douglas, Cork, and was raised in Ballintemple, Cork.
Murphy moved to London as an adult to launch his film career. However, he eventually moved back to Ireland in order to keep his children grounded.
“It’s kind of an Irish story, you know, to move away, do your thing and then come home,” Murphy once explained. “That seems to be a common narrative for Irish people. We wanted the kids to be Irish, and they were sort of at that age where they were preteens and they had very posh English accents and I wasn’t appreciating that too much. Our parents are a certain age and it was just a nice time to come home.”
Despite calling Ireland home, Murphy has still achieved great success in Hollywood. Last year, he even won the Best Actor Oscar for his work in Oppenheimer.
Anne Hathaway
The Hollywood star Anne Hathaway may have been born in New York City, but she has some strong Irish roots that have earned her a place on this list.
Hathaway, 43, has Irish ancestry from both of her parents. In fact, she is 60% Irish, with roots in Counties Cork and Donegal, Ireland.
“My heart beats for Ireland. And then, of course, when you ask me about it, I’m just like ‘Guinness,'” Hathaway once said. “I feel very Irish. Maybe that’s why I’ve been so lucky with my career.”
“Ireland is such an amazing country, and I have this little dream in the back of my head that someday I’ll end up living there,” she added.
Hathaway certainly has had some Irish luck in her Hollywood career. Only time will tell if she actually moves to Ireland!
Watch Hathaway talk more about her love for Ireland in the video below.
Mariah Carey
Yes, you read that correctly! Like Hathaway, Mariah Carey, 55, was born in New York, but she has some strong Irish roots that many fans aren’t aware of.
On her mother’s side, Carey’s ancestors were Irish immigrants who came to America in search of a better life. Her Irish ancestry has been traced all the way back to her third great-grandfather, John Blanchfield, who was born in Ireland around 1822.
Carey has long embraced her Irish roots, saying that this heritage is essential to her and her family’s identity. In her 2020 memoir The Meaning of Mariah Carey, the “We Belong Together” singer even described herself as being “pure Irish.”
Liam Neeson
Finally, no list of Irish stars would be compete without the great Liam Neeson.
Neeson, 72, was born in Ballymena, County Antrim, which is located in Northern Ireland.
“Northern Ireland is the world’s best kept secret, both in the character of its people and its scenery,” Neeson once said. “It’s an extraordinary thing, this tiny little province of Northern Ireland, where carnage happened. And I was part of it. I grew up in it.”
Though he lives in the U.S. these days, Neeson has made it clear that Ireland is his true love.
“Being Irish and a citizen of the world, has made me truly appreciate Irish culture, music and history,” he has stated.
Related: ‘Taken’ Star Liam Neeson Announces He’s Retiring At 72 (Sort Of)
Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all!
More About:Celebrity News