Skip to content
MovieCove
John Noble

John Noble

Actor · Born August 20, 1948 (78) · Port Pirie, South Australia, Australia

Screen Actors Guild Award winner · 1 other major award body

John Noble (born 20 August 1948) is an Australian actor. He is known for his roles as Denethor in the Lord of the Rings film trilogy, Dr. Walter Bishop on the science fiction series Fringe, Henry Parrish on the action-horror series Sleepy Hollow, and Morland Holmes on the police procedural Elementary. Noble has also done voice work as Leland Monroe in the video game L.A. Noire, Unicron in the animated series Transformers: Prime, and Scarecrow in the DC Comics video game Batman: Arkham Knight. Description above from the Wikipedia article John Noble, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Read more

Biography from TMDB.

Born
August 20, 1948 (78)
From
Port Pirie, South Australia, Australia
Works as
Actor
Titles
41 on MovieCove · 61 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Up 9% in 30 days

What are John Noble's films like?

Across their 18 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Morality.

Genres

Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 55th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Animation2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 78th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Animation movies
Horror2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 32nd percentile
: browse their Horror movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Bonds
29%
Morality
23%
Survival
22%
Society
8%
Self
8%
Ideas
6%
Power
4%
Family bonds7 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival5 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFaith2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themeTrauma2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 12 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 0 · Serious 6 · Dark 6

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 1 · Stylized 9 · Heightened 2

Intense: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their intense movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 0 · Charged 4 · Intense 8

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 7 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 10 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 7 · Relentless 2

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 1 · Engaged 7 · Full focus 4

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 8 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 3

Roles they play

11 analyzed roles

Usually the Threshold guardian: 3 of 11 analyzed roles.

Threshold guardian
3 of 11
Mentor
3 of 11
Shadow
3 of 11
Trickster
1 of 11
Shapeshifter
1 of 11
Show the 11 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
16
Dread
5
Hopeful
7
Thrilling
5
Contemplative
4
Other
12

How their films linger

Hopeful10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 4 with a twist

  • Happy3
  • Bittersweet11
  • Ambiguous4

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch John Noble's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 37 of their 41 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for John Noble's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

61 credits, 41 with a MovieCove page; 5 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Twilight of the Gods(2024)

    Show 2 episodes · as Odin (voice) · as Odin / Storyteller (voice)

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all shows

  • The Demon Disorder(2024)

    as George Reilly

    Midcredits score: 10th percentile of all films

  • Fired on Mars(2023)

    Show 1 episode · as Falco (voice)

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all shows

  • Totally Completely Fine(2023)

    Show 3 episodes · as Wilkinson

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all shows

  • The Last Thing He Told Me(2023)

    Show 6 episodes · as Frank Campano · as John Noble

    Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all shows

  • Severance(2022)

    Show 1 episode · as Fields

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows

  • Cowboy Bebop(2021)

    Show 2 episodes · as Caliban

    Midcredits score: 37th percentile of all shows

  • Star Trek: Prodigy(2021)

    Show 19 episodes · as Diviner (voice) · as Ilthuran (voice)

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows

  • The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It(2021)

    as Father Kastner

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • Debris (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 1 episode · as Otto

  • Home Invasion(2021)

    Show as Buck Murdock

    Midcredits score: 4th percentile of all shows

  • Space Case (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    as Moon Sand Man

  • Hunters(2020)

    Show 1 episode · as Frederic Hauser

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows

  • The Boys(2019)

    Show 2 episodes · as Sam Butcher

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • Silencio(2018)

    as Grandfather James

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • The Resident(2018)

    Show 1 episode · as Elliot Festervan

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • Salvation(2017)

    Show 3 episodes · as Nicholas Tanz

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all shows

  • Legends of Tomorrow(2016)

    Show 6 episodes · as John Noble / Mallus · as Mallus (voice)

    Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all shows

  • The Librarians(2014)

    Show 1 episode · as Monsignor Vega

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all shows

  • Devil's Playground (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Show 6 episodes · as Bishop John McNally

  • The Mule(2014)

    as Pat Shepherd

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • Transformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising(2013)

    as Unicron (voice)

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • The Blacklist(2013)

    Show 2 episodes · as Raleigh Sinclair III

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all shows

  • Sleepy Hollow(2013)

    Show 25 episodes · as Henry Parrish

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • Superman: Unbound(2013)

    as Brainiac (voice)

    Midcredits score: 63rd percentile of all films

  • Friend (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Executive Producer · Producer · as The Man

  • Elementary(2012)

    Show 15 episodes · as Morland Holmes

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all shows

  • Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries(2012)

    Show 1 episode · as Edward Stanley

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all shows

  • Transformers Prime(2010)

    Show 4 episodes · as Unicron (voice)

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all shows

  • Risen (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    as Eddie Thomas

  • The Last Airbender(2010)

    as The Dragon Spirit (voice)

    Midcredits score: 3rd percentile of all films

  • The Good Wife(2009)

    Show 2 episodes · as Matthew Ashbaugh

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all shows

  • Fringe(2008)

    Show 100 episodes · as Walter Bishop

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows

  • Voodoo Lagoon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    as Ben

  • Il tesoro delle Fiji (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Show 13 episodes · as Cap Blackheart

  • Pirate Islands: The Lost Treasure of Fiji (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Show 13 episodes · as Blackheart

  • One Night with the King(2006)

    as Prince Admantha

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all films

  • The Unit(2006)

    Show 1 episode · as The C.E.O.

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows

  • Running Scared(2006)

    as Ivan Yugorsky

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Fracture (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    as Howard Peet

  • Frank Hurley: The Man Who Made History (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    as Frank Hurley (voice)

  • The Mystery of Natalie Wood (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Show 2 episodes · as Irving Pichel

  • The Mystery of Natalie Wood (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    as Irving Pichel, Director

  • The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King(2003)

    as Denethor

    Midcredits score: 99th percentile of all films

  • The Outsider(2002)

    as Fergus Hunter

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • Superfire(2002)

    as Paul Baylis

    Midcredits score: 28th percentile of all films

  • 24(2001)

    Show 2 episodes · as Anatoly Markov

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all shows

  • The Monkey's Mask(2000)

    as Mr. Norris

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films

  • Virtual Nightmare (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    as Dad

  • Airtight (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    as Sorrentino

  • The Lost World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Show 1 episode · as Inspector Robert Anderson

  • All Saints(1998)

    Show 15 episodes · as Dr Madsen · as John Madsen · as Mr Madsen

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all shows

  • Stargate SG-1(1997)

    Show 1 episode · as Meurik

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows

  • Water Rats(1996)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all shows

  • The Nostradamus Kid (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    as General Booth

  • Police Rescue(1989)

    Show 1 episode · as Sergeant

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all shows

  • A Sting in the Tail (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    as Prime Minister's Minder

  • The Dreaming(1988)

    as Dr. Richards

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Hills End (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    as Ben Fiddler

  • The Bill (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

  • Nameless (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    as Lighthouse Keeper

Career shape

Star power in the 97th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 60 titles, 59 of them dated from 1984 to 2024; peak year 2013.

Biggest box office

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

$1.1B worldwide

Highest rated

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Midcredits 99th

Most popular right now

Elementary (2012)

Film career

MilestoneBreakoutAward win
19842024

Peak 2013 · back in prominent film roles after a quiet stretch. Top draw in 1 MovieCove title. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting60 of 60: 59 only acting, 1 with another role · typical Midcredits score64thProducing1 of 60: 0 only producing, 1 with another role

By decade

1980s4 · acting1990s7 · acting2000s18 · acting2010s18 · 18 acting · 1 crew2020s12 · acting

Billing

usually 8th · top billed in 9% of 11 roles
0111

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

Awards

a Screen Actors Guild Award and 1 other major award from 2 major nominations, 2004.

  1. 2004
    • Screen Actors Guild Award, won · Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
    • +1 other major body · 1 win
      • Critics Choice Award, won · Best Acting Ensemble

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do John Noble's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 53rd percentile, the median of all 14; across their 12 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 45th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

45thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Approval · how many liked their films

57thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Reach · how many have seen their films

75thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 12

Midcredits score across 41 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up14
  • 50th to 74th15
  • 25th to 49th6
  • Below 25th6

Shape of the crowd

18 of their 41 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved11
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser18
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed10

Most divisive · actor

Silencio (2018)

85th percentile spread · 17% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Midcredits 99th · 93% liked

Reviewers score the acting 65/100 in their films, across 12 reviewed titles; fans 77, detractors 35. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is John Noble's work okay for kids?

Across up to 9 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore and frightening / intense run heavier than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore6 titles35–71 · median 64 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity9 titles10–42 · median 26 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity6 titles14–44 · median 32 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs6 titles23–50 · median 31 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense6 titles44–83 · median 60 · intenseheavier than most filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does John Noble work with?

People who share at least 2 of John Noble's MovieCove titles; Alex Kurtzman shares the most, 2.