David Wilmot is an Irish actor; His credits include Michael Collins (1996), I Went Down (1997), The Devil's Own (1997), The Tale of Sweeney Todd (1998), Intermission (2003), The Clinic (2003-2004), King Arthur (2004), Six Shooter (2006), The Tudors (2009-2010), The Guard (2011), Anna Karenina (2012), Treasure Island (2012), Gold (2014), Ripper Street (2012âÂÂ2016), Black Sails (2017), The Alienist (2018), Resistance (2019), Rebellion (2019), The Letter for the King (2020), Barkskins (2021), Station Eleven (2021âÂÂ2022), Bodkin (2025) and Hamnet (2025).
Wilmot's acting debut was in the telvision film Lapsed Catholics (1987), He appeared in The Field (1990), and in Michael Collins (1996).
In 2003, Wilmot portrayed Dr. Ed Costello in 16 episodes of the RTÃÂ series The Clinic, for which, he was nominated for the Irish Film and Television Award for Best Actor in a TV Drama. Other credits were Laws of Attraction (2004), King Arthur (2004), Six Shooter (2006), The Guard (2011) and Gold (2014).
In 2009 and 2010, Wilmot appeared as rebel captain Sir Ralph Ellerker in seasons 3 and 4 of the Showtime series The Tudors. In January 2012, he appeared alongside Eddie Izzard in Sky 1's version of Treasure Island. He also appeared in the docudrama Saving the Titanic as the ship's Chief Engineer Joseph Bell. Wilmot played a supporting role in the BBC One drama Ripper Street, as the cantankerous bearded Police Sergeant Donald Atherton. He similarly played police Captain Connor in 2018's TNT production of The Alienist. He played the character of Israel Hands in season 4 of Starz pirate series Black Sails.
Wilmot starred as a series regular as the corporate consultant Clark in the 2021 HBO Max TV series Station Eleven, an adaptation of the novel of the same name.
In 2025, he played John Shakespeare, starring alongside Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, and Emily Watson in the Chloé Zhao directed romantic historical drama film Hamnet.
In 1992, Wilmot began his theatre career in the play At the Black Pig's Dyke for the Druid Theatre Company, Galway. Later theatre credits include Six Characters in Search of an Author at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin (1996), As You Like It with the Druid Theatre Company, Galway (1999), and Juno and the Paycock at the Gaiety Theatre, London.
He originated the role of Padraic in The Lieutenant of Inishmore at The Other Place in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2001, played it at the Barbican Centre in 2002, then joined the 2006 off-Broadway Atlantic Theater Company production, which later transferred to Broadway. For this role, he was nominated at the 60th Tony Awards for the Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play, the Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance, and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play 2006, and won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actor, and the Theatre World Award for his performance.