The Oscar-winning Cork actor will star as Tommy Shelby one last time in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man
20:22, 16 Dec 2025Updated 20:22, 16 Dec 2025
Cillian Murphy on the Graham Norton Show(Image: Matt Crossick/PA Media Assignments/PA Wire)
After years at the helm of hit series Peaky Blinders, Cillian Murphy’s time as lead Tommy Shelby is coming to an end. And while you’d expect a big send-off for his years of work on the project – the Oscar-winning Cork star has revealed his departure was “completely underwhelming.”
The Irish actor, 49, has portrayed the iconic gangster since the show first aired in 2013. After the sixth and final season ended, he reprised his role in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, which is set to be released in March 2026. The movie, set in the 1940s, will serve as the final chapter in Tommy’s story – but creator Steven Knight hasn’t revealed exactly what brings Tommy back to Birmingham, simply saying he “gets dragged back in by circumstance.”
Speaking on his role as Tommy Shelby, Cillian said: “I loved that beautiful ambiguity of him riding off on the horse, and he’s gone, and we don’t know where he’s gone to, but he’s back in the Gypsy world. Now here he is existing in whatever way that he can against the backdrop of World War II. That’s very elegant bookmarking of a story.”
However, he said that while his final shot on The Immortal Man was “a really emotional scene” – as it was filmed on the side of a hill in the Peak District amid heavy rain – everyone just drove off after the filming was done.
(Image: BBC/Caryn Mandabach Productions Ltd./Matt Squire)
“So it was absolutely, completely underwhelming,” the Oscar-winning actor told Empire. Cillian added that while this marks the end of his character, he won’t be able to fully process it until the movie airs next year. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to process it or think about it until the film comes out, because I believe that a film isn’t finished until people look at it,” he said.
The long-awaited movie will receive a limited cinematic release on March 6, 2026, before being released on Netflix on March 14. A synopsis of the offering from Netflix says, “Birmingham, 1940. Amidst the chaos of WWII, Tommy Shelby is driven back from a self-imposed exile to face his most destructive reckoning yet.
“With the future of the family and the country at stake, Tommy must face his own demons and choose whether to confront his legacy or burn it to the ground. By order of the Peaky Blinders.”
(Image: BBC/Caryn Mandabach Productions Ltd./Robert Viglasky)
Other cast members listed on a press release from the streaming giant include Rebecca Ferguson, Tim Roth, Sophie Rundle, Ned Dennehy, Packy Lee, Ian Peck, and Jay Lycurgo. Irish Oscar nominee Barry Keoghan is also listed, as is Primetime Emmy winner Stephen Graham.
Paul Anderson, who portrayed Tommy’s troubled brother Arthur Shelby in the Peaky Blinders series, is notably missing from the cast list. Paul was reportedly spotted on the set of the movie, but for now, it seems any part he may play has yet to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, fans can look forward to more from Peaky Blinders, as it has been confirmed that the fan-favourite series will return for two additional seasons, each comprising six episodes, which will be available on both the BBC and Netflix. The show was originally believed to have ended with the conclusion of its sixth season in April 2022.
Cillian Murphy will serve as executive producer for both projects. Some hardcore fans have been holding out hope at a chance of seeing Tommy Shelby again here – but it looks unlikely, as the new shows are set around 20 years after the original story ended.
In a statement, Peaky Blinders’ creator Steven shared his excitement for the project, saying: “I’m thrilled to be announcing this new chapter in the Peaky Blinders story. Once again, it will be rooted in Birmingham and will tell the story of a city rising from the ashes of the Birmingham blitz.” He continued, “The new generation of Shelbys have taken the wheel and it will be a hell of a ride.”
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