After turning down a record deal, he made his professional acting debut in the play Disco Pigs in 1996. He went on to star in Irish and UK film and stage productions throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, first coming to international attention in 2003 as the hero in the post-apocalyptic film 28 Days Later.

What age did Cillian Murphy start acting?

Murphy started his career as a rock musician. After he turned down a record deal, he started his acting career in a play in Disco Pigs in 1996. He went on to star in a British and Irish movie and stage production in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

How did Cillian Murphy become an actor?

Murphy pressured Pat Kiernan until he got an audition at Corcadorca Theatre Company, and in September 1996, he made his professional acting debut on the stage, playing the part of a volatile Cork teenager in Enda Walsh's Disco Pigs.