Do we like them?

Do we like Barry Keoghan?

Our score: 8 out of 10. No harmful words or company turned up, and there is real good work for kids in care, but the record is thinner than a long-running do-gooder's.

The breakout came from Irish TV, then Dunkirk and The Killing of a Sacred Deer in 2017. After that he worked steadily through Chernobyl, Eternals and The Batman. The Banshees of Inisherin won him a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor and an Oscar nomination, and Saltburn gave him his first big leading role.

On the court side, the record is small. In 2018 Killarney District Court fined him €250 and banned him from driving for two years after he admitted driving without insurance. He wasn't at the hearing. That's the lot we could verify, so there is no pattern of any kind in the reporting we read.

On the harm check, we found no statements from him against LGBTQ+ people, women, migrants or the planet, and no slide into conspiracy theories. We also found no history of working with people who push harm in what we read. He isn't a political actor, which means the record is quiet rather than rich, and we say so plainly.

The recent noise has mostly been about what he has copped. After his split from Sabrina Carpenter in late 2024 he left Instagram, saying the abuse aimed at him had crossed a line and that people were harassing his family. In April 2026 he rejected the rumour that he cheated, calling the trolling “absolutely disgusting and vile”. It's a rumour from gossip land, and he denies it.

Work-wise, Netflix announced in April 2026 that Jamie Bell would take over as Duke Shelby in the Peaky Blinders sequel series. Keoghan played the role in the film. He is also due to play Ringo Starr in Sam Mendes's Beatles films, so his career isn't hurting.

The good stuff is quiet and aimed at the kids who have been where he was. In 2024 he agreed to host a Pinewood Studios workshop for children in foster care, and a spokesperson said he wants them to know there are pathways into the film industry. A lad who came through that system and turns around to hold the door open for others is a decent look.