Actor Aidan Gillen has had key roles on two of the most important television series of all time. As Thomas J. “Tommy” Carcetti on The Wire, and as Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish on Game of Thrones, Gillen was front and center to history as those shows rose the ranks as some of the best of the best. Show Between those two series and his appearances in films and TV shows like Peaky Blinders, The Dark Knight Rises, Queer as Folk, Bohemian Rhapsody, and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Gillen has seen a little bit of everything. But nothing he’s done has been as unique as his new History Channel series Project Blue Book, which is executive produced by Academy Award winner Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future, Forrest Gump). Gillen stars on the series as Dr. J. Allen Hynek, a brilliant college professor who is recruited to help lead a new research project—Project Blue Book—by the U.S. Air Force. Based on the real-life clandestine operations and research into Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) and related phenomena conducted by the United States Air Force in the 1950s and 1960s, the show follows Hynek and Captain Michael Quinn (Michael Malarkey) as they go through real historic events and investigate some of the thousands of cases that involved UFO’s. “Delving into and reading the reports of alien abductions was quite something,” Gillen says. “Some of these accounts are so detailed and strange, the circumstances so unlikely and the individuals involved so seemingly rattled, that you’re left questioning whether its fantasy or if something serious is going on.” Gillen spoke with Men’s Journal about preparing for the role as Dr. J. Allen Hynek, studying alien abductions and UFO theories, and what it was like to work on Game of Thrones for so many years. Project Blue Book airs on the History Channel on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET, and you can catch up on full episodes at History.com. What are you most excited about having worked on Project Blue Book? What can you tell us about what fans should expect from your character on the show? How is your role in Project Blue Book different from any other role you’ve done so far? What did you learn that was most shocking or surprising while working on the show? What kind of research did you do to get into your character and your role? We are all huge fans of Game of Thrones and your work on the series. What was your experience like working on the show? What do you hope people take away from watching Project Blue Book? Did you do any physical preparation for your role? If so, how did it help you when you worked on the show? What did you most enjoy about the period-era setting of the show? Did it help you get into character? What was the most challenging part of preparing for your role on Project Blue Book? What was the most rewarding? Do you have any other projects coming up that you’d like to tell us about? For access to exclusive gear videos, celebrity interviews, and more, subscribe on YouTube!
Drumcondra, Dublin, Ireland
"The Dragon and the Wolf" "Littlefinger's always a step or two ahead of most people and revels in the uncertainty he provokes; it's a perfect stage for schemes within schemes. You're never really certain whose side he's on, which of course is how he likes it… Varys and Littlefinger's sparring is fun and razor-sharp. Either of these two would ice the other without a second thought, if need be, which would be a shame because they're a good match for each other. The world would be a duller place." ―Aidan Gillen on playing Littlefinger[1] Aidan Gillen (born 24 April 1968), born Aidan Murphy, is an Irish award-winning actor. He is best known for his performance as Stuart Jones in the controversial and popular British TV series Queer as Folk, and for his role as Mayor Tommy Carcetti in HBO's acclaimed drama series, The Wire. He took a lead role in the ITV police drama Identity and most recently played a minor role as a CIA agent in the opening of The Dark Knight Rises (which also featured Burn Gorman) and also played the main antagonist of the Maze Runner series. He was nominated for a Tony Award for his Broadway role in the Caretaker. He is the brother of Fionnuala Murphy. He stars in HBO's Game of Thrones as Lord Petyr 'Littlefinger' Baelish. He was confirmed in the role on 12 July 2010. He was part of the initial starring cast and remained a member of the starring cast until the end of the seventh season. CreditsStarringSee also
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