A number of actors, in Hollywood and elsewhere, have caused fans to swoon because of the blueness of their eyes. Mel Gibson is one of them; his blue eyes brought him popularity, aside from his acting prowess, outspokenness and directorial excesses. The late great crooner, Frank Sinatra, had eyes so blue that he earned the moniker "Ole Blue Eyes." Well, another blue-eyed actor is on the rise to capture moviegoers' adulation by storm, and that is none other than Cillian Murphy.

Cillian Murphy is more known to Hollywood moviegoers as the face behind the villain Scarecrow in Batman Begins, the film that rebooted the entire Dark Knight franchise in 2005. Previously, he played Jim in the hit apocalyptic science fiction thriller 28 Days Later in 2003, where he first gained international acclaim. Cillian Murphy then landed small roles in Girl with a Pearl Earring and Cold Mountain in 2003 before grabbing The Scarecrow. He was nominated for a Golden Globe for his work in Breakfast on Pluto in 2005 but lost to Joaquin Phoenix for the latter's portrayal of Johnny Cash in Walk the Line.

The blue-eyed actor was born in Douglas, Cork in Ireland on March 25, 1976. The acting bug bit him while he was studying law in University College Cork (UCC). As a member of the UCC Drama Society, he starred in various plays, including Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme. His big professional break came when he played Pig in Enda Walsh's play Disco Pigs on 1996. Touring on this play prompted Cillian Murphy to leave UCC without getting his law degree.

Cillian Murphy has just completed a run of Love Song on London's West End. He is married to his longtime girlfriend Yvonne Guinness, whom he wed in France on August 2004, and together they have a son named Malachy.