In the relatively small “2001: A Space Odyssey” main cast, Keir Dullea is undoubtedly the headliner. In the film, he takes on the role of Dr. David Bowman, who is one of the astronauts tasked with piloting the Discovery spacecraft. Once the HAL 9000 computer goes haywire, killing Bowman’s companions, the former scientist takes it upon himself to destroy the machine before it leads to his demise in the vacuum of space. In the end, he defeats HAL and enters the Monolith, going on to be reincarnated as the Star-Child.
In the wake of “2001,” Dullea returned to the Bowman role for the lesser-known sequel “2010: The Year We Make Contact” from 1984. Outside of that franchise, though, the actor has participated in a range of projects. Among his many film efforts are the 1980 television movie adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World,” 2000’s “The Audrey Hepburn Story,” which chronicles the life of the titular Hollywood icon, and “Fahrenheit 451” from 2018, adapting the Ray Bradbury novel of the same name. Dullea, who is 87 years old at the time of writing, has also appeared on TV shows like “Law & Order” and “Halo,” in addition to giving video game voice acting a try in 2023 via “Starfield.”
