Stephen Boyd was an actor who starred in more than 50 films throughout his acting career. He was born William Millar on 4 th July, 1931, in Glengormly, Northern Ireland and was one of nine children.
He first appeared in British films, though it was in a French film where he got his first big break, starring in The Night Heaven Fell (1957) with Brigitte Bardot. He then tried his hand at Hollywood and appeared as a supporting actor in a number of films. It was for his role as Messala in Ben Hur (1959) that Boyd received international recognition as well as a Golden Globe award.
Other notable films in which he starred include The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) with Sophia Loren, The Bible…In The Beginning (1966) and Genghis Khan (1965). He was set to appear as Marc Antony in Cleopatra, opposite Elizabeth Taylor, but withdrew from the project when it was delayed due to Taylor becoming seriously ill.
Though he is most known for his roles in epic films, Boyd also appeared in other film genres such as the musical (Billy Rose’s Jumbo, 1962), melodrama (The Oscar, 1966), sci-fi (Fantastic Voyage, 1966), spy thriller (Assignment K, 1969) and western (Shalako, 1968). In the late sixties and into the seventies, Boyd’s Hollywood career began to decline, as he spent more and more time in Europe, taking on independent roles. He made a comeback with the film The Squeeze in 1977.
He died on 2 nd June, 1977, at the age of 45, due to a heart attack while playing golf.
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