Biography
While Hugh Keays-Byrne was born in India and spent most of his younger days there, the character actor's claims to fame began from his time in Australia. At the age of 23, Keays-Byrne moved to Australia to kickstart his acting career. He quickly made a small name for himself as soon as he moved to the country: his role as Toad in the notable low-budget film "Stone" (1974) helped him become a regular in the Australian film scene. In the following years, he appeared in the Australian/Japanese action movie "The Man from Hong Kong" (1975) and the Dennis Hopper-starring "Mad Dog Morgan" (1976), among others. At the end of the '70s, Keays-Byrne reunited with a number of his "Stone" colleagues and co-stars for George Miller's Mel Gibson-starring "Mad Max" (1979) as the notable villain Toecutter. With the surprise success of "Mad Max," Keays-Byrne became a regular in TV and film, ranging from the Australian disaster film "The Chain Reaction" (1980) to sci-fi film "Starship" (1984). In the '90s, he appeared in the TV mini-series "Moby Dick" (USA 1998) alongside Patrick Stewart. In the early 2000s, Keays-Byrne appeared as the recurring villain Grunchlk in the cult sci-fi show "Farscape" (Nine Network/Sci-Fi Channel 1999-2003). By the time "Farscape" wrapped up, Keays-Byrne was mostly finished with acting outside of the rare appearance in something like the live-action "Sleeping Beauty" (2011). However, when the opportunity arose for him to work with George Miller on the next Mad Max film, he hopped on board. More than 30 years after Keays-Byrne appeared as Toecutter in the first "Mad Max," he co-starred as the main antagonist, Immortan Joe, in the Tom Hardy-starring "Mad Max: Fury Road" (2015). Hugh Keays-Byrne died on December 1, 2020 at the age of 73.
