Actors, Filmmakers, Broadcasters
- Douglas Adams (1952–2001): British radio and television writer and novelist, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.[1]
- Mary Adams (1898–1984): English producer and administrator in the BBC, instrumental in setting up the BBC’s television service.[2]
- Phillip Adams (1939–): Australian broadcaster, writer, film-maker, left-wing radical thinker, and iconoclast. He was the Australian Humanist of the Year in 1987.[3]
- Adithya (1974–): Indian actor.[4]
- Joe Ahearne (1963–): British television writer and director, best known for his work on several ‘cult’ fantasy-based programmes including Ultraviolet and Doctor Who.[5]
- Brandy Alexandre (1964–): American adult actress.[6]
- Keith Allen (1953–): British comedian, actor, singer and writer, father of Lily Allen.[7]
- Woody Allen (1935-): American film director, writer, actor, comedian, and playwright.[8]
- Robert Altman (1925–2006): American film director of MASH.[9]
- Alejandro Amenábar (1972–): Spanish-Chilean film director, whose Mar adentro (“The Sea Inside”) was awarded the Grand Prix of the Jury at the International Venice Film Festival in 2004 and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2005.[10]
- Wil Anderson (1974–): Australian comedian, radio presenter, and former host of The Glass House.[11]
- Jane Asher (1946–): English actress, who is well known in the United Kingdom for her numerous appearances in film and television dramas.[12]
- Joan Bakewell CBE (1933–): English television presenter and journalist.[13]
- Javier Bardem (1969–): Spanish actor and former rugby player best known for his roles in Jamón, jamón and No Country For Old Men.[14]
- Sarah Bernhardt (1844–1923): French stage actress referred to as “the most famous actress in the history of the world”. She was asked by French composer Charles Gounod if she ever prayed. Bernhadt replied “No, never. I’m an atheist”.[15]
- Paul Bettany (1971–): English actor, known for his roles in A Knight’s Tale, A Beautiful Mind, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, and The Da Vinci Code.[16]
- Lewis Black (1948–): American comedian and actor.
- Orla Brady (1961–): Irish actress.[17]
- Brannon Braga (1965–): American TV producer and writer, creator of Star Trek: Enterprise.[18]
- Jim Broadbent (1949–): English theatre, film, and television actor.[19]
- Jeremy Brock (1959–): British actor, producer, writer, and director, whose work includes Mrs. Brown and the BAFTA award winning screenplay for The Last King of Scotland.[20]
- Charlie Brooker (1971–): British writer and satirist best known for his TV show Screenwipe.[21]
- Derren Brown (1971–): English psychological illusionist, mentalist, and skeptic of paranormal phenomena. Professed to being an atheist in his book Tricks of the Mind and described Bertrand Russell‘s collection of essays Why I Am Not a Christian “an absolute joy.”
- Luis Buñuel (1900–1983): Spanish film-maker, activist of the surrealist movement. Known for his one-liner, “Thank God I’m still an atheist.”[22]
- Louis C.K. (1967–): American comedian, writer and director.[23]
- Peter Caffrey (1949–2008): Irish actor, best known for playing Padraig O’Kelly in Series 1-4 of Ballykissangel.[24]
- James Cameron (1954–): Canadian film director known for directing Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Titanic and Avatar.[25]
- Richard Carleton (1943–2006): Current affairs journalist for Australia’s 60 Minutes.[26]
- George Carlin (1937 – June 22, 2008): American comedian and actor.
- Adam Carolla (1964–): American comedian, actor, author, radio host, and podcaster. Regularly refers to himself as an atheist.[27][28]
- Jimmy Carr (1972–): English comedian, author, actor, and presenter of radio and television.[29]
- Asia Carrera (1973–): Former American pornographic actress.[30]
- Charlie Chaplin (1889–1977): English comedian, actor, director and producer.[31]
- Jeremy Clarkson (1960–): English journalist and broadcaster. Presenter of Top Gear and columnist in The Times.[32]
- Billy Connolly (1942–): Scottish comedian, actor, former musician.[33]
- Jim Cornette (1961–): American professional wrestling manager, commentator, promoter, and booker.[34]
- Sir Noël Coward (1899–1973): English actor, playwright, and composer of popular music.[35]
- David Cronenberg (1943–): Canadian film director, one of the principal originators of the ‘body horror‘ genre.[36]
- Mackenzie Crook (1971–): English actor and comedian, known for playing Gareth Keenan in The Office and Ragetti in Pirates of the Caribbean.[37]
- David Cross (1964–): American actor, writer, and Emmy winner, best known for his role as Tobias Fünke on Arrested Development.[38]
- Adrianne Curry (1982–): American model, television host, and film actress, well-known as the winner of the modelling competition America’s Next Top Model.[39]
- Alan Davies (1966–): English comedian, writer, and actor.[40]
- Russell T Davies (1963–): Welsh television producer and writer, most famous for reviving Doctor Who on British television.[41]
- Terence Davies (1945–): English screenwriter, film director, actor, and novelist.[42]
- William B. Davis (1938–): Canadian actor, known for his role as the Cigarette Smoking Man in The X-Files.[43]
- Daniel Day-Lewis (1957–): Bristish actor. When asked by poet Eileen Myles in an Index Magazine interview whether he believed in God, he answered with “I’m still not sure. I suppose I’m a die-hard agnostic. I don’t know.”
- Guillermo del Toro (1964–): Mexican director and screenwriter best known for directing Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth and Hellboy II: The Golden Army.[44]
- Andrew Denton (1960–): Australian comedian and television presenter host of the ABC’s weekly interview program Enough Rope.[45]
- Marlene Dietrich (1901–1992): German-born American actress, singer and entertainer. She is considered to be the first German actress to flourish in Hollywood.[46]
- Stanley Donen (1924–): American film director, best known for his musicals including Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Singin’ in the Rain; awarded honorary Academy Award for lifetime achievement.[47]
- Amanda Donohoe (1962–): English film, stage, and television actress.[48]
- Natalie Dormer (1982–): English film and television actress.[49]
- John Doyle (1953–): Australian comedian, actor, and writer, famous as “Rampaging” Roy Slaven in the comedy duo Roy and HG.[50]
- Troy Allen Dyer: (1965–): American film producer. “My father corrected me as a freshman in high school, because I neither confirm or deny the existantce of a higher power. Son, you’re an agnostic, but so are the best thinkers, theologists, pastors and priests, and that’s why they got into this whole business of finding God.”
- Christopher Eccleston (1964–): English stage, film, and television actor, known for his roles in Shallow Grave, 28 Days Later, and as the ninth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who.[51]
- David Edgar (1948–): British playwright, noted for his adaptation of Charles Dickens‘ novel Nicholas Nickleby.[52]
- Ben Elton (1959–): English comedian, writer and director.[53][54]
- Frances Farmer (1913–1970): American film, television, and theater actress.[55][56]
- Diane Farr (1969–): American actress perhaps best known for her role as FBI agent Megan Reeves in the television CBS series Numb3rs.[57]
- Harvey Fierstein (1952—): American actor, playwright, and screenwriter best known for his work in the Torch Song Trilogy.[58]
- Brian Flemming (1966–): American film director and playwright, notable for his 2005 film The God Who Wasn’t There.[59]
- Dave Foley (1963–): Canadian actor best known for his work in The Kids in the Hall and NewsRadio.[60]
- Peter Fonda (1940–): American actor.[61]
- Sir Denis Forman (1917–): British Director (1949–1954) and later Chair (1971–1973) of The British Film Institute, Chairman and Managing Director of Granada Television, and Director of the Royal Opera House in London.[62]
- Jodie Foster (1962–): American film actress, director, and producer.[63]
- Nick Frost (1972–): English actor, comedian, and writer.[64]
- Stephen Fry (1957–): British humourist, writer, actor, and filmmaker.[65][66]
- Ricky Gervais, British (voice)actor, film and TV director, screenwriter, producer, and comedian.[67][68]
- Paul Giamatti (1967–): American film and television actor.[69]
- Ira Glass (1959-): American radio personality and host of This American Life. He has stated that he is a staunch atheist.[70]
- Theo van Gogh (1957–2004): Dutch film director, television producer, publicist, and actor, murdered following the broadcasting of his film Submission.[71]
- Dan Gordon (1961–): Northern Irish actor, director and author. Calls himself agnostic.[72]
- Richard E. Grant (1957–): British actor perhaps most well known for portraying the world-weary, drug-crazed alcoholic Withnail in Withnail and I.[73]
- Eva Green (1980–): French actress and model, notable for her roles in Casino Royale and The Golden Compass.[74]
- Peter Greenaway, CBE (1942–): Welsh-born English film director.[75]
- Kathy Griffin (1960–): American actress, comedian, and media personality. As well as the star of show Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List.[76]
- Rachel Griffiths (1968–): Australian film and television actress.[77]
- Kamal Haasan (1954–): Indian film actor and film director, considered among the leading method actors of Indian cinema.[78]
- Brian Hall (1937–1997): English actor best known for his role as Terry the chef in Fawlty Towers.[79]
- Tony Hancock (1924–1968): British actor and comedian, star of the popular Hancock’s Half Hour.[80]
- Sir David Hare (1947–): English dramatist and theatre and film director.[81]
- Nina Hartley (1959–): American pornographic actress, film director, author, and sex educator.[82]
- Amber Heard (1986–): American film and television actress.[83]
- Katharine Hepburn (1907–2003): American actress who appeared in 53 films from 1932 to 1994.[84]
- Mathew Horne (1978–): English comedian and actor, best known for playing Gavin Shipman in the BBC sitcom Gavin & Stacey.[85]
- Kenny Hotz (1973–): Canadian comedian, filmmaker, actor, producer, director, photographer, and co-star of the Canadian television show Kenny vs. Spenny.[86]
- John Humphrys (1943–): Welsh journalist, author and radio and television presenter, who has won many national broadcasting awards. Prefers the term agnostic.[87][88]
- John Huston (1906–1987): American film director and actor, especially known for the films The Maltese Falcon (1941), The Asphalt Jungle, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Key Largo, The African Queen, The Misfits, and The Man Who Would Be King.[89]
- Jamie Hyneman (1956–): American visual effects expert, best known as the co-host of the television series MythBusters.[90]
- Eddie Izzard (1962–): British comedian.[91]
- Clive James AM (1939–): Australian expatriate author, poet, critic, memoirist, travel writer, and cultural commentator, though perhaps best known as a talk show host and television presenter.[92]
- David Jason (1940-): British actor, best known for playing the role of Del Boy in Only Fools & Horses.[93]
- Penn Jillette (1955–): American magician, co-host of the television show Bullshit!.[94] He has also taken the Blasphemy Challenge.
- Angelina Jolie (1975–): American actress.[95]
- Dom Joly (1967–): Award-winning British television comedian and journalist, best known as the star of Trigger Happy TV.[96]
- Sarah Kane (1971–1999): English playwright.[97]
- Jonathan Katz (1946–): American comedian, actor, and voice actor who is best known for his starring role in the animated sitcom Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist. When asked by Bill Maher on the talk show Politically Incorrect if he was an atheist, Katz responded “Yes. And my parents were atheists”.[15]
- Gene Kelly (1912–1996): American dancer, singer, actor and director.[98]
- Skandar Keynes (1991–): English actor (Chronicles of Narnia films).[99]
- Rajeev Khandelwal (1975–): Indian Television actor.[100]
- Margot Kidder (1948–): Canadian American film and television actress best known for playing Lois Lane in the Superman movies of the 1970s and 1980s.[101]
- Michael Kinsley (1951–): American political journalist, commentator, and television host.[102]
- Jerzy Kawalerowicz (1922–2007): Polish film director.[103]
- Jan Kott (1914–2001): Polish theatre theoretician and influential critic.[104]
- Stanley Kubrick (1928–1999): American film director, writer, film producer, and photographer. Claudio Masenza said of his friend: “He was an atheist Jew who celebrated Christmas.”[105]
- Burt Lancaster (1913–1994): American film actor.[106]
- Elsa Lanchester (1902–1986): English-born American actress. Atheism is mentioned in her autobiography.[107]
- Charles Laughton (1899–1962): English-born American actor. Atheism is mentioned in his wife’s autobiography.[108]
- Hugh Laurie OBE (1959–): English actor, comedian, writer, and star of the television show House.[109]
- Nigella Lawson (1960–): English journalist, food writer, broadcaster, and television presenter.[110]
- Cloris Leachman (1926–): actress.[111]
- Bruce Lee (1940–1973): martial artist, actor and philosopher. John Little states that Lee was an atheist. When asked in 1972 what his religious affiliation was, he replied “none whatsoever.”[112] Also in 1972, when asked if he believed in God, he responded, “To be perfectly frank, I really do not.”[112]
- Tom Leykis (1956–): American radio talk-show host.[113]
- Rebecca Lord (1973–): French pornographic actress.[114]
- Kevin Macdonald (1967–): Scottish two-time BAFTA winning director, most famous for his films The Last King of Scotland and Touching the Void.[115]
- Seth MacFarlane (1973–): Creator, animator, executive producer, actor, writer for American Dad! and Family Guy.[116][dead link][117]
- Bill Maher (1956–): American comedian, author, political satirist and host of HBO‘s Real Time with Bill Maher.[118]
- John Malkovich (1953–): American actor, producer, and director.[119]
- Paul Mazursky (1930–): American director, producer, and actor.[120]
- Sylvester McCoy (1943–): Scottish actor, best known for playing the seventh incarnation of The Doctor in Doctor Who[121]
- John McCririck (1940–): English television horse racing pundit.[122]
- Ian McDiarmid (1944–): Scottish theatre actor and director, with occasional film and television roles, most famous worldwide for his role as Palpatine in both Star Wars trilogies.[123]
- Sir Ian McKellen (1939–): English stage and screen actor.[124]
- Butterfly McQueen (1911–1995): American actress, most renowned for her performance as Prissy, the young maid in Gone with the Wind.[125]
- Stephen Merchant (1974–): British actor and writer, co-creator of The Office.[126][127]
- George Meyer (1956–): American television producer and writer, notably for The Simpsons.[128]
- Dame Helen Mirren (1945–): English stage, television, and Oscar-winning film actress.[129]
- Warren Mitchell (1926–): English actor, most famously in the long-running BBC TV series Till Death Us Do Part.[130]
- Dylan Moran (1971–): Irish comedian, most famous for the creation and role in hit British sitcom Black Books, as well as his work with Simon Pegg in movies such as Shaun of the Dead and Run Fatboy Run.[131]
- Dermot Morgan (1952–1998): Irish comedian and actor, who achieved international renown as Father Ted Crilly in the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted.[132][133]
- Cillian Murphy (1976–): Irish stage and screen actor.[134]
- Jonathan Myerson (1960–): British television and radio dramatist.[135]
- Gaspar Noé (1963–): Argentinian-born French filmmaker, most famous for his film Irréversible.[136]
- Dara Ó Briain (1972–): Irish comedian and television presenter. Describes himself as an atheist, but “ethnically Catholic” for comic effect.[137]
- Bree Olson (1986–): American pornographic actress.[138]
- Sir Michael Parkinson CBE (1935–): English broadcaster and journalist, best known as a television interviewer on his programme Parkinson from 1971 to 1982 and 1998 to 2007.[139]
- Bruce Parry (1969–): English former Royal Marines instructor who presents the BBC / Discovery Channel documentary Tribe.[140]
- Julia Pascal (1949–): British Jewish playwright and theatre director.[141]
- Simon Pegg (1970–):English actor, comedian, writer, film producer and director.[142]
- Sam Perrin (1901–1998): American screenwriter.[143]
- Peter Purves (1939–): English actor and television presenter, best known for a role in Doctor Who and presenting Blue Peter.[144]
- Julia Phillips (1944–2002): film producer and author, the first woman to win an Oscar as a producer.[145]
- Brad Pitt (1963–): American actor and producer, best known for the films Fight Club, Se7en and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, has stated that he does not believe in God, and that he is partly atheist, partly agnostic.[146]
- Michael Pitt (1981–): American actor and musician.[147]
- Roman Polanski (1933–): Polish director. Describes himself as an atheist in his autobiography Roman.
- Sarah Polley (1979–): Canadian actress and director.[148]
- Gail Porter (1971–): Scottish television presenter.[149]
- Daniel Radcliffe (1989–): English actor. Most notable for his role in the movie productions of the J.K. Rowlings books, Harry Potter.[150]
- Keanu Reeves (1964–): Canadian-American actor best known for his portrayal of Neo in The Matrix trilogy and Ted Logan in Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey.[151]
- Carl Reiner (1922–): American actor, film director, producer, writer and comedian.[152]
- Griff Rhys Jones (1953–): Welsh comedian, writer, actor, and television presenter.[153][154]
- Anna Richardson (1971–): English presenter, television producer, writer, and journalist.[155]
- Fyfe Robertson (1902–1987): Scottish television journalist.[156]
- Gene Roddenberry (1921–1991): American screenwriter and producer, best known as the creator of Star Trek.[157]
- Richard Rodgers (1902–1979): American composer of the music for more than 900 songs and 40 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television.[158]
- Pascual Romero (1980–): American musician and television producer.[159]
- Andy Rooney (1918–): Humorist, American radio and television writer, and commentator best known for his weekly broadcast on the television program 60 Minutes.[160]
- Adam Savage (1967–): American television co-host on the program MythBusters.[161]
- Alan Scarfe (1946–): Canadian actor, director and novelist.[162]
- Andy Serkis (1964–): English actor and director, best known for his portrayal of Sméagol/Gollum in The Lord of the Rings.[163][164]
- Elyse Sewell (1982–): American fashion model based in Hong Kong, and a finalist in the reality television modeling competition America’s Next Top Model.[165]
- Don Siegel (1912–1991): Influential American film director and producer.[166]
- Sarah Silverman (1970–): American comedian, writer and actress. In an interview with Elvis Mitchell aired November 16, 2005 on KCRW, Silverman says she is “almost positive there’s no god” when speaking of reactions to her ‘Jesus is Magic’ catch-phrase that was printed on a t-shirt. In Kate Fillion in MacLean’s (Canada’s weekly news magazine), dated 22 October 2007, page 14 in reply to “Are you an observant Jew?” Silverman answered “Nope. I have no religion. I’m only Jewish ethnically. Culturally.”
- Marc Sinden (1954–): English Theatre producer and actor.[167]
- Ian Smith (1938–): Australian soap opera character actor and television scriptwriter, best known today for his long-running role as Harold Bishop in Neighbours.[168]
- Dan Snow (1978–): English television presenter and historian, working on many popular history programmes for the BBC such as the “History Hunter” for The One Show.[169]
- Stellan Skarsgård (1951–): Swedish actor known internationally for his film roles in Angels & Demons, Breaking the Waves and Good Will Hunting.[170][171]
- Steven Soderbergh (1963–): American filmmaker, director of such films as Traffic, Erin Brockovich, Ocean’s Eleven, and Sex, Lies, and Videotape.[172]
- Todd Solondz (1959–): American screenwriter and independent film director known for his style of dark, thought-provoking satire.[173]
- Doug Stanhope (1967–); American comedian and brief stint as co-host of The Man Show.[174]
- David Starkey CBE (1945–): English historian, television and radio presenter, and specialist in the Tudor period.[175]
- Juliet Stevenson (1956–): English actress.[176]
- Matt Stone (1971–), co-creator of South Park.[177][178]
- J. Michael Straczynski (1954–): American writer and producer, creator of Babylon 5.[179]
- Sir Alan Sugar (1947–): English entrepreneur, businessman, and television personality.[180]
- Paul Taylor (1930–): American choreographer, one of the foremost of the 20th century.[181]
- Teller (1948–): American magician, co-host of the television show Bullshit!.[182]
- Emma Thompson (1959–): English actress, comedian, and screenwriter.[183]
- Fernando Trueba (1955–): Spanish book editor, screenwriter, and film director.[184]
- Wendy Turner Webster (1967–): English TV presenter and animal rights campaigner.[185]
- Tom Tykwer (1965–): German film director.[186]
- Kenneth Tynan (1927–1980): Influential and often controversial British theatre critic and writer.[187]
- Ram Gopal Varma (1962–): Indian film director, writer, and film producer.[188]
- Wynford Vaughan-Thomas CBE (1908–1987): Welsh newspaper journalist and radio and television broadcaster with a lengthy career.[189]
- Paul Verhoeven (1938–): Dutch film director, screenwriter, and film producer, filming in both the Netherlands and the United States, best known for the American feature films RoboCop, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, and Starship Troopers and Dutch films Black Book and Soldier of Orange.[190]
- Paolo Villaggio (1932–): Italian actor, writer, director, and comedian, especially famous for his grotesque irony and satire, who often worked with Federico Fellini.[191]
- Joss Whedon (1964–): American screenwriter and director, most famous for creating the Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise.[192]
- Lalla Ward (1951–): English actress and illustrator, best known for playing Romana in Doctor Who; she is married to evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins.[193]
- Wil Wheaton (1972–): American actor and author, best known for playing Gordie LaChance in the film Stand by Me and Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation.[194]
- Peter White (1947–): English broadcast journalist and DJ; blind since birth, he is closely associated with disability issues.[195]
- Gene Wilder (1933–): American actor best known for his role as Willy Wonka in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.[196]
- Robyn Williams (1944–): Australian science journalist and broadcaster, interviewer and host of the Science Show on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.[197]
- Bruce Willis (1955–): American actor, producer, and musician.[198]
- Ted Willis (1914–1992): British television dramatist, also politically active in support of the Labour Party.[199]
- Terry Wogan KBE DL(1938–): Irish radio and television broadcaster, working for the BBC for most of his career; a leading media personality in Ireland and the UK since the late 1960s, and is often referred to as a “national treasure” of both the United Kingdom and his native Ireland.[
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