Friels career began with work mostly in theatre and television. In 1980, Friels was a presenter on the Australian version of Play School, the series for young children. His first film role was in the unreleased Prisoners (1981), appearing with David Hemmings and Tatum O'Neal.[5]
His first appearance in a released film was in Hoodwink (1981), alongside his future wife, Judy Davis.[6]
In 1986, he played the title role in Malcolm, about a shy mechanical genius, for which he was awarded the 1986 AFI Award for Best Actor. Friels was also nominated for the Best Actor award the following year, for his role in Ground Zero, but did not win: the film received mixed reviews, with one describing him as "a proficient enough actor, but...miscast".[7] Friels later won another AFI Award in 1995 for his starring role in the 1994 Halifax f.p.telemovieHard Corps. Friels has played a wide range of other roles. He was a megalomaniac corporate executive in the 1990 feature film Darkman.
From 1996 to 1999, he played Frank Holloway on Water Rats,[8] a role which won him the Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actor at the 1997 awards. In his acceptance speech he said, "I'm very flattered for this and it's all rather silly, isn't it? So, thank you very much."[citation needed]
Since 2003, Friels has appeared as the main character in the BlackJack series of telemovies. In 2010 he also starred in Killing Time where he played notorious underworld figure Lewis Moran. In 2018, he played Tony Ballantyne in the TV miniseries Mystery Road, again opposite Judy Davis.
In 2021, Friels appeared as Jack Ramsay in the second season of the ABC series Total Control, a Coalition MP facing off against independent candidate Alex Irving.
Personal life
Friels has been married to actress Judy Davis since 1984; the couple have two children, Jack and Charlotte. Their relationship was briefly in the media when an argument led to a domestic violence court order against Friels: however, they remained together.[9]
In late 1997, Friels was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. However, his treatment was successful, and he is one of the very few sufferers of this disease to go into long-term remission.[1] During his treatment he continued to work on the set of Water Rats, until eventually the impact of the chemotherapy stopped him working, and he chose to have his character written out of the series by sending him on a sailing journey around the world. At this time, however, he also continued his stage work, and was performing in Sydney Theatre Company's Macbeth.
Political views
Friels believes that social and political awareness comes with acting, and is known for his engagement in policy debates, including industrial issues such as workplace relations and free trade.[1] He publicly criticised Bush administration policy in the Middle East, and supported the Sydney Peace Foundation.[10] His engagement with social issues has been evident in his acting work, with two prominent examples being his lead role in Ground Zero, in which he played a cameraman investigating British nuclear testing in South Australia, and his appearance in the ABC television drama Bastard Boys, in which he played union official John Coombs.[11]
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Colin Friels won one award in that time.[12]
^Bastard Boys (Biography, Drama), Darren K. Hawkins, Ivan Topic, Lynne McGregor, 13 May 2007, retrieved 6 September 2023{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
