Cillian Murphy to return as Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders film

Oscar winner Cillian Murphy will reprise his role as gangster Tommy Shelby in an upcoming Peaky Blinders film, creator Steven Knight has confirmed.

The Irish actor won legions of fans for playing the notorious member of the Shelby family in the BBC drama which ran for six series from 2013-2022.

The film will follow on from the series and continue the story of the infamous family. It is due to begin filming in Birmingham in the autumn.

News of Murphy's return comes off the back of his recent Oscars success where he won Best Actor for his lead role in Oppenheimer.

The actor also won a Golden Globe, a Bafta and a Screen Actors Guild award as the theoretical physicist J Robert Oppenheimer in Christopher Nolan's biopic about the father of the atomic bomb.

Speaking to Birmingham World, creator of the popular series Steven Knight said: "He [Murphy] is definitely is returning for it. "We're shooting it in September just down the road in Digbeth."

The original Peaky Blinders series is based in Birmingham post World War One. It follows the Shelby family rising in prominence as a gang.

The new film is understood to follow the family and their stories into the Second World War.

Discussing the film in a recent interview with Esquire magazine, Knight revealed: "The film, I know exactly what it's about. And I know what two stories it's going to tell. "How the story will unfold, I don't know. What will happen after that, I want that to depend on the film." He also said that the last series of the BBC show brought in a "new generation" and they will feature in the film.

The news of Murphy returning to Peaky Blinders comes in the same week that his name has been linked to being the next James Bond.

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