| Birth name | Jeremy Hartley Sims |
|---|---|
| Birth date | 10 January 1966 (age 60) |
| Birth place | Perth, Western Australia, Australia |
| Education | Wesley College (1977–1983) National Institute of Dramatic Art (1990)[1] |
| Occupation | Actor, director |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Known for | Chances (1991–1992) Idiot box (1996) Fireflies (2004) |
| Partner | Kym Wilson (1990s) |
| Spouse | Tania Leimbach (m.2015)[2] Samantha Lang (m.2004–div.2011)[3][4] |
Jeremy Hartley Sims (born 10 January 1966) is an Australian actor and director.[5]
Early life
Jeremy Sims was born in Perth, Western Australia on 10 January 1966,[6] and was educated at Wesley College[7] from 1977 to 1983.[citation needed]
In 1987, Sims was studying at University of Western Australia (UWA).[8] He graduated in 1990 from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Sydney, with a degree in Performing Arts (Acting).[1]
Career
Sims' first appearance on the big screen was a minor part in the 1980 movie Harlequin.[9] He is however, remembered by many for his role as Alex Taylor in the risqué television soap opera Chances from 1991 to 1992, in which he was cast the year after graduating from NIDA.[10] He was nominated for a Logie Award for Most Popular New Talent for the role in 1992.[11]
Sims has starred in several films, including playing Mick, opposite Ben Mendelsohn's Kev in 1996 crime film Idiot Box.[12][13] It was his first lead role in a feature film,[10] and saw him nominated for Best Actor at both the Australian Film Institute Awards[14] and the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards.[15] Other film credits include 2003 film Liquid Bridge with Ryan Kwanten,[16] 2003 Ned Kelly satire Ned,[17] 2009 drama The Waiting City with Radha Mitchell, 2015 romantic drama Ruben Guthrie with Patrick Brammall,[18] 2017 adventure comedy A Few Less Men[19] and 2018 quirky comedy drama Swinging Safari, opposite Guy Pearce and Kylie Minogue.[20]
Sims' television appearances include the 1997 made-for-television film Kangaroo Palace, which earned him an Australian Film Institute Award nomination for AACTA Award for Best Lead Actor in a Television Drama.[21][14] In 1999, he appeared in Aftershocks, a mockumentary TV movie about the 1989 Newcastle earthquake. He won an Australian Film Institute Award and was nominated for a Logie Award for his portrayal of John Constable.[22][23] That same year he featured in the miniseries Day of the Roses,[9] based on the Granville rail disaster and the TV movie Secret Men's Business alongside Ben Mendelsohn, Simon Baker and Marcus Graham. In 2001, he played Tony Dunne MP in the satirical miniseries Corridors of Power.[17] In 2004, he starred in Fireflies as Tim 'Backa' Burke.[17] He had recurring roles in Home and Away in 2009 as David ‘Gardy’ Gardiner[17] and Wild Boys in 2011 as Francis Fuller.[17] He starred in the 2009 TV film In Her Skin with Guy Pearce.[9] He has also had numerous guest roles in series including Police Rescue[9] Wildside,[17] Medivac,[24] Farscape,[17] Young Lions, Stingers,[17] The Secret Life of Us,[17] McLeod's Daughters.[25] and the Underbelly franchise.[26]
Sims is also a director, with no less than five feature films credits to his name. He directed and produced 2006 thriller Last Train to Freo, which received three Australian Film Institute Award nominations.[27] In 2010, his second feature, the war drama Beneath Hill 60 was nominated for 12 AFI Awards, five Inside Film Awards, and eight Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards, including for Best Director and Best Film. He won the Alfred P. Sloan Prize at the Hamptons International Film Festival.[27]
In 2014, Sims directed, produced and co-wrote the film adaptation of Last Cab to Darwin, based on the 2003 play of the same name. Starring Michael Caton and Jacki Weaver, it received numerous AACTA Awards nominations.[27] including Best Director and won the AACTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and was selected for Toronto International Film Festival in 2015.[28] In 2018, he wrote and directed the feature documentary Wayne (about motorsport champion Wayne Gardner) which was selected for Melbourne International Film Festival that year.[28][8] He also directed 2020 film Rams, starring Sam Neill, Michael Caton, and Miranda Richardson, which was met with international acclaim.[27]
His director credits for television include 2021 six-part Amazon Prime miniseries Back to the Rafters (spin-off and sequel to long-running drama series Packed to the Rafters) and eight-part medical rescue series RFDS from 2021 to 2023,[27] in which he also appeared. He has also directed episodes of Doctor Doctor, A Place to Call Home, Rescue: Special Ops[28] and Home and Away.[29]
Sims is also developing several projects, including six part series Bluebird (produced by his company Pork Chop Productions) and the drama series Fight or Flight – The Woman who Cracked the Anxiety Code, a drama series, based on a best selling biography by Judith Hoare.[28]
Sims has also acted in and directed stage productions at Sydney Theatre Company, Belvoir and Melbourne Theatre Company, as well as overseas at Trafalgar Studios in London and Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York.[28] In 1995, together with then girlfriend Kym Wilson, Sims formed the theatrical production company 'Pork Chop Productions'.[5][30][10] Pork Chop has toured many shows nationally since that time and won a Drover's Award in 2005 for their production of the play, Last Cab to Darwin.[31] His stage acting credits include Philip Seymour Hoffman's production of Riflemind, and the Edinburgh Festival / Royal National Theatre Company production of The Secret River.[28]
Sims continues to act in selected projects, including the final season of comedy crime drama series Mr Inbetween in 2021.[28] In February 2025, he was announced as part of the cast for the second season of historical heist drama series The Artful Dodger.[32]
Acting credits
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Harlequin | Young boy | Feature film | [9] |
| 1991 | Placenta | Boy | Short film | [33] |
| 1996 | Idiot Box | Mick | Feature film | [17] |
| 2000 | City of Dreams | Walter Burley Griffin | Feature film | [9] |
| 2001 | Tick | Jack | Short film | [15] |
| 2003 | Liquid Bridge | Tony | Feature film | [16] |
| Ned | Mr Kelly | Feature film | [17] | |
| 2009 | The Waiting City | Carlisle | Feature film | |
| 2015 | Ruben Guthrie | Ray | Feature film | [18] |
| 2017 | A Few Less Men | Pilot Ridgeon | Feature film | [19] |
| 2018 | Swinging Safari | Bob Marsh | Feature film | [20] |
| 2019 | Bilched | Matt's Dad | [34] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991–1992 | Chances | Alex Taylor | 126 episodes | [35][17] |
| 1994 | Police Rescue | Terry | TV movie | |
| Heartland | Garth Maddern | 2 episodes | [17] | |
| 1995 | Police Rescue | Jeff Bertram | 1 episode | [17] |
| 1996 | Natural Justice: Heat | Gavin Larsen | TV movie | |
| 1997 | Kangaroo Palace | Jack Gill | TV movie | [21] |
| Frontline | Steve Barrett | 1 episode | ||
| 1998 | Wildside | Greg Zelka | 1 episode | [17] |
| Medivac | Mark Best | 4 episodes | [24] | |
| The Day of the Roses | Gerry Buchtmann | Miniseries | [17] | |
| The Chosen | Peter McAlister | TV movie | [15] | |
| 1999 | Aftershocks | John Constable | TV movie | [17] |
| Secret Men's Business | Warwick Jones | TV movie | [17] | |
| 1999–2000 | Farscape | Rorf | 3 episodes | [17] |
| 1999–2003 | Stingers | Troy Thorpe / Aaron Fielder | 4 episodes | [17] |
| 2000 | The Lost World | Vorded | 1 episode | |
| 2001 | The Bill | Ken McEvoy | 1 episode | [17] |
| Corridors of Power | Tony Dunne MP | 6 episodes | [17] | |
| 2002 | Young Lions | Rob Carne | 3 episodes | |
| 2003 | Balmain Boys | Andy | TV movie | [36] |
| The Secret Life of Us | Neil | 3 episodes | [17] | |
| 2004 | Fireflies | Tim Burke | 22 episodes | [37][17] |
| 2005 | McLeod's Daughters | Will Hamiltion | 1 episode | [25] |
| 2008 | Blue Water High | Loren's Dad | 1 episode | |
| In Her Skin | McLean | TV movie | ||
| 2009 | Home and Away | David Gardiner | 15 episodes | [17] |
| 2010 | City Homicide | Pete Copland | 1 episode | [17] |
| 2011 | Wild Boys | Francis Fuller | 10 episodes | [17] |
| Underbelly Files: The Man Who Got Away | Tony Moynihan | TV movie | [26] | |
| 2012 | Dangerous Remedy | Bertram Wainer | TV movie | [38] |
| 2016 | Doctor Doctor | Mike | 1 episode | |
| 2020 | Black Comedy | 1 episode | ||
| 2021 | Mr Inbetween | Rafael | 5 episodes | [39] |
| 2025 | The Artful Dodger | Uncle Dickie | Season 2 | [40] |
| Sunny Nights | Lachlan Jennings | [citation needed] |
Theatre
Directing / writing credits
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Last Train to Freo | Director / executive producer | Feature film | [27] |
| 2010 | Beneath Hill 60 | Director | Feature film | [27] |
| 2015 | Last Cab to Darwin | Director / producer / co-writer | Feature film | [27] |
| 2018 | Wayne | Director / writer | Documentary film | [28] |
| 2020 | Rams | Director | Feature film | [27] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Rescue: Special Ops | Director | 2 episodes | [28] |
| 2016 | Doctor Doctor | Director | 4 episodes | [28] |
| 2017–2018 | A Place to Call Home | Director | 6 episodes | [28] |
| 2021 | Back to the Rafters | Director | 2 episodes | [27] |
| 2021; 2023 | RFDS | Director | 2 episodes | [49][27] |
| 2022 | Home and Away | Director | 10 episodes | [29] |
| Bluebird | [28] | |||
| Fight or Flight – The Woman who Cracked the Anxiety Code | [28] | |||
| The Star of the Sea | In development | [50] | ||
| Everything I Never Did | Director | In development | [51] |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead | Director / producer | Belvoir Theatre Company with Pork Chop Productions | [15] |
| 1996; 2000 | Stow and the Dragon | Director | Stables Theatre, Sydney, Seymour Centre, Sydney with Pork Chop Productions | [52] |
| 1998 | Wank | Producer | Old Fitzroy Theatre, Sydney, with Pork Chop Productions / Theatre Hydra | [53] |
| 1999 | The Wild Duck | Director | Playhouse, Adelaide, Glen St Theatre, Sydney with STCSA / Pork Chop Productions | |
| Night of the Sea Monkey | Producer | Old Fitzroy Theatre, Sydney, with Pork Chop Productions / Theatre Hydra | [54] | |
| 2001 | Borderlines | Director | Stables Theatre, Sydney, Riverina Playhouse with Griffin Theatre Company | |
| Hamlet | Director / producer | Belvoir Theatre Company with Pork Chop Productions | [17] | |
| 2002 | The Return | Director | Rechabite Hall, Perth with Perth Theatre Company | |
| 2003 | The Shape of Things | Director | Wharf Theatre, Sydney, with STC | [55] |
| 2003–2004 | Last Cab to Darwin | Director | Australian tour with Black Swan Theatre Company / HotHouse Theatre | |
| 2004 | The Unlikely Prospect of Happiness | Director | Sydney Theatre with STC | |
| 2005 | Ruby's Last Dollar | Director | Sydney Opera House, Octagon Theatre, Perth with Pork Chop Productions / Black Swan Theatre Company | |
| 2007 | Little Britain Live | Director | Vodafone Arena, Melbourne | |
| 2007; 2008–2009 | Brilliant Monkey | Director | Darlinghurst Theatre, Sydney, Old Fitzroy Theatre, Sydney, Riverside Theatres Parramatta with Tamarama Rock Surfers / Pork Chop Productions | [56] |
Awards
Personal life
Sims was engaged to fellow Australian actor and director Kym Wilson in the early 1990s. They were set to be married in 1994, but the wedding was postponed when Wilson accepted a recurring guest role in television series The Man from Snowy River.[63]
Sims' first daughter, China was born in 2000.[3] He married film director Samantha Lang in 2004, with whom he had two daughters, Frederique[3] and Evelyn. They were divorced in 2011.[4]
Sims married academic, Dr. Tania Leimbach in Kangaroo Valley in 2015[2] and together they have a son, Leroy.[citation needed]
In June 2005, Sims was found unconscious in a Kings Cross alley in Sydney, and blamed it on exhaustion.[3]
References
- ^ "All Alumni". National Institute of Dramatic Art. 5 June 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ "Taxi! Jeremy Sims living the good life with success in career and second marriage bliss". The Daily Telegraph. 29 November 2015.
- ^ "Back from the brink". The Age. 16 July 2006.
- ^ "Stars on Sunday: Lang farewells Coogee apartment". www.domain.com.au. 16 October 2017.
- ^ "Company History Archived 25 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine", Porkchop Productions, 2008, Retrieved 20 April 2010
- ^ "In Like Sims". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 August 2003.
- ^ "Last Cab to Darwin". 30th Busan International Film Festival. 2015.
- ^ "Jeremy Sims: On the Cycle of Life With Wayne". FilmInk. 23 August 2003.
- ^ "Jeremy Sims – Movies and TV Shows". SBS
- ^ "2. The young and the bloody useless". Australian Screen
- ^ "What an awesome foursome!". TV Week. 8–14 March 1992.
- ^ "Jeremy Sims". EM Voices
- ^ "Idiot Box (1996)". Australian Screen
- ^ "Australian Film Institute Awards 1997". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Tick Press Kit". www.nzfilm.co.nz
- ^ "Liquid Bridge". Screen Australia
- ^ "Jeremy Sims". Showcast
- ^ "Ruben Guthrie: Nuances lacking in tale of when the party's over". The Sydney Morning Herald. 11 July 2015.
- ^ "A Few Less Men". Screenwest. 2016.
- ^ "Swinging Safari". FilmInk. 2017.
- ^ "Kangaroo Palace: episode guide". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Australian Film Institute Awards 1999". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Logie Awards 1999". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Medivac aka Adrenalin Junkies". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "McLeod's Daughters: episode guide". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Underbelly Files: cast". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Speaker Bios – Jeremy Sims". Screen Territory
- ^ "Jeremy Sims". Yellow Creative Management
- ^ "Home and Away series 35". Screen Australia
- ^ "Pork Chop Productions | theatre australia". Archived from the original on 13 May 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
- ^ "PAA". Archived from the original on 21 July 2008. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
- ^ Knox, David (3 February 2025). "New cast join The Artful Dodger | TV Tonight". TV Tonight. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ "Placenta". Screen Australia
- ^ "Stars back new film made by Australian teenager". www.indailyqld.com.au. 31 October 2019.
- ^ "Australian Television: Chances". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Balmain Boys". Screen Australia
- ^ "Australian Television: Fireflies: cast". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ Knox, David (20 March 2012). "Jeremy Sims leads Dangerous Remedy | TV Tonight". TV Tonight
- ^ "Australian Television: Mr Inbetween: cast: series 3". Australian Television Information Archive
- ^ "Luke Bracey, Jeremy Sims, Zac Burgess take the old town road to The Artful Dodger S2". www.if.com.au. 1 February 2025.
- ^ "Why More Australian Actors are Calling the Shots". Australian Financial Review. 26 October 2002.
- ^ "The Virgin Mim". Variety. 2 September 2002.
- ^ "Photographs of The Club". Arts Centre Melbourne. 25 October 2008.
- ^ "Riflemind". Sydney Theatre Company. 2007.
- ^ "West End's Riflemind Shutters Oct. 25". Playbill. 25 October 2008.
- ^ "Sydney Theatre Company announce 2009 Main Stage Season". www.australianstage.com.au. 2 September 2008.
- ^ "Graham, Horler Cast In Sydney Theater Company's God of Carnage". www.broadwayworld.com. 15 May 2009.
- ^ "Jeremy Sims theatre credits". AusStage
- ^ Knox, David (11 May 2023). "Production underway on RFDS season two | TV Tonight". TV Tonight
- ^ "Screen Australia Announces $700,000 of Story Development Funding for 20 Projects". Screen Australia. 21 March 2023.
- ^ "Jeremy Sims to direct Everything I Never Did". Yellow Creative Management. 21 March 2023.
- ^ "Stow and the Dragon". Pork Chop Productions. Archived 25 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ "Wank". Pork Chop Productions. Archived 25 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ "Night of the Sea Monkey". Pork Chop Productions. Archived 25 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ "Not a Shock in Sight". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 December 2003.
- ^ "Brilliant Monkey - Pork Chop Productions". Australian Stage. 26 March 2008.
- ^ "Jury 2013". Flickerfest. 2014.
- ^ "PAA". Archived from the original on 21 July 2008. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
- ^ "Last Cab to Darwin nominated for eight AACTAs". Yellow Creative Management. 2015.
- ^ "2015 AWGIE Awards Nominations". Yellow Creative Management. 2015.
- ^ "The 2016 Australian Directors Guild Awards Reveals Nominees; Winners Announced May 6". www.campaignbrief.com. 12 April 2016.
- ^ "Rencontres Internationales du Cinema see Antipodes". www.festivaldesantipodes.com. 2016.
- ^ "The new 'man' in Kym's life". TV Week. 19-25 February 1994.
External links
- Jeremy Sims at IMDb