Subtlety is not insignificance, like noticing someone’s name and making a point to say it. DÓNAL FINN speaks like a softly spinning record, sinking into each groove, winding slowly inward, each sentence gliding with intention. With equal conviction, he amplifies what is important to others and himself, because for Finn, are they not one and the same? Undoubtedly, every story he carries is safe in his hands. From The Wheel of Time and Hadestown to his newest role as James Moriarty in Young Sherlock, he confidently accepts that his authenticity, rather than impersonation, is more than enough. While he doesn’t make acting about him, it certainly matters that the story is told through him. In front of the skyline, he smiles like he’s opened a door to an imaginary world. We talk of the drum of raining frogs, the roar of car chases, and the rhythm of Sherlock and Moriarty.

Left Full look **Emporio Armani**
Right Full look **N°21**

How was your first week of 2026?

I'm spoiled rotten…I started the year looking out on Lake Taupo in New Zealand, and I am currently in New York. I came out here to see some friends doing theatre. Already, the year feels bright with adventure and opportunity.

Have you set resolutions?

Let me check my Notes app. Written correspondence is one. Last year, I wrote some letters and received some postcards. I got a record player, and I carry my film camera everywhere. They make me think [more intentionally]. I might take a picture and think, “Do I want to include this passing cyclist?” When you listen to a record, you journey from start to finish, sitting there with your lyric book. Postcards are lovely. Someone is switching off from all the busyness and thinking of you.

That’s a sweet way to describe it. When you did Aladdin as a child, it tapped into a sense of escapism for you. Do you still look to acting for escapism, or has the “why” changed?

There is a quality of escapism in the time between doing a take or being on stage, where you are imaginatively prioritising what someone else wants. As we get older, there are more demands. It is very natural to come to work and not ruminate on them. The work is so not about yourself. Life has become more holistic. I’m not compartmentalising, like, “Between these hours, I am an actor, and when it’s done, I am a friend, partner, or son.” I ask, “Why do I love it?” [I love] carrying a message that I fundamentally agree with and believe should be amplified.

You mention that the work is not about yourself, but do you ever feel like you need to find a piece of yourself in a script?

For me, it is not part of it, but it is always a welcome surprise when I read exchanges that characters have, and think, “I absolutely know what that feeling is.” I feel lucky to have been part of projects where the character is quite far away from me, and I start learning about them from the outside in. I find it really exciting to watch other actors [do the same].

Is there any performance from another actor that particularly struck you?

No film has brought me more joy in the last few years than One Battle After Another. It is bold, brave, and imaginative. Paul Thomas Anderson had this vision, and Warner Bros just said, “Go for it, man.” There’s a long piano piece from Jonny Greenwood, and you don’t even realise that the montage you’ve just watched is fifteen minutes. I watched Magnolia on the plane. Again, the studio was so trusting that they just said, “Cool, let's have frogs falling from the sky.”

Left Full look **Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello**
Right Full look **Emporio Armani**

You graduated from LAMDA, but is there anything you think you could have only learned through experience?

Confidence in being on set. The first day of every job brings so much useful anxiety. Managing that can’t be taught. You also observe how scene partners work, or perhaps how they lead on set. You only see those things through experience and hope to emulate them.

Your character, James Moriarty, is especially good at acting like he not only belongs in, but also leads every room. Do you ever feel that the industry requires you to act as a more confident version of yourself?

I’m sure I’ve had moments where I’m like, “I’m going to be found out when we start reading the scenes.” As you talk to actors you admire, you realise they feel the same. There's relief in knowing that no matter how much you try, you have to get comfortable with that feeling because it’s not going away. Rather than faking confidence, I just accept where I’m at.

Yes, there is value in being more authentic as well. In Young Sherlock, I enjoyed the timing between you and Hero Fiennes Tiffin. How did you find that needed rhythm?

Rhythm is so important in Guy Ritchie's work. There’s a level of synchronicity between Sherlock and Moriarty, like they're on their own radio channel. They recognise that they are equals. Brevity is the soul of wit, and they are dexterous in their communication. Hero is such a brilliant, committed actor. The two of us would meet in the make-up trailer to look for synchronicity in the scenes, because we wanted to show the close friendship between them.

Matthew Parkhill said he views the series as a “blank page” as it exists before anything Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote. Did you similarly view your version of Moriarty?

The project opens up a whole new imaginative door to the world of Sherlock Holmes. It is difficult to compare it to past versions, but naturally, he’s such an easy character to love, so it does make you want to investigate other versions of the story. What Matthew has done with the scripts is brilliant. He is so assured with such a clear vision.