| — | Amol Rajan Interviews | Self - Interviewed Guest |
| — | Billy And Dom Eat The World | Self |
| — | Marley | Scrooge (rumored) |
| — | Hamlet Revenant | |
| — | Untitled Anthony Hopkins Documentary | Self |
| 2024 | The Critic | Jimmy Erskine |
| 2024 | The Life and Death of Lily Savage | Self |
| 2024 | The Real Ken Dodd: The Man I Loved | |
| 2024 | Dragfox | Ginger Snap the Fox (Speaking) |
| 2022 | Amol Rajan Interviews Ian McKellen | Self |
| — | Schadenfreude | Continuity Announcer |
| — | Richard II | Richard II |
| — | A Filmmaker's Journey: Making 'The Return of the King' | Self |
| 2024 | ted | Narrator (voice) |
| 2024 | Hamlet | Hamlet |
| 2023 | The One Note Man | Narrator (voice) |
| 2022 | Quintessentially British | Self |
| 2022 | Hamlet Within | |
| 2021 | Infinitum: Subject Unknown | Dr. Charles Marland-White |
| 2021 | Controversatul Peter Tatchell | Self |
| 2021 | Great British Theatre | |
| 2020 | Du Fu: China's Greatest Poet | |
| 2020 | Reunited Apart | Self |
| 2020 | Ian McKellen on Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others and YOU | |
| 2019 | Maestrul minciunilor | Roy Courtnay |
| 2019 | Pisicile | Gus, the Theatre Cat |
| 2019 | On Broadway | Self |
| 2018 | Ultimul act | Earl of Southampton |
| 2018 | McKellen: Jucând rolul | Himself |
| 2018 | National Theatre Live: King Lear | King Lear |
| 2017 | Frumoasa și Bestia | Cogsworth |
| 2017 | Salvați de Crănțănei | Horatio P. Huntington (voice) |
| 2017 | Poveștile neștiute ale lui Armistead Maupin | Self |
| 2017 | Edmund the Magnificent | Self - Narrator (voice) |
| 2017 | The Paul O'Grady Story | Himself |
| 2017 | How a Kite Flies | Mr. Kite (voice) |
| 2016 | Shakespeare Live! From the RSC | Self - Performer |
| 2016 | National Theatre Live: No Man's Land | Spooner |
| 2016 | Judi Dench: All the World's Her Stage | Self |
| 2016 | The Roof | And Even Yet Another Fan |
| 2016 | Shakespeare on Stage, Screen and Elsewhere with Ian McKellen | |
| 2016 | Shakespeare on Film | |
| 2016 | All the World's a Screen: Shakespeare on Film | Prospero's Speech Reader (voice) |
| 2016 | Play the Devil: Making Richard III | |
| 2015 | Dl. Holmes | Sherlock Holmes |
| 2015 | Garderobierul | Norman |
| 2015 | Knights of Classic Drama at the BBC | Self (archive footage) |
| 2014 | X-Men: Viitorul este trecut | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto |
| 2014 | Hobbitul: Bătălia celor cinci oștiri | Gandalf the Grey |
| 2014 | Late Night with Seth Meyers | Self |
| 2014 | Variety Studio: Actors on Actors | Self |
| 2014 | Miss in Her Teens | The Prologue |
| 2014 | Trailblazer Honors | Self - Speaker |
| 2014 | Nelson Mandela Redrawn | Self |
| 2013 | Hobbitul: Dezolarea lui Smaug | Gandalf the Grey |
| 2013 | Wolverine | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto (uncredited) |
| 2013 | Vicious | Freddie Thornhill |
| 2013 | The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot | Self |
| 2013 | The Wolverine: Path of a Ronin | Self |
| 2013 | Muse of Fire | Self |
| 2013 | The Egg Trick | Magician |
| 2012 | Hobbitul: O călătorie neașteptată | Gandalf the Grey |
| 2012 | Doctor Who: The Snowmen | The Great Intelligence (voice) |
| 2012 | London 2012: Paralympics Opening Ceremony | Self |
| 2011 | The Betty Driver Story | Self |
| 2011 | Looking for Lowry | Himself |
| 2011 | Perspectives | |
| 2010 | Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy | Self (archive footage) |
| 2010 | A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation | Narrator (voice) |
| 2010 | Lady Grey London | |
| 2010 | Small-Time Revolutionary | Hamish Miller (voice) |
| 2009 | Prizonierul | 2 / Curtis |
| 2009 | Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen | Self - Guest |
| 2009 | Theatreland | Himself |
| 2008 | King Lear | King Lear |
| 2007 | Busola de aur | Iorek Byrnison (voice) |
| 2007 | Pulberea de stele | Narrator (voice) |
| 2007 | Emisiunea lui Graham Norton | Self - Guest |
| 2007 | Emisiunea lui Graham Norton | Self |
| 2007 | For the Love of God | The Jackdaw |
| 2007 | The Art of Breaking Character | Self |
| 2006 | X-Men: Ultima înfruntare | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto |
| 2006 | Codul lui Da Vinci | Sir Leigh Teabing |
| 2006 | Aruncat la canal | The Toad (voice) |
| 2006 | Doogal | Zebedee (voice) |
| 2006 | Emisiunea unu | Self - Guest |
| 2006 | Saint of 9/11 | Narrator |
| 2005 | Doctor Who | Voice of the Snowman |
| 2005 | Extras | Ian McKellen |
| 2005 | The Magic Roundabout | Zebedee (voice) |
| 2005 | A fost odata ca niciodata | Gabriel Finch |
| 2005 | Asylum | Dr. Peter Cleave |
| 2005 | Ringers: Lord of the Fans | Self |
| 2005 | Eighteen | Jason Anders (voice) |
| 2005 | The Hobart Shakespeareans | Himself |
| 2004 | Who Do You Think You Are? | Self |
| 2004 | Emisiunea lui Paul O'Grady | |
| 2004 | Frodo Is Great... Who Is That?!! | Self |
| 2004 | Peter Tatchell: Just Who Does He Think He Is? | |
| 2003 | Stăpânul inelelor: Întoarcerea regelui | Gandalf |
| 2003 | X-Men 2 | Eric Lehnsherr / Magneto |
| 2003 | Timp real cu Bill Maher | Self |
| 2003 | Jimmy Kimmel în direct! | |
| 2003 | Émile | Emile |
| 2003 | X-Men: Premieres Around the World | Self |
| 2003 | Beyond the Movie: The Return of the King | Self |
| 2003 | The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision | Self |
| 2003 | Churchill | Himself - Narrator (voice) |
| 2003 | Film Collectibles: Capturing Movie Memories | Self |
| 2003 | Evolution X - The Making of X-Men | |
| 2003 | The Second Uncanny Issue of X-Men - Making X2 | |
| 2002 | Stăpânul inelelor: Cele două turnuri | Gandalf |
| 2002 | Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway | Self |
| 2001 | Stăpânul inelelor: Frăția inelului | Gandalf |
| 2001 | National Geographic - Dincolo de filmul artistic: Stăpânul inelelor | Self |
| 2001 | Quest for the Ring | Self |
| 2001 | A Passage to Middle-Earth: Making of 'Lord of the Rings' | Self |
| 2001 | Larry & Vivien: The Oliviers in Love | Narrator (voice) |
| 2000 | X-Men | Erik Lehnsherr / Magneto |
| 2000 | X-Men: The Mutant Watch | Self - 'Magneto' |
| 2000 | Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man | Narrator (voice) |
| 2000 | Now You See Him: 'The Invisible Man' Revealed! | Self |
| 1999 | Familia mea dementă | Dr. Cecil Pritchfield (voice) |
| 1999 | David Copperfield | Creakle |
| 1999 | The World of Gods and Monsters: A Journey with James Whale | Self |
| 1998 | Influență nefastă | Kurt Dussander |
| 1998 | Gods and Monsters | James Whale |
| 1998 | Swept from the Sea | Dr. James Kennedy |
| 1997 | Bent | Uncle Freddie |
| 1997 | Vederea | Self - Guest |
| 1997 | A Bit Of Scarlet | Narrator |
| 1997 | Surviving Friendly Fire | |
| 1996 | Rasputin | Tsar Nicholas II |
| 1996 | An Evening with Lily Savage | Self |
| 1995 | Richard III | Richard III |
| 1995 | Restaurație | Will Gates |
| 1995 | Cold Comfort Farm | Amos Starkadder |
| 1995 | Jack & Sarah | William |
| 1994 | Umbra | Dr. Reinhardt Lane |
| 1994 | Voi face orice | John Earl McAlpine |
| 1994 | În studioul actorilor | Self |
| 1994 | To Die For | Quilt Documentary Narrator (voice) |
| 1994 | Stonewall 25: Global Voices of Pride and Protest | |
| 1994 | David Macaulay: Roman City | Augustus Caesar (voice) |
| 1993 | Ultima aventură | Death |
| 1993 | Six Degrees of Separation | Geoffrey |
| 1993 | And the Band Played On | Bill Kraus |
| 1993 | Tales of the City | Archibald Anson Gidde |
| 1993 | The Ballad of Little Jo | Percy Corcoran |
| 1993 | Armistead Maupin Is a Man I Dreamt Up | Narration (voice) |
| 1992 | Gladio | Aldo Moro (voice) |
| 1990 | Othello | Iago |
| 1989 | Familia Simpson | Ian McKellen (voice) |
| 1989 | Scandal | John Profumo |
| 1989 | Countdown to War | Adolf Hitler |
| 1988 | Windmills of the Gods | Chairman |
| 1985 | Plenty | Sir Andrew Charleson |
| 1985 | Zina | Kronfeld |
| 1984 | Playing Shakespeare | |
| 1983 | The Keep | Dr. Theodore Cuza |
| 1983 | Walter și June | Walter |
| 1982 | The Scarlet Pimpernel | Chauvelin |
| 1982 | Walter | Walter |
| 1982 | Ian McKellen: Acting Shakespeare | |
| 1981 | Priest of Love | D.H. Lawrence |
| 1981 | עמוד האש | Narrator |
| 1979 | A Performance of Macbeth | Macbeth |
| 1979 | Every Good Boy Deserves Favour | Alexander Ivanov |
| 1978 | Armchair Thriller | Anthony Skipling |
| 1978 | An Audience with... | Self |
| 1978 | The Vanishing Army | |
| 1975 | Sâmbătă noaptea în direct | Self - Host |
| 1974 | Playhouse | |
| 1972 | Country Matters | David Masterman |
| 1972 | Hedda Gabler | George Tesman |
| 1970 | Edward II | King Edward |
| 1970 | Hamlet | Hamlet |
| 1970 | The Tragedy of King Richard II | King Richard II |
| 1969 | Strada Susan | Himself |
| 1969 | Alfred the Great | Roger |
| 1969 | Piatra de moară | George |
| 1969 | The Promise | |
| 1966 | David Copperfield | David Copperfield |
| 1965 | BBC Play of the Month | Captain Plume |
| 1965 | The Trial and Torture of Sir John Rampayne | Wolf |
| 1960 | Coronation Street | Mel Hutchwright |
| 1953 | Premiile academiei | Self |
