Which actor played Boo Radley in the 1962 film adaptation?

Robert Duvall played Boo Radley in the 1962 film adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird. The role introduced Duvall to movie audiences as Arthur “Boo” Radley, the mysterious recluse who ultimately protects Jem and Scout Finch.

Boo is mostly unseen for much of the story. Scout, Jem, and Dill initially imagine him through frightening rumors, but small gifts left in a tree gradually suggest that he is kind and attentive rather than monstrous. Near the end, Boo intervenes when Bob Ewell attacks the Finch children and carries the injured Jem home.

Duvall’s performance is deliberately restrained: Boo has very little dialogue, and his presence depends on gesture, silence, and the children’s changing understanding of him. Screenwriter Horton Foote recommended Duvall after encountering his stage work in New York. The film was Duvall’s big-screen debut.

Viewers sometimes confuse the actors in the supporting cast. Gregory Peck played Atticus Finch, Mary Badham played Scout, and Brock Peters played Tom Robinson. Duvall, however, is the actor associated with Boo Radley.