How ‘Peaky Blinders’ addresses Arthur Shelby after Paul Anderson’s real-life drug bust

Warning: Spoilers ahead for “Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.”

Actor Paul Anderson, who played Arthur Shelby on the hit series “Peaky Blinders,” was written out of the new movie, “Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man,” following his 2024 drug charges.

Though Arthur, the brother of Cillian Murphy’s character Tommy Shelby, was alive at the end of Season 6, it’s revealed that he died at some point before the events of the movie.

His fate is shown early on when Tommy visits Arthur’s grave, which reads “in the bleak midwinter,” a phrase that was often used on the show to signify the acceptance of death. 

During the film, it’s believed Arthur took his own life, though Tommy eventually reveals that his hot-headed brother asked him for money, and they had a fight that led to a car chase on a foggy night. 

At first, Tommy claims that Arthur’s death was an accident that happened after a car crash following that chase, and a struggle over a gun. 

The car chase is shown from far away, and only the exteriors of the vehicles are shown onscreen. So, Anderson didn’t have to be in the scene. 

Later, Tommy reveals that he did it on purpose. “I killed [my] own brother, because I wanted to be free of him,” he confesses. 

In a recent interview with LadBible, Anderson said about his absence from the movie, “Well, what can you do eh? It is how it is. I thought I’d just leave them to it.”

Regarding the manner of Arthur’s death, he added, “Everyone thought, well, everyone knows Arthur’s gonna die. I was quite surprised, I [Arthur] was quite nasty sometimes, I weren’t very nice to people in it. But people loved me.”

When Page Six reached out to Anderson for comment, a rep replied that the actor has “nothing but love and respect for the ‘Peaky Blinders’ family” has shared “conversations around the character” with creator Steven Knight, and remains on “good terms” with him. He also has “enormous admiration” for Murphy and wants the film to be a “huge success.”

They added, “In the meantime, Paul is focused on an exciting slate of upcoming work, including ‘The Gray House,’ currently performing strongly on Amazon Prime Video, alongside several new projects set for release across 2026.”

In 2024, Anderson pleaded guilty to possessing class A crack cocaine, as well as class B amphetamines and two class C prescription substances, after getting caught with the substances in London on Dec. 26, 2023.

He was fined £1,345.

Before the movie, “Peaky Blinders” ran for six seasons from 2013 to 2022.

Set in Birmingham, England, post World War I, it followed the Shelby crime family, which included Tommy and Arthur, among others. 

The movie is essentially a two-hour epilogue for Tommy, following his life after the events of the show when most of his family is dead – including Arthur.

Netflix has also announced a “Peaky Blinders” sequel series.

“The Immortal Man” introduced Barry Keoghan into the franchise, as Tommy’s estranged son, Duke, but he hasn’t officially been announced as the star of the spinoff.

“Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man” is now streaming on Netflix.