Jeff McBride
Jeff McBride is an actor, born 1959.
Most people on this site act for a living. McBride does close-up magic, and the screen credits are a footnote to a stage career.
He works under the name Magnus and specializes in manipulation: playing cards, coins, small objects moving faster than they should. What separates his act from a standard conjuring set is the staging. He builds it out of kabuki, using masks, movement and a formal theatrical shape rather than patter and a table. He is also an instructor, and the teaching is as much of the record as the performing. The Academy of Magical Arts, the Society of American Magicians and the International Federation of Magic Societies have all recognised the work.
The three screen credits are what they are: a bodyguard in a 1994 thriller, an escort in the 1992 comedy Boomerang, and himself on a British television magic showcase from an era when variety hours were still primetime. None of them will tell you why magicians talk about him.
Movies (2)
TV (1)
Where to start with Jeff McBride
The screen work is thin, so take it in one sitting and treat it as trivia. Léon: The Professional is far and away the best film he appears in, though a bodyguard part is not the reason anyone watches it. Boomerang is a lively studio comedy from 1992 with him in a walk-on.
The one credit that actually shows the craft is The Paul Daniels Magic Show, where he is billed as himself and doing the thing he is known for. If sleight of hand is what brought you to this page, that is the only entry here that answers the question, and the rest of the real work happened on stages rather than on film.