Claim: The list of actors who have played Professor Moriarty, a fictional character in all of the Sherlock Holmes stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, includes Ernest Maupain in the 1916 silent film Sherlock Holmes and Ralph Fiennes in the 2018 American film Holmes & Watson.
Evidence: Ernest Maupain portrayed Moriarty in Sherlock Holmes (1916). Ralph Fiennes portrayed Moriarty in the 2018 film Holmes & Watson, a comedic take on the Holmes and Watson characters. While the film was criticised, many fans complimented the presence Fiennes created as Moriarty.