Joseph Fiennes

Joseph Fiennes
Joseph Fiennes in London, 2005
Born	Joseph Alberic Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes 27 May 1970 (1970-05-27) Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, UK
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1993–present
Spouse	María Dolores Diéguez (2009–present); 2 children

Joseph Fiennes ( /ˈfaɪnz/; né Joseph Alberic Iscariot Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes; born 27 May 1970) is an English film and stage actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth, Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates, Martin Luther in Luther, Merlin in Camelot, and his portrayal of Mark Benford in the 2009 TV series FlashForward.

Early life and family

Fiennes was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England in 1970, the son of novelist Jennifer Lash and photographer Mark Fiennes. The youngest of six siblings, his elder siblings are actor Ralph Fiennes, filmmakers Sophie Fiennes and Martha Fiennes, composer Magnus Fiennes, and conservationist Jacob Fiennes, his twin brother. His foster brother, Michael Emery, is an archaeologist.

Education

Fiennes was briefly educated in the Republic of Ireland and then at Swan School For Boys (now known as Leehurst Swan School, following a merger with another school), an independent school in Salisbury, before passing his 11+ exam and continuing to Bishop Wordsworth's School, a voluntary-aided state day grammar school, in the Cathedral Close of the city. He then attended art school in Suffolk for a year, before joining the Young Vic Youth Theatre. Fiennes subsequently trained for three years at London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1993.

Career

Stage and film

His first professional stage appearance was in the West End in The Woman in Black, followed by A Month in the Country opposite Helen Mirren. Fiennes then became a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company for two seasons.

He made his television debut as Willy in The Vacillations of Poppy Carew. His first feature film was 1996's Stealing Beauty, co-starring Liv Tyler. In 1998, Fiennes appeared in two films that were nominated at the Academy Awards: he played Robert Dudley opposite Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth and he portrayed William Shakespeare opposite Gwyneth Paltrow in Shakespeare in Love, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. He and Paltrow were reunited onscreen in Running with Scissors (2006). In 2002 he starred in the independent film, Killing Me Softly.

In 2003 he lent his voice as Proteus in the DreamWorks animated film Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas opposite Brad Pitt. The same year he starred in the limited-release film Luther, playing Martin Luther, and he also appeared in The Merchant of Venice, in which he portrayed Bassanio. Fiennes returned to the theatre in 2006 to perform in the one-man play Unicorns, Almost about World War II poet Keith Douglas at the Old Vic.

In 2006, he appeared in the films The Darwin Awards and Goodbye Bafana. Goodbye Bafana was filmed by director Bille August in South Africa, and released in 2007. Fiennes portrayed James Gregory, author of the book Goodbye Bafana: Nelson Mandela, My Prisoner, My Friend.

Television

Fiennes starred in the ABC science fiction series FlashForward, which debuted on 24 September 2009 and ran through 27 May 2010, as Mark Benford. Fiennes stars in Starz's 10-part series, Camelot, as the wizard Merlin.

Personal life

Fiennes married María Dolores Diéguez, a Swiss model of Spanish (Galician) heritage born in 1982, in a Roman Catholic religious ceremony in Tuscany in August 2009. Their first child, a daughter, was born in 2010.Their second child, another daughter, named Isabel was born on December 29th, 2011.

Filmography

Films

• Stealing Beauty (1996) – Christopher
• Shakespeare in Love (1998) – William Shakespeare
• Elizabeth (1998) – Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester
• Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence (released in the U.S. as The Very Thought of You) (1998) – Laurence
• Forever Mine (1999) – Manuel Esquema/Alan Riply
• Rancid Aluminium (2000) – Sean Deeny
• Enemy at the Gates (2001) – Commisar Danilov
• Dust (2001) – Elijah
• Leo (2002) – Stephen
• Killing Me Softly (2003) – Adam
• Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003) (voice) – Proteus
• Luther (2003) – Martin Luther
• The Merchant of Venice (2004) – Bassanio
• The Great Raid (2005) – Major Gibson
• Man to Man (2005) – Jamie Dodd
• Running with Scissors (2006) – Neil Bookman
• The Darwin Awards (2006) – Michael Burrows
• Goodbye Bafana/The Color Of Freedom (2007) – James Gregory
• The Escapist (2008) – Lenny Drake
• The Red Baron (2008) – Captain Arthur Roy Brown
• You Me and Captain Longbridge (2008) – Narrator
• Spring 1941 (2008) – Artur Planck
• Against the Current (2009) – Paul Thompson

TV

• FlashForward (2009–2010) – Mark Benford
• Camelot (2011) – Merlin
• Pretty/Handsome (2008) – Bob Fitzpayne

Plays

• The Woman in Black, Fortune Theatre London (1993)
• A Month in the Country, Belyaev, Guildford, Richmond and the Albery Theatre London (1994)
• A View from the Bridge, Rodolpho, Guildford, Bristol Old Vic, Strand Theatre London (1995)
• Son Of Man, Jesus Christ, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1996)||(1997)
• Les Enfants du Paradis, Lacenaire, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1996)
• Troilus and Cressida, Troilus, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Upon Avon and London (1996)||(1997)
• The Herbal Bed, Rafe Smith, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Upon Avon and London (1996)||(1997)
• As You Like It, Silvius, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1997)
• Real Classy Affair, Billy, Royal Court Theatre Company, London (1998)
• Christopher Marlowe's Edward II, Edward II, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield (2001)
• War Poet's Reading, Apollo Theatre (2001)
• Othello, Iago, West End, London (2002)
• Love's Labour's Lost, Berowne, Royal National Theatre, London (2003)
• Epitaph for George Dillon, George Dillon, Royal National Theatre, London (2005)||(2006)
• 2,000 Feet Away, Deputy, Bush Theatre, London (2008)
• Cyrano de Bergerac, Cyrano, Chichester Festival Theatre (2009)

Other projects and contributions

• 2002 – contributed to the compilation album, When Love Speaks, which consists of Shakespearean sonnets and play excerpts – "Be not afeard, the isle is full of noises" and "Our revels are now ended" (both from The Tempest)
• 2010 – starred in a series of readings of literary love scenes for The Carte Noire Readers.
• Joseph Fiennes reads Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow
• Joseph Fiennes reads The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes

Awards

Nominations

• 1998 – Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Most Promising Actor – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Male Newcomer – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Breakthrough Artist – Elizabeth
• 1999 – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss (with Gwyneth Paltrow) – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – BAFTA Film Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Male Performance – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role – Shakespeare in Love
• 1999 – Teen Choice Award for Sexiest Love Scene – Shakespeare in Love
• 2005 – Golden Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Comedy or Musical – The Merchant of Venice

External links

• Joseph Fiennes at the Internet Movie Database
• Joseph Fiennes biography and credits at the British Film Institute's Screenonline
• Joseph Fiennes in Angola BBC News
• Goodbye Bafana – Official movie site
• The Peerage Site
• The Carte Noire Readers