Alfred Molina
Alfred Molina | |
|---|---|
| alfred molina.jpg At the San Diego Comic-Con in 2003 | |
| Born | Alfredo Molina |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Spouse | Jill Gascoine (1986–present) |
Alfred Molina (born May 24, 1953) is an English actor with dual British and American citizenship. He first came to public attention in the UK for his joint lead role with Gary Oldman in the 1987 film Prick Up Your Ears. Throughout the world he is well known for his roles in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Spider-Man 2, Species, Not Without My Daughter, Chocolat, Frida, Steamboy, The Hoax, The Da Vinci Code, Little Traitor, and An Education.
Early life
Molina was born Alfredo Molina in Paddington, London. His father, Esteban, was a Spaniard from Madrid who worked as a waiter and chauffeur, while his mother, Giovanna, was an Italian housekeeper who cleaned rooms in a hotel and worked as a cook.[1][2][3] Molina grew up in a "working class neighbourhood" in Notting Hill[4] that was inhabited by many other immigrant families.[5] He decided to become an actor after seeing Spartacus at the age of nine, and attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.[6]
Career
In 1978, Molina starred with Leonard Rossiter in the sitcom The Losers.[7] Molina made his film debut with a minor role in the 1981 movie Raiders of the Lost Ark as Indiana Jones' ill-fated guide during its iconic opening sequence. However, his big break came with Letter to Brezhnev in 1985, which he followed up with a starring role in Prick Up Your Ears in 1987, playing Joe Orton's lover Kenneth Halliwell. He was cast in a lead role in the Red Dwarf TV series, but was replaced by another actor.
Molina starred in the first two series of El C.I.D. but left to concentrate on his film work. Subsequent films included Species, Dudley Do-Right, Chocolat, Not Without My Daughter, and Enchanted April. With a flawless mid-western American accent, Molina starred alongside Betty White in the US television series "Ladies Man", which ran from 1999–2001.
He has worked twice with Paul Thomas Anderson, first in Boogie Nights and then Magnolia. In 2002, Molina gained wide recognition for his portrayal of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera alongside Salma Hayek in the biopic Frida, a role which garnered him BAFTA and SAG award nominations. In 2003, he played himself alongside Steve Coogan in Coffee and Cigarettes. In 2004, Molina gained further commercial recognition when he was cast as the villain Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man 2, which went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of that year. He later reprised his role of Doctor Octopus in the video game adaption of Spider-Man 2 and archive footage of Molina as Doctor Octopus is seen in the opening of Spider-Man 3. In 2006, Molina portrayed Touchstone in Kenneth Branagh's film version of Shakespeare's As You Like It and appeared in Ron Howard's adaptation of The Da Vinci Code. On 26 June 2008, it was announced that Molina will provide the voice of the villain Ares in the upcoming animated Wonder Woman film.[8]
Molina's stage work has included two major Royal National Theatre productions, Tennessee Williams' The Night of the Iguana (as Shannon) and David Mamet's Speed the Plow (as Fox). In his Broadway debut, Molina performed in Yasmina Reza's Tony Award-winning play 'Art', for which he received a Tony nomination in 1998. In 2004, Molina returned to the stage, starring as Tevye in the Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof. For his performance he once again received a Tony Award nomination, this time for Best Actor in a Musical. In 2010 he will star in Red, a new play by John Logan.[9]
In 2007, Molina narrated a 17-part original audiobook for Audible.com called The Chopin Manuscript. This serialized novel was written by a team of 15 best-selling thriller writers, including Jeffery Deaver, Lee Child, Joseph Finder and Lisa Scottoline.
On April 1st, 2010 he will open at Broadway's John Golden Theater in the role of artist Mark Rothko in John Logan's drama "Red" opposite Eddie Redmayne for a limited engagement through June 27th. He played the role to much critical success at the Donmar Warehouse in London in December of 2009.
In 2010 he will star opposite Dawn French in the six-part BBC sitcom Roger and Val Have Just Got In.[10]
Personal life
Molina resides in Los Angeles and has become a U.S. citizen.[11] He is fluent in Spanish.
He married actress Jill Gascoine in 1986 in Tower Hamlets, London.[12] He has a daughter, Rachel (born 1980), from a previous relationship, and two stepsons (Adam and Sean), from Gascoine's first marriage. He is also a grandfather to Alfie (born November 2003) and Layla (born May 2006).
Filmography
References
- ^ Alfred Molina, Q&A Interview: Broadway.com Buzz
- ^ 'I give good foreign' | The Guardian | Guardian Unlimited
- ^ Current biography yearbook, Volume 65. H. W. Wilson Co. 2004. p. 381.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|coauthors=and|month=(help) - ^ CNN.com - The actor you think you know - Mar. 3, 2004
- ^ Hispanic Magazine.com - July/August 2004 - Alfred Molina - Cover Story
- ^ Alfred Molina Biography - Yahoo! Movies
- ^ Lewishohn, Mark (2003). Radio Times Guide to TV Comedy. London: BBC Worldwide. ISBN 0563487550.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Comics Continuum cast list
- ^ http://www.thestage.co.uk/news/newsstory.php/24136/west-to-appear-in-donmars-life-is-a-dream
- ^ Molina stars opposite Dawn French http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8256871.stm
- ^ CANOE - JAM! Movies - Artists - Molina, Alfred: Alfred Molina set for big-time recognition
- ^ Marriages England and Wales 1984–2005
External links
- Please use a more specific IMDb template. See the documentation for available templates.
- Alfred Molina at the Internet Broadway Database
- Please use a more specific IOBDB template. See the template documentation for available templates.
- Alfred Molina interviewed on Downstage Center XM Radio at American Theatre Wing, November 2004
- Working in the Theatre: Performance video seminar at American Theatre Wing, April 1998
- Q&A: Alfred Molina
- 1953 births
- Living people
- Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama
- American film actors
- American stage actors
- American television actors
- American people of Italian descent
- Hispanic Americans
- English immigrants to the United States
- American people of English descent
- Audio book narrators
- American voice actors
- English film actors
- English people of Italian descent
- English people of Spanish descent
- English stage actors
- English voice actors
- English television actors
- Italian British actors
- Naturalized citizens of the United States
- People from Paddington
- Royal National Theatre Company members
- Royal Shakespeare Company members
- Shakespearean actors
- English musical theatre actors