Uma Thurman
Uma Thurman | |
---|---|
![]() In 2001 in Cannes | |
Born | Uma Karuna Thurman April 29, 1970 Template:City-state, U.S. |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1987–present |
Spouse(s) | Gary Oldman (1990–1992) Ethan Hawke (1998–2004) |
Uma Karuna Thurman (born April 29, 1970) is an American actress. She has performed in leading roles in a variety of films, ranging from romantic comedies and dramas, to science fiction and action movies. She is best known for her work under the direction of Quentin Tarantino. Her most popular films include Dangerous Liaisons (1988), Pulp Fiction (1994), Gattaca (1997) and Kill Bill (2003–2004).[1]
Personal life
Family background
Thurman's mother, Nena von Schlebrügge, was a model born in Mexico City in 1941 to German-born Friedrich Karl Johannes von Schlebrügge, and Swedish-born Birgit Holmquist, from Trelleborg, who in 1930 modelled for a nude statue that overlooks the harbor of Smygehuk,[2] Sweden. Thurman's mother was introduced to LSD guru Timothy Leary by Salvador Dalí and became Leary's third wife in 1964. She wed Thurman's father Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman (b. August 3, 1941) in 1967. He was born in New York City to Elizabeth Dean Farrar, a stage actress, and Beverly Reid Thurman, Jr., an Associated Press editor and United Nations translator.[3] A professor at Columbia University of Tibetan Buddhism, he was the first Westerner to be ordained as a Tibetan Buddhist monk.[4]
Early life
Thurman was born in Boston, and grew up mostly in Amherst, Massachusetts and Woodstock, New York. Her father gave his children a Buddhist upbringing, and she is named after an Dbuma Chenpo (in Tibetan, the "db" is silent; from Mahamadhyamaka in Sanskrit, meaning "Great Middle Way"). Regarding religion, she now calls herself agnostic.[5] She has three brothers, Ganden (b. 1971), Dechen (b. 1973) and Mipam (b. 1978), and a half-sister named Taya (b. 1960) from her father's previous marriage. She and her siblings spent time in Almora, India, during childhood, and the Dalai Lama sometimes visited their home.[6] She is described as having been an awkward and introverted girl who was teased for her tall frame, angular bone structure, and unusual name (sometimes using the name “Uma Karen” instead of her birth name). When she was 10 years old, a friend's mother suggested a nose job.[6] As a child, she suffered bouts of body dysmorphic disorder, which she discussed in an interview with Talk magazine in 2001.[7] She attended Northfield Mount Hermon, a boarding school in Northfield, Massachusetts, where she earned average grades, but excelled in acting. Talent scouts noticed her performance as Abigail in a production of The Crucible,[1] and offered her the chance to act professionally. Thurman moved to New York City to pursue acting and to attend the Professional Children's School, but dropped out before graduating.[6]
Relationships
Thurman met English actor Gary Oldman on the set of State of Grace, and they were married in 1990, but it ended two years later.[8] On May 1, 1998, she married actor Ethan Hawke, whom she met on the set of Gattaca. Hawke's novel Ash Wednesday is dedicated to "Karuna", Thurman's middle name. She acknowledged that they had married because she was pregnant – seven months at their wedding.[9] The marriage produced two children, daughter Maya Ray Thurman-Hawke (b. July 8, 1998) and son Levon Roan Thurman-Hawke (b. January 15, 2002), and the couple separated in 2003.[10] When asked on The Oprah Winfrey Show whether the break-up involved betrayal, she said, “There was some stuff like that at the end. We were having a difficult time, and you know how the axe comes down and how people behave and how people express their unhappiness."[11] In a 2004 Rolling Stone cover story, Thurman and Quentin Tarantino denied having had a romantic relationship, despite Tarantino once having told a reporter, "I'm not saying that we haven’t, and I’m not saying that we have."[12] She dated Andre Balazs from 2004 to 2006, and was engaged to London-based financier Arpad Busson, whom she began dating in 2007, but the relationship ended in November 2009.[13]
Career
Early work (1987–1989)
Thurman began her career as a fashion model at age 15,[14] and signed with the agency Click Models. Her modeling credits included Glamour Magazine.[15] She made her movie debut in 1988, appearing in four films that year. Her first two were the high school comedy Johnny Be Good and the teen thriller Kiss Daddy Goodnight. She appeared in The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, playing the goddess Venus alongside Oliver Reed's Vulcan; during her entrance she briefly appears nude in a homage to Botticelli's The Birth of Venus. With a budget of $46 million and box office receipts of only $8 million, the film was a commercial failure.[16] Her breakthrough came in her role as Cecile de Volanges in Dangerous Liaisons. At the time, she was insecure about her appearance, and fled to London for almost a year, during which she wore only loose, baggy clothing.[15] She was praised by her co-star John Malkovich, who said of her, "There is nothing twitchy teenager-ish about her, I haven’t met anyone like her at that age. Her intelligence and poise stand out. But there’s something else. She’s more than a little haunted."[17]
Career prominence (1990–1993)
In 1990, Thurman co-starred with Fred Ward in the sexually provocative drama Henry & June, the first film to receive an NC-17 rating. Because of the rating, it never played in a wide release but critics embraced her. The New York Times wrote, “Thurman, as the Brooklyn-accented June, takes a larger-than-life character and makes her even bigger, though the performance is often as curious as it is commanding”.[18] Her first starring role in a major production was Gus Van Sant's 1993 adaptation of Tom Robbins' Even Cowgirls Get the Blues. It was a critical and financial disappointment; Thurman was nominated for a Worst Actress Razzie. The Washington Post described her acting as shallow, writing that, “Thurman’s strangely passive characterization doesn’t go much deeper than drawling and flexing her prosthetic thumbs”.[19] She also starred opposite Robert De Niro in the drama Mad Dog and Glory, another box office disappointment. Later that year, she auditioned for Stanley Kubrick while he was casting a movie to be called Wartime Lies, which was never produced. Her agent said she described working with him as a "really bad experience."[12]
1994–1998
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After Mad Dog and Glory, Thurman auditioned for Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, which grossed over $107 million on a budget of only $8 million.[21] The Washington Post wrote that Thurman was "serenely unrecognizable in a black wig, [and] is marvelous as a zoned-out gangster’s girlfriend."[22] Thurman was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar the following year. She became one of Tarantino’s favorite actresses to cast; he told Time magazine in 2003 that she was "up there with Garbo and Dietrich in goddess territory."[20]
1996 would see Thurman in two moderately successful films, the first of which was Beautiful Girls, where she played the female lead and love interest of Timothy Hutton and was supported with a high-profile cast (for that time) of Mira Sorvino, Martha Plimpton, and Natalie Portman. The film was well received by the critics for the script and acting, particularly that of Hutton and Portman. It performed moderately well at the box office. Thurman also starred opposite Janeane Garofalo in the moderately successful 1996 romantic comedy The Truth About Cats & Dogs as a ditzy blonde supermodel. In 1997, she starred opposite her future husband Ethan Hawke in the science fiction film Gattaca. Although Gattaca was not a success at the box office, it drew many positive reviews and became successful on the home video market.[23] Some critics were not as impressed with Thurman, such as The Los Angeles Times, which wrote that she was "as emotionally uninvolved as ever."[24] Her next role was Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin, the fourth of the series. Her performance received mixed reviews, and critics compared her to Mae West. The New York Times wrote, "like Mae West, she mixes true femininity with the winking womanliness of a drag queen."[25] A similar comparison was made by the Houston Chronicle: "Thurman, to arrive at a '40s femme fatale, sometimes seems to be doing Mae West by way of Jessica Rabbit."[26] The next year brought The Avengers, another major financial and critical flop. CNN described her as "so distanced you feel like you’re watching her through the wrong end of a telescope."[27] She received Razzie Award nominations for both films. She closed out 1998 with Les Misérables, a film version of Victor Hugo's novel of the same name, directed by Bille August, in which she played Fantine.
Hiatus (1998–2002)
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After the birth of her first baby in 1998, Thurman took a rest from major roles to concentrate on motherhood. Her next roles were in low-budget and television films, including Tape, Vatel, and Hysterical Blindness. She also starred in Chelsea Walls, a movie directed by then-husband Ethan Hawke. In 2000, she narrated a theatrical work by composer John Moran entitled Book of the Dead (2nd Avenue) at The Public Theater. She won a Golden Globe award for Hysterical Blindness, a film for which she also served as executive producer. In the film, she played a New Jersey woman in the 1980s searching for romance. The San Francisco Chronicle review wrote, “Thurman so commits herself to the role, eyes blazing and body akimbo, that you start to believe that such a creature could exist—an exquisite-looking woman so spastic and needy that she repulses regular Joes. Thurman has bent the role to her will."[28]
2003–present
After a five-year hiatus, Thurman returned in 2003 in John Woo's film Paycheck, which was only moderately successful with critics and at the box office. Her next film was Tarantino's Kill Bill, which relaunched her career. In Kill Bill she played assassin Beatrix Kiddo, out for revenge against her former lover. Tarantino wrote the part specifically for her. He cited Thurman as his muse while writing the film, and gave her joint credit for the character, whom the two conceived on the set of Pulp Fiction from the sole image of a bride covered in blood. Production was delayed for several months after Thurman became pregnant, as Tarantino refused to recast the part.[29] The film took nine months to shoot, and was filmed in five different countries. The role was also her most demanding , and she spent three months training in martial arts, swordsmanship, and Japanese.[30] The two-part action epic became an instant cult classic[31] and scored highly with critics. The film series earned Thurman Golden Globe nominations for both entries, and three MTV Movie Awards for Best Female Performance and twice for Best Fight. Rolling Stone likened her to "an avenging angel out of a 1940s Hollywood melodrama."[32]
The inspirations for “The Bride” were several B-movie action heroines. Thurman's main inspiration for the role was the title character of Coffy (played by Pam Grier) and the character of Gloria Swenson from Gloria (played by Gena Rowlands). She said that the two characters are "two of the only women I've ever seen be truly women [while] holding a weapon."[33] Coffy was screened for Thurman by Tarantino prior to beginning production on the film, to help her model the character.[29]
By 2005, Thurman was commanding a salary of $12.5 million per film. Her first film of the year was Be Cool, the sequel to 1995's Get Shorty, which reunited her with her Pulp Fiction castmate John Travolta. In the film, she played the widow of a deceased music business executive. The film received poor reviews, and came in below expectations at the box office. In 2005, she starred in Prime with Meryl Streep, playing a woman in her late thirties romancing a man in his early twenties. Thurman's last film of the year was a remake of The Producers in which she played Ulla, a Swedish stage actress hoping to win a part in a new Broadway musical. Originally, the producers of the film planned to have another singer dub in Thurman's musical numbers, but she was eager to do her own vocals.[34] She is credited for her songs in the credits. The film was considered a bomb at the box office, but many praised Thurman's efforts, including A. O. Scott of The New York Times who said: "Uma Thurman as a would-be actress is the one bit of genuine radiance in this aggressively and pointlessly shiny, noisy spectacle."[35]
With a successful film career, Thurman once again became a desired model. Cosmetics company Lancôme selected her as their spokeswoman, and named several shades of lipstick after her, though they were sold only in Asia. In 2005, she became a spokeswoman for the French fashion house Louis Vuitton. On February 7, 2006, she was named a knight of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France for outstanding achievement in the field of art and literature.
In May 2006, she bought the film rights to the Frank Schätzing novel The Swarm, which is in development and due for release in 2011.[36] When the film remake The Women was in pre-production in 2006, Thurman was cast as Crystal Allen, alongside Annette Bening, Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan, Sandra Bullock, Ashley Judd, Lisa Kudrow and Anne Hathaway, being directed by James L. Brooks, but the director was changed and Thurman was no longer part of the cast. [citation needed] In July 2006, she starred opposite Luke Wilson in My Super Ex-Girlfriend. Thurman portrayed a super-heroine named "G-Girl" who is dumped by her boyfriend and then takes her revenge upon him. She received a reported $14 million for the role, but the film flopped. Once again she was well-received, but the film was not.
In February 2008, she starred opposite Colin Firth and Jeffrey Dean Morgan in The Accidental Husband, a romantic comedy about a woman who finds herself married while engaged to another man. It seems like archetypal Hollywood contrivance, but according to Thurman, a similar situation happened in New York.[37] Also in 2008, she starred as "Elsa" in the British film My Zinc Bed, in which she plays a cocaine addict, starring opposite Paddy Considine and Jonathan Pryce. In 2010, her movie Motherhood, set a record for the biggest bomb in British cinema history garnering just £88 on 11 tickets on its opening weekend.[38] In the United States it earned just $93,388 in three weeks of release.[39]
She will star in the film version of the 1950s books Eloise In Paris, playing the role of Nanny, this film is to be directed by Charles Shyer. She also agreed to star in the new Muppets movie, playing a ticket clerk. Bollywood director Vishal Bharadwaj has announced his interest in Thurman to star in his latest film venture opposite Hrithik Roshan, in a biographical film of the life of actress Nadira. The film is still in its pre-production stage. Uma Thurman has shown interest in playing either Marlene Dietrich or Greta Garbo.[40]
Activism and charity work
Thurman supports the United States Democratic Party, and has given money to the campaigns of John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, and Joseph R. Driscoll.[41] She supports gun control laws, and in 2000 she participated in Marie Claire’s “End Gun Violence Now” campaign.[42] She is a member of the board of Room to Grow, a charitable organization providing aid to families and children born into poverty.[43] She serves on the board of the Tibet House.[44] In 2007, she hosted the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway with actor Kevin Spacey.[45]
Filmography
Awards
Year | Award | Category | Film | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1993 | Cognac Festival du Film Policier | Jury "Coup de Chapeau" | Jennifer 8 | Won |
1995 | Razzie Awards | Razzie Award for Worst Actress | Even Cowgirls Get the Blues | Nominated |
1995 | Academy Awards | Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress | Pulp Fiction | Nominated |
1995 | BAFTA Awards | BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Pulp Fiction | Nominated |
1995 | Chlotrudis Awards | Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress | Pulp Fiction | Nominated |
1995 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | Pulp Fiction | Nominated |
1995 | MTV Movie Awards | MTV Movie Award for Best Performance | Pulp Fiction | Nominated |
1995 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role | Pulp Fiction | Nominated |
1998 | Kids' Choice Awards | Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie Actress | Batman & Robin | Nominated |
1998 | Razzie Awards | Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress | Batman & Robin | Nominated |
1999 | Razzie Awards | Razzie Award for Worst Actress | The Avengers | Nominated |
2001 | Gotham Awards | Best Actress | Won | |
2002 | Independent Spirit Awards | Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female | Tape | Nominated |
2003 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film | Hysterical Blindness | Won |
2003 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie | Hysterical Blindness | Nominated |
2004 | Saturn Awards | Saturn Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 1 | Won |
2004 | BAFTA Awards | BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role | Kill Bill Vol. 1 | Nominated |
2004 | Empire Awards | Empire Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 1 | Won |
2004 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama | Kill Bill Vol. 1 | Nominated |
2004 | MTV Movie Awards | MTV Movie Award for Best Performance | Kill Bill Vol. 1 | Won |
2004 | Online Film Critics Society Awards | Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 1 | Nominated |
2004 | Irish Film and Television Awards | Audience Award for Best International Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2004 | Teen Choice Awards | Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actress – Drama/Action Adventure | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | Saturn Awards | Saturn Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards | Critcis Choice Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | Empire Awards | Empire Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | Golden Globe Awards | Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | MTV Movie Awards | MTV Movie Award for Best Performance | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | Online Film Critics Society Awards | Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actress | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | Satellite Awards | Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama | Kill Bill Vol. 2 | Nominated |
2005 | People's Choice Awards | People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Action Movie Star | Nominated | |
2007 | People's Choice Awards | People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Action Movie Star | Nominated |
References
- ^ a b Schoumatoff, Alex. "The life and career of Uma Thurman", Vanity Fair, January 1996.
- ^ Uma Thurmans mormor staty i Trelleborg, Sydsvenskan, July 30, 2006. Template:Sv icon
- ^ "Ancestry of Uma Thurman", Wargs, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ Kamanetz, Rodger. "Robert Thurman Doesn't Look Buddhist", The New York Times, May 5, 1995.
- ^ Price, Richard. "Uma Thurman has had an Elle of a time in love rivalry", The Courier-Mail, July 12, 2008.
- ^ a b c Tiscali Uma Thurman biography, Tiscali, accessed January 5, 2006.
- ^ Kahn, Sherry. "Golden Girl Uma admits to having Body Dysmorphic Disorder", Talksurgery, May 15, 2001, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ "Uma Thurman to wed again", The Seattle Times, June 28, 2008.
- ^ "Uma Thurman Worried About Marriage", WENN, August 29, 2001.
- ^ Hall, Sarah. "Ethan Hawke: Why We Split", E! Online. March 5, 2004.
- ^ Silverman, Stephen M. "Uma Calls Split from Ethan ‘Excruciating’", People, October 7, 2005.
- ^ a b Hedegaard, Erik. "A Magnificent Obsession", Rolling Stone, April 29, 2004.
- ^ "Kill Bill actress Uma Thurman locks lips with millionaire boyfriend on park bench", Daily Mail, May 25, 2005; Hamm, Liza. "Uma Thurman Calls Off Engagement", People, December 8, 2009.
- ^ "Uma on Men, Movies and Motherhood", Harper's Bazaar, March 1998.
- ^ a b "Uma Thurman Biography", Biography Channel, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, IMDb, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ "'Dangerous Liaisons' violated beauty, Uma Thurman, 18, is a little risky herself," People Weekly, February 6, 1989.
- ^ Maslin, Janet. "A Writer’s Awakening to the Erotic," The New York Times, October 5, 1990.
- ^ Brown, Joe. "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues", The Washington Post, May 20, 1994.
- ^ a b Tyrangiel, Josh. The Tao of Uma, Time, September 22, 2003.
- ^ Pulp Fiction, Box Office Mojo, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ Desson Howe. "Pulp Fiction", The Washington Post, October 14, 1994.
- ^ "Gattaca", Crazy for Cinema, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ Mathews, Jack. "Cautionary Tale in Genetically Pure 'Gattaca'", The Los Angeles Times, October 24, 1997.
- ^ Maslin, Janet. Batman and Robin, The New York Times, June 20, 1997.
- ^ Millar, Jeff. "If you like them busy, this “Batman” is for you", Houston Chronicle, June 19, 1997.
- ^ Tatara, Paul. "Review: 'The Avengers’ is retro-boring", CNN, August 21, 1998.
- ^ "A repulsive beauty in ’80s Jersey Thurman’s histrionics fit “Hysterical Blindness” well", San Francisco Chronicle, August 23, 2002.
- ^ a b Kill Bill Vol. 1, DVD bonus featurette
- ^ Malanowski, Jamie. "Catching up with Uma Thurman," USA Today, October 5, 2003.
- ^ "Kill Bill", Boxofficemojo.com, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ Dana, Will. "Kill Bill Vol. 2 review", Rolling Stone, July 28, 2004.
- ^ Downey, Ryan J. "What Made Kill Bill", MTV News, June 11, 2004.
- ^ WENN daily news, IMBd, April 1, 2005.
- ^ Scott, A.O. "'The Producers,' Again (This Time With Uma)", The New York Times, December 16, 2005.
- ^ "The Swarm (2011)", IMDb, April 25, 2010.
- ^ "Uma Thurman: A Decent Proposal", STV, February 27, 2008.
- ^ Hill, Anita. "The Uma Thurman film so bad it made £88 on opening weekend", The Guardian, March 26, 2010.
- ^ "Motherhood", BoxOfficeMojo, August 16, 2010.
- ^ Palta, Tanya. "Uma Thurman And Hrithik Roshan In Vishal Bharadwaj's Next!", ourbollywood.com, May 2, 2007.
- ^ "Uma Thurman", News Meat, retrieved August 16, 2010.
- ^ "Stars Join Forces To Ban Guns", World Entertainment News Network, December 4, 2000.
- ^ "Room To Grow board and staff page", Room to Grow, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ Tibet House Board, Tibet House, accessed August 16, 2010.
- ^ "Nobel Peace Prize Concert 2007", nobelpeaceprize.org, accessed August 16, 2010.
Further reading
- Bina, Roxanna. "Interview with Uma Thurman." Independent Film Quarterly. December 8, 2003, accessed January 5, 2006.
- Biography Uma Thurman biography, accessed January 5, 2006.
- Brett, Anwar. Uma Thurman interview — Kill Bill Vol. 2. April 2004, accessed January 5, 2006.
- Chavel, Sean. "Uma Thurman interview." UGO. October 2003, accessed January 6, 2006.
- Felperin, Leslie. Uma Thurman: Pulp friction", The Independent, April 16, 2004.
- Fischer, Paul. "For Ms. Thurman, Life is More than Just a Paycheck." Film Monthly. September 22, 2003, accessed January 5, 2006.
- Hedegaard, Erik. "A Magnificent Obsession." Rolling Stone. April 29, 2004, accessed January 6, 2005.
- Russell, Jamie. Uma Thurman interview — Kill Bill Vol. 1. October 2003, accessed January 5, 2006.
- Sutherland, Bryon, Ellis, Lucy. Uma Thurman, The Biography". Aurum Press, 2004.
External links
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- Uma Thurman's Official MySpace Profile
- Uma Thurman at Rotten Tomatoes
- TV.com – Uma Thurman
- 1970 births
- American film actors
- American female models
- Best Miniseries or Television Movie Actress Golden Globe winners
- MTV Movie Award winners
- American actors of Swedish descent
- Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute alumni
- American actors of German descent
- American Buddhists
- Actors from Massachusetts
- People from Amherst, Massachusetts
- People from Boston, Massachusetts
- People from Fire Island, New York
- Massachusetts Democrats
- Living people