Kate Beckinsale
Kate Beckinsale | |
|---|---|
 Beckinsale at the Nothing But the Truth Toronto showing, September 2008 | |
| Born | Kathryn Bailey Beckinsale 26 July 1973 London, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Spouse | |
| Partner | Michael Sheen (1992-2003) |
Kathryn Bailey "Kate" Beckinsale[1] (born 26 July 1973) is an English actress. She first gained notice, while a student at Oxford University, for making her debut in the film adaptation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Throughout the 1990s, she worked on both film and television, most notably by portraying the title character in the 1996 ITV television series Emma. In 2001, Beckinsale garnered international recognition when she was cast as the romantic lead opposite Ben Affleck in her breakthrough film, Pearl Harbor (2001). Since then, she has portrayed a variety of characters in projects such as Underworld (2003), The Aviator (2004), and Van Helsing (2004). In 2008, she earned a Critic's Choice Award nomination for her performance in Nothing But the Truth.
Early life
Born in London,[2] to Richard Beckinsale, who died from a heart attack in 1979, and actress Judy Loe. She has a paternal half-sister, Samantha, who is also an actress. Her father was one quarter Burmese, and she has said that she was "very oriental-looking" as a child.[3]
Beckinsale attended the Godolphin and Latymer School, an all-girls' independent school in London.[4] In her teens, Beckinsale twice won the W. H. Smith Young Writers' competition—once for three short stories and once for three poems.[5] She won the Youths Burp for Fame burping contest at age 16.[6] After a rebellious adolescence, including a period of anorexia and starting a smoking habit, she followed in the footsteps of her parents and began her acting career. Her first role was in One Against the Wind, a television film about World War II that was first aired in 1991. Having gained three language A levels, Beckinsale studied French and Russian literature at New College, Oxford University, though she did not finish her degree.[5] She thought that having an academic background studying foreign language and literature would broaden her range of acting roles.
Career
During her first year at Oxford, Beckinsale was offered a part in Kenneth Branagh's big-screen film, Much Ado About Nothing, adapted from the Shakespeare play. She spent her last year of studies in Paris, after which she decided to leave the university and concentrate on her acting career.[5] In 1994, Beckinsale had a supporting role in Prince of Jutland, working alongside Christian Bale, with whom she would later reunite in the 2002 drama Laurel Canyon. She starred in Haunted (1995) with Aidan Quinn and John Gielgud and in the 1996 TV film adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma. She subsequently appeared in a few low-profile films, including Shooting Fish and The Last Days of Disco, both in 1998. During this time, Beckinsale also appeared in television films Alice Through the Looking Glass (1998) and in stage roles, including the well-received Cold Comfort Farm, opposite British film and television notables Ian McKellen, Rufus Sewell, Eileen Atkins, Joanna Lumley and Stephen Fry.
Beckinsale's first major American film, Brokedown Palace (1999), was not a commercial success. Soon after, Beckinsale was cast in the 2001 film Pearl Harbor as the female lead opposite Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett. The film was one of the highest-grossing films of its year. In the years following, she appeared in a series of American films that, while high-profile, were given mixed reviews, including Serendipity (2001), Underworld (2003) and Van Helsing (2004). In 2004, she portrayed Ava Gardner in Martin Scorsese's The Aviator, a role for which she gained 20 pounds.
In 2006, Beckinsale was placed at #23 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World", after being #71 in 2005. She has also been placed at #16 in Maxim's "HOT 100" (2003), #63 in Stuff's "100 Sexiest Women in the World" (2002), and was chosen by the English magazine Hello! as "England’s #1 Beauty", also in 2002.
In January 2006, Beckinsale reprised her role as a vampire in the movie Underworld: Evolution, a sequel to her 2003 film, Underworld, again directed by her husband, Len Wiseman. The film opened in the #1 spot at the box office, grossing over $26 million in its first weekend of release.[7] Also in 2006, Beckinsale appeared in the comedy Click, starring Adam Sandler, which opened on 23 June. Next, Beckinsale replaced Sarah Jessica Parker[8] in the film Vacancy, released in 2007. She also appeared in a diet coke advertisement in 2007. Her next role was in Snow Angels, which was released in 2008.
At Comic-Con 2007, Beckinsale expressed interest in playing Catwoman in the current Christopher Nolan-directed Batman films. In April 2007, during an interview promoting Vacancy, Beckinsale claimed no knowledge of the rumors linking her to a remake of Barbarella. "I was told on the set yesterday, a crew member Chris Pacpaco said, 'Oh I hear you're doing Barbarella,' he was one of the grips. So that's the most official it's become. Every woman would consider Barbarella for a moment, but I don't know."[9] Beckinsale eventually won a libel lawsuit against the Daily Express concerning the matter.[10]
Beckinsale is Esquire magazine's Sexiest Woman Alive 2009.[11] She is signed to Independent Models in London.
As of 2009, Beckinsale's movies have grossed a total of $801,678,915 in the US.[12] Beckinsale is also scheduled to appear in Underworld 4 in 2012.
Askmen.com ranked Beckinsale 3rd in their annual list of the "Top 99 Women of 2010".
Personal life
Beckinsale and her former partner Michael Sheen have a daughter, Lily Mo Sheen (born 31 January 1999). Beckinsale does smoke but she has reported in interviews that the only time she stopped smoking was while she was pregnant with her daughter Lily. Her daughter already has acting experience portraying a young version of her mother in Underworld: Evolution and Everybody's Fine. During the Underworld shoot, Beckinsale left Sheen, who was also starring in the film, for the director of the film, Len Wiseman.[13][14] Beckinsale became engaged to Wiseman on 14 June 2003, and the two were married on 9 May 2004 in Bel-Air, California.[15]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | One Against the Wind | Barbe Lindell | |
| 1993 | Much Ado About Nothing | Hero | |
| 1994 | Uncovered | Julia | |
| 1994 | Prince of Jutland/Royal Deceit | Ethel | |
| 1995 | Cold Comfort Farm | Flora Poste | TV Film Released in the U.S.A. |
| 1995 | Haunted | Christina Mariell | |
| 1998 | The Last Days of Disco | Charlotte Pingress | |
| 1998 | Shooting Fish | Georgie | |
| 1998 | Alice Through the Looking Glass | Alice | |
| 1999 | Brokedown Palace | Darlene Davis | |
| 2001 | Serendipity | Sara Thomas | |
| 2001 | Pearl Harbor | Nurse Lt. Evelyn Johnson | |
| 2001 | The Golden Bowl | Maggie Verver | |
| 2002 | Laurel Canyon | Alex Elliot | |
| 2003 | Underworld | Selene | |
| 2003 | Tiptoes | Carol | |
| 2004 | The Aviator | Ava Gardner | |
| 2004 | Van Helsing | Anna Valerious | |
| 2006 | Click | Donna Newman | |
| 2006 | Underworld: Evolution | Selene | |
| 2007 | Vacancy | Amy Fox | |
| 2007 | Snow Angels | Annie Marchand | |
| 2008 | Nothing But the Truth | Rachel Armstrong (inspired by Judith Miller) | |
| 2008 | Fragments (aka Winged Creatures) | Carla Davenport | |
| 2009 | Underworld: Rise of the Lycans | Selene | Provided voice over in the beginning and end of the film and appeared in archive footage. |
| 2009 | Whiteout | Carrie Stetko | |
| 2009 | Everybody's Fine | Amy | |
| 2011 | The Trials of Cate McCullough | Cate McCullough | in production |
| 2012 | Underworld 4 | Selene | pre-production |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Award ceremony | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Best Actress | Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival | Shooting Fish | Won |
| 1999 | British Supporting Actress of the Year (tied with Minnie Driver for Good Will Hunting) | London Critics Circle Film Awards | The Last Days of Disco | Won |
| 2002 | Best Actress | Saturn Award | Serendipity | Nominated |
| 2004 | Best Actress | Saturn Award | Underworld | Nominated |
| 2004 | Best Trans-Atlantic Breakthrough Performer | MTV Movie Awards | Nominated | |
| 2005 | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (shared with the cast) | Screen Actors Guild Awards | The Aviator | Nominated |
| 2005 | Favorite Female Action Movie Star | People's Choice Awards | Nominated | |
| 2006 | Best Hero | MTV Movie Awards | Underworld: Evolution | Nominated |
| 2006 | Favorite Female Action Star | People's Choice Awards | Nominated | |
| 2008 | Best Actress | Broadcast Film Critics Association Award | Nothing But the Truth | Nominated |
References
- ^ Das, Lina; Graham, Caroline (2001). "Who is Kate Beckinsale?". DailyMail.co.uk. Daily Mail. Retrieved 2010-07-28.
- ^ "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno". Interview with Jay Leno. Retrieved 2008-03-17.
- ^ "Beast in the beauty". Telegraph Magazine. The Age.com. 2004-04-25. Retrieved 2010-07-28.
- ^ "Old Dolphins' Association". Godolphin and Latymer School. Retrieved 2008-08-25. [dead link]
- ^ a b c Wills, Dominic. "Kate Beckinsale — Biography". TalkTalk.co.uk. Tiscali UK. Retrieved 2010-07-28.
- ^ http://www.celebstar.net/Kate_Beckinsale_biography_pictures.html
- ^ "Box Office Mojo". WEEKEND BOX OFFICE 20 January–22, 2006. Retrieved 5 July 2006.
- ^ Schneider, Karl (September 11, 2006). "Kate Beckinsale joins VACANCY". Mania Movies. Retrieved 14 April 2007.
- ^ "Kate Beckinsale Had Never Heard of 'Barbarella' Remake". April 20, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-10-14.
- ^ Grossberg, Josh (July 9, 2009). "Kate Beckinsale Wins Libel Award". E! Online.
- ^ Chiarella, Tom (October 2, 2009,). "Kate Beckinsale Is the Sexiest Woman Alive: Full Portfolio and Cover Story". Esquire (magazine).
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help)CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "Kate Beckinsale". Box Office Mojo.
- ^ Mock, Janet; Wang, Julia (2010). "Kate Beckinsale Biography". People Magazine. Time, Inc. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
- ^ "Larger than life; Profile: Kate Beckinsale (on findarticles.com)". Sunday Herald. SMG Sunday Newspapers Ltd. 2003-09-21. Retrieved 2010-07-28.
- ^ "Beckinsale marries in US ceremony". news.bbc.co.uk. 2004-05-11. Retrieved 2010-10-28.
External links
