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Luke Evans

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Luke Evans
Evans in January 2014
Born (1979-04-15) 15 April 1979 (age 45)
Pontypool, Wales, United Kingdom
OccupationActor
Years active2000–present

Luke Evans (born 15 April 1979)[1] is a Welsh actor and singer. Evans began his career on the stage, performing in many of London's West End productions such as Rent, Miss Saigon, and Piaf before getting his breakthrough role in Hollywood starring in the Clash of the Titans 2010 remake, playing Apollo. Following his debut, Evans was cast in such action and thriller films as Immortals (2011), The Raven (2012), and the re-imagined The Three Musketeers (2011), in which he played Aramis.

In 2013, Evans starred as the main antagonist Owen Shaw in the blockbuster Furious 6, and also plays Bard the Bowman in Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit.[2] Evans also portrayed the vampire Dracula in the character's film origin story, Dracula Untold.[3]

Early life

Luke Evans was born in Pontypool,[4] and raised in Aberbargoed,[1] a small town in the Rhymney Valley, Wales, the only child of Yvonne and David Evans.[5][6] He was raised as a Jehovah's Witness, though he left the religion when he was 16 and left school at the same time.[7]

At the age of seventeen, he moved to Cardiff,[8] where he studied under the supervision of Louise Ryan, an established singing coach.[9] In 1997 he won a scholarship to The London Studio Centre in Kings Cross, London.[10] He graduated in 2000.

Career

Evans at the 2011 WonderCon

From 2000 to 2008 Evans starred in many of London's West End productions including La Cava, Taboo, Rent, Miss Saigon and Avenue Q as well as several fringe shows in London and at the Edinburgh Festival.

In 2008, he landed his most significant theatre role playing Vincent in the play Small Change written and directed by Peter Gill at the Donmar Warehouse, it was significant in that he gained recognition from film casting directors and US agencies from this play and he was also nominated for the Evening Standard award for best newcomer because of his performance in Small Change. Later that same year he did his second show at the Donmar Warehouse, Piaf, in which he played Yves Montand.

Evans got his first film audition aged thirty. In 2009, he landed his first film, playing the Greek god Apollo in the 2010 remake Clash of the Titans. Also in 2010, he appeared as Clive in the film Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, directed by Matt Whitecross, as the Sheriff of Nottingham's thug in Robin Hood, alongside Matthew Macfadyen (whom he would later play alongside again in The Three Musketeers), and played handyman and good guy Andy, in director Stephen Frears' film Tamara Drewe, based on Posy Simmond's comic strip. Evans went on to portray DI Craig Stokes in Blitz (2011), the film adaptation of Ken Bruen's novel of the same name, in which he starred with Jason Statham and Paddy Considine. In early 2010, he shot the independent movie, Flutter, directed by Giles Borg.

Evans played the Musketeer Aramis in Paul W. S. Anderson's version of The Three Musketeers (filmed in 2010 and released in 2011). He was cast in a lead role in Tarsem Singh's Greek epic, Immortals (2011), in which he played the King of the Gods, Zeus. And at the end of 2010, he took a role opposite John Cusack in James McTeigue's film The Raven, replacing Jeremy Renner. In the film, released in 2012 and set in mid-19th century Baltimore, Evans played Detective Emmett Fields, who investigates a series of murders alongside Cusack's Edgar Allan Poe.[11] Shooting took place in Budapest and Serbia in November 2010.

In 2011, he shot No One Lives, a psychological horror film directed by Ryuhei Kitamara, in New Orleans, and began filming a role in Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, playing the role of Bard the Bowman.[2]

In 2013, Evans played the antagonist Owen Shaw in Furious 6, and in 2014, he played Dracula in the film Dracula Untold.[12][13][14]

Evans was cast as Eric Draven in the reboot of The Crow. In January 2015, it was announced that he officially exited the project to pursue other projects.[15] In June 2014, Evans join the cast of the upcoming film High Rise with Tom Hiddleston and Jeremy Irons.[16] In October 2014, it was announced that he had signed to star in Free Fire, directed by Ben Wheatley and co-starring Cillian Murphy, Olivia Wilde and Armie Hammer.[17] In March 2015, it was announced that he would be playing the role of the villainous Gaston in Disney's upcoming live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast, which co-stars Emma Watson.[18]

Personal life

Evans is openly gay. In a 2002 interview, he said, "Everybody knew me as a gay man, and in my life in London I never tried to hide it," and that by being open he would not have "that skeleton in the closet they can rattle out".[19] In 2004, he said his acting career had not suffered by being out.[20] In 2015, he was named one of GQ's 50 best dressed British men.[21]

Filmography

Year Film Role Notes
2002 Taboo Billy Video
2009 Don't Press Benjamin's Buttons Benjamin's Father Short
2010 Cowards and Monsters Paul Short
2010 Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll Clive Richards
2010 Clash of the Titans Apollo
2010 Robin Hood Sheriff's Thug
2010 Tamara Drewe Andy Cobb
2011 Blitz DI Craig Stokes
2011 The Three Musketeers Aramis
2011 Immortals Zeus
2011 Flutter Adrian
2012 Ashes Crewcut
2012 The Raven Inspector Emmett Fields
2012 No One Lives Driver
2012 The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Girion, Lord of Dale Extended Edition only
2013 Fast & Furious 6 Owen Shaw[22]
2013 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Bard / Girion, Lord of Dale
2013 The Great Train Robbery Bruce Reynolds TV Series: 2 Episodes
2014 Dracula Untold Vlad III Țepeș/Dracula
2014 The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Bard
2015 High Rise Richard Wilder Post production
2015 Furious 7 Owen Shaw

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result Work
2014 Monte-Carlo Television Festival Outstanding Actor in a Mini-Series Nominated The Great Train Robbery
2014 Acapulco Black Film Festival Best Ensemble Cast Nominated Furious 6

References

  1. ^ a b "Evans finds himself among the stars". walesonline. 8 September 2010. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  2. ^ a b Fleming, Mike (16 June 2011). "Luke Evans To Play Bard in 'The Hobbit'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 16 June 2011.
  3. ^ Justin Vactor. "Luke". Screen Rant. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  4. ^ "Pontypool-born Luke Evans hopes to be new Bourne star". walesonline. 9 April 2011. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  5. ^ "Aberbargoed actor Luke Evans' success in Hollywood". Wales Online. 3 June 2010. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  6. ^ Rachel Mainwaring (30 May 2010). "Welsh actor Luke Evans is hot Hollywood property". Wales Online. Retrieved 25 July 2013.
  7. ^ "Hobbit star Luke Evans swaps the valleys for the Shire". The Guardian. 7 December 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2013.
  8. ^ "Luke Evans Interview TAMARA DREWE". Collider. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  9. ^ "Welsh actor Luke Evans is hot Hollywood property". walesonline. 29 May 2010. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  10. ^ Mo-Net s.r.l. Milano-Firenze. "Luke Evans". mymovies.it. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  11. ^ Leins, Jeff. "Luke Evans, Alice Eve Join 'The Raven'". News in Film. Retrieved 13 October 2010.
  12. ^ Mike Fleming Jr. "'The Crow' Reboot Flies With Luke Evans - Deadline". Deadline. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  13. ^ The Deadline Team. "Universal Dates 'Dracula' Origin Pic For August 8, 2014 - Deadline". Deadline. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  14. ^ Pamela McClintock. "Title Change: 'Dracula' Renamed 'Dracula Untold'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  15. ^ "Luke Evans Officially Exits 'The Crow' Reboot; Relativity Seeking New Star". TheWrap. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  16. ^ Oliver Lyttelton (13 June 2014). "'The Hobbit' Star Luke Evans Joins Tom Hiddleston in Ben Wheatley's 'High Rise'". Indie Wire. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
  17. ^ Leo Barraclough. "Luke Evans to Star in Ben Wheatley's 'Free Fire'". Variety. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  18. ^ "Luke Evans To Star Opposite Emma Watson In Disney's Beauty And The Beast".
  19. ^ Barclay, Paris (3 September 2002). "Breaking the Taboo". The Advocate. p. 55. Retrieved 4 August 2011. available online
  20. ^ "Luke Goes Hardcore" (PDF). QX Magazine. July 2004. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
  21. ^ "50 Best Dressed Men in Britain 2015". GQ. 5 January 2015.
  22. ^ "Luke Evans Joins Sixth 'Fast & Furious' Film". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 25 July 2013.

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