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Kathryn Bailey Beckinsale (born 26 July 1973) is an English actress, known for her roles in the films Pearl Harbor (2001), Underworld (2003) and Van Helsing (2004). Born in London, Beckinsale was the daughter of actor 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. Beckinsale's paternal great-grandfather was Burmese, and Beckinsale has said that she was "very oriental-looking" as a child. Beckinsale attended the private Godolphin and Latymer School, an all-girls independent school in London. In her teens, Beckinsale twice won the W. H. Smith Young Writers' competition — once for three short stories and once for three poems. 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, though she did not finish her degree. She thought that having an academic background studying foreign language and literature would broaden her range of acting roles. Petite and pretty, with dark hair, pale skin and flashing eyes, Kate Beckinsale made a strong film debut as the virginal Hero in Kenneth Branagh's sun-dappled adaptation of "Much Ado About Nothing" (1993). Although she was a screen novice, the actress projected the requisite intelligence and star quality that deemed her one to watch. As the daughter of comic Richard Beckinsale (who died when she was five years old) and actress Judy Loe, it was perhaps inevitable that she would eventually find her way to the limelight. Beckinsale, however, spent a good portion of her teen years struggling with an eating disorder (of which she has spoken frankly in interviews) before she decided to try her hand at acting. After a bit part in the BBC mystery "Devices and Desires" (1991), she landed the pivotal role of the rebellious daughter of a British woman (Judy Davis) involved with the French Resistance during WWII in "One Against the Wind" (CBS, 1991). Once she had become established as an ingénue with "Much Ado About Nothing,” Beckinsale carefully crafted a career path that would not find her typecast. Born on July 26, 1973 in London, England, Beckinsale pursued her education at Godolphin & Latymer School, then Oxford University, where she took up acting. In "Royal Deceit/The Prince of Jutland" (1994), which was based on the Danish prince whose life inspired Shakespeare's "Hamlet,” she starred opposite Christian Bale. A lighter, more charming side to the actress was displayed in "Marie-Louise, or The Leave" (1995), in which she played a young woman searching for her lover in a crowded train station. Beckinsale delivered a strong turn as the meddlesome orphan taken in by eccentric relatives in the brittle comedy "Cold Comfort Farm" (also 1995). As Flora Poste, she anchored the film and managed to make a busybody character seem charming, and in some ways it was a warm-up for her tackling "Jane Austen's Emma" (BBC/AE, 1996). Although Douglas McGrath's feature version starring Gwyneth Paltrow had opened on American screens first, this version found its partisans who felt it was more faithful to the spirit of Austen. Capitalizing on the sass and intelligence she had projected in both "Cold Comfort Farm" and "Jane Austen's Emma", Beckinsale shone as an aristocratic med student who falls in with two charming con men (Dan Futterman and Stuart Townsend) in the underrated caper flick "Shooting Fish" (1997). Adopting a flawless American accent, the actress next registered as the bitchy junior publishing executive seeking fun and perhaps Mr. Right in Whit Stillman's "The Last Days of Disco" (1998). The following year, Beckinsale retained the Americanisms to portray a mousy tourist in Thailand who falls for a slick Australian, dragging herself and her traveling companion (Claire Danes) into accusations of drug smuggling in "Brokedown Palace.” After time out for motherhood, she returned to the big screen as Nick Nolte's daughter in the Merchant Ivory adaptation of Henry James' "The Golden Bowl" (2000). 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 quit the university and concentrate on her acting career. Kate starred in a 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 and in stage roles, including the well-received Cold Comfort Farm, opposite British silver and small screen notables Rufus Sewell, Eileen Atkins, Joanna Lumley and Stephen Fry. Her 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, after actress Charlize Theron turned down the part. 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 were high-profile, but were given a somewhat poor critical reception, including Serendipity (2001), Underworld (2003) and Van Helsing (2004). Notably, she appeared as Ava Gardner in 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 at the #1 spot at the box office, grossing over $26 million in its first weekend of release. On January 24, 2006, Beckinsale was featured on the MTV series, Punk'd. The set-up for the segment took place at the Avalon Hotel in Los Angeles. Also in 2006, Beckinsale appeared in the comedy-drama Click starring Adam Sandler , which opened on June 23. Next, Beckinsale replaced Sarah Jessica Parker in the film Vacancy, released in 2007. Her next role will be in Snow Angels, which is in post-production and scheduled for release some time in 2008. At Comic-Con 2007, Kate expressed interest in playing Catwoman in the current Christopher Nolan directed Batman films. In April of 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, someone said, 'Oh I hear you're doing Barbarella,' 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." Her highest profile role to date came in "Underworld" (2003), a glossy supernatural thriller with Romeo-and-Juliet overtones, in which Beckinsale played Selene, a vampire embroiled in her kind's long feud with a werewolf clan who falls in love with one of her blood enemies (Scott Speedman). Beckinsale followed up with another action-packed supernatural thriller, teaming with Hugh Jackman for "Van Helsing" (2004), in which she played Anna Valerious, a vampire slayer from a long line committed to ending the reign of Count Dracula who teams with the count's longtime human foe. The actress was better served by her next project, director Martin Scorsese's Howard Hughes glamorous and visually arresting biopic "The Aviator" (2004), in which the actress provided a sultry spark as the fiery film icon Ava Gardner, Hughes' (Leonardo DiCaprio) most challenging, yet sympathetic, paramour. Beckinsale next revived the vampire Selene for the sequel, “Underworld: Evolution” (2006), as vampires and werewolves battle each other for ultimate control of the undead. As the violence between the two warring factions increases, Selene and her werewolf beau, Michael (Scott Speedman), try to uncover the secrets of the conflict while delving into their own pasts. Despite poor reviews, “Underworld: Evolution” managed to rake in a descent payday. Meanwhile, she starred opposite Adam Sandler in “Click” (2006), a middlebrow comedy about an overworked architect (Sandler) whose life seemingly changes for the better when a strange Bed, Bath and Beyond clerk gives him a universal remote that can pause, rewind or fast-forward anything—barking dog included. But as the remote gets stuck on fast-forward, causing him to miss all the important events in his life, he realizes that it’s probably better to take the bad with the good rather than let his whole life pass before his eyes. Returning to the horror genre—an apparent favorite for the actress—Beckinsale starred in “Vacancy” (2007), another in a long line of suspense thrillers released in the early part of the century. In this all-too-obvious take on “Psycho,” Beckinsale played the soon-to-be ex-wife of a man (Luke Wilson) forced to spend the night at a seedy motel run by an odd, but seemingly harmless proprietor (Frank Whaley). But the couple soon discovers that the cache of homemade slasher flicks they have found were shot in the very room in which they are staying—both must put aside their differences and work together in order to avoid becoming the next victims of the sadistic filmmakers. While most horror thriller are brushed off by critics as being redundant and tedious, “Vacancy” received its fair share of positive reviews. Beckinsale and her ex-boyfriend Michael Sheen have a daughter, Lily Mo Sheen (born January 31, 1999). She reported in interviews that during her pregnancy with Lily was the only time she's ever stopped smoking. During the Underworld shoot, Beckinsale split from Sheen, who starred as her mortal enemy, Lucian, leader of the Lycans. She became involved with the director of the film, Len Wiseman. In June 2003, Beckinsale became engaged to Wiseman, and the two were married on 9 May 2004 in Bel-Air, California. |
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