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- Actress
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This stunning and resourceful actress has been primarily a film player thus far. Only recently has she been opening herself up more to doing television (the series Gemini Division (2008), which she executive-produced), and animated voice-overs. Dawson's powerhouse talent stands out the most in edgy, urban filming that dates back to 1995 when she was only sixteen.
A rags-to-riches article entitled "Rosario Dawson: From Tenement to Tinseltown" probably says it all. Rosario was born on May 9, 1979 in New York City. Her mother, Isabel Celeste, of Puerto Rican and Afro-Cuban descent, is a singer, and her stepfather, who raised her, Greg Dawson, of Irish descent, is a construction laborer. Her parents, who married when both were teenagers, eventually divorced. Rosario and her younger brother, Clay Dawson, had it hard while growing up, and were cared for by family members, most of whom were poverty-stricken, and some of whom were HIV-positive.
Her career actually started as a child when she made a minor showing on the children's show, Sesame Street (1969). As the story goes, she was "discovered" as an adolescent on her front porch step by two photographers. One of them, Harmony Korine, was an aspiring screenwriter who thought the inexperienced sixteen-year-old was ideal for the controversial cult film Kids (1995), in which she would portray a sexually active adolescent. It took time for Rosario's film career to kick in after that, but by the late 1990s, she had nabbed several independent films. Since then, she has moved into main-stream hits (and misses) and has surprised viewers with her earthy, provocative, uninhibited approach to her roles.
Reflecting New York's tougher, tawdrier side as assorted streetwalkers, homeless mothers, drug addicts, etc., her film highlights have included Light It Up (1999), Edward Burns' Sidewalks of New York (2001), Spike Lee's 25th Hour (2002) and Shattered Glass (2003). For Oliver Stone, she portrayed the duped bride of Colin Farrell's famed B.C. Macedonian warrior, Alexander (2004) (as in "...the Great"), which featured a notoriously violent-tinged nude/sex scene.
Expanding her horizons beyond film, she has always expressed interest in singing. She hooked up with Prince for the re-release of his 1980s hit "1999" and appeared in The Chemical Brothers' video for the song "Out of Control" from the album "Surrender". She is also featured on the Outkast track, "She Lives in My Lap". On stage, she co-starred as Julia in a revival of "Two Gentlemen of Verona" at the Public Theater's "Shakespeare in the Park" and appeared in "The Vagina Monologues".
She lucked into and got to show off her singing chops in the film adaptation of the hit New York musical Rent (2005), when Daphne Rubin-Vega, the original Mimi, became pregnant and was unable to reprise her exotic dancer role. Rosario also appeared as a prostitute in the adaptation of the graphic novel Sin City (2005). Of late, she has turned to producing. One of those, Descent (2007), had her playing a college coed who is brutally attacked and raped by a fellow student. Her more popular ventures have thus far included the role of Valerie Brown in the live-action version of the comic strip Josie and the Pussycats (2001), the Will Smith starrer Men in Black II (2002), Eagle Eye (2008) with Shia LaBeouf and Seven Pounds (2008), again with Smith, in which she offered one of her more tender-hearted performances as a woman with a potentially fatal heart condition.
More recent millennium films opposite some of Hollywood's top leading movie men include the tense actioneer Unstoppable (2010) with Denzel Washington and Chris Pine; the comedy/fantasy Zookeeper (2011) opposite Dalekmania (1995); romantic dramedy 10 Years (2011) with Channing Tatum; crime drama Fire with Fire (2012) with Bruce Willis; romantic comedy Top Five (2014) with Chris Rock; and action adventure Zombieland: Double Tap (2019) with Woody Harrelson. She has also top-lined independent films with her own feisty characters such as the thriller Unforgettable (2017) and the title role in the dramedy Krystal (2017).
Focusing also on TV projects, Rosario has graced such action series/mini-series as Daredevil (2015), Iron Fist (2017) and The Defenders (2017), as well as the comedy Jane the Virgin (2014) and animated cartoon series The Last Kids on Earth (2019).
Off-camera, the still-single Dawson is highly active in political, social and environmental causes and has been involved with such organizations/charities/campaigns as the Lower East Side Girls Club, Global Cool, the O.N.E. Campaign, Oxfam, Amnesty International, Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Control Arms, International Rescue Committee, Voto Latino (which she founded), Conservation International, Doctors Without Borders, National Geographic Society, The Nature Conservancy and Save the Children. In October 2008, she lent her voice to the RESPECT! Campaign, a movement aimed at preventing domestic violence.- Actor
- Producer
- Additional Crew
John Corbett is an American actor who received Primetime Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor, for his role as Chris Stevens in Northern Exposure (1990), and a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Aidan Shaw in Sex and the City (1998).
John was born John Joseph Corbett on May 9, 1961 in Wheeling, West Virginia, to Sandra (Pavilack) and John Marshall Corbett. He is of English, Irish, Lithuanian, and Russian-Jewish descent. John was raised Catholic, and graduated from Wheeling Central Catholic High School in 1979. He subsequently worked at a boiler-making factory in California for six years. After sustaining an injury, he left the factory to enroll at Cerritos College in Norwalk, California to study hairdressing, and took acting classes in the evenings.
Corbett began his acting career with a guest role in The Wonder Years (1988). His breakthrough role came two years later when he was cast as Chris Stevens in Northern Exposure (1990), for which he received Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations. He then played the lead role in The Visitor (1997), for which he received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Actor. Corbett portrayed one of Sarah Jessica Parker's love interests in Sex and the City (1998), for which he received his second Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
In 2002, he starred as the male lead opposite Nia Vardalos in the blockbuster romantic comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), and reprised his role in its sequel, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016). Corbett also starred as the husband of Toni Collette's character in United States of Tara (2009), and portrayed guitarist Josiah 'Flash' Bacon in Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2015).
Corbett has been in a relationship with actress Bo Derek since 2002, and the couple reside on a ranch in Santa Ynez, California. Aside from acting, he has released two country music albums, "John Corbett" in 2006 and "Leaving Nothin' Behind" in 2013.- Actor
- Writer
- Soundtrack
Chris grew up splitting his time between Greece and Canada. At age 9, he started doing TV commercials and professional theater. He left home at 18 to perform in a series of US national tours after which, he landed on Broadway. Chris now splits his time between New York and Los Angeles acting in TV and Film. Also an established voice-over artist, he can be heard on numerous national campaigns and networks.- Actress
- Producer
Wendy Jane Crewson is a Canadian actress and producer. She began her career appearing on Canadian television, before her breakthrough role in 1991 dramatic film The Doctor. Crewson has appeared in many Hollywood films, including The Good Son (1993), The Santa Clause (1994) and its sequels The Santa Clause 2 (2002) and The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (2006), as well as Air Force One (1997), Bicentennial Man (1999), What Lies Beneath (2000), The 6th Day (2000), The Covenant (2006) and Eight Below (2006). She also starred in a number of independent movies, such as Better Than Chocolate (1999), Suddenly Naked (2001), Perfect Pie (2002), Away from Her (2006), Into the Forest (2015) and Room (2015). Crewson has won six Gemini Awards, two Canadian Screen Awards and ACTRA Award for her performances on television. She played leading roles in a number of television films, include playing Joanne Kilbourn in six movies based on novels by Gail Bowen. She had recurring roles on American television series 24 and Revenge, and the Canadian television series Frankie Drake Mysteries. From 2012 to 2017, Crewson co-starred in the CTV medical drama Saving Hope.- Anna-Louise Plowman is a graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and the Lecoq School in Paris. Originally from New Zealand, she has worked in theatre, film & television in London, Tokyo, Hong-Kong, Dublin, Sydney & Paris.
- Actor
- Producer
- Writer
Noah Centineo is an American actor. He portrayed Jesus Adams Foster in The Fosters (2013), for which he was nominated for a Teen Choice Award. Since then, he has received both critical acclaim and audience adoration for starring in a series of romantic comedy films, beginning with To All the Boys I've Loved Before (2018), as heartthrob Peter Kavinsky, and then onwards with Sierra Burgess Is a Loser (2018), Swiped (2018), The Perfect Date (2019), and To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You (2020).
Noah Gregory Centineo was born on May 9, 1996 in Miami, Florida, to Kellee (Andres) and Gregory Centineo, a businessman and former pastor. He is of Italian and German descent. Noah grew up in Boynton Beach, Florida with his older sister, Taylor. He attended BAK Middle School of the Arts and Boca Raton Community High School, before moving to Los Angeles in 2012 at the age of sixteen.
Noah made his acting debut as Josh Peters in the family film The Gold Retrievers (2009). His first notable role was as Jaden Stark in the Disney Channel film How to Build a Better Boy (2014). He was subsequently cast in the Disney Channel comedy pilot Growing Up and Down (2014), before landing the role of Jesus Adams Foster in The Fosters (2013), taking over the role from Jake T. Austin. In 2017, he was nominated for the Teen Choice Award for Choice Summer TV Star: Male.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
One cool, eternally classy lady, Candice Bergen was elegantly poised for trendy "ice princess" stardom when she first arrived on the '60s screen, but she gradually reshaped that débutante image in the '70s, both on- and off-camera. A staunch, outspoken feminist with a decisive edge, she went on to take a sizable portion of those contradicting qualities to film and, most particularly, to late 1980s TV.
The daughter of famed ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and former actress and "Chesterfield Girl" model Frances Bergen (née Westerman), Candice Patricia Bergen was born in Beverly Hills, California, of Swedish, German, and English descent. At the age of six, she made her radio debut on her father's show. She attended Westlake School for Girls in Los Angeles, the Cathedral School in Washington D.C. and then went abroad to the Montesano (finishing) School in Switzerland. Although she began taking art history and creative drawing at the University of Pennsylvania, she did not complete her studies.
In between she also worked as a Ford model in order to buy cameras for her new passion--photography. Her Grace Kelly-like glacial beauty deemed her an ideal candidate for Ivy League patrician roles, and Candice made an auspicious film debut while still a college student portraying the Vassar-styled lesbian member of Sidney Lumet's The Group (1966) in an ensemble that included the debuts of other lovely up-and-comers including Kathleen Widdoes, Carrie Nye, Joan Hackett and Joanna Pettet.
Film offers started coming her way, both here and abroad (spurred by her love for travel). Other than her top-notch roles as the co-ed who comes between Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel in Carnal Knowledge (1971) and her prim American lady kidnapped by Moroccan sheik Sean Connery in The Wind and the Lion (1975), her performances were deemed a bit too aloof to really stand out among the crowd. During this time, she found a passionate second career as a photographer and photojournalist. A number of her works went on to appear in an assortment of magazines including Life, Playboy and Esquire.
Most of Candice's 1970s films were dismissible and unworthy of her talents, including the campus comedy Getting Straight (1970) opposite the hip counterculture star of the era -- Elliott Gould; the disturbingly violent Soldier Blue (1970); the epic-sized bomb The Adventurers (1970); T.R. Baskin (1971); Bite the Bullet (1975); The Domino Principle (1977), Lina Wertmüller's long-winded and notoriously long-titled Italian drama A Night Full of Rain (1978); and the inferior sequel to the huge box-office soaper Love Story (1970), entitled Oliver's Story (1978) alongside original star Ryan O'Neal. Things picked up toward the second half of the decade, however, when the seemingly humorless Candice made a clever swipe at comedy. She made history as the first female guest host of Saturday Night Live (1975) and then showed an equally amusing side of her in the dramedy Starting Over (1979) as Burt Reynolds' tone-deaf ex-wife, enjoying a "best supporting actress" Oscar nomination in the process. She and Jacqueline Bisset also worked well as a team in George Cukor's Rich and Famous (1981), in which her mother Frances could be glimpsed in a Malibu party scene.
Candice made her Broadway debut in 1985 replacing Sigourney Weaver in David Rabe's black comedy "Hurlyburly". In 1980 Candice married Louis Malle, the older (by 14 years) French director. They had one child, Chloe. In the late 1980s, Candice hit a new career plateau on comedy television as the spiky title role on Murphy Brown (1988), giving great gripe as the cynical and competitive anchor/reporter of a TV magazine show. With a superlative supporting cast around her, the CBS sitcom went the distance (ten seasons) and earned Candice a whopping five Emmys and two Golden Globe awards. TV-movie roles also came her way as a result with colorful roles ranging from the evil Arthurian temptress "Morgan Le Fey" to an elite, high-classed madam -- all many moons away from her initial white-gloved debs of the late 60s.
Husband Malle's illness and subsequent death from cancer in 1995 resulted in Candice maintaining a low profile for an extended period. In time, however, she married a second time (since 2000) to Manhattan real estate developer Marshall Rose and returned to acting with a renewed vigor (or vinegar), with many of her characters enjoyable extensions of her sardonic "Murphy Brown" character. As for TV, she joined the 2005 cast of Boston Legal (2004) playing a brash, no-nonsense lawyer while trading barbs with a much less serious William Shatner, earning an Emmy nomination in the process. In 2018, Candice revisited her Murphy Brown character in a revised series form with many of the cast back on board. The show, however, was cancelled after only one season.
Candice also ventured into the romantic comedy film genre with a spray of crisp supports -- sometimes as a confidante, sometimes as a villain. Such films include Miss Congeniality (2000), Sweet Home Alabama (2002), The In-Laws (2003), Sex and the City (2008), The Women (2008), Bride Wars (2009), A Merry Friggin' Christmas (2014), Rules Don't Apply (2016), The Meyerowitz Stories (2017), Home Again (2017) and Book Club (2018).- Actress
- Director
- Producer
Sonja Sohn was born on 9 May 1964 in Fort Benning, Georgia, USA. She is an actress and director, known for Slam (1998), The Wire (2002) and Bringing Out the Dead (1999). She was previously married to Adam Plack.- Grace Jane Gummer (born May 9, 1986) is an American actress. She received a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in the 2011 revival of Arcadia. Her television work includes recurring roles in The Newsroom (2012) and American Horror Story (2011): Freak Show, and regular roles in Extant and Mr. Robot. Gummer was born in New York City. The daughter of actress Meryl Streep and sculptor Don Gummer, she grew up in Los Angeles and Connecticut, with her older siblings, musician Henry Gummer and actress Mamie Gummer, and younger sister, model Louisa Jacobson.
Gummer (billed as Jane Grey) appeared with Streep in the 1993 film The House of the Spirits, as the younger version of her mother's character, Clara del Valle. After graduating from her mother's alma mater Vassar College with a degree in Art History and Italian, she made her stage debut in 2008 in Lukas Bärfuss's The Sexual Neuroses of Our Parents. From 2010-11, she starred as Anna Moore on the TeenNick show Gigantic, which premiered October 8, 2010.
Gummer appeared in the 2010 film Meskada, in which she played the role of Nat Collins, before playing Abby in Bashert (2010) with Paulo Costanzo. She also had a small role as a student in Julia Roberts' class in Larry Crowne (2011), which was directed by Tom Hanks.
In the spring of 2011, she performed the role of Chloe Coverly in the revival of Arcadia by Tom Stoppard at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre in New York.
Gummer appeared as Katie Rand on the NBC television series Smash on March 26, 2012, in the episode entitled "The Coup". The character Katie Rand is a humanitarian attempting to bring peace to her divorcing parents, including mother played by Anjelica Huston.
Gummer had a recurring role on the 2013 television series Zero Hour and joined the cast of the HBO series The Newsroom beginning in its second season, which premiered on July 14, 2013.
In 2014 and 2015, Gummer starred alongside Halle Berry on both seasons of the CBS show Extant.
On January 29, 2016, it was announced that Gummer had joined the cast of the USA Network series Mr. Robot as a series regular in the role of FBI field agent Dominique "Dom" DiPierro. She will also co-star opposite Daniel Radcliffe and Laurence Fishburne in the action-thriller Beast of Burden. - Actress
- Additional Crew
Mary Mouser was born on 9 May 1996 in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, USA. She is an actress, known for Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (2014), Son of the Mask (2005) and Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children (2005).- Cree Cicchino was born in Queens, New York on May 9, 2002. She was just four years old when she performed as a dancer for the first time in her life. As a dancer, she is especially fond to the styles of hip hop and jazz funk. As a child, she dreamed only to be a professional dancer but her interest in acting got induced later.
After her mother introduced her in a sketch comedy group, she also induced her interest in acting and now she is an emerging talent in the acting world. Cree got her rise to fame after she began playing the lead role of fan favorite Babe Carano in Game Shakers (2015).
Cree also took some singing lessons. She revealed that when she was younger, she wanted to be a big singer and dancer like Rihanna. She has started posting her dance videos on YouTube. Moving forward, she plans to make more appearances in movies, shows, and maybe an album launch; the possibilities are endless for the teenager. - Actor
- Producer
- Director
The son of a Lancashire bookmaker, Albert Finney came to motion pictures via the theatre. In 1956, he won a scholarship to RADA where his fellow alumni included Peter O'Toole and Alan Bates. He joined the Birmingham Repertory where he excelled in plays by William Shakespeare. A member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Finney understudied Laurence Olivier at Stratford-upon-Avon, eventually acquiring a reputation as 'the new Olivier'. He first came to critical attention by creating the title role in Keith Waterhouse's "Billy Liar" on the London stage. His film debut soon followed with The Entertainer (1960) by Tony Richardson with whom had earlier worked in the theatre. With the changing emphasis in 60s British cinema towards gritty realism and working-class milieus, Finney's typical screen personae became good-looking, often brooding proletarian types and rebellious anti-heroes as personified by his Arthur Seaton in Karel Reisz's Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960). His exuberant defining role, however, was in the bawdy period romp Tom Jones (1963) in which Finney revealed a substantial talent for comedy. In the same vein, he scored another hit opposite Audrey Hepburn in the charming marital comedy Two for the Road (1967).
By 1965, Finney had branched out into production, setting up Memorial Enterprises in conjunction with Michael Medwin. In 1968, he directed himself in Charlie Bubbles (1968) and three years later produced the Chandleresque homage Gumshoe (1971), in which he also starred as Eddie Ginley, a bingo-caller with delusions of becoming a private eye. From 1972 to 1975, Finney served as artistic director of the Royal Court Theatre. His intermittent forays to the screen confirmed him as a versatile international actor of note, though not what one might describe as a mainstream star. His roles have ranged from Ebenezer Scrooge in the musical version of Scrooge (1970) to Daddy Warbucks in Annie (1982) and (in flamboyant over-the-top make-up) Hercule Poirot in Murder on the Orient Express (1974). He appeared as Minister of Police Joseph Fouché in Ridley Scott's superb period drama The Duellists (1977) and as a grandiloquent Shakespearean actor in The Dresser (1983) for which he received an Oscar nomination. For the small screen Finney essayed Pope John Paul II (1984) and was a totally believable Winston Churchill in the acclaimed The Gathering Storm (2002). His final movie credit was in the James Bond thriller Skyfall (2012).
Finney was five-times nominated for Academy Awards in 1964, 1975, 1984, 1985 and 2001. He won two BAFTA Awards in 1961 and 2004. True to his working-class roots, he spurned a CBE in 1980 and a knighthood in 2000, later explaining his decision by stating that the 'Sir thing' "slightly perpetuates one of our diseases in England, which is snobbery". Albert Finney was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2011. He died on February 7 2019 at a London hospital from a chest infection at the age of 82. Upon his death, John Cleese described him as "the best" and "our greatest actor".- Actress
- Soundtrack
Geraldine McEwan was born in Old Windsor, England and made her theatre debut at the age of 14 at the Theatre Royal in Windsor. By the age of 18 she was starring in London's West End in several long-running popular productions. During the 1950s she acted with the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford-Upon-Avon and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1961.
She had leading roles as Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing with Christopher Plummer, Ophelia in Hamlet, The Princess of France in Love's Labour's Lost, Marina in Pericles and played opposite Dorothy Tutin in Twelfth Night which also toured Moscow and Leningrad.
Miss McEwan originated the female lead role in Joe Orton's Loot, captivated Broadway with productions of The School for Scandal, The Private Ear and the Public Eye, and most recently, The Chairs, earning her a Tony nomination for best actress.
As a member of the Royal National Theatre, acting along side Albert Finney, and Laurence Olivier, Geraldine spent the 1960s and 70s with memorable roles including The Dance of Death, Love for Love, A Flea in Her Ear, Chez Nous, Home and Beauty, The Browning Version, Harlequinade and The White Devil. In 1976 she had the distinction of being nominated for an Olivier Award in two separate categories.
In 1983 she won the Evening Standard Best Actress Award for The Rivals. In 1991 she won the BAFTA Best Actress Award for her intense and powerful performance as the Mother in Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (1989) and in 1995 she won the Evening Standard Best Actress Award for her performance of Lady Wishfort in The Way of the World.
In 1998, McEwan was nominated for a Tony Award in the Best Actress Category for The Chairs. Her numerous television credits include the highly acclaimed The Barchester Chronicles (1982) with Alan Rickman, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1978), Mulberry (1992), and the immensely popular Mapp & Lucia (1985). Her film work includes The Dance of Death (1969) with Laurence Olivier, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) with Alan Rickman, Henry V (1989) and Love's Labour's Lost (2000), both with Kenneth Branagh, and most recently The Magdalene Sisters (2002), The Lazarus Child (2004), Vanity Fair (2004) and Carrie's War (2004). In 2003, Geraldine was chosen to play Agatha Christie's Jane Marple. She recently retired from that role after completing 12 hugely popular two-hour mysteries for ITV/PBS.- Actor
- Additional Crew
- Soundtrack
This African American actor attended Penn Hills High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He started his junior year at 6' 5" and finished it at 6' 9"! He played basketball throughout his high-school years and won a scholarship. He averaged 18 points a game and 10 rebounds! He played basketball during college, but not when it would interfere with his major at George Washington University in Washington, DC, which was Theatrical Arts. During his college years, he met Jay Fenichel with whom he would later make musical productions. Upon graduation, Fenichel moved to Los Angeles and Hall moved to Venezuela to play basketball.
After a year, Hall lost interest and relocated to Los Angeles, California. Along with Fenichel, the duo put together two night-club acts/musicals. One was a semi-autobiographical two-man musical, "In Five," and the other was a two-man show called "The Worst of Friends," both of which played in night clubs throughout the LA area. They also had a promotional business where they did promotional acts in department stores for new products.
While working on the set of the series 227 (1985), he met his co-star, Alaina Reed-Hall, who played Rose Lee Holloway. They married--both on the set, and in real life. Predator 2 (1990) was released December 1990, and in April 1991, he died of AIDS, which he contracted through a blood transfusion a few months before.- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Rachel Boston was born and raised in Signal Mountain, Tennessee. At 17, she moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. At 19, Boston drove to Los Angeles and began filming NBC's award-winning Television Series, American Dreams (2002).
For her starring role as Mindy in the independent feature The Pill (2011), Boston was honored with the Stargazer Award for the most talented emerging actress at the Gen Art Film Festival in New York City, the Best Actress Award from the San Diego Film Festival, and the Emerging Artist Award from the Big Apple Film Festival. Filmed in Manhattan, "The Pill", also took home the Gen Art Film Festival Audience Award.
She previously appeared, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, in the Golden Globe® nominated film, 500 Days of Summer (2009), which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and went on to win an Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay. She also co-starred, alongside Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner, in the romantic comedy, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009).
Boston starred as Ingrid Beauchamp in the television series, Witches of East End (2013). Previously, Boston starred on the USA series In Plain Sight (2008) and the CBS series The Ex List (2008). Some of her guest-starring appearances include Grey's Anatomy (2005), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000), ER (1994), NCIS (2003), Rules of Engagement (2007) and Mad Love (2011).
She lives in Los Angeles, California.- Actor
- Producer
- Cinematographer
Alex Roe was born on 9 May 1990 in Westminster, London, England, UK. He is an actor and producer, known for The 5th Wave (2016), Hot Summer Nights (2017) and Forever My Girl (2018).- Actress
- Soundtrack
Few in modern British history have come as far or achieved as much from humble beginnings as Glenda Jackson did. From acclaimed actress to respected MP (Member of Parliament), she was known for her high intelligence and meticulous approach to her work. She was born to a working-class household in Birkenhead, where her father was a bricklayer and her mother was a cleaning lady. When she was very young, her father was recruited into the Navy, where he worked aboard a minesweeper. She graduated from school at 16 and worked for a while in a pharmacy. However, she found this boring and dead-end and wanted better for herself. Her life changed forever when she was accepted into the prestigious Royal Acadamy of Dramatic Art (RADA) at the age of 18. Her work impressed all who observed it. At age 22, she married Roy Hodges.
Her first work came on the stage, where she won a role in an adaptation of "Separate Tables", and made a positive impression on critics and audiences alike. This led to film roles, modest at first, but she approached them with great determination. She first came to the public's notice when she won a supporting role in the controversial film Marat/Sade (1967), and is acknowledged to have stolen the show. She quickly became a member of Britain's A-List. Her first starring role came in the offbeat drama Negatives (1968), in which she out-shone the oddball material. The following year, controversial director Ken Russell gave her a starring role in his adaptation of the 1920s romance Women in Love (1969), in which she co-starred with Oliver Reed. The film was a major success, and Jackson's performance won her an Academy Award for Best Actress. In the process, she became an international celebrity, known world-wide, yet she didn't place as much value on the status and fame as most do. She did, however, become a major admirer of Russell (who had great admiration for her in return) and acted in more of his films. She starred in the controversial The Music Lovers (1971), although it required her to do a nude scene, something that made her very uncomfortable. The film was not a success, but she agreed to do a cameo appearance in his next film, The Boy Friend (1971). Although her role as an obnoxious actress was very small, she once again performed with great aplomb.
1971 turned out to be a key year for her. She took a risk by appearing in Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971), as a divorced businesswoman in a dead-end affair with a shallow bisexual artist, but the film turned out to be another major success. She accepted the starring role in the British Broadcasting Corporation's much anticipated biography of Queen Elizabeth I, and her performance in the finished film, Elizabeth R (1971), was praised not only by critics and fans, but is cited by historians as the most accurate portrayal of the beloved former queen ever seen. The same year, she successfully played the role of Queen Elizabeth I again in the historical drama Mary, Queen of Scots (1971). That same year, she appeared in the popular comedy series The Morecambe & Wise Show (1968) in a skit as Queen Cleopatra, which is considered on of the funniest TV skits in British television, and also proof that she could do comedy just as well as costume melodrama. One who saw and raved about her performance was director Melvin Frank, who proceeded to cast her in the romantic comedy A Touch of Class (1973), co-starring George Segal. The two stars had a chemistry which brought out the best in each other, and the film was not only a major hit in both the United States and Great Britain, but won her a second Academy Award. She continued to impress by refusing obvious commercial roles and seeking out serious artistic work. She gave strong performances in The Romantic Englishwoman (1975) and The Incredible Sarah (1976), in which she portrayed the legendary actress Sarah Bernhardt. However, some of her films didn't register with the public, like The Triple Echo (1972), The Maids (1975), and Nasty Habits (1977). In addition, her marriage fell apart in 1976. But her career remained at the top and in 1978 she was named Commander of the Order of the British Empire. That year, she made a comeback in the comedy House Calls (1978), co-starring Walter Matthau. The success of this film which led to a popular television spin-off in the United States the following year. In 1979, she and Segal re-teamed in Lost and Found (1979), but they were unable to overcome the routine script. She again co-starred with Oliver Reed in The Class of Miss MacMichael (1978), but the film was another disappointment.
During the 1980s, she appeared in Hopscotch (1980) also co-starring Walter Matthau, and HealtH (1980) with Lauren Bacall, with disappointing results, although Jackson herself was never blamed. Her performance in the TV biography Sakharov (1984), in which she played Yelena Bonner, devoted wife of imprisoned Russian nuclear scientist Andrei Sakharov opposite Jason Robards, won rave reviews. However, the next film Turtle Diary (1985), was only a modest success, and the ensemble comedy Beyond Therapy (1987) was a critical and box office disaster and Jackson herself got some of the worst reviews of her career.
As the 1980s ended, Jackson continued to act, but became more focused on public affairs. She grew up in a household that was staunchly supportive of the Labour Party. She had disliked the policies of Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, even though she admired some of her personal attributes, and strongly disapproved of Thatcher's successor, John Major. She was unhappy with the direction of British government policies, and in 1992 ran for Parliament. Although running in an area (Hampstead and Highgate) which was not heavily supportive of her party, she won by a slim margin and immediately became its most famous newly elective member. However, those who expected that she would rest on her laurels and fame were mistaken. She immediately took an interest in transportation issues, and in 1997 was appointed Junior Transportation Minister by Prime Minister Tony Blair. However, she was critical of some of Blair's policies and is considered an inter-party opponent of Blair's moderate faction. She was considered a traditional Labour Party activist, but is not affiliated with the faction known as The Looney Left. In 2000, she ran for Mayor of London, but lost the Labour nomination to fellow MP Frank Dobson, an ally of Blair, who then lost the election to an independent candidate, Ken Livingstone.
In 2005, she ran again and won the nomination, but lost to Livingstone, winning 38% of the vote. When Blair announced he would not seek reelection as Prime Minister in 2006, Jackson's name was mentioned as a possible successor, although she didn't encourage this speculation. In 2010, she sought reelection to parliament and was almost defeated, winning by only 42 votes.
In 2013, she responded to the death of Margaret Thatcher by strongly denouncing her policies, which was condemned by many as graceless. In 2015, elections for parliament were called again but she didn't seek reelection. She was succeeded in Parliament by Christopher Philp, a Conservative Party member who had been Jackson's opponent in 2010.- Music Artist
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William Martin Joel is an American singer, pianist, composer and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man" after his single and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo artist since the 1970s, having released 12 pop and rock studio albums from 1971 to 1993 as well as one studio album of classical compositions in 2001. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, as well as the seventh-best-selling recording artist and the fourth-best-selling solo artist in the United States, with over 160 million records sold worldwide. His 1985 compilation album, Greatest Hits Vol. 1 & 2, is one of the best-selling albums in the United States.- Heidi Hudson Leick, upon graduating high school, got a modeling gig in Japan; this was perfect because she loves traveling and modeling. When she returned to New York, her dream was to be an international model and then go into acting. One day, she quit modeling while in France, and pursued a TV career. After several episodes of Melrose Place (1992) and several TV movies, Hudson's big break in television came auditioning for her signature role of "Callisto" on Xena: Warrior Princess (1995). The casting people told her the part was that of a warrior queen, which she thought was great. Her audition consisted of doing a kick and throwing a chakram; having intimidated the crew, she got the part. Hudson attends Xena conventions as a guest of honor. She said her celebrity status surprises even her: when she had a birthday, several hundred fans sent her email messages. Her presence touches so many other people. She loves traveling, going on yoga retreats and climbing mountains. Hudson said at a convention, "I really want to thank all the people who have been supportive of me. It is so appreciated."
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Amy Hill's television and film credits number over 180. As a voice actor, she's been heard as recurring characters on numerous shows including "American Dad", "Lilo and Stitch" (film and series), "King of the Hill", and HBO's "Happily Ever After." She had recurring roles on "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend", "UnReal", "Preacher", and the CBS sitcom "Mom". She's was also a regular on Amazon Prime's "Just Add Magic."
She started her career in theater working with the famed Asian American Theater Company in San Francisco and continued as a teacher, director, and artistic committee member there in addition to being a part of San Francisco's improvisation and sketch-comedy scene. Hill is also known in the theatre world as a respected performance artist, having written and performed a number of one-woman shows, including the trilogy of "Tokyo Bound", "Reunion", and "Beside Myself."
She has worked with regional theaters such as The Mark Taper Forum, Berkeley Rep, Seattle Rep, Actors Theater of Louisville, and The Public Theater in New York City, and has appeared on Broadway in Lincoln Center's "Twelfth Night," which also aired on PBS' "Live from Lincoln Center." She is proud to consider East West Players as her Los Angeles Theater "home," where she has also performed, directed, and taught.- Actor
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Vijay Deverakonda named Deverakonda Vijay Sai at birth comes from a family of farmers who hail from Achampet in the Nagarkurnool district in Telangana. He is an Indian actor who works primarily in Telugu cinema.
Deverakonda studied up to the 10th standard at Sri Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School in Puttaparthi. After completing his Intermediate studies at the Little Flower Junior College in Hyderabad, he went on to do his graduation in commerce. After his graduation, he joined a theatre group called Sutradhar. His first play was Sherlock Home. The instant feedback and appreciation from the audience sparked his love for acting.
Deverakonda made his film debut with Nuvvila (2011), a romantic comedy directed by Ravi Babu. He played supporting roles in films like Life Is Beautiful (2012) and Yevade Subramanyam (2015). He was presented with a Special Jury Award at the Nandi Awards in 2017 for his supporting act in Yevade Subramanyam.
His break as a leading man came in Pelli Choopulu (2016). It was a romantic comedy directed by Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam and had Ritu Varma playing the female lead opposite him.
Pelli Choopulu bagged the Filmfare Award for Best Film in 2016 - Telugu. At the 64th National Film Awards in 2016, it was declared the winner of the Best Feature Film in the Telugu category. His next lead role was in Srinivasa Ravindra's Dwaraka (2017), a comedy-drama film that had him pairing up with Pooja Jhaveri.
Deverakonda's portrayal of the title character in his next film Arjun Reddy (2017), received critical acclaim. His convincing act in the movie as a short-tempered, self-destructive, and alcoholic surgeon with anger management issues won him the Filmfare Award for Best Actor in 2018 - Telugu. The movie went on to become a box-office success. His performance in Arjun Reddy was listed among the 100 Greatest Performances of the Decade by Film Companion in 2019.
In 2018, his film Ye Mantram Vesave (2018) was released after a delay of around five years. But it failed to make any impact at the box office, and critics found the movie to be dated.
He went on to act in films like Mahanati (2018), Nota (2018), Geetha Govindam (2018) and Taxiwala (2018), which was a supernatural comedy thriller.
His acting in Geetha Govindam (2018) won him the Zee Cine Awards Telugu in 2019 under the Favourite Actor category. He also received the Critics' Choice Best Actor Award at the South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA) 2019.
Deverakonda next starred in a romantic action drama, Dear Comrade (2019), followed by the romantic drama World Famous Lover (2020). He played the lead role in Liger (2022), a bilingual sports action film directed by Puri Jagannadh and produced under the banner of Puri Connects and Dharma Productions.
He won the Youth Icon South (Male) Award at the South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA) in 2022. He ventured into production in 2019 and backed movies under the King of the Hill Entertainment banner. The banner has been involved in the production of films like Meeku Maathrame Chepta (2019) and Pushpaka Vimanam (2021).
He ranked 72nd in the 2018 list of Celebrity 100 released by Forbes India. And he was ranked at the 2nd position in 2020's list of The Times Most Desirable Men.- Writer
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James L. Brooks was born on 9 May 1940 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is a writer and producer, known for Broadcast News (1987), As Good as It Gets (1997) and Terms of Endearment (1983). He was previously married to Holly Holmberg Brooks and Marianne Catherine Morrissey.- Actress
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Julia Chan is a British actor who grew up between Hong Kong and the UK. She is a 2010 graduate of The New School for Drama in New York and has a BA degree in History of Art and Architecture from Harvard University.
Julia played Dr. Maggie Lin on the long running hit Canadian medical drama "Saving Hope" for CTV. Recent credits include "Schitt's Creek", "Gotham", "Silent House", the 2011 thriller with Elizabeth Olsen; and "Rookie Blue" for ABC/Global. She lives in Los Angeles.- Actress
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Tessa Peake-Jones was born on 9 May 1957 in Hammersmith, London, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Only Fools and Horses (1981), Pride and Prejudice (1980) and Grantchester (2014).- Director
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Juan Antonio García Bayona is a Spanish film director. He directed the 2007 horror film The Orphanage, the 2012 drama film The Impossible, and the 2016 fantasy drama film A Monster Calls. Bayona's latest film is the 2018 science fiction adventure film Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, the fifth installment of the Jurassic Park film series. He has also directed television commercials and music videos. He will direct the first two episodes of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.- Actor
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Chris Zylka was born on May 9, 1985 in Ohio, U.S. as Christopher Michael Settlemire, but later took his mother's maiden name, "Zylka". He attended Howland High School and graduated in 2003. His hobbies have included guitar, painting, association football, basketball, baseball and reading. He studied Art at The University of Toledo in Ohio for two years, but dropped out and moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue acting.
Zylka began his career with a guest appearance on 90210 in 2008. He was soon cast in a recurring role in Everybody Hates Chris before also having guest appearances on the shows Hannah Montana, Cougar Town and Zeke and Luther. Zylka would then land another recurring role as Joey Donner, for 16 episodes, in 10 Things I Hate About You (2009). Zylka began to move into films around this time, starring as Brigg in the Made-for-TV horror My Super Psycho Sweet 16 (2009) and My Super Psycho Sweet 16: Part 2 (2010). Zylka also appeared in Kaboom (2010).
Zylka is known for his role as Jake Armstrong in the CW series The Secret Circle (2011), and for his roles in the movies Shark Night (2011), Piranha 3DD (2012), The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), and Tom Garvey in the HBO series The Leftovers (2014).- Actress
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Alley Mills was born on May 9, 1951, in Chicago, Illinois. A graduate of Yale in 1973, she studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. While still in college, Alley Mills scored a small role in the film Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970). She got her first lead role in 1979 in a short-lived television series about young lawyers entitled The Associates (1979), opposite a then yet-unknown Martin Short. After another failed sitcom in 1982, she finally caught a big break with a lead role in the critically acclaimed nostalgic 1960s-set family dramedy The Wonder Years (1988) playing matriarch Norma Arnold. After the show ended in 1993, Alley Mills continued work in television, landing a recurring role on the western drama Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman (1993) as Jane Seymour's sister. She also made numerous guest appearances shows such as NYPD Blue (1993), Sabrina the Teenage Witch (1996)and Yes, Dear (2000). She made the leap to daytime television with a guest role on the CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful (1987) as Pamela Douglas playing along-side Susan Flannery and Betty White in 2006. As the producers were thrilled with her performances, she was eventually offered a contract and continues to star on the show, occasionally taking some time off to do theatre work in the Los Angeles area, often together with her husband. Alley Mills is married to actor Orson Bean since 1993 and the couple lives in Venice, California.- Actress
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Gillian began acting at school and at the Liverpool Everyman Youth Theatre. Whilst attending, as a fourteen-year-old in 1986, she landed the role of Damon Grant's girlfriend, Debbie McGrath, in Brookside (1982). The character was originally intended to appear in just three episodes, but Debbie proved to very popular and the part went on to last for more than a year. It also led to the spin-off mini-series Damon and Debbie (1987). Gillian passed nine GCSEs at school and stayed on to take A-levels in English, French, History and General Studies. Whilst appearing on stage in plays including "Othello" and "School for Scandal", she decided she wanted to 'do it properly'. At 20, after appearing in a host of other productions including the film version of Shirley Valentine (1989), she decided to enroll at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama. The final exams for her drama degree were based on the best three performances out of four. She was offered the role of Emily Kennedy in the TV adaptation of Catherine Cookson's The Tide of Life (1996) when she had nominated the first three performances, so it became the fourth - it helped her gain a first-class degree. Gillian has since become a familiar face in quality TV drama productions and is a very highly regarded and versatile stage performer. She looks to be well set for a long and successful career in the profession.- Actor
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Born in Brooklyn, NY and raised in Fort Lauderdale, FL, Daniel Franzese is an actor/comedian of Italian American decent, Daniel Franzese is best known for his interesting and daring performances in breakthrough films: from his debut role in the intense Larry Clark drama Bully, his surprisingly dark turn in 2010's update of the highly controversial I Spit on Your Grave. but cemented his gay icon status with his breakout starring role in TinaFey's mega hit comedy Mean Girls as Damian. Lauded as one of the most influential queer characters in film history, Damian was the first time a queer teen of size who was ever comfortable in his own skin on screen. Daniel's subtle and hilarious performance is often credited with helping an entire generation of kids who felt different be able to find themselves. In a heartfelt letter to his fictional character Damian, Franzese publicly came out in 2014 trending worldwide. Speaking upon the difficulty he had navigating his career under a Gay Glass Ceiling. although he had great career highs creating his own content with YouTube and his viral comedy series Sh*t Italian moms Say which has reached over 6 million views and the entire series combined over 20 million and his hilarious parody of Sam Smith's Stay With Me called Please Go Home. While going viral and trending for his videos Franzese still toured the country with stand up and remained relevant through his television and stage work, which include memorable guest roles on S.W.A.T, Party Down, CSI, Burn Notice and The Comeback. He also co-wrote and starred in the New York Fringe Festival mega hit Jersey Shoresical: A Frickin' Rock Opera, which won him the Overall Excellence Best Ensemble Award and played Off Broadway and in Los Angeles for a year. It wasn't until his portrayal as the stubborn but lovable HIV+ Eddie in HBO's Looking that Daniel truly burst again into the spotlight and used that success to propel him to activism becoming an ambassador for The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation and lobbying congress every year on their behalf for HIV/AIDS, LGBTQIA+ rights, homeless queer youth and banning conversion therapy (of which Daniel himself is a survivor) since living a life fully out loud he began having never before seen confidence leading to him pursuing stand up comedy and being a leader in body positivity which has landed him a modeling contract with Bridge Models UK making him one of the very few signed Plus Size male Models in the world. He has lent his image, voice and stand up comedy gifts to many causes including The Trevor Project and hosting the 2016 Glaad Media Awards and 2017 Gay Men Chorus Voice Awards. He hosts LGBTQ stand up shows at The Comedy Store, Hollywood Improv and Flappers Comedy Club giving many upcoming talents hard to find spots in his shows. With the re-branding of the ABC Family network to Freeform Daniel starred as Vern in the short lived but tender series Recovery Road, after its cancellation he starred on ABC as Jackson in the law drama Conviction. He most recently toured in his stand up show Yass! You're Amazing! and is recording his podcast Yass, Jesus! A sex positive, non slut shaming look into Christianity through the LGBTQIA+ rainbow lens. A man of many talents and gifts Daniel continues to delight audiences from TikTok to the Theater stage we can not wait to see what he does next.- Kim Ji-hoon was born on 9 May 1981. He is an actor, known for Goddess of Marriage (2013), Flower of Evil (2020) and Jang Bo Ri Is Here (2014).
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Lisa Marie Kurbikoff was born on 9 May 1971 in Agoura Hills, California, USA. She is an actress and producer, known for Wonderland (2003), The Cool Surface (1993) and Rent Control (2003). She has been married to Cary Elwes since 25 June 2000. They have one child.- Actor
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Gary Edward Daniels (born 9 May 1963) is an English actor, a martial arts artist, a martial arts action film star, a producer, and a fight coordinator. . Daniels who was also interested in films, starred in two motion pictures in 1988 made in the Philippines. These were Teddy Page's action martial arts film Final Reprisal (1988), and the jungle adventure, The Secret of King Mahi's Island (1988). Daniels returned to the US, and continued competing. From 1991 to 1994, Daniels was seen acting in several action and martial arts films, within those he had a supporting role in Albert Pyun's Knights (1993), and played an adversary who had showdowns with Jackie Chan in City Hunter (1993) and Don Wilson in Ring of Fire (1991), and Bloodfist IV: Die Trying (1992). On his own, Daniels was the star of the action films Capital Punishment (1991), American Streetfighter (1992), Firepower (1993), Full Impact (1993), and Deadly Target (1994).
In 1995, Daniels played the lead role of Kenshiro in Tony Randel's American live-action version of Japanese manga Fist of the North Star. The film had a notable cast that included Costas Mandylor, Isako Washio Malcolm McDowell, etc. From its release on, the film was widely seen on television and on home video. From that point up until 2001, Daniels, now an established action film actor, acted in many films mixed between action, martial arts, and science fiction. Some of these efforts included Albert Pyun's Heatseeker, Joseph Merhi's Rage, Art Camacho's Recoil, Jeff Burr's Spoiler, Master P's No Tomorrow, Isaac Florentine's Cold Harvest, Joseph Zito's Delta Force One: The Lost Patrol, Bloodmoon, White Tiger, Hawk's Vengeance, Riot, Epicenter, Fatal Blade, City of Fear, Black Friday, Queen's Messenger, and Witness to a Kill.
From 2004 on, Daniels took on more supporting roles, this includes the role of Ed Parker in the Bruce Lee biographical mini-series The Legend of Bruce Lee, with contemporary martial artists Mark Dacascos, Ray Park, Ernest Miller, and Michael Jai White. He is also known for his supporting role as Bryan Fury in the 2009 live-action film Tekken, and its 2014 prequel, based upon the popular fighting game series. Daniels acted alongside Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Steve Austin, and Randy Couture in the Sylvester Stallone film The Expendables as Lawrence "The Brit" Sparks, an ally of the villain. Daniels appeared in La Linea, an action-crime film with an ensemble cast that includes Ray Liotta, Andy García, Armand Assante, etc. Next was Across the Line: The Exodus of Charlie Wright alongside Aidan Quinn, Andy García for the second time, Mario Van Peebles, etc. Other efforts among many include David DeCocteau's The Wrong Child with Vivica A. Fox, the Wesley Snipes action vehicle Game of Death, Steve Austin's action vehicle Hunt to Kill, Stu Bennett's thriller I am Vengeance, etc. Some of the lead roles Daniels took are the martial arts fighting films Forced to Fight with Peter Weller, and Rumble. He was also the lead actor in the thriller Misfire, where he plays seasoned DEA agent, who descends into the underworld of Tijuana, and the jaded former hitman in Skin Traffik going against a gangster played by Mickey Rourke, with an ensemble cast including Daryl Hannah, Eric Roberts, Michael Madsen, Jeff Fahey, Dominique Swain, and Alan Ford.- Wolfgang Novogratz was born on 9 May 1997 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor, known for Sierra Burgess Is a Loser (2018), The Half of It (2020) and Assassination Nation (2018).
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Higgins was born May 9, 1947 in East Northamptonshire, England to parents who had emigrated from Ireland just before World War II in search of economic opportunity. His parents lived in London during the Blitz. Eventually, they left London for Northamptonshire so that his father could obtain work as a builder for American army bases. Young Anthony completed his studies at a state school and then intended to be a journalist. He worked as a butcher in Bedford and then as a "navvy," a builder's helper, in the small town of Grendon, near Northampton. At the age of 16, he obtained a job on a local paper but, by law, he had to be over 17 before he could work so he spent the time learning shorthand and typing. Then, a friend took him to a weekend drama course run by the distinguished Shavian actress, Margaretta Scott. She encouraged him to consider a career as an actor. He said, "It felt right so I decided to pursue it." Higgins won a scholarship to the Birmingham School of Speech and Dramatic Arts in 1964 and studied there for three years. He made his first professional appearance at the Birmingham Repertory Theater Company in Shakespeare's "A Winter's Tale" as a walk-on while still at school. He then joined the company full time and was assigned principal roles nearly at once. His portrayal of Romeo, opposite Anna Calder-Marshall as Juliet, received rave reviews throughout England. He also played Cassio in "Othello," and Louis Debedat in "The Doctor's Dilemma." He then worked onstage in classics and contemporary plays in Chichester and London. However, it was a theatrical portrayal of Edmund Tyrone in Eugene O'Neill's, "A Long Day's Journey Into Night" in Birmingham that led to Higgins' cinema debut for director John Huston under the name, Anthony Corlan, (his mother's maiden name), in "A Walk with Love and Death" (1969). The film takes place during Europe's 100 Years War and was shot in Vienna and the Vienna Woods. The film is notable for the debut of Huston's daughter, Angelica. Corlan plays Robert, a nobleman, wearing authentic looking armor. It was Huston who taught him how to ride horses. Higgins rides with style in many subsequent films. Later, he would own a racehorse in Ireland.
After appearing in "A Walk with Love and Death," the actor was in several television plays for the BBC, including an original drama, "The Blood of the Lamb," for "The Wednesday Play" and "Mary, Queen of Scots" for "Play of the Month." He then made two films for television, one an episode of "Journey to the Unknown" with Janice Rule, and the other, a segment of "Strange Report," with Anthony Quayle. His next feature film role was in "Something for Everyone," also known as "The Cook," (1970), after auditioning for director Hal Prince and producer John Flaxman in London. This was stage director Prince's first flirtation with film, with a script by Hugh Wheeler, author of "Sweeney Todd." Higgins plays a quiet, sheltered young German royal, Helmuth, with Angela Lansbury as his mother. Helmut is forced into an arranged marriage with Annaliese, played by German actress, Heidelinde Weis. He discovers the darker motives that lurk beneath Michael York's gleaming blonde appearance against brilliant cinematography in the shadow of King Ludwig's Castle, in Neuschwanstein, Germany. In 1972, Higgins acted in "Vampire Circus" as a circus performer who changes into a panther-vampire. The film has become a cult classic. It was banned in Britain (because of its bestiality). The actor has said that it is the last of the great vampire films produced under the Hammer banner. There is a badly edited version for sale in the United States; an uncut edition has been seen in Europe that is much clearer. "Flavia, the Moslem Nun," (1974), with Brazilian born Florinda Bolkan, gave Higgins an opportunity to work in Italy. The DVD is a great piece of cinema history rescued by high technology and enhanced by a recent interview with Ms. Bolkan, who became an international screen legend in her own time. The story is derived from actual events in the 1400s that culminated in "The Martyrdom of the 800" in Otranto. The exotic soundtrack is by Academy Award winning composer, Nicola Piovani ("Life is Beautiful"). If one can get past the explicit physical mutilation of animals and humans and the insults to the Catholic Church, the script can be seen as supportive of feminism. Director Gianfranco Mingozzi's vision is representative of the wild cinema of the sexual revolution of the 70s in which auteurs were bursting to break free from the establishment. "Flavia" has haunting performances by Bolkan, Maria Casares, (the princess in Cocteau's "Orpheus") and Higgins. He is dazzling as the Moslem commander with no name who initiates Flavia as a sexual being, encourages her to carry out a bloody revenge and then disillusions her. That Higgins does not speak much is of no consequence. He communicates some of his best acting with movements and facial expressions, particularly, with his eyes. He can say volumes with one mesmerizing gaze.
The actor flourished on stage, television and screen throughout the 70s. Notably, he starred as a Roman soldier looking for his vanished father in Caledonia, in BBC Scotland's miniseries, "Eagle of the Ninth" with Patrick Malahide in 1977. However, Higgins has said that he is most proud to have been a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company's original London cast of "Piaf," a biography of the French singer, Edith Piaf, written by Pam Gems, which starred Jane Lapotaire in 1979. The play was resurrected to rave reviews in London in 1994 but without any of the original players. Higgins won Best Actor of 1979 from Time Out magazine for his work with The Royal Shakespeare Company that year. He acted in mainly new work with the RSC but he also played Lucentio in "The Taming of the Shrew" opposite Zoe Wanamaker as his sweet Bianca. Older London stage audiences may discern that among his many stage to television appearances in the 80s was the role of Camille in "Danton's Death." The play by George Buechner ran at the National Theater in London for a year and was then produced for television by the BBC. Zoe Wanamaker played opposite him once more. As the actor matured in his thirties, his persona grew more interesting with more unusual works. Higgins' face is often recognized for his having played the artist in "The Draughtsman's Contract," (1982), opposite the brilliant Shakespearean actress, Janet Suzman. The film is suggestive of classical restoration drama with a mysterious plot, elegant landscape shots of England's County Kent and a Purcell-like soundtrack by Michael Nyman. Director Peter Greenaway has said that he cast Higgins in the lead because he best expressed a combination of arrogance and innocence. Higgins gives a subtle depiction of the outcast, the son of a tenant farmer, who turns out to be too trusting and is tragically deceived. After Draughtsman's initial release, many viewers wondered what the lead actor would do next but Higgins does not generally pursue publicity. Although he appeared at the Edinburgh Festival with the cast, he did not do many interviews. "Draughtsman" experienced resurgence in 1994 and the actor's face was plastered on larger than life posters across the high walls of London's underground tube stops. His face has often been well utilized to represent a variety of ethnic origins. It is an oval face with a long thin nose and high, almost oriental cheekbones. It is usually framed by dark, wavy hair, sometimes ending at his collar. His balanced brows can look calm but lying dormant behind his deeply inset, hazel eyes is a prospective fire. Behind the face lies great inventiveness that has not always been allowed to surface but when it does, the effect can be striking. Higgins seems to have unlocked a storeroom of intensity by taking on the role of Stephan, a hard-luck Polish immigrant to 1920s Paris in the Merchant-Ivory film, "Quartet" (1981). The film, based on the novel by Jean Rhys, is sharply directed by James Ivory and has a heart-felt script by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala ("Le Divorce"). Isabelle Adjani garnered a Cannes Film Festival award for Best Actress for her gut-wrenching performance as Stephan's defenseless wife. Stephan is an impetuous man, who takes the dishonest road to acquiring wealth, with a small amount of shiftiness and a large amount of charm. Higgins infuses the role with detailed mannerisms such as holding his cigarette by cupping the end with his fingers, as many Slavic men do.
Higgins' height (6' 2"), dark looks and air of moral strength have frequently rendered him romantic roles. He sometimes appears to be aloof but a warmth sneaks out. The tough guy who softens for a vulnerable female might be what he is all about. Thus, it seems only natural that an actor whom he greatly admires is Robert Mitchum. Indeed, in another era, Higgins himself might have fit nicely into film noir. Higgins stars in a dark mystery film, "Sweet Killing," (1993), which was filmed in Montreal and also features F. Murray Abraham. Female admiration of Higgins became universal with his winsome portrayal of Abdullah, in "Lace," (1984-5), a cleverly written television miniseries by Elliot Baker, based on the popular English novel by Shirley Conran. Angela Lansbury, Brooke Adams and Arielle Dombasle are outstanding. Most critics condemned Phoebe Cates for her unconvincing acting but unanimously praised Higgins' persuasive performance as an Arabian prince, who is the lynch pin of the plot. The film also captures glamorous scenery of the French Alps, Chamonix and other jet-set locales; it has wonderful women's fashions, particularly hats, by Barbara Lane; it is the ultimate "chick flick." Higgins, astonished to hear that it is frequently repeated on cable in the U.S., has reacted, "It was great fun to do, actually. It has no pretense to be Strindberg. It is glamorous trash. Still, we had great character actors in it like Anthony Quayle, an old friend, who is now dead; and the director, Billy Hale, and I hit it off in a big way." Far from charming in "Reilly, Ace of Spies," (1983), the actor plays a cold Communist assassin in the British miniseries with Sam Neill in the title role; Higgins' innocence seen in previous roles is totally obscured here. In 1986, he acted with Jeanne Moreau in Agatha Christie's mystery, "The Last Séance," for Granada TV. "Max, Mon Amour," a feature film for the daring director Nagisa Oshima ("Realm of the Senses") followed in 1986. It has an outrageous plot about a bored wife (Charlotte Rampling) with a chimpanzee as her lover. Higgins plays her British diplomat husband who invites the ape to live with them in Paris.
Higgins continued to work in France to play Napoleon's elder brother in "Napoleon and Josephine," with Armand Assante and Jacqueline Bisset in the title roles in 1987. It gave Higgins the opportunity to work again with Jane Lapotaire as mother Bonaparte. After Napoleon cuts up Europe for his family, Joseph satirically delivers a memorable aside, "Louis gets Holland and all I get is disease-ridden Naples." Lavishly photographed in Europe and North Africa, the television miniseries has subtle humor; it airs occasionally on cable in the U.S. A tendency of Higgins' style has been to hold something back, compelling the viewer to wonder what else he has stored up, adding mystery to his character. In "Darlings of the Gods," an Australian television film, (1991), he may have held back a bit much in the lead as Laurence Olivier, opposite Mel Martin as Vivien Leigh, to the disappointment of some critics. Still, the film aired around the world, received good ratings and repeated several times. In spin offs of the Sherlock Holmes legend, Higgins is the only actor besides Orson Welles to have played both Moriarty ("Young Sherlock Holmes" 1985) and Holmes ("Sherlock Holmes Returns" 1993). Both works display his skills in fencing and oration of long monologues; both versions proved popular in several countries, among them Germany. Higgins is fluent in German. German artist and photographer, Heide Lausen, whom he met while working on "Something for Everyone" in Germany, widows him. He has one daughter, who was born in 1974 and raised in Bavaria. He is often recognized for having played a stereotypical Nazi villain in Stephen Spielberg's, "Raiders of the Lost Ark," (1981). However, of the television film, "One Against the Wind," also known as "Mary Lindell," (1991), starring Judy Davis, Higgins has said that he enjoyed playing a non-typical German SS officer, who had been classically educated in England, because it was not a hackneyed image. "The Bridge," (1992), based on the Whitbread award winning novel by Maggie Hemingway, is an engaging film that takes place in the 19th century with actress Saskia Reeves struggling against sociological constraints. Here, his power simmers rather than explodes, as he plays a husband, who makes a shrewd move to eliminate his wife's lover. In a scene with his daughters at the breakfast table, one can sense that his character might do anything to prevent his family from breaking apart.
A family role that Higgins took on enthusiastically was that of Johann Strauss, Sr. in "The Strauss Dynasty," (1991). The award winning television miniseries, which was filmed in Austria and Hungary over eight months, contains a cast of hundreds. The scope covers the entire Strauss family and the music and politics of their time. The twelve-hour program aired successfully in Europe and Australia in the 90s. The actor shows great range in this role, growing from young adored "Waltz King" conductor of Vienna to world weary, exhausted composer. The series shines with many international stars, enlightening history and music by the Strausses. Higgins grew up in a large musical and creative family of five brothers and one sister in Northamptonshire. Before Higgins was born, his father sang with a band in Cork in the 1930s. His mother was the local church organist and would sometimes accompany him on piano. Later, his father went to New York and studied opera but he returned to Ireland after six years. Anthony plays flugelhorn; he had an instrument especially crafted for him in Germany. He has said that his mother taught him to read even before he went to school. He is a voracious reader; he writes, having used an old manual typewriter prior to the computer era. He also has a penchant for classical music, jazz and fine art; when in New York, he likes to visit the Frick Museum and the Pierpont Morgan Library. He has always had a passion for athletics, having played rugby in his youth, then cricket and now it is golf. The actor's search for cutting-edge productions led him to "Nostradamus" (1994), an eccentric version of the 16th century visionary filmed in Romania. Tcheky Karyo plays the title role and Higgins brings up the ranks as King Henry II of France. Diana Quick (Higgins' mistress in "Max, Mon Amour") plays Diane de Poitier alongside Amanda Plummer as his quirky queen, Catherine de Medici. Higgins plays Henry as extremely effective politically and a great athlete. Higgins' research found that jousting was his other great love as evidenced from the time, effort and money that went into his armor, which is embossed with exquisite scenes from classical history and still exists as an extraordinary artifact.
One of Higgins' best moments onscreen is as Korah, a Hebrew in "Moses" (1996), a television miniseries that aired internationally with Ben Kingsley in the title role. After initial skepticism, Korah silently communicates religious rapture as manna slowly falls from heaven on his ecstatic face, revealing a believer in the end. In the middle 1990s, it seems that there was a chic rush for heterosexual male stars to play roles as HIV-stricken patients, i.e., witness Jeremy Irons in "Stealing Beauty." Higgins brings an understated dignity to the role of a Cuban choreographer in the AIDS-related film, "Alive and Kicking," also known as "Indian Summer" (1996). The film stars Jason Flemyng as his student and has a hopeful conclusion by author Martin Sherman ("Bent"). Higgins returned to the stage in November 1996 with the title role in "Max Klapper - A Life in Pictures." He received excellent notices as a post WWII German film director opposite Emily Lloyd as the actress whom he regards as his creation. The event marked the reopening as a live theater of the Electric Cinema in London, where, curiously, during WWII the theater's manager was suspected of sending messages to German Zeppelins from the roof. Higgins fervently plays Marcel, a Hungarian archaeologist in the Irish feature film, "The Fifth Province," (1997), with Ian Richardson, with whom he previously appeared in "Danton's Death" on British television. Higgins has been particularly commended for the scene where he digs furiously for treasure that was buried by the high kings of Ireland. The script is by the Irish Times-Aer Lingus prize winning, hilarious novelist, Nina Fitzpatrick (Fables of the Irish Intelligentsia). The film sometimes surfaces on Sky TV. In the late 90s, Higgins continued to appear on British television in various roles and slipped into the snakeskins of seriously degenerated criminals in the television crime dramas, "The Governor I," "Supply and Demand I," and "Trial and Retribution III" (now available on DVD in Region 2). All were written by Lynda LaPlante ("Prime Suspect"), who was, coincidentally, an extra in "The Draughtsman's Contract." However, the actor becomes orderly again in 2001, as he plays a talent agent of dubious trust in "The Last Minute," directed by Stephen Norrington ("League of Extraordinary Gentlemen"). The theme is the unworthiness of fame in trendy London. The hero, labeled as "the next big thing," rebels against the agent and descends into hell before finding out how to value his life.
One key to understanding Higgins' personality might be to recognize that his true love is the horn. In 2000, he commissioned British trumpeter Guy Barker, ("Great Expectations" 1998), to write a jazz soundtrack for a short film that Higgins wrote and directed, starring himself and British actress, Frances Barber, "Blood Count." It has been playing at European Film Festivals. In March 2003, Higgins lent his deep, but mellifluous, voice to narrate "Sounds in Black and White," Barker's homage concert to film noir, with the 60 piece London Metropolitan Orchestra at the Barbican Theater in London. In 2004, American television viewers can look forward to seeing him in an "Inspector Lynley Series II" episode on PBS' "Mystery Theater." A large part of Higgins' charisma is due to his voice, mannerisms and unique style that remain unruffled as he ages. He is not on the celebrity A list, the B list or even the Z list but he is high on many viewers' lists of interesting actors to watch because of his magnetism, intensity and unpredictability. The first decade of the new millennium has presented several new interesting British actors on the screen. However, many do not seem to have a strong classical stage training, which is Higgins' rock, and they often throw their lines away. Although not all of his roles have grandeur, people invariably comment about Higgins what he has said of Robert Mitchum, "Even in terrible movies, he is always good." Higgins' light may have reached millions of viewers but he never sold out for money. Some have called him a "career actor" but he has yet to receive the recognition of which his talent is worthy. Where is he? He is building a legacy as a character actor. Film history will show that he is a noteworthy one.- Actor
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Lionel Boyce was born on 9 May 1991 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor and writer, known for The Bear (2022), The Jellies (2015) and The Jellies! (2017).- Actor
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Michael Roark was born and raised in Schaumburg, Illinois. He has Irish, Sicilian and German ancestry. He was involved in athletics growing up and began acting in the college of theater at Illinois State University. Roark attended law school and became a licensed attorney while continuing his career. He performed in several theater productions before moving from stage to screen.
Roark is known for starring roles in Bennett's War (2019), Driven (2021) and Alabama Dirt (2017). He made his film debut in Dolphin Tale (2011). He has had regular and recurring roles in several television series including Beauty and the Beast (2012), Sleepy Hollow (2013), Finding Carter (2014) and The Young and the Restless (1973) and guest-starred in numerous series including Banshee (2013), Grey's Anatomy (2005) and 9-1-1 (2018).- Jasmine Jobson was born on 9 May 1995 in Westminster, London, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Top Boy (2011), Surge (2020) and Lie Low (2019).
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Joe Carnahan is an American film director and screenwriter. He was born in California in 1969. He attended Fairfield High School in Fairfield, California. He graduated in 1987, at the age of 18. He first attended the San Francisco State University, and later transferred to California State University, Sacramento. He gained a Bachelor of Arts in Filmography.
Following his graduation, Carnahan was hired by the television station KMAX-TV in Sacramento. He produced short films and television spots for the station. In 1997, Carnahan directed his first-feature length film "Blood, Guts, Bullets and Octane". The film was screened at 1998 Sundance Film Festival, and won some acclaim.
In 2002, Carnahan directed the neo-noir crime film "Narc". It earned about 13 million dollars in the worldwide box office, a minor box office hit. He subsequently directed or wrote the screenplays for several crime films. His name was attached to several projects that ended in development hell,
In 2010, Carnahan directed the action thriller "The A-Team", a film adaptation of the hit television series "The A-Team" (1983-1987). It earned 177 million dollars at the worldwide box office, becoming Carnahan's highest-grossing film.- Actor
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Cinema lovers and sci-fi fans will always remember the great Douglas Rain not exactly by his face but specially because of his vocal talents that brought him attention and eternity in the cinema world as the soothing voice of computer HAL 9000 in the classic 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) and its sequel 2010 (1984).
What most people don't know is that he wasn't the first choice of Stanley Kubrick for voicing the most famous robot voice of all time: Kubrick had in mind using the voice of more famous and established actors such as Martin Balsam, Jason Robards and Walter Pidgeon (just to name a few). But Kubrick wanted something with an extra-quality and his description to an assistant of what he wanted was to find him an actor who could have an intelligent, sincere and disarming voice with some friendly quality. The rest is history: Rain won the role despite being an almost unknown actor with few theatre and TV film/series roles on his resume; but Kubrick's choice turned out to be the perfect one. HAL 9000 with Rain's voice brought calm and humanity to a machine that seemed perfect in all possible ways in contrast to the robotic and lifeless astronauts of whom he shares company outer space.
In front of cameras, the Canadian actor can be found in TV series such as General Motors Presents, Startime, Quest and Playdate; or films like Oedipus Rex (1957), Twelfth Night (1964) and the title role in Henry V (1966). On stage, his career consists of several William Shakespeare play adaptations - in fact, Rain was co-founding member of the Stratford Shakespearean Festival - and other authors in between the 1950's and 1990's. In 1972, he was nominated for a Tony Award as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Dramatic) for the play "Vivat! Vivat Regina!".
He passed away from natural causes at the age of 90 in 2018 - the 50th year anniversary of "2001". He left an important mark and legacy to the cinema world, even though with just one memorable character that paved the way to other actors using his voice talents in other feature films.- Actress
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Patridge was born in Los Angeles, California, to Lynn (Clelland) and Mark Patridge, and is the eldest of four children. She has English, German, Belgian (Walloon and Flemish), Italian, and Polish ancestry. Audrina always aspired to become an actress in Hollywood and, as soon as she turned 18, she signed with a small management company in Los Angeles, California. She honed her craft by participating in drama classes and private acting lessons, taking a job at Quixote Studios as she waited for her big break. Living a stone's throw away from the MTV production of The Hills (2006), Audrina was spotted sunbathing by the pool and was asked by a producer if she wanted to join the cast. She happily accepted her role as the dear friend of Lauren Conrad and Heidi Montag in what was sure to be the beginning of her enticing career. Patridge has been a class act since she was a small child. Her grace and charismatic demeanor fuel her ability to light up the camera. Aside from her captivating film presence, Audrina is an accomplished artist and has been active in many activities such as martial arts, cheerleading, kickboxing and especially dance.
Patridge made her small screen debut in 2005 as the fun and outgoing friend on the cast of the hit MTV series The Hills (2006), a reality show that documented the lives of four young girls trying to make a mark for themselves in the fast pace, energetic city of Los Angeles. It had the highest-rated telecast this year for MTV. It was also awarded for Choice TV Reality/Variety Show at the 2007 Teen Choice Awards show. The show began its fourth season in August 2008. Later that year, she completed production on her first film role, MGM Home Entertainment's Into the Blue 2: The Reef (2009). In the film, Patridge stars opposite Chris Carmack and Laura Vandervoort as Kelsey, a no-nonsense, beautiful beach babe whose boyfriend caters to her every command.- Actress
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Marcheline Bertrand was born on 9 May 1950 in Blue Island, Illinois, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for Lookin' to Get Out (1982), The Man Who Loved Women (1983) and Ironside (1967). She was married to Tom Bessamra and Jon Voight. She died on 27 January 2007 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Actress
Sai Pallavi is an actress and dancer who has established her presence in Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam films. Pallavi was born in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India, to Senthamarai Kannan and Radha Kannan. She has a younger sister named Pooja Kannan, who is also an actor.
Pallavi grew up in Coimbatore and did her schooling at Avila Convent School. She completed her medical studies at the Tbilisi State Medical University in Georgia in 2016. Later, in 2020, she sat for the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) in Trichy.
Pallavi's first brush with acting on the big screen took place in 2005 in an uncredited role in Kasthuri Maan (2005), in which she played the role of a college girl. She appeared in another uncredited blink-and-miss role in Dhaam Dhoom (2008), an action thriller starring Kangana Ranaut.
Pallavi made her official acting debut as the lead in Premam (2015), a romantic comedy directed by, Alphonse Puthren, in which she essayed the role of a teacher. She was approached for the movie while she was still studying medicine, and she shot for the film during her vacation. The film was released without any teasers, trailers, or pre-release interviews. It went on to become a huge hit at the box office, garnering appreciation from critics and audiences alike, and shot her to instant fame.
Pallavi bagged several awards for her performance in the film, including the Filmfare Awards South 2015 for the Best Female Debut - Malayalam, South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA) 2015 for the Best Female Debut - Malayalam, and the Vanitha Film Awards 2016 for the Best Newcomer - Actress. She also won the Asianet Film Honour Special Jury Award in 2015.
With her second film Kali (2016), Pallavi once again proved her mettle as an actress. She played the role of a newly married girl dealing with the extreme anger issues of her husband. The action thriller directed by Sameer Thahir had Dulquer Salmaan playing the lead opposite her. The film was one of the biggest box office successes of 2016. It earned her a nomination for the Filmfare Awards South 2016 for Best Actress - Malayalam.
Her next project was Sekhar Kammula's romantic comedy Fidaa (2017), which marked her debut in Telugu cinema. Starring opposite Varun Tej, Pallavi stood out as a feisty village girl named Bhanumathi. Her performance in the film has been listed among the 100 Greatest Performances of the Decade, compiled by Film Companion. The film went on to become a huge commercial success. She won the Filmfare Award South 2018 for Best Actress - Telugu for her performance.
In MCA Middle Class Abbayi (2017), an action comedy directed by Venu Sriram, Pallavi appears onscreen with Nani. While the film received mixed reviews from critics, it turned out to be a successful venture at the box office.
Then, Pallavi explored the supernatural genre for the first time with Diya (2018), which was directed by A.L. Vijay and had Naga Shaurya as the lead opposite her. It was her debut in Tamil cinema in a lead role. Her next film was Padi Padi Leche Manasu (2018)(2018).
Her following silver screen appearance was in Maari 2 (2018), in which she starred opposite Dhanush. In this action comedy directed by Balaji Mohan, she portrays the role of an auto driver. While the film earned mixed reviews from critics, the song, 'Rowdy Baby', became one of the most-watched music videos from South India on YouTube.
In 2019, Pallavi appeared in Vivek's psychological thriller Anukoni Athidhi (2019) opposite Fahadh Faasil. To prepare for her role as an autistic girl, she met several people with autism and worked profoundly on her body language.
She followed it up with movies like NGK (2019) and the anthology drama Paava Kadhaigal (2020), which was released on Netflix.
In 2021, she had two releases, Love Story (2021) and Shyam Singha Roy (2021), both of which received a positive response at the box office. She won the Filmfare Award South 2022 for Best Actress - Telugu for her acting in Love Story and the Filmfare Critics Award 2022 for Best Actress - Telugu for her role in Shyam Singha Roy. She also won the SIIMA Award 2022 for the Entertainer of the Year (Female) - Telugu for her performance in both movies.
Pallavi was last seen in Gargi (2022), a legal drama directed by Gautham Ramachandran. She earned critical appreciation for her performance in the movie.- Producer
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To capture the essence of Sean McNamara's skills as a Director, one need not look further than critics' reviews of his latest theatrical work on "Soul Surfer" for Tristar Pictures/FilmDistrict.
"Soul Surfer is the kind of sturdy, satisfying family drama that doesn't get made very often anymore. But even beyond that, at crucial moments it shows there's actually a brain behind the camera. If only more pictures - made on any budget - could be that way... McNamara's respect for his viewers, and for the story he's telling, elevates the movie above ho-hum conventionality." - Stephanie Zacharek, Movieline
"The movie dazzles in its surfing sequences, in which the director, Sean McNamara, works nimble editing and a tropical palette to a fine sheen." - Andy Webster, The New York Times
"It's a good, solid family film; if there ever was a better movie to pass along a message about perseverance, courage and faith and also highlight the sheer glory of riding a wave, I can't imagine it." - Connie Ogle, Miami Herald
"Soul Surfer" is the culmination of a career in entertainment that has spanned over twenty years in producing, writing and directing. The cast, which includes Academy Award Winner Helen Hunt, Dennis Quaid, AnnaSophia Robb and Carrie Underwood, shines in the inspirational tale of pro-surfer Bethany Hamilton who tragically lost her arm after a shark attack. McNamara's shots are as well-composed as his actors are well-directed and the result is a film filled with as much heart and emotion as gleeful suspense.
Over McNamara's years in entertainment, he has carved a niche for himself as a premiere family film director with a keen eye for new talent. He can be credited with discovering stars such as Shia LaBeouf and launching the feature careers of Jessica Alba and Hilary Duff.
Along with his partner, David Brookwell, McNamara has successfully turned their company, Brookwell/McNamara, into one of the most sought-after youth television and film production companies.
In only a few weeks of release "Soul Surfer," which cost just shy of 18 million dollars, has crossed the 40 million dollar mark making it a bona-fide hit for everyone involved. On top of that, it also received a Cinemascore of an A+ which remains the highest rated film of the year so far.
Sean is also a four time DGA Award nominee, Emmy nominee, and BAFTA Award winner.- Actress
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Ashley Bratcher is most recognized for her breakout role as the star of the box office hit Unplanned (2019). Ashley was born and raised in a small town in eastern North Carolina and began her acting career on the stage at age 16. She later attended Campbell University, where she graduated with honors, then briefly worked as a middle-school teacher before finding success as a working actress. Bratcher's commitment to stories of hope has garnered her recognition as a name talent in uplifting, redemptive films. Beyond her work in front of the camera, Ashley is an award winning screenwriter, director, and producer. In 2020, she founded her own production company, Simple Jane Films, to create a launching pad for everyday women making a difference in the world. Her slate of projects centers on "ordinary women with extraordinary stories."- Director
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Graduating from the University of Illinois, Russell left Chicago to begin work in film production in Los Angeles. He worked his way up, assistant directing and production managing independent films while writing screenplays. Russell made his directorial debut in 1987 with A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. At that time, New Line Cinema was uncertain about the future of the Elm Street franchise. Russell convinced them that the series could take a step further into Freddy's nightmare world through cutting edge visual effects and dramatize the bond among Freddy's youthful victims with the concept of Dream Warriors. The success of the film redefined the franchise for New Line, earning more at the box office than the first two films put together. At the time of its release A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors was the highest grossing independent film ever made. The next milestone in Russell's career was The Mask, a worldwide blockbuster that grossed more than $320 million on a $18 million dollar budget. The Mask made international stars out of Jim Carrey and Cameron Diaz and set a new standard in CGI technology. Russell continued his success in Hollywood, making #1 box office hits with A list stars such as Eraser with Arnold Schwarzenegger, The Scorpion King with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Collateral, starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Fox. Russell latest film, Paradise City unites John Travolta and Bruce Willis for the first time since Pulp Fiction and is slated for a worldwide release this summer.- Patrick Ryecart was born on 9 May 1952 in Warwickshire, England, UK. He is an actor, known for The King's Speech (2010), A Bridge Too Far (1977) and Dick Turpin (1979). He was previously married to Marsha Fitzalan.
- Sally Carman was born on 9 May 1981 in Mexborough, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for Tyrannosaur (2011), Shameless (2004) and The Quest (2002). She has been married to Joe Duttine since 15 July 2022. She was previously married to Ryan Pope.
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Sean Nelson was born on 9 May 1980 in Bronx, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Fresh (1994), The Wood (1999) and The Corner (2000).- Actress
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Joan Sims, the "First Lady of Carry On", was born Irene Joan Marion Sims on 9 May 1930. The daughter of an Essex railway station master, Joan was interested in pursuing show-business, and soon became a familiar face in a growing number of amateur productions. In 1946, Joan first applied to RADA, her audition was unsuccessful. She did succeed in being admitted to the academy's preparatory school, and finally, on her fourth attempt, trained at RADA. She graduated in 1950 at the age of nineteen.
A cameo appearance in Doctor in the House (1954) as the sexually repressed Nurse Rigor Mortis led to Joan being first spotted by Peter Rogers; Rogers' wife Betty E. Box was the producer of the Doctor series, in which Joan herself became a regular.
A few years later, in 1958, Joan received another script from Peter Rogers, it was Carry on Nurse (1959). The film had been a huge success at the box office and in the autumn of that year Rogers and Gerald Thomas began planning a follow up. She went on to appear in 24 of the films, making her the longest serving female member of the team.
She first starred in the following three Carry On films: Carry on Teacher (1959), Carry on Constable (1960) and Carry on Regardless (1961), before taking a break from the next four films to concentrate on stage work. She rejoined the team with Carry on Cleo (1964) and remained all the way through to Carry on Emmannuelle (1978) in 1978.
Ironically, she was never proclaimed Queen of Carry On. This title went to saucy Barbara Windsor, even though she had only appeared in nine Carry On films.
One could argue that her final performances in the Carry On films were rather sentimental, as though she knew that the series was coming to an end and two scenes come to mind. The scene in which she plays cards with Peter Butterworth in Carry on Behind (1975) in his caravan late at night, and also in the launderette where she dances with an early Carry Oner Victor Maddern in Carry on Emmannuelle (1978). Both of these are memorable sentimental film scene stealers.
With the end of the Carry On series in 1978, Joan went on to become a familiar face on TV screens, with ongoing roles in a number of highly successful sitcoms On the Up (1990) and As Time Goes By (1992) and the BBC's prestigious classic drama adaptations such as Martin Chuzzlewit (1994).
Joan's autobiography, High Spirits, was released in 2000. She complains in the last few pages of her book at the lack of information on her on the IMDB trivia page, something that was only significantly expanded after her death.
In her later years she became a cult figure and something of a British National Institution as the only surviving major Carry On star from early days. However, years of heavy drinking took their toll and she suffered in her later years with ill health. She was admitted to Hospital in Chelsea in London in mid 2001 and slipped into a coma. She died on 28 June 2001, with her lifelong friend and Carry On Norah Holland holding her hand.
Following her death, surviving Carry On stars celebrated her achievement in the Carry On films. Barbara Windsor, said at the time of her death, "To me she was the last of the great Carry Ons, she was there at the beginning. Her talent was wonderful, she could do any accent, dialect, she could dance, sing, play dowdy and glam. We laughed all the time and giggled a lot. I will sorely miss her." That quote is so true, throughout her whole Carry On career she alone stands apart as the most versatile actress in the whole series. She was never typecast in the films like the other actors and actresses.
Others also paid tribute, even ex-Government Cabinet Ministers. Her agent Richard Hatton said, "It's wonderful to be able to say that she really did have all the qualities that her many fans would have wished. A great sense of humour, a sympathetic and endearing personality, terrific talent and consideration for others.
"Over and above this, she discovered a new side of herself when she wrote her autobiography last year, which was untypical for the genre - honest, frank and intelligent. Everyone who knew her is going to remember her forever."- Actor
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Oliver recently wrapped the lead in the film "The Paradox Effect" opposite Olga Kurylenko and Harvey Keitel where he also serves as an Executive Producer, as well as the Paramount film "The Gorge" opposite Miles Teller and Anya Taylor Joy. He can be seen in the Lionsgate film "The Plane" opposite Gerard Butler. He's got Millennium's "The Bricklayer" in the can opposite Aaron Eckhardt and "Wire Room" opposite Bruce Willis and Kevin Dillon (also a producer).
Oliver Trevena is also well known for his acting & for regularly hosting the hugely popular celebrity chat show, Young Hollywood (2007).
He was born and raised in East Sussex, England and is the youngest of four sons.
Oliver trained at the South East Theatre Society & RADA. In his early acting days, he starred in William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream". Later, he starred in a variety of plays, including "The King and I", "Bugsy Malone" and even "Oliver".
He now lives in LA but spends his time between the US and UK.