Gary Oldman: biography, personal life and photos

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Gary Oldman is a film and theater actor, producer, director and musician. In his creative biography, there are many examples of successful collaboration with major Hollywood directors (Robert Zemeckis, Francis Ford Coppola, Oliver Stone, Ridley Scott, Quentin Tarantino and others). The actor played in the films about Harry Potter the godfather of the young wizard, Batman's ally - Commissioner Gordon, and also Dracula in the film of the same name by Bram Stoker. The cinema of the last decades is hard to imagine without the extraordinary talent of this man, not devoid of a sense of humor and self-irony.

Actor Gary Oldman. Beginning biography

In the family of housewife Kathleen and welder Leonard Bertram Oldman on March 21, 1958, a son, Gary, appeared. The family lived in the famous London quarter of New Cross. At birth, the boy was given the name Gary Leonard Oldman. The future movie star was raised by parents with two sisters. One of them - Maureen - became an actress, choosing the pseudonym "Layla Morse". Gary despised his father for his craving for alcohol, scandalous character and leaving the family when his son was only seven years old. The boy studied music, preparedto a career as a singer or pianist. Fateful for 10-year-old Gary were trips to the cinema, where there were films with Malcolm McDowell. In one of his interviews, Gary Oldman admitted that he felt an irresistible craving for acting, which eventually led him to the Greenwich Theater for the Young Spectator. After graduating from high school in 1974, Gary got a job in a store, but he did not give up theater and playing the piano.

Studying at the theater college and the first awards

The young man tried to enter the Royal Academy of Art (London). The attempt was unsuccessful, but the talented young man did not despair. Gary was enrolled as a student at Rose Bruford, the popular Speech and Drama Theater College, the same year. In his educational institution, Gary was considered one of the best students, often appeared on the stage of the Greenwich Theater. In 1979, the young man received a diploma with honors, his career began in leading theaters in London. In 1985-1986, the roles of Gary Oldman brought him the Time Out magazine Best Newcomer of the Season Award and the British Theater Association Award (1985). Oldman devoted about 10 years to work at the Greenwich Youth Theatre, toured Europe with the Glasgow theater troupe, and was invited to British television. He was seen as a rising stage star and a budding television actor.

Film and music in the life of an actor

In 1982, 24-year-old Gary Oldman, whose height was the same as his childhood idealMalcolm McDowell, - 1, 74 m, fulfilled his dream of becoming a film actor. Followed by a tempting invitation from director Colin Gregg to star in the drama "Memory" ("Memories"). But the first truly successful role was Sid Vicious in the 1986 film Sid and Nancy. Oldman brilliantly portrayed the infamous musician of the Sex Pistols. Film critics called the tape "punk" Romeo and Juliet ", gave ratings from enthusiastic to critical. The image of the rock legend Sid Vicious was very well done by Gary Oldman. Music plays an important role in the life of an actor. As a child, he was seriously involved in playing the piano, he liked to perform classical works. At one time, Gary idolized Chopin, read many books about the composer, played his works. As he got older, Oldman became interested in rock music and the work of the Beatles, bought a guitar with portraits of idols.

Early film work

Almost immediately after filming Sid & Nancy, Oldman appeared in the no less shocking film Prick Up Your Ears, directed by Stephen Frears. Gary played the role of Joe Orton, a gay playwright in the 60s of the XX century, deprived of his life by his own lover. The actor was nominated for the prestigious BAFTA award for this work. Journalists in those years wrote what a mysterious and extraordinary person Gary Oldman is. The filmography and the listing of some of the works in the first half of the 90s give an idea of the busy filming schedule, the richest palette of the actor's talents:

• "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" (1990);
• "Henry and June"(1990);
• "State of Frenzy" (1990);
• “John F. Kennedy. Shots in Dallas" (1991);
• Dracula (1992) and other films.

Independent cinema and box office leaders

The roles of Gary Oldman invariably arouse interest, approval and admiring reviews. His work in independent cinema is well known to specialists and viewers. The actor was nominated in 1992 for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor. A very versatile actor - Gary Oldman, whose filmography includes several talented on-screen incarnations of real and fictional negative characters:

• Lee Harvey Oswald in the 1991 film John F. Kennedy. Gunshots in Dallas";
• Dracula in the 1992 film of the same name;
• Stan in the 1994 film "Leon";
• interplanetary villain in The Fifth Element 1997.

The roles of the Kennedy assassin and the legendary Count Dracula brought Oldman a flurry of laudatory reviews from film critics and delight from the audience.

Private life. Alcohol problems

The actor was married 4 times. Oldman married his first wife, actress Leslie Manville, in 1987, and in 1988, Alfred had a son. In 1990, the wife filed for divorce. When Gary turned 32, he was called a "phenomenal" actor in Hollywood. Oldman moved to the US and has lived in Los Angeles ever since. Uma Thurman became his next chosen one, with whom the actor married on October 1, 1990. Relations lasted until April 30, 1992. ATUma Thurman and Gary Oldman divorced today. It’s easy to guess the reasons for the breakup; back in August 1991, the actor was arrested in Los Angeles for drunk driving and released the next day. The passenger in the car was Kiefer Sutherland. On the set of The Scarlet Letter in 1995, Gary began having difficulty remembering the lyrics due to his drinking.

Treatment in the clinic. Third and fourth marriages

To help get rid of addiction tried a new friend - Isabella Rossellini, with her Gary played in the film "Immortal Beloved". The passionate romance ended in a break when Oldman went to the clinic. He honestly admitted in his interviews that he was coping with the last stage of alcoholism. While recovering from addiction to alcohol and attending an Alcoholics Anonymous course, Gary began a relationship with Dona Fiorentino, a professional photographer. The third marriage lasted from February 1997 to April 2001. Dona gave Gary sons - Gulliver and Charlie. Films with Gary Oldman appeared on the screens every year, the audience had no idea what a difficult period came in the life of the actor. The work was intense, Gary did not give himself a break. In a year, 1-2 films with his participation were released. In the new millennium, Oldman married for the fourth time. The wife of the actor was a young spectacular brunette - singer Alexandra Edenborough. She was married in December 2008.

Gary Oldman triumphs in the 2000s

In 2002, Oldman played one of the leading roles in the film Route 60:Incidents on the road. The picture in the parable genre was directed by Bob Gale, who is also the author of the script. Gary's character, O. J. Grant, is endowed with the ability to grant wishes that a person does not even suspect.

Two years later, filming began on the sequel to one of the highest-grossing franchises in film history. The role of Sirius Black in the film about Harry Potter was given to Gary Oldman. The filmography of the actor was replenished with films about Harry Potter in 2004-2012.

During the same decade, Oldman starred with director Christopher Nolan. The actor played Detective James Gordon in the Batman superhero trilogy. Nolan's "Batmeniana" was a big box office success, with critical acclaim for the cast.

Gary Oldman - an actor with a "great face"

In the summer of 2009, the director of the detective thriller "Spy Get Out!" Thomas Alfredson was looking for the lead actor - intelligence agent George Smiley. The events in the film unfold in the 1970s around the events of the Cold War. Explaining the choice of Gary Oldman for the lead role, the production director noted that the actor has a "great face", which inspires "energy and modest intelligence". This is just what you need,” Alfredson emphasized. The role was "age", it took appropriate preparation, which was taken seriously by Gary Oldman. Photos of the actor at the time show that his appearance has changed. Oldman ate sweets, grew a small belly, which is usually the case with older people. Film critics praised the film "Spy, Get Out!""Oscar". George Smiley author D. Le Carré called the film and Gary's performance "a real triumph". Oldman has a well-established reputation as an actor who can change his appearance and voice to make each character unique.

Interesting Gary Oldman Facts

• In 1997, the actor filmed the autobiographical drama Do Not Swallow. Oldman's directorial debut was nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes and won two BAFTAs.
• Another directorial work by Gary was the video for the song of his wife - Alexandra Edenborough.
• In 2007, the actor was named one of the 100 sexiest stars in film history by Empire magazine.
• Nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of an alcoholic in the television comedy series Friends.
• Until 2011, Oldman was considered one of the greatest actors, never nominated for an Oscar (in 2011 he was nominated for his role in the film Get Out Spy!).



• Tom Hardy, who calls Oldman his favorite actor, starred with him in The World's Drunkest County (2012) and Baby 44 (expected to premiere in 2014).
• Hollywood stars Ryan Gosling, Shia LaBeouf, Beau Barrett and others consider Gary their idol.
• In 2012, The Hollywood Reporter estimated that Oldman was the highest-grossing actor in history.
• Gary wonders why he is considered impulsive. “People mistake my passion and energy for anger,” he says. The actor jokes that sometimes "Hollywood doesn't knowwhat to do with me.”