Kenneth Branagh: biography, personal life, filmography

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

Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh is a famous British stage and film actor. In addition, his activities include directing, producing and writing scripts. He has worked both in auteur films and on the creation of world blockbusters, such as Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and the recent Dunkirk. Throughout his long creative career, Kenneth Branta has received and been nominated for many significant awards and awards in the field of cinema.

Early life

Kenneth Branagh's biography begins December 10, 1960. He was born in the city of Belfast, which is the capital of Northern Ireland. The boy was born and raised in a believing family of William and Francis Branagh. The year 1970 came and the family had to move to England, to a town called Reading. It was difficult for the child to get comfortable in a new place, because he constantly suffered from ridicule and bullying of his peers because of his Irish accent. But later the student managed to get rid of defects in pronunciation, and classmates began to communicate normally with him. The guy studied well at different schools, such as Whiteknights Primary School, Grove Primary School, Meadway School. There, at a young age, he was able to show his actingskill by participating in various school theater productions. When the young man turned 18, he entered the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Kenneth Branagh showed remarkable results, which allowed him to receive a gold medal - the highest award for excellent academic achievement.

The beginning of a career in TV and theater

In 1981, after graduating, Branagh had already received his first role. It was a mini-series "Mebury". It was followed by the full-length feature film Chariots of Fire. This tape was a very important start for the aspiring actor, as the picture received many popular awards. Kenneth began to appear regularly on TV, he starred in a large number of series, including the rather famous in England and Ireland "Playing Today". Participation in this project brought him first fame in his homeland.

In parallel, the actor Kenneth Branagh took part in theatrical productions and plays. The most notable is his participation in William Shakespeare's play "Henry V", in which he played the main role. His skill captivated both the audience and critics, the performer was awarded all kinds of praise. In addition, the actor was the youngest of those who have ever played this role on stage. Kenneth has more than once played in the plays of the famous author. In 1986, he again decided to return to television and played several roles in television films and serials, and was able to work with the famous English actress Judi Dench. Their joint painting was titled "A Lady Not to be Burned". Then hestarred in various comedies, which had some success with the audience. A breakthrough was the film "Fortune of War", for participation in the filming process of which he was nominated for a BAFTA award. On the set, Kenneth Branagh met his future wife, Emma Thomson. In 1987, the actor opened a theater company and staged many productions.

Author's project

In 1989, Branagh decided to return to the play "Henry V", but this time it should not be a stage production, but a real big-budget movie. He himself became a director and producer, and also wrote the script and played the lead role. This project was highly appreciated by critics and viewers, many noted that this is one of the most powerful debut works of aspiring directors. The picture received more than one award, including the BAFTA award. There were also Oscar nominations for Best Actor and Director. After such a resounding success, Kenneth Branagh decided to take a break and took up the theater arts, where he successfully directed several plays and starred in them.

Movies

Two years later, Kenneth Branagh's filmography has replenished with another film masterpiece. A picture called "Die Again" was released. This is a fairly successful work, the roles in it were played by such stars as Andy Garcia and Robin Williams, as well as many others.

In 1992, Branagh made a new film. This time it was a good comedy picture "Peter's Friends": in the new project, the actor again performed inas director and lead actor. Other roles were invited by such famous English actors as Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. Just a year later, his new directorial and acting work, Much Ado About Nothing, came out. The comedy was again based on Shakespeare's play. This is further confirmation that he is Kenneth's favorite author. And after that, many of his works followed, one more successful than the other. These were Hamlet, The Winter's Tale and the most expensive film at that time - Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. All these films brought together world cinema stars in their ensemble: Kate Winslet, Robin Williams, Robert de Niro and Helena Bonham Carter.

A string of bad luck

From 1998 to 2000, Kenneth did not make any new films. He decided to devote himself entirely to acting. All his roles with other directors were either passing or frankly bad. For example, the role of the villain in the movie "Wild Wild West". He decided to rectify his situation by making the film Love's Labour's Lost. But although the critics liked the project, it could not recoup its modest budget at the worldwide box office. This was followed by small roles and voice acting in cartoons.

Revival of film career

The war picture "Conspiracy" returned the actor to the pinnacle of success. For participation in the film, he received an Emmy Award. This was followed by many film roles, the most notable of which is the character of Professor Lockons from the movie Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Branagh, not resting on his laurels, returned to staging and visualizing films. Films released in a short period of time"As You Like It" and "Magic Flute".

Just a year later, he plunged headlong into work on the thriller The Detective, and after the completion of the filming process, he agreed to play the main role in the crime television series Wallander.

In 2011, the film adaptation of the Thor comics exploded at the box office, which once again confirmed Bran's directorial talent.

In 2014, he directed another reboot of the Jack Ryan series starring Chris Pine. But it did not find much success and received moderate reviews from film critics.

The cool reception of "Chaos Theory" did not cool the visionary's creative fuse, and he took responsibility for the film adaptation of the novel by Agatha Christie. In the movie "Murder on the Orient Express" Kenneth Branagh decided to mix two of the most popular film genres - detective and drama. The premiere of the masterpiece is scheduled for early November 2017. By the way, the main role of the incomparable Hercule Poirot will be played by none other than Branagh.

Private life

Kenneth Branagh was married to Emma Thomson from 1989 to 1995. After the couple broke up, the filmmaker had an affair with actress Helen Bonham Carter, and later they also parted ways. He has been married since 2003 to Lindsey Brannock, an art director who collaborated with his ex-lover Helena.