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Emma Thompson
Actor, Writer, Producer, Additional CreditsBorn April 15, 1959 (66 years)
Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and her accolades include two Academy Awards, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award. In 2018, she was made a dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to drama.
Born to actors Eric Thompson and Phyllida Law, Thompson was educated at Newnham College, Cambridge, where she became a member of the Footlights troupe and appeared in the comedy sketch series Alfresco (1983–1984). In 1985, she starred in the West End revival of the musical Me and My Girl, which was a breakthrough in her career. In 1987, she became famous for her performances in two BBC series, Tutti Frutti and Fortunes of War, winning the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for her work on both series. In the early 1990s, she often collaborated with then-husband, actor and director Kenneth Branagh in films such as Henry V (1989), Dead Again (1991), and Much Ado About Nothing (1993).
Thompson won the BAFTA Award and the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the Merchant-Ivory period drama Howards End (1992). In 1993, she received two Academy Award nominations—Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress—for the respective roles of the housekeeper of a grand household in The Remains of the Day and a lawyer in In the Name of the Father, becoming one of the few actors to achieve this feat. Thompson wrote and starred in Sense and Sensibility (1995), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay—making her the only person in history to win Oscars for both acting and writing—and once again won the BAFTA. Further critical acclaim came for her roles in Primary Colors (1998), Love Actually (2003), Saving Mr. Banks (2013), Late Night (2019), and Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022).
Other notable film credits include the Harry Potter series (2004–2011), Nanny McPhee (2005), Stranger than Fiction (2006), An Education (2009), Men in Black 3 (2012) and the spin-off Men in Black: International (2019), Brave (2012), Beauty and the Beast (2017), Cruella (2021), and Matilda the Musical (2022). Her television credits include Wit (2001), Angels in America (2003), The Song of Lunch (2010), King Lear (2018) and Years and Years (2019). She portrayed Mrs. Lovett in a Lincoln Center production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in 2014. Authorised by the publishers of Beatrix Potter, Thompson has also written three Peter Rabbit children's books.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Emma Thompson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Born to actors Eric Thompson and Phyllida Law, Thompson was educated at Newnham College, Cambridge, where she became a member of the Footlights troupe and appeared in the comedy sketch series Alfresco (1983–1984). In 1985, she starred in the West End revival of the musical Me and My Girl, which was a breakthrough in her career. In 1987, she became famous for her performances in two BBC series, Tutti Frutti and Fortunes of War, winning the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for her work on both series. In the early 1990s, she often collaborated with then-husband, actor and director Kenneth Branagh in films such as Henry V (1989), Dead Again (1991), and Much Ado About Nothing (1993).
Thompson won the BAFTA Award and the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the Merchant-Ivory period drama Howards End (1992). In 1993, she received two Academy Award nominations—Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress—for the respective roles of the housekeeper of a grand household in The Remains of the Day and a lawyer in In the Name of the Father, becoming one of the few actors to achieve this feat. Thompson wrote and starred in Sense and Sensibility (1995), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay—making her the only person in history to win Oscars for both acting and writing—and once again won the BAFTA. Further critical acclaim came for her roles in Primary Colors (1998), Love Actually (2003), Saving Mr. Banks (2013), Late Night (2019), and Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022).
Other notable film credits include the Harry Potter series (2004–2011), Nanny McPhee (2005), Stranger than Fiction (2006), An Education (2009), Men in Black 3 (2012) and the spin-off Men in Black: International (2019), Brave (2012), Beauty and the Beast (2017), Cruella (2021), and Matilda the Musical (2022). Her television credits include Wit (2001), Angels in America (2003), The Song of Lunch (2010), King Lear (2018) and Years and Years (2019). She portrayed Mrs. Lovett in a Lincoln Center production of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in 2014. Authorised by the publishers of Beatrix Potter, Thompson has also written three Peter Rabbit children's books.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Emma Thompson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Featured Videos
Filmography
| 2026 | |
| 2025 | Down Cemetery Road (TV Series) · as Zoë Boehm |
| 2025 | |
| 2025 | Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy · as Dr. Rawlings |
| 2022 | What's Love Got to Do with It? · as Cath |
| 2022 | Matilda: The Musical · as Agatha Trunchbull |
| 2022 | Good Luck to You, Leo Grande · as Nancy Stokes |
| 2022 | Why Didn't They Ask Evans? (TV Series) · as Lady Marcham |
| 2021 | Cruella · as The Baroness |
| 2020 | Dolittle · as Poly (voice) |
| 2019 | How to Build a Girl · as Amanda |
| 2019 | Last Christmas · as Petra Andrich |
| 2019 | Men in Black: International · as Agent O |
| 2019 | Late Night · as Katherine Newbury |
| 2019 | Years and Years (TV Series) · as Vivienne Rook |
| 2019 | Missing Link · as Dora The Yeti Elder (voice) |
| 2018 | Johnny English Strikes Again · as Prime Minister |
| 2018 | King Lear · as Goneril |
| 2017 | The Children Act · as Fiona Maye |
| 2017 | The Meyerowitz Stories · as Maureen Meyerowitz |
| 2017 | Beauty and the Beast · as Mrs. Potts |
| 2016 | To the Ends of the Earth · as Narrator (voice) |
| 2016 | Alone in Berlin · as Anna Quangel |
| 2016 | Bridget Jones's Baby · as Dr Rawlings |
| 2016 | Upstart Crow (TV Series) · as Queen Elizabeth |
| 2015 | A Life on Screen: Stephen Fry · as Cast |
| 2015 | Burnt · as Dr. Rosshilde |
| 2015 | A Walk in the Woods · as Catherine Bryson |
| 2015 | Barney Thomson · as Cemolina |
| 2014 | Men, Women & Children · as Narrator (voice) |
| 2014 | Effie Gray · as Lady Eastlake |
| 2014 | Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street · as Mrs. Lovett |
| 2014 | Effie Gray: Interview with Dakota Fanning · as Lady Eastlake |
| 2013 | Saving Mr. Banks · as P.l. Travers |
| 2013 | The Love Punch · as Kate Jones |
| 2013 | Beautiful Creatures · as Mrs. Lincoln / Sarafine Duchannes |
| 2012 | Brave · as Elinor (voice) |
| 2012 | Men in Black³ · as Agent O |
| 2012 | Playhouse Presents (TV Series) · as The Queen |
| 2011 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 · as Sybill Trelawney |
| 2010 | The Song of Lunch · as She |
| 2010 | Nanny McPhee Returns · as Nanny Mcphee |
| 2009 | An Education · as Headmistress |
| 2009 | The Boat That Rocked · as Charlotte |
| 2008 | Last Chance Harvey · as Kate Walker |
| 2008 | Premio Donostia a Antonio Banderas · as Cecilia Rueda |
| 2008 | Brideshead Revisited · as Lady Marchmain |
| 2008 | Strictly Courtroom · as Gareth Peirce |
| 2007 | I Am Legend · as Dr. Alice Krippin |
| 2007 | Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix · as Sybill Trelawney |
| 2007 | A Brief History of Merchant and Ivory · as Margaret Schlegel |
| 2006 | Stranger Than Fiction · as Karen Eiffel |
| 2006 | Wrestling with Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner · as The Angel Of America |
| 2005 | Hoodwinked! · as Lesa (voice) (uncredited) |
| 2005 | Nanny McPhee · as Nanny Mcphee |
| 2004 | Creating the Vision · as Prof. Sybil Trelawney |
| 2004 | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban · as Sybill Trelawney |
| 2004 | Strictly Come Dancing (TV Series) · as Audience Member |
| 2003 | Angels in America (TV Series) · as Nurse Emily / Homeless Woman / The Angel |
| 2003 | Love Actually · as Karen |
| 2003 | Imagining Argentina · as Cecilia Rueda |
| 2002 | Treasure Planet · as Captain Amelia (voice) |
| 2002 | Sense and Sensibility: Deleted Scenes · as Elinor Dashwood |
| 2001 | The 53rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards · as Cast |
| 2001 | Wit · as Vivian Bearing |
| 2000 | Maybe Baby · as Druscilla |
| 1998 | Judas Kiss · as Fbi Agent Sadie Hawkins |
| 1998 | Primary Colors · as Susan Stanton |
| 1997 | The Winter Guest · as Frances |
| 1997 | Hospital! · as Elephant Woman |
| 1996 | E! True Hollywood Story (TV Series) |
| 1995 | Sense and Sensibility · as Elinor Dashwood |
| 1995 | Carrington · as Dora Carrington |
| 1994 | Junior · as Dr. Diana Reddin |
| 1994 | The Blue Boy · as Marie Bonnar |
| 1994 | My Father the Hero · as Isabel (uncredited) |
| 1994 | In Ismail's Custody · as Actress |
| 1993 | In the Name of the Father · as Gareth Peirce |
| 1993 | The Remains of the Day · as Miss Kenton |
| 1993 | Much Ado About Nothing · as Beatrice |
| 1992 | Peter's Friends · as Maggie Chester |
| 1992 | The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (TV Series) |
| 1992 | Howards End · as Margaret Schlegel |
| 1991 | Rabbit Ears - The White Cat · as Narrator (voice) |
| 1991 | Dead Again · as Margaret Strauss / Grace |
| 1991 | Impromptu · as Duchess D'antan |
| 1989 | Look Back in Anger · as Alison Porter |
| 1989 | Henry V · as Katherine |
| 1989 | The Tall Guy · as Kate |
| 1987 | Fortunes of War (TV Series) · as Harriet Pringle |
| 1987 | Tutti Frutti (1987) (TV Series) · as Suzi Kettles |
| 1985 | Theatre Night (TV Series) · as Catherine Winslow |
| 1985 | Saturday Live (TV Series) · as Cast |
| 1983 | The Crystal Cube · as Jackie Meld |
| 1983 | Alfresco (TV Series) · as Various |
| 1982 | The Young Ones (TV Series) · as Miss Money-Sterling |
| 1982 | The Comic Strip Presents... (TV Series) · as Young Woman |
| 1982 | Cheers (TV Series) · as Nanny Gee |
| 1982 | There's Nothing to Worry About! (TV Series) · as Various |
| 1982 | Cambridge Footlights Revue · as Various |
| 1976 | Live from Lincoln Center (TV Series) · as Mrs. Lovett |
| 1975 | The Val Doonican Music Show (TV Series) |