Amy Adams

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This article is about the actress. For the singer, see Amy Adams (singer).
Amy Adams

Adams filming for Enchanted (2007)
Born Amy Lou Adams
August 20, 1974 (1974-08-20) (age 33)
Vicenza, Italy
Occupation actress
Years active 1999–present
Domestic partner(s) Darren Le Gallo (2002–present)[1]

Amy Lou Adams (born August 20, 1974) is an American actress. She is best known for playing characters with cheerful and sunny dispositions such as her Academy Award-nominated role as Ashley Johnsten in Junebug and her Golden Globe Award-nominated role as Giselle in Enchanted.

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[edit] Early life

Amy Adams was born in Vicenza, Italy,[2] the daughter of American parents Kathryn and Richard Adams, who was a U.S. serviceman stationed in Italy. She grew up as one of seven children in Castle Rock, Colorado and was raised in the Mormon religion, although her family left the church after Adams' parents divorced when she was 11 years old.[3][4] Throughout her years at Douglas County High School, she sang in the school choir and trained as an apprentice at a local dance company with ambitions of becoming a ballerina.[5] However, after graduating from high school, she decided that she was "never going to be that good [at ballet], no matter how hard [she] work[ed]" and entered musical theater, which she found was "much better suited to [her] personality".[5]

[edit] Career

[edit] Early career

To support her community theater habit, Adams worked at Gap as a greeter and at Hooters as a hostess and a waitress, a fact which has "become [her] entire press career for a while". Earlier she also was an employee at Penny Robins, a dance shop.[4][6] She began working professionally as a dancer at Boulder's Dinner Theatre and Country Dinner Playhouse, where she was spotted by a Minneapolis dinner-theater director. Along with her family, Adams moved to Chanhassen, Minnesota, where she continued to work in regional dinner theater. While she was off work nursing a pulled muscle, Adams auditioned for the satirical 1999 comedy Drop Dead Gorgeous, which was being filmed in Minnesota, and was cast in her first film role. Persuaded by her Drop Dead Gorgeous co-star, Kirstie Alley, Adams moved to Los Angeles, California in 1998.[7] Shortly after, she was cast in Fox Network's television series spin-off of Cruel Intentions, Manchester Prep, in the role of Kathryn Merteuil. The series did not live up to the network's expectations and following numerous script revisions and two production shutdowns, it was canceled.[8] The filmed episodes were then re-edited to be released as the direct-to-video film, Cruel Intentions 2.

From 2000 to 2002, Adams appeared in a series of small films like Psycho Beach Party while guest-starring on television series such as Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville and The West Wing. She then appeared in Steven Spielberg's Catch Me if You Can as Brenda Strong, a role which was "supposed to be [her] big break" but she "was unemployed for a year after that".[9] However, Adams stated that it "was the first time [she] knew [she] could act at that level with those people. To be believed in by Steven Spielberg... it was a huge confidence booster".[10] She starred in The Last Run in 2004 as well as voicing characters on animated television series King of the Hill. In the same year, she was cast in the television series, Dr. Vegas, in the role of Alice Doherty but was later fired after a contract dispute.[11]

[edit] 2005–2007

Right after she left Dr. Vegas, she received the script for Junebug, a low-budget independent film, and auditioned for the role of Ashley Johnsten on the following day.[9][11] Director Phil Morrison decided to cast Adams as the innocent and talkative Ashley after "[l]ots of people looked at Ashley and thought, 'What's the sorrow she's masking?'" and the fact that Adams "didn't approach it from the angle of 'What's she covering up?' was key."[12] The film was shot in 21 days in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival, where she won the Special Jury Prize for her performance.[13] After the theatrical release of The Wedding Date, in which Adams appeared alongside Debra Messing and Dermot Mulroney, Junebug was released in theaters by Sony Pictures Classics. Adams received further numerous critical accolades and awards for her performance in Junebug, including the National Society of Film Critics award for Best Supporting Actress and the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female. She was also nominated for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture at the 12th Screen Actors Guild Awards and Best Supporting Actress at the 78th Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invited Adams to become a member in 2006.[14]

Although Junebug had a limited audience, Adams' critically-acclaimed performance in the film helped to increase interest in her acting career. Adams went on to appear in films like Standing Still and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, and played the recurring guest role of Katy on the television series The Office. After providing her voice for the character of Polly Purebred in Walt Disney Pictures' Underdog, Adams starred in Disney's 2007 big-budget animated/live-action feature film, Enchanted. The film, which co-stars Patrick Dempsey, Idina Menzel, Susan Sarandon and James Marsden, revolves around Giselle, who is forced from her 2D-animated world to real-life New York City. Adams was amongst 300 or so actresses who auditioned for the role of Giselle,[15] but she stood out to director Kevin Lima because her "commitment to the character, her ability to escape into the character's being without ever judging the character was overwhelming".[16] Enchanted was both a commercial and critical success, with critics calling it a star-making vehicle for Adams the way Mary Poppins was for Julie Andrews.[17] For her performance, Adams received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and a Critics' Choice Award nomination for Best Actress. Three of the film's songs were nominated for Best Original Song at the 80th Academy Awards. After Enchanted, Adams appeared in Charlie Wilson's War as the title character's administrative assistant, which saw her co-starring with Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

[edit] 2008–present

The success of Enchanted increased Adams' media exposure during the 2007/2008 film awards season. At the 80th Academy Awards ceremony, she presented the award for Best Original Score and performed "Happy Working Song", one of the nominated songs from Enchanted, live on stage. "That's How You Know", originally performed by Adams in the film, was sung by Kristin Chenoweth at the ceremony. In an interview, Adams remarked that it was "perfect" for Chenoweth to perform the song since Chenoweth "was a huge inspiration for how [she] approached Giselle".[10] As well as appearing on the covers of Interview, Elle and the Hollywood issue of Vanity Fair, which named her as one of the "10 fresh faces of 2008",[18] Adams hosted the seventh episode of the 33rd season of Saturday Night Live in March 2008. In the episode, she played various characters, including Heidi Klum as well as singing "What is This Feeling?" from Wicked in a mock battle with SNL cast member Kristen Wiig during the opening monologue.

Adams starred in three films in 2008: Sunshine Cleaning, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day and Doubt. In Sunshine Cleaning, an independent film that was shot in and around Albuquerque, New Mexico from February to March in 2007,[19] Adams plays a single mother who starts her own crime scene clean-up business in order to make enough money to send her son to a private school. The film premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival as one of the most anticipated titles but received somewhat mixed reviews and was not sold to a distributor as quickly as expected.[20] In Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, a 1939-set film, Adams plays Delysia Lafosse, an aspiring American actress living in London whose life is changed after meeting a governess named Miss Pettigrew, played by Frances McDormand. The film received generally favorable reviews,[21] with critics praising the performances of Adams and McDormand.[22] Adams' role was noted to be similar to her joyful and naïve characters in Junebug and Enchanted; Carina Chocano of Los Angeles Times stated that "Adams is amazingly adept at playing smart playing dumb",[23] while Kirk Honeycutt wrote that "Adams more or less reprises her princess from 'Enchanted,' only with a beguiling touch of ditzy naughtiness".[24] When asked whether she is in danger of being typecast, Adams said, "Not at this point... Right now I'm just doing what I enjoy and I've done some different films, I've done some different types of roles. I've done drama this year, we had a film at Sundance ('Sunshine Cleaning'), but I enjoy playing upbeat characters, I really do because you take your characters home with you whether you intend to or not."[25] In another interview, Adams said, "I think I just respond to those kinds of characters... They're so layered, and I love the fact that they've made this choice to be joyful... I really identify with that sense of hope."[26] In Doubt, an adaptation of John Patrick Shanley's play of the same name, Adams stars as Sister James alongside Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Viola Davis.

Adams voiced Selenia, the Animal Princess of God in the Madagascar sequel, Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, featuring Patton Oswalt, Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith, Cedric The Entertainer, and Ian McDiarmid.

Following Doubt, Adams will appear in Julie & Julia with Streep, which is set to be released in 2009, as a frustrated temp secretary Julie Powell, who decides to cook all of the recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. She will then portray Amelia Earhart in Night at the Museum 2: Escape from the Smithsonian and will co-star with Mark Ruffalo in the upcoming Noah Baumbach movie Greenburg.[27] She will marry Doug Lawrence in 2008.

[edit] Body of work

[edit] Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1999 Drop Dead Gorgeous Leslie Miller
2000 Psycho Beach Party Marvel Ann
The Chromium Hook Jill Royaltuber Short film
Cruel Intentions 2 Kathryn Merteuil Direct-to-video
2002 The Slaughter Rule Doreen
Pumpkin Alex
Serving Sara Kate
Catch Me if You Can Brenda Strong
2004 The Last Run Alexis
2005 The Wedding Date Amy Ellis
Junebug Ashley Johnsten Won BFCA Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actress
Nominated for SAG Award for Best Supporting Actress
Nominated for Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress
Standing Still Elise
2006 Pennies Charlotte Brown Short film
Moonlight Serenade Chloe
Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny Gorgeous Woman
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby Susan
2007 The Ex Abby March
Enchanted Giselle Nominated for BFCA Critics' Choice Award for Best Actress
Nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Musical or Comedy
Nominated for Satellite Award for Best Actress - Musical or Comedy
Underdog 'Sweet' Polly Purebred (voice)
Charlie Wilson's War Bonnie Bach
2008 Sunshine Cleaning Rose Lorkowski
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day Delysia Lafosse
Doubt Sister James post-production
2009 Julie & Julia Julie Powell filming
Night at the Museum 2: Escape from the Smithsonian Amelia Earhart filming
Greenburg[27] TBA announced

[edit] TV credits

Year Title Role Notes
2000 That '70s Show Kat Peterson Episode ("Burning Down the House")
Charmed Maggie Murphy Episode ("Murphy's Luck")
Zoe, Duncan, Jack & Jane Dinah Episode ("Tall, Dark and Duncan's Boss")
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Beth Maclay Episode ("Family")
2001 Smallville Jodi Melville Episode ("Craving")
2002 The West Wing Cathy Episode ("20 Hours in America: Part 1")
2004 King of the Hill Merilynn/Sunshine (voice) Episode ("Cheer Factor")
Misty (voice) Episode ("My Hair Lady")
Dr. Vegas Alice Doherty Recurring
2006 The Office Katy Episodes ("Hot Girl", "The Fire" and "Booze Cruise")
2008 Saturday Night Live Host Episode (March 8, 2008)

[edit] Discography

[edit] References

  1. ^ Morris, Janice. "Oscar Spotlight: Amy Adams", People, 2006-03-03. Retrieved on 2008-01-03. 
  2. ^ Gold Derby by Tom O'Neil: Transcript of our chat with critics' award winner Amy Adams. The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2007-08-28.
  3. ^ Fox, Killian. "Amy's fairytale of New York", The Observer, 2007-11-18. Retrieved on 2007-11-22. 
  4. ^ a b Rochlyn, Margy. "A Disney Princess, Not Winking but Floating", The New York Times, 2007-11-04. Retrieved on 2007-11-22. 
  5. ^ a b West, Naomi. "Amy Adams: Happily ever after", The Daily Telegraph, 2007-11-17. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  6. ^ Head, Steve. "An Interview with Amy Adams", IGN, 2003-01-08. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  7. ^ Covert, Colin. "Movies: Amy Adams: All dressed up", Star Tribune, 2007-11-16. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  8. ^ Flint, Joe. "On The Air", Entertainment Weekly, 1999-10-22. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  9. ^ a b Young, Jamie Painter. "Amy Adams: Little Breaks", Back Stage West, 2005-08-04. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  10. ^ a b Getlen, Larry. "Q&A: Amy Adams", New York Post, 2008-03-02. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  11. ^ a b Ide, Wendy. "Presumed innocent", The Times, 2006-04-01. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  12. ^ Page, Janice. "For actress Amy Adams, role was a turning point", The Boston Globe, 2005-08-07. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  13. ^ Wolf, Matt. "And she did go to the ball", The Sunday Times, 2006-04-16. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  14. ^ Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (2006-07-05). "Academy Invites 120 to Membership". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-01-28.
  15. ^ White, Cindy. "Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey help director Kevin Lima bring back classic Disney in Enchanted", Scifi.com, 2007-11-20. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  16. ^ Wood, Jennifer M.. "Amy Adams Enchants Kevin Lima", Movie Maker, 2007-11-26. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  17. ^ Morris, Wesley. "Enchanted: A movie princess is born", The Boston Globe, 2007-11-21. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  18. ^ "V.F.'s Hollywood Issue: The Annie Leibovitz Covers", Vanity Fair, 2008-02-05. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  19. ^ "Governor Bill Richardson Announces Sunshine Cleaning to be filmed in New Mexico", New Mexico Film Office, 2007-02-08. Retrieved on 2008-01-27. 
  20. ^ Tourtellotte, Bob. "Docs are hot at Sundance", Reuters, 2008-01-21. Retrieved on 2008-01-27. 
  21. ^ "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day", Metacritic, 2008-03-28. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  22. ^ Puig, Claudia. "'Miss Pettigrew' is playful, well-acted farce", USA Today, 2008-03-06. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  23. ^ Chocano, Carina. "Movie Review: Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day", Los Angeles Times, 2008-03-07. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  24. ^ Honeycutt, Kirk. "Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day", The Hollywood Reporter, 2008-03-03. Retrieved on 2008-03-08. 
  25. ^ Turner, Miki. "Amy Adams is surprised she’s an 'It Girl'", MSNBC, 2008-03-03. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  26. ^ Whitty, Stephen. "For Amy Adams, being nice is the best revenge", The Star-Ledger, 2008-03-01. Retrieved on 2008-03-28. 
  27. ^ a b Goldstein, Gregg. "Rudin, Baumbach team for 'Greenburg'", The Hollywood Reporter, 2008-05-17. Retrieved on 2008-06-03. 

[edit] External links

Persondata
NAME Adams, Amy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Adams, Amy Lou
SHORT DESCRIPTION Actress, singer
DATE OF BIRTH August 20, 1974
PLACE OF BIRTH Vicenza, Italy
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH