Kristin Scott Thomas
| Kristin Scott Thomas | |
|---|---|
 Scott Thomas at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival |
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| Born | Kristin A. Scott Thomas 24 May 1960 Redruth, Cornwall, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse | François Olivennes (1987–2005) |
Kristin A. Scott Thomas,[1] OBE (born 24 May 1960) is an English actress who has also acquired French nationality. She gained international recognition in the 1990s for her roles in Bitter Moon; Four Weddings and a Funeral and The English Patient.
Since the 1980s, she has also worked in French cinema in films such as the thriller Tell No One and Philippe Claudel's I've Loved You So Long. She has lived in France since she was nineteen, has brought up her three children in Paris, and says she considers herself more French than English.[2] She has been a member of the Légion d'honneur since 2005.
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Early life
Scott Thomas was born in Redruth, Cornwall. Her mother, Deborah (née Hurlbatt), was raised in Hong Kong and Africa, and studied drama before marrying Scott Thomas' father.[3] Her father, Lieutenant Commander Simon Scott Thomas, was a pilot for the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm who died in a flying accident in 1964.[4][5][6] Scott Thomas was raised Roman Catholic.[7][8] She is the older sister of actress Serena Scott Thomas, the niece of Admiral Sir Richard Thomas (who was a Black Rod in the House of Lords), and a more distant grand niece of Capt. Robert Falcon Scott, the ill-fated explorer who lost the race to the South Pole.
Scott Thomas' childhood home was in Nether Compton, Dorset, England. Her mother remarried, to another Royal Navy pilot, who also died in a flying accident six years after the death of her father. Scott Thomas was educated at private schools, Cheltenham Ladies' College and St. Antony's Leweston School for Girls, in Sherborne, Dorset and on leaving school, she moved to Hampstead, London, and worked in a department store. She then began training to be a drama teacher at the Central School of Speech and Drama. On being told she would never be a good enough actress, she left at the age of 19 to work as an au pair in Paris.[9] Speaking French fluently, she studied acting at the École nationale supérieure des arts et techniques du théâtre (ENSATT) in Paris, and at age 25 on graduation, was cast opposite pop star Prince as Mary Sharon, a French heiress, in the 1986 film Under The Cherry Moon. On his 2009 3-CD set LOtUSFLOW3R, the album MPLSoUND has a song titled "Better With Time", which Prince has said is an ode to Kristin.
Career
Scott Thomas is perhaps best-known for her central role as an unfaithful wife in The English Patient, one of the biggest screen hits of 1996. During the 1990s, she also appeared opposite Hugh Grant in Bitter Moon and the global box office success Four Weddings and a Funeral. She has also appeared on TV (in the 2003 Book Clubbin' episode of Absolutely Fabulous, she played a character called Plum Berkeley) and in the theatre.
She was awarded an OBE in the 2003 Queen's Birthday Honours list, and was also awarded the Légion d'honneur by the French government in 2005.
Scott Thomas is a frequent subject on the British motoring programme Top Gear. She was used as a standard of reference for "good taste," such as during the "Cool Wall" segment of the programme. Presenter Jeremy Clarkson would rate a car's coolness based mostly on what he thinks Scott Thomas' level of distaste for it would be. She made her long-awaited appearance as the "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" on the episode broadcast on 25 February 2007 (Series 9, Episode 5). On this episode, amid excessive kowtowing from Clarkson and joking from Richard Hammond and James May because Clarkson has shown much affection for her in the past, she proceeded to rubbish most of the decisions Clarkson had made over the past years of the Cool Wall. She also ridiculed the car that he had just ordered, a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder. She completed her lap in a time of 1min 54secs, placing her just above Phillip Glenister, although still near the bottom of the leaderboard. It has also been mentioned on Top Gear that Jeremy Clarkson owns a donkey called "Kristin Scott Donkey", named after Kristin Scott Thomas.
In early 2007, she played Arkadina in a London production of Chekhov's The Seagull, for which she won a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress on 9 March 2008.[10] She reprised the role in New York in September 2008.[11]
In 2006, she played the lead role of Hélène, in French, in Ne le dis à personne (Tell No One), by French director Guillaume Canet. In 2008, Scott Thomas received many accolades for her performance in another French film, Il y a longtemps que je t'aime (I've Loved You So Long), including BAFTA and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress.
In 2008 Scott Thomas took on the little exposed role of Mary, Anne and George's mother Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire and Ormond in The Other Boleyn Girl movie.
In 2009, she played the role of a fashion magazine creator and editor in the film Confessions of a Shopaholic.
She stars in the film adaption of Douglas Kennedy's novel The Woman in the Fifth, which is planned with an release in late 2010.[12]
In 2011, Scott Thomas will star in the upcoming movie Bel Ami as another love interest of George Duroy (played by Robert Pattinson).[13]
Personal life
Scott Thomas is divorced from French gynaecologist François Olivennes, with whom she has three children: Hannah (born in 1988), Joseph (1991), and George (2000). They had been together for 18 years.
The separation was reportedly precipitated by her romantic involvement with English actor Tobias Menzies, whom she met while appearing in Chekhov's play Three Sisters in London's West End.[14] Menzies was also her costar in a London production of Pirandello's As You Desire Me in 2006.[15]
Her relationship with Menzies now over, she lives in Paris with her two younger children, and counts Charlotte Rampling, Gérard Depardieu, Jane Birkin,[9] and her English Patient costars Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes[14] among her closest friends.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Charly | ||
| 1986 | Under the Cherry Moon | Mary Sharon | |
| 1987 | Djamal et Juliette | ||
| Agent trouble | Julie | ||
| 1988 | La méridienne | Marie | |
| A Handful of Dust | Brenda Last | Evening Standard British Film Award for Most Promising Newcomer | |
| The Tenth Man | Thérèse | ||
| 1989 | Bille en tête | Clara | aka Headstrong |
| Force majeure | Katia | ||
| 1990 | Le bal du gouverneur | Marie Forestier | |
| 1991 | Aux yeux du monde | L'Institutrice | |
| Valentino! I Love You | |||
| Mio caro dottor Gräsler | Sabine | ||
| 1992 | Bitter Moon | Fiona | |
| 1994 | Un été inoubliable | Marie-Thérèse Von Debretsy | |
| Four Weddings and a Funeral | Fiona | BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actress Nominated — Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress |
|
| Le Confessional | Alfred Hitchcock's assistant | ||
| 1995 | Plaisir d'offrir | ||
| En mai, fais ce qu'il te plaît | Martine | ||
| Les Milles | Mary-Jane Cooper | ||
| Richard III | Lady Anne | ||
| Angels & Insects | Matty Crompton | Evening Standard British Film Award for Best Actress Nominated — Chlotrudis Award for Best Supporting Actress |
|
| 1996 | Microcosmos | Narrator | |
| The English Patient | Katharine Clifton | National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — Academy Award for Best Actress Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
|
| Mission: Impossible | Sarah Davies | ||
| Somebody to Love | |||
| The Pompatus of Love | Caroline | ||
| 1997 | Love & Confusions | Sarah | Amour et confusions |
| 1998 | Souvenir | Ann | |
| Sweet Revenge | Imogen Staxton-Billing | ||
| The Horse Whisperer | Annie MacLean | ||
| 1999 | Random Hearts | Kay Chandler | |
| 2000 | Up at the Villa | Mary Panton | |
| Play | First Woman | ||
| 2001 | Life as a House | Robin Monroe | |
| Gosford Park | Sylvia McCordle | Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Satellite Special Achievement Award - Ensemble Cast Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated — Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast |
|
| 2003 | Small Cuts | Béatrice | Petites coupures |
| 2004 | Arsène Lupin | Joséphine, comtesse de Cagliostro | |
| 2005 | Man to Man | Elena Van Den Ende | |
| Chromophobia | Iona Aylesbury | ||
| Keeping Mum | Gloria Goodfellow | Nominated — London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actress of the Year | |
| 2006 | La doublure | Christine Levasseur | |
| 2007 | Mauvaise pente | ||
| Tell No One | Hélène Perkins | ||
| The Valet | Christine Levasseur | ||
| The Walker | Lynn Lockner | ||
| The Golden Compass | Stelmaria | (voice) | |
| 2008 | I've Loved You So Long Il y a longtemps que je t'aime |
Juliette | Best European Actress in a Leading Role London Film Critics Circle Award for British Actress of the Year Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role Nominated — Cesar Award for Best Actress Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama Nominated — Irish Film and Television Award for Best Actress Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama Chlotrudis Award for Best Actress |
| The Other Boleyn Girl | Lady Elizabeth Boleyn | ||
| Seuls two | L'antiquaire | ||
| Easy Virtue | Mrs. Whittaker | Nominated — British Independent Film Awards for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year |
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| Largo Winch | Ann Fergusson | ||
| 2009 | Confessions of a Shopaholic | Alette Naylor | |
| Partir | Suzanne | Nominated — Cesar Award for Best Actress | |
| 2010 | Nowhere Boy | Mimi Smith | Nominated — British Independent Film Awards for Best Supporting Actress Nominated — London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role |
| 2011 | Bel Ami | Unknown | Filming |
Theater
- La Lune déclinante sur 4 ou 5 personnes qui dansent (1983, Festival de Semur en Auxois)
- Terre étrangère (1984, Théâtre des Amandiers de Nanterre)
- Naïves Hirondelles (1984, Festival d'Avignon)
- Yes, peut-être (1985, in a field in Burgundy)
- Bérénice (2001, Festival de Perpignan and Festival d'Avignon + national tour)
- Three Sisters (2003, Playhouse Theatre, London) ... Masha
- As You Desire Me (2005–06, Playhouse Theatre, London) ... Elma
- The Seagull (2007, Royal Court Theatre, London) ... Arkadina
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- Laurence Olivier Awards Best Actress — The Seagull
- A Little Night Music (Planned February 2010, Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris)... Désirée
Quotes
- I never go straight to the point if I can go the most difficult way. Why be simple when you can be complicated? - (Graham Fuller, The Cover Interview: Kristin Scott Thomas, originally published in Interview Magazine, November 1996)
References
- ↑ BFI | Film & TV Database | SCOTT THOMAS, Kristin
- ↑ INTERVIEW : Kristin Scott Thomas
- ↑ Scene change - www.theage.com.au
- ↑ Kristin Scott Thomas Biography (1960-)
- ↑ Kristin Scott Thomas learning to be herself - 07 Mar 2008 - NZ Herald: Entertainment News, Reviews and Gossip from New Zealand and around the World
- ↑ thePeerage.com :: View topic - Scott Thomas family update
- ↑ Hattenstone, Simon (2003-03-27). "'I'm a horrible bully'". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2003/mar/27/theatre.artsfeatures. Retrieved 2010-06-22. "She was brought up as a Catholic and felt guilty about everything."
- ↑ Hattersley, Giles (2008-09-21). "Kristin Scott Thomas, haughty but nice". The Sunday Times. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article4772026.ece. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Anstead, Mark (10 June 2007). "On the move Kristin Scott Thomas". The Times (London). http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/features/article1903514.ece. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
- ↑ Playbill News: Chiwetel Ejiofor and Kristin Scott Thomas Win 2008 Laurence Olivier Awards
- ↑ Whatsonstage.com – London theatre tickets, discounts, news and reviews
- ↑ 'Woman in the Fifth' a Serial Killer? Is She or Isn't She?
- ↑ Carole Horst (May 19, 2009). "Rob Pattinson to star in 'Bel Ami'". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118003932.html?categoryid=3628&cs=1. Retrieved January 11, 2010.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 The Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml;jsessionid=JXVA2OPME2N15QFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/arts/2005/10/17/btkristin16.xml&page=3.
- ↑ Gilbey, Ryan (27 July 2007). "The three stages of Kristin". The Guardian (London). http://arts.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,,2135020,00.html. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
External links
- Kristin Scott Thomas at the Internet Movie Database
- Ryan Gilbey, "The three stages of Kristin", interview, The Guardian, 27 July 2007
- Mark Anstead, "Kristin Scott Thomas: The Ice Maiden thaws", interview, Daily Mail, 8 June 2007
- Louise France, "I'm 47. Unlike most actresses I don't lie about my age" Interview, The Guardian, 3 February 2008
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