Imogen Poots

Imogen Poots

Poots at the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con.
Born Imogen Gay Poots
9 June 1989
Hammersmith, London, England
Occupation Actress
Years active 2004–present

Imogen Gay Poots[1] (born 3 June 1989)[2] is an English actress. She is best known for playing Tammy in the post-apocalyptic science fiction horror film 28 Weeks Later (2007) and Julia in the American action movie Need For Speed (2014).

Early life

Poots was born at the Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital in Hammersmith, London, the daughter of Trevor Poots, a current affairs television producer from Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Fiona Goodall, a journalist and voluntary worker from Bolton.[3][4] She has an older brother, Alex, who is a model.[5][6]

Raised in Chiswick, Poots was privately educated in west London, attending Bute House Preparatory School for Girls in Brook Green, Queen's Gate School in South Kensington, and Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith. While intending to become a veterinarian, she began spending Saturdays at an improvisation workshop hosted by the Young Blood Theatre Company at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith. She abandoned her original career aspiration after fainting at the sight of veterinary surgery during work experience.[3] Attaining three A grades at A-level, she won a place at the Courtauld Institute of Art in 2008, but had it deferred for two years in order to pursue her acting career.[4][7]

Career

Poots first appeared on-screen in an episode of Casualty and had a non-speaking role in V for Vendetta, but she was largely unknown when, at the age of 17, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo cast her in 28 Weeks Later. Since then, she has appeared in films such as Cracks, Centurion, and the 2011 remake of Fright Night.[8][9][10][11] Although Poots has never formally trained as an actress, according to Giles Hattersley, a practical apprenticeship that may have served her well, as she is "compellingly natural" in front of the camera.[7]

In 2011, she was chosen by fashion house Chloé to appear in a campaign for its eponymous fragrance shot by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin.[12] In 2012, she was selected to star in a Sofia Coppola-directed advertising campaign for a collaboration between fashion label Marni and high street retailer H&M.[13][14]

In 2012, Poots played the acrimonious young violinist Alexandra Gelbart opposite Catherine Keener and Philip Seymour Hoffman in A Late Quartet. In 2013, she appeared in Greetings from Tim Buckley, Filth, and The Look of Love. In 2014, she starred in That Awkward Moment and Need for Speed (an adaptation of the video game series). She will appear in She's Funny That Way with Jennifer Aniston and Knight of Cups with Cate Blanchett,[15] and has been cast in the adaptation of Jess Walter's novel Beautiful Ruins.[16] She stars in the Jimi Hendrix biopic "Jimi: All Is by My Side" (2014), alongside André Benjamin. [17] Poots will be starring alongside Dianna Agron and Riley Keough in the upcoming 2015 film, Bare.[18]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2006 V for Vendetta Young Valerie Non-speaking role
2007 28 Weeks Later Tammy Harris
2007 Wish Jane Short film
2008 Miss Austen Regrets Fanny Knight Television film
2008 Me and Orson Welles Lorelei Lathrop
2009 Cracks Poppy
2009 Waking Madison Alexis
2009 Solitary Man Allyson Karsch
2010 Centurion Arianne
2010 Chatroom Eva
2010 Christopher and His Kind Jean Ross Television film
2011 Jane Eyre Blanche Ingram
2011 Fright Night Amy Peterson
2011 Comes A Bright Day Mary Bright
2012 A Late Quartet Alexandra Gelbart
2013 Greetings from Tim Buckley Allie
2013 Jimi: All Is by My Side Linda Keith
2013 Filth Amanda Drummond
2013 The Look of Love Debbie Raymond
2014 That Awkward Moment Ellie
2014 A Long Way Down Jess Crichton
2014 Need for Speed Julia Maddon
2015 She's Funny That Way Isabella "Izzy" Patterson
2015 Knight of Cups Della Post-production
2015 A Country Called Home Ellie Post-production
2015 Green Room Post-production
2015 Frank & Lola Lola Filming

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2004 Casualty Alice Thornton Episode: "Love Bites"
2010 Bouquet of Barbed Wire Prue Sorenson 3 episodes

Awards and nominations

Poots was nominated for the Most Promising Newcomer award for 28 Weeks Later at the British Independent Film Awards in 2007 and won Best Supporting Actress for The Look of Love in 2013.[19][20]

References

  1. "POOTS, Imogen". British Film Institute. 16 April 2009. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  2. Hooper, Ellie (28 January 2014). "Our new girl crush: British actress Imogen Poots". Closer. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Mottram, James (10 December 2010). "Imogen Poots - A blooming English Rose". The Independent. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Shields, Rachel (2 May 2010). "Imogen Poots: A bright young thing who won't suffer for her art". The Independent. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
  5. "Union Pack". Interview. March 2010. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  6. Barker, Lynn (16 August 2011). ""Fright Night's" Leading Lady". Teen Hollywood. Retrieved 27 November 2013.
  7. 7.0 7.1 Hattersley, Giles (7 April 2013). "She's got the look". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 13 November 2013. (subscription required (help)).
  8. Clements, Pip (16 April 2010). "Imogen Poots: a starlet is born". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 17 April 2010.
  9. Power, Chris (29 April 2007). "Rising star". The Observer. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  10. Newman, Sara (21 May 2007). "The 5-Minute Interview: Imogen Poots, Actress". The Independent. Archived from the original on 8 January 2008. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  11. Aftab, Kaleem (26 December 2009). "Talent 2010: The actress, Imogen Poots". The Independent. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  12. Forrester, Sarah (27 May 2011). "Chloe's New Signings". Vogue. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  13. Bergin, Olivia (30 January 2012). "Imogen Poots lands Marni for H&M campaign". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
  14. Behind the scenes of the Marni at H&M commercial on YouTube
  15. Dang, Simon (12 June 2012). "Imogen Poots Spotted Shooting 'Knight Of Cups' With Christian Bale; Terrence Malick Meeting With Benicio Del Toro?". The Playlist (Indiewire). Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  16. Kroll, Justin (15 November 2013). "Imogen Poots to Star in Todd Field’s ‘Beautiful Ruins’ (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  17. Imogen Poots, Riley Keough and Dianna Agron to Go ‘Bare’
  18. "Imogen Poots". British Independent Film Awards. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
  19. "Winners announced at the 16th Moët British Independent Film Awards" (Press release). London. 8 December 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2013.

External links

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