Jude Law

David Jude Heyworth Law (born 29 December 1972) is an English actor. He received a British Academy Film Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, two Tony Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. In 2007, he received an Honorary César and was named a knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government."French Honour for Jude Law"
, Reuters (UK), 2 March 2007. Retrieved 20 November 2007.

Born and raised in London, Law started acting in theatre. After finding small roles in feature films, Law gained recognition for his role in Anthony Minghella's ''The Talented Mr. Ripley'' (1999), for which he won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and was nominated for an Academy Award. He found further critical and commercial success in ''Enemy at the Gates'' (2001), Steven Spielberg's ''A.I. Artificial Intelligence'' (2001) and Sam Mendes' ''Road to Perdition'' (2002). He continued to gain praise for starring in the war film '' Cold Mountain'' (2003), the drama '' Closer'' (2004), and the romantic comedy ''The Holiday'' (2006), gaining Academy Award and BAFTA nominations for the first.

Law played Dr. Watson in '' Sherlock Holmes'' (2009) and '' Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows'' (2011), a younger Albus Dumbledore in '' Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald'' (2018) and '' Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore'' (2022), and Yon-Rogg in '' Captain Marvel'' (2019); all of which rank among his highest-grossing releases. His other notable roles were in '' Contagion'' (2011), ''Hugo'' (2011), ''Side Effects'' (2013), ''The Grand Budapest Hotel'' (2014), and ''Spy'' (2015); and the television series ''The Young Pope'' (2016) and ''The New Pope'' (2020).

Law has performed in several West End and Broadway productions including ''Les Parents terribles'' in 1994, ''Hamlet'' in 2010, and ''Anna Christie'' in 2011. He received Tony Award nominations for the first and second.

Early life

David Jude Heyworth Law was born on 29 December 1972 in the Lewisham district of London, to Peter Robert Law and Margaret Anne Heyworth, both teachers. His father later became, according to Law, "the youngest headmaster in London".Inside the Actors Studio
Jude Law, Season 10, Episode 1008. Bravo. Original Airdate: 21 December 2003. Retrieved 25 May 2008. His mother was adopted but was later reunited with her Welsh birth mother, Meinwen Parry. He has an elder sister, Natasha. Law was named David after one of his parents' best friends, but called by his middle name since birth. The name Jude was taken from "a bit of both" the book ''Jude the Obscure'' and the Beatles song " Hey Jude". He grew up in Blackheath, an area in the borough of Greenwich, and was educated at John Ball Primary School in Blackheath and Kidbrooke School, before attending Alleyn's School.

Career

1987–1999: Early work and breakthrough

Law began acting in 1987 with the National Youth Music Theatre. He played various roles in the Edinburgh Fringe-awarded play ''The Ragged Child''. One of his first major stage roles was Foxtrot Darling in Philip Ridley's '' The Fastest Clock in the Universe''. Law went on to appear as Michael in the West End production of Jean Cocteau's tragicomedy ''Les Parents terribles'', directed by Sean Mathias. For this play, he was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Newcomer, and he received the Ian Charleson Award for Outstanding Newcomer. Following a title change to ''Indiscretions'', the play was reworked and transferred to Broadway in 1995, where Law acted opposite Kathleen Turner, Roger Rees and Cynthia Nixon. This role earned him a Tony Award nomination and the Theatre World Award.

In 1989, Law received his first television role, in a film based on the Beatrix Potter children's book, ''The Tailor of Gloucester''. Law would then go on to have minor roles in various British television series, including a two-year stint in the Granada TV produced ITV soap opera ''Families'', and in the episode " Shoscombe Old Place" in ITV's '' Sherlock Holmes'', as well as the leading role in the BFI /Channel 4 short ''The Crane''.

In 1994, Law appeared in his first major leading film role with the British crime drama ''Shopping'', which also featured his then future wife, Sadie Frost. In 1997, he rose to prominence with his role in the Oscar Wilde biopic ''Wilde''. Law won the Evening Standard British Film Award for Most Promising Newcomer for his portrayal of Lord Alfred Douglas, the glamorous young lover of Stephen Fry's Wilde. In Andrew Niccol's science fiction film ''Gattaca'', Law played the role of a disabled former swimming star living in a eugenics-obsessed dystopia. In Clint Eastwood's ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'', he played the role of Billy Hanson, a male prostitute killed by an art dealer portrayed by Kevin Spacey. In 1998, Jude Law played Steven Grlscz, a vampire and an expert seducer, in '' The Wisdom of Crocodiles''.

In 1999, Law starred alongside Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Cate Blanchett, and Philip Seymour Hoffman in the psychological thriller film ''The Talented Mr. Ripley'', directed by Anthony Minghella. For the film, Law learned to play the saxophone. For his performance, Law won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role,"Full list of Bafta winners"
, BBC News, 9 April 2000. as well as receiving nominations for the Golden Globe Award and Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

At this time, Law, along with his wife Sadie Frost was a member of the famed Primrose Hill set, and that association of friends spilled over into creative collaborations, and the formation of a production company Natural Nylon.

2000–2008: Expansion and critical recognition

In 2001, Law starred as Russian sniper Vasily Zaytsev in the film ''Enemy at the Gates'', and learned ballet dancing for the film ''A.I. Artificial Intelligence'' (2001). A BBC March 2002 review of Law in ''Dr Faustus'' stated ''In such films as Gattaca, A.I. and The Talented Mr Ripley, Law has cornered the market in cocky pride and preening self-absorption.

In 2002, Law played a mob hitman in Sam Mendes's 1930s period drama ''Road to Perdition''. In 2003, he again collaborated with director Anthony Minghella for the period war film '' Cold Mountain'' opposite Nicole Kidman and Renee Zellweger, for which he received nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama, the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Law, an admirer of Sir Laurence Olivier, suggested the actor's image be included in the 2004 film ''Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow''. Using the computer graphics technology, footage of the young Olivier was merged into the film, playing Dr. Totenkopf, a mysterious scientific genius and supervillain. Also in 2004, Law portrayed the title character in ''Alfie'', the remake of Bill Naughton's 1966 film, playing the role originated by Michael Caine; and later took on another of Caine's earlier roles in the 2007 film ''Sleuth'', adapted by Nobel Laureate in Literature Harold Pinter, while Caine played the role originated by Olivier. Also in 2007, Law acted alongside Norah Jones in the romantic drama My Blueberry Nights, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival.

In 2006, he portrayed the role of Kate Winslet's character's single-parent brother in the film ''The Holiday'', a modern-day American romantic comedy written, produced and directed by Nancy Meyers. After his appearances in a string of period dramas and science fiction films in the early to mid-2000s, Law said he found it tricky to approach the contemporary role in this film. Like Winslet, the actor stated, he felt more vulnerable about playing a character who fitted his own look and did not require an accent, a costume or a relocation. By the end of the year, Law was one of the Top Ten A-list of the most bankable film stars in Hollywood, according to the Ulmer Scale."Tom Cruise and Hanks Top New Power List"
, ''World Entertainment News Network'', 10 April 2006.

2009–present: Return to theatre and other projects

In May 2009, Law returned to the London stage to portray the title role in William Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' at the Donmar Warehouse West End season at Wyndham's Theatre. The BBC
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