Joseph Fiennes Biography

Joseph Alberic Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes (born 27 May 1970) is an English film and stage actor known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love (1998), for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth (1998), Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates (2001), and Monsignor Timothy Howard in the second season of the TV series American Horror Story (2012-2013).

Early life and family

Fiennes was born in 1970 in Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, the son of Mark Fiennes (1933-2004), a farmer and photographer, and Jennifer Lash (1938-1993), a writer. He has English, Irish, and Scottish ancestry. His surname comes from the French village of Fiennes, Pas-de-Calais. His grandfathers were industrialist Sir Maurice Fiennes (1907-1994) and Brigadier Henry Alleyne Lash.

Fiennes is an eighth cousin of Charles, Prince of Wales, and a third cousin of adventurer Ranulph Fiennes and author William Fiennes. His siblings are actor Ralph Fiennes; Martha Fiennes, a director; Magnus Fiennes, a composer; Sophie Fiennes, a filmmaker; and Jacob Fiennes, a conservationist, who is Joseph's twin brother. His foster brother, Michael Emery, is an archaeologist. His nephew Hero Fiennes-Tiffin played Tom Riddle, young Lord Voldemort, in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Education

Fiennes was briefly educated in the Republic of Ireland, then at Swan School For Boys (now known as Leehurst Swan School, following a merger with another school), an independent school in Salisbury, before passing his 11+ exam and continuing to Bishop Wordsworth's School, a voluntary-aided state day grammar school, in the Cathedral Close of the city. He then attended art school in Suffolk for a year, before joining the Young Vic Youth Theatre. Fiennes subsequently trained for three years at London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1993.

Career

Stage and film

His first professional stage appearance was in the West End in The Woman in Black, followed by A Month in the Country opposite Helen Mirren. Fiennes then became a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company for two seasons.

He made his television debut as Willy in The Vacillations of Poppy Carew. His first feature film was 1996's Stealing Beauty, co-starring Liv Tyler. In 1998, Fiennes appeared in two films that were nominated at the Academy Awards: he played Robert Dudley opposite Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth and he portrayed William Shakespeare opposite Gwyneth Paltrow in Shakespeare in Love, receiving nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. He and Paltrow were reunited onscreen in Running with Scissors (2006).

In 2001 he appeared in the film Enemy at the Gates. In 2002 he starred in the independent film, Killing Me Softly.

In 2003 he lent his voice as Proteus in the DreamWorks animated film Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas opposite Brad Pitt. The same year he starred in the limited-release film Luther, playing Martin Luther, and he also appeared in The Merchant of Venice, in which he portrayed Bassanio. Fiennes returned to the theatre in 2006 to perform in the one-man play Unicorns, Almost about World War II poet Keith Douglas at the Old Vic.

In 2006, he appeared in the films The Darwin Awards and Goodbye Bafana. Goodbye Bafana was filmed by director Bille August in South Africa, and released in 2007. Fiennes portrayed James Gregory, author of the book Goodbye Bafana: Nelson Mandela, My Prisoner, My Friend.

Television

Fiennes starred in the ABC science fiction series FlashForward, which debuted on 24 September 2009 and ran through 27 May 2010, as Mark Benford. Fiennes stars in Starz's 10-part series, Camelot, as the wizard Merlin.

In the second season of American Horror Story, which premiered in October 2012, Fiennes began playing the role of Monsignor Timothy Howard.

Personal life

Fiennes married Mara Dolores Diguez, a Swiss model, in a Roman Catholic ceremony in Tuscany in August 2009. They have two daughters.

Fiennes was one of the celebrities, including Tom Hiddleston, Jo Brand, E. L. James and Rachel Riley, to design and sign his own card for the UK-based charity Thomas Coram Foundation for Children. The cards were auctioned off on eBay during May 2014.

Filmography

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996	Stealing Beauty	Christopher
1998	Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence	Laurence	released as The Very Thought of You in the US
1998	Elizabeth	Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester	Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Breakthrough Artist
1998	Shakespeare in Love	William Shakespeare	Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favourite Newcomer Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Breakthrough Artist Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss (shared with Gwyneth Paltrow) Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated"?BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role Nominated"?MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Male Performance Nominated"?Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role Nominated"?Teen Choice Award for Sexiest Love Scene (shared with Gwyneth Paltrow)
1999	Forever Mine	Manuel Esquema/Alan Riply
2000	Rancid Aluminum	Sean Deeny
2001	Enemy at the Gates	Commisar Danilov
2001	Dust	Elijah
2002	Leo	Stephen
2003	Killing Me Softly	Adam Tallis
2003	Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas	Proteus	Voice role
2003	Luther	Martin Luther
2004	The Merchant of Venice	Bassanio	Nominated"?Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture
2005	The Great Raid	Major Gibson
2005	Man to Man	Jamie Dodd
2006	Running with Scissors	Neil Bookman
2006	The Darwin Awards	Michael Burrows
2007	Goodbye Bafana	James Gregory
2008	The Escapist	Lenny Drake
2008	The Red Baron	Arthur Roy Brown
2008	You Me and Captain Longbridge	Narrator
2008	Spring 1941	Artur Planck
2009	Against the Current	Paul Thompson
2014	The Games Maker	Morodian
2014	Hercules	King Eurystheus
2015	Strangerland	Matthew Parker
2015	Psy	American man
2016	Risen	Clavius
2016	The Last Race	Eric Liddell
2016	Elizabeth, Michael & Marlon	Michael Jackson

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2008	Pretty/Handsome	Bob Fitzpayne	Unsold TV pilot
2009-10	FlashForward	Mark Benford	22 episodes
2011	Camelot	Merlin	10 episodes
2012-13	American Horror Story: Asylum	Monsignor Timothy Howard	10 episodes

Plays

• The Woman in Black, Fortune Theatre London (1993)
• A Month in the Country, Belyaev, Guildford, Richmond and the Albery Theatre London (1994)
• A View from the Bridge, Rodolpho, Guildford, Bristol Old Vic, Strand Theatre London (1995)
• Son Of Man, Jesus Christ, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1996)||(1997)
• Les Enfants du Paradis, Lacenaire, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1996)
• Troilus and Cressida, Troilus, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Upon Avon and London (1996)||(1997)
• The Herbal Bed, Rafe Smith, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Upon Avon and London (1996)||(1997)
• As You Like It, Silvius, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1997)
• Real Classy Affair, Billy, Royal Court Theatre Company, London (1998)
• Christopher Marlowe's Edward II, Edward II, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield (2001)
• War Poet's Reading, Apollo Theatre (2001)
• Othello, Iago, West End, London (2002)
• Love's Labour's Lost, Berowne, Royal National Theatre, London (2003)
• Epitaph for George Dillon, George Dillon, Royal National Theatre, London (2005)||(2006)
• 2,000 Feet Away, Deputy, Bush Theatre, London (2008)
• Cyrano de Bergerac, Cyrano, Chichester Festival Theatre (2009)
• Ross, T. E. Lawrence, Chichester Festival Theatre (2016)

Other projects and contributions

• 2002 - contributed to the compilation album, When Love Speaks, which consists of Shakespearean sonnets and play excerpts - "Be not afeard, the isle is full of noises" and "Our revels are now ended" (both from The Tempest)
• 2010 - starred in a series of readings of literary love scenes for The Carte Noire Readers.
• Joseph Fiennes reads Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow
• Joseph Fiennes reads The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Nominated work	Result
1998	Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards	Most Promising Actor	Shakespeare in Love
1999	BAFTA Awards	Best Actor in a Leading Role	Shakespeare in Love
1999	Blockbuster Entertainment Awards	Favorite Male Newcomer	Shakespeare in Love
1999	Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards	Breakthrough Artist	Elizabeth
1999	Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards	Breakthrough Artist	Shakespeare in Love
1999	Chicago Film Critics Association Awards	Most Promising Actor	Shakespeare in Love
1999	MTV Movie Awards	Best Breakthrough Male Performance	Shakespeare in Love
1999	MTV Movie Awards	Best Kiss (with Gwyneth Paltrow)	Shakespeare in Love
1999	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture	Shakespeare in Love
1999	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role	Shakespeare in Love
1999	Teen Choice Awards	Sexiest Love Scene (with Gwyneth Paltrow)	Shakespeare in Love
2005	Satellite Awards	Best Supporting Actor - Motion Picture	The Merchant of Venice