Gary Oldman is a film and theater actor, producer, director and musician. In his creative biography there are many examples of successful cooperation with the largest directors of Hollywood (Robert Zemeckis, Francis Ford Coppola, Oliver Stone, Ridley Scott, Quentin Tarantino and others). The actor played in the Harry Potter films the godfather of the young wizard, Batman's ally - Commissar Gordon, and also Dracula in the film of the same name by Bram Stoker. The cinema of recent decades is difficult to imagine without the outstanding talent of this person, not without a sense of humor and self-irony.
Actor Gary Oldman. The beginning of the biography
In the family of housewife Kathleen and welder Leonard Bertram Oldman on March 21, 1958, a son appeared - Gary. The family lived in the famous London quarter of New Cross. At birth, the boy was given the name Gary Leonard Oldman. Parents raised the future movie star along with two sisters. One of them - Maureen - became an actress, choosing the pseudonym “Layla Morse”. Gary despised his father for his craving for alcohol, the scandalous nature and leaving the family when his son was only seven years old. The boy was making music, preparing for the career of a singer or pianist. Fateful for the 10-year-old Gary was going to the cinema, where there were films with Malcolm MacDowell. In one of his interviews, Gary Oldman admitted that he felt an irresistible craving for acting, which ultimately led him to the Greenwich Theater for a young audience. After graduating from school in 1974, Gary got a job in a store, but he did not abandon the theater and the piano.
Studying at a theater college and first awards
The young man tried to enter the Royal Academy of Art (London). The attempt was unsuccessful, but the talented young man did not despair. Gary was enrolled in the same year as a student in the theater college and college drama and drama Rose Bruford. In his school, Gary was considered one of the best students, often appeared on the stage of the Greenwich Theater. In 1979, the young man received an honors degree; his career began in the leading theaters in London. In 1985-1986, the roles of Gary Oldman brought him the award for the best debut of the season, established by Time Out magazine, and the British Theater Association award (1985). About 10 years Oldman devoted his work to the Greenwich Youth Theater, toured with the Glasgow theater troupe across Europe, and was invited to British television. He saw a rising star on the stage and a promising television actor.
Cinema and music in the life of an actor
In 1982, 24-year-old Gary Oldman, whose growth was the same as his childhood ideal, Malcolm McDowell, 1.74 m, realized his dream of becoming a film actor. The tempting invitation of director Colin Gregg to star in the drama “Memory” (“Memories”) followed. But the first truly successful role was Sid Vicious in the 1986 film Sid and Nancy. Oldman brilliantly portrayed the infamous musician of the band Sex Pistols. Film critics called the film "punk" Romeo and Juliet, giving ratings from enthusiastic to critical. The image of rock legend Sid Vicious was very good at Gary Oldman. In the life of an actor, music takes an important role. As a child, he was seriously engaged in playing the piano, he liked to perform classical works. At one time, Gary idolized Chopin, read many books about the composer, played his works. Having become older, Oldman became interested in rock music and the Beatles, acquired a guitar with portraits of idols.
Early film work
Almost immediately after filming in the film "Sid and Nancy," Oldman appeared in the equally shocking film "Point Your Ears" directed by Stephen Frears. Gary played the role of Joe Orton - a gay playwright of the 60s of the XX century, deprived of life by his own lover. The actor for this work was nominated for the prestigious BAFTA Award. Journalists in those years wrote what a mysterious and unusual person Gary Oldman is. The filmography and a list of some of the works in the first half of the 90s give an idea of the busy schedule of filming, a rich palette of talent for the actor:
- Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1990);
- “Henry and June” (1990);
- The State of Frenzy (1990);
- "John F. Kennedy. Shots in Dallas "(1991);
- Dracula (1992) and other films.
Independent cinema and rental leaders
The roles of Gary Oldman invariably arouse interest, approval and admired reviews. Well-known to specialists and viewers, his work in independent cinema. The actor was nominated in 1992 for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor. A very multifaceted actor is Gary Oldman, whose filmography includes several talented incarnations on the screen of real and fictional negative characters:
- Lee Harvey Oswald in the 1991 film John F. Kennedy. Shots in Dallas ";
- Dracula in the 1992 film of the same name;
- Stan in the 1994 film Leon;
- interplanetary villain in the movie "The Fifth Element" of 1997.
The roles of the assassin of Kennedy and the legendary Count Dracula brought Oldman a flurry of praise from film critics and the delight of the audience.
Personal life. Alcohol problems
The actor was married 4 times. With his first wife - actress Leslie Menville Oldman married in 1987, in 1988 the son Alfred appeared. In 1990, his wife filed for divorce. When Gary turned 32, he was called in Hollywood a "phenomenal" actor. Oldman moved to the United States and has since been living in Los Angeles. Another of his chosen ones was Uma Thurman, with whom the actor was married on October 1, 1990. The relationship lasted until April 30, 1992. Uma Thurman and Gary Oldman divorced that day. The reasons for the breakup are easy to guess, back in August 1991, the actor was arrested in Los Angeles for drunk driving and released the next day. The passenger in the car was Kiefer Sutherland. On the set of the Scarlet Letter tape in 1995, Gary began having difficulty remembering the text due to alcohol consumption.
Clinic treatment. Third and fourth marriages
Isabella Rossellini tried to help get rid of addiction, Gary played with her in the film "Immortal Beloved". Passionate romance ended with a break when Oldman went to the clinic. He honestly admitted in his interviews that he was coping with the last stage of alcoholism. During treatment for addiction to alcohol and attending anonymous alcoholics courses, Gary began a relationship with Donja Fiorentino, a professional photographer. The third marriage lasted from February 1997 to April 2001. Donja gave Gary sons - Gulliver and Charlie. Films with Gary Oldman appeared on the screens annually, the audience did not know what a difficult period came in the life of the actor. The work was intense, Gary did not give himself a break. There were 1-2 films with his participation a year. In the new millennium, Oldman married for the fourth time. The actor’s wife was a young spectacular brunette - singer Alexandra Edenborough. The marriage was concluded in December 2008.
Gary Oldman's Triumphs in the 2000s
In 2002, Oldman played one of the leading roles in the film "Route 60: Cases on the Road." The picture in the parable genre was directed by Bob Gale, who is also the author of the script. The character of Gary - O. J. Grant - is endowed with the ability to fulfill wishes that a person does not even suspect.
Two years later, filming began of the continuation of one of the highest grossing franchises in the history of cinema. The role of Sirius Black in the Harry Potter film was given to Gary Oldman. The filmography of the actor replenished with Harry Potter tapes in 2004-2012.
Over the same decade, Oldman starred in director Christopher Nolan. The actor played detective James Gordon in the superhero trilogy about Batman. Nolan’s “Batmaniana” was a massive box office success, and critics favorably accepted the cast.
Gary Oldman - actor with a "great face"
In the summer of 2009, the director of the detective thriller "Spy, Get Out!" Thomas Alfredson was looking for a leading actor, intelligence agent George Smiley. The events in the film take place in the 1970s around the events of the Cold War. Explaining the choice of Gary Oldman for the main role, the director noted that the actor has a “great face”, which inspires “energy and modest intelligence”. This is exactly what you need, ”Alfredson emphasized. The role was "age-related", and appropriate preparation was required, which Gary Oldman took seriously. Photos of the actor at the time show that his appearance has changed. Oldman ate sweets, grew a small stomach, which is usually the case with older people. Film critics praised the film "Spy, Get Out!", Prophesied to the performer of the main role the Oscar. The author of the George Smiley D. Le Carre novel called the film and Gary’s play “a real triumph.” Oldman has a firmly established reputation as an actor who is able to change his appearance and voice so that each character is unique.
Interesting facts related to Gary Oldman
- In 1997, the actor directed the autobiographical drama "Do Not Swallow." Oldman's directorial debut was nominated for the Cannes Golden Palm Branch and received two BAFTA awards.
- Another directorial work of Gary was a clip for the song of his wife - Alexandra Edenborough.
- In 2007, the actor was named Empire magazine among the 100 sexiest stars in movie history.
- Nominated for an Emmy Award for the role of an alcoholic in the television comedy series Friends.
- Until 2011, Oldman was considered one of the greatest actors who had never been nominated for an Oscar (in 2011 he was nominated for his role in the film "Spy, Get Out!").
- Tom Hardy, calling Oldman his favorite actor, starred with him in the films “The Most Drunkest District in the World” (2012) and “Kid-44” (premiere is expected in 2014).
- Hollywood stars Ryan Gosling, Shia LaBeouf, Beau Barrett and others consider Gary their idol.
- In 2012, the editors of The Hollywood Reporter calculated that Oldman is the highest grossing actor in history.
- Gary wonders why he is considered impulsive. “People mistake my passion and energy for anger,” he says. The actor jokes that sometimes "Hollywood does not know what to do with me."