Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh is a well-known British film and theater actor. In addition, his activities include directing, producing and writing scripts. He worked both in auteur cinema and in the creation of world blockbusters: such as Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and the recent Dunkirk. Throughout his long creative career, Kenneth Branta received and was nominated for many significant awards and awards in the field of cinema.
Early life
Kenneth Bran's biography begins on December 10, 1960. He was born in the city of Belfast, which is the capital of Northern Ireland. The boy was born and raised in a believing family of William and Francis Bran. It was 1970 and the family had to move to England, in a town called Reading. It was difficult for the child to get comfortable in a new place, because he constantly suffered from ridicule and bullying of his peers because of his Irish accent. But later, the student managed to get rid of defects in pronunciation, and classmates began to communicate normally with him. The guy studied well in different schools, such as Whiteknights Primary School, Grove Primary School, Meadway School. There, at a young age, he was able to show his acting skills, participating in various school theater productions. When the young man turned 18, he entered the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Kenneth Branagh showed remarkable results, which allowed him to receive a gold medal - the highest award for excellent academic success.
Career start on TV and theater
In 1981, after graduating, Brana already received his first role. It was a mini-series "Meberi". He was followed by the feature film “Chariots of Fire”. This tape for the aspiring actor was a very important start in his career, as the picture received many popular awards. Kenneth began to appear regularly on TV, he starred in a large number of series, including the well-known "Playing Today" in England and Ireland. Participation in this project brought him first fame at home.
In parallel, actor Kenneth Branagh took part in theatrical productions and plays. The most notable is his participation in the play of William Shakespeare "Henry V", in which he played the main role. His skill captivated both the audience and critics, the performer was awarded all sorts of praise. In addition, the actor was the youngest of those who ever performed this role on stage. Kenneth has repeatedly played in the plays of a famous author. In 1986, he again decided to return to television and performed several roles in television films and series, was able to work with the famous English actress Judy Dench. Their overall picture was called "Lady Not for Burning." Then he starred in various comedies, which had some success with the audience. A breakthrough was the film "Fortune of War", for participating in the filming process of which he was nominated for a BAFTA award. On the set, Kenneth Branagh met his future wife - Emma Thomson. In 1987, the actor opened a theater company and staged many productions.
Author's project
In 1989, Branagh decided to return to the play “Henry V,” but this time it should not be a production in the theater, but a real big-budget movie. He himself became a director and producer, and also wrote the script and played the main role. This project was highly appreciated by critics and viewers, many noted that this is one of the most powerful debut work of novice directors. The picture received more than one award, including the BAFTA Prize. There were also nominations for an Oscar for Best Actor and Director. After such a resounding success, Kenneth Branagh decided to take a break and took up theater art, where he successfully directed several plays and played a major role in them.
Movies
Two years later, Kenneth Branagher filmography was replenished with another movie masterpiece. A picture titled "Die Again" was released. This rather successful work, roles in it were performed by such stars as Andy Garcia and Robin Williams, as well as many others.
In 1992, Branagh made a new film. This time it was a good comedy film “Friends of Peter”: in the new project, the actor again acted as the director and performer of the main role. For other roles, such famous English actors as Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry were invited. Just a year later, his new directorial and acting work came out - "Much Ado About Nothing." Comedy was again based on a Shakespeare play. This is another confirmation that he is Kenneth's favorite author. And after that many of his works followed, one more successful than the other. It was “Hamlet”, “Winter's Tale” and the most expensive film at that time - “Frankenstein Mary Shelley”. All these films were collected in their ensemble of world cinema stars: Kate Winslet, Robin Williams, Robert de Niro and Helena Bonham Carter.
Series of failures
From 1998 to 2000, Kenneth did not make new films. He decided to devote himself completely to acting. All his roles in other directors were either passing, or frankly bad. For example, the role of the villain in the film "Wild, Wild West." He decided to improve his situation by shooting the film "The futile efforts of love." But the project, although critics liked it, could not recoup its modest budget at the global box office. This was followed by small roles and voice acting in cartoons.
Revival of film career
The military picture "Conspiracy" returned the actor to the pinnacle of success. For participating in the film, he received an Emmy Award. After that, many roles in the movie followed, the most notable of which was the character Professor Lokons from the movie Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Brana, not stopping there, returned to the production and visualization of films. In a short period of time, the films “How You Like It” and “The Magic Flute” were released.
Literally a year later, he plunged headlong into work on the detective thriller, and after completing the filming process, he agreed to play a major role in the criminal television series Vallander.
In 2011, the movie was blown up by the screen version of the comic book Tor, which once again confirmed Bran's directorial talent.
In 2014, he shot another restart of the Jack Ryan series of films with Chris Pine in the title role. But he did not find much success and received moderate reviews from film critics.
The cool reception of Chaos Theory did not cool the visionary’s creative fuse, and he took responsibility for the adaptation of Agatha Christie’s novel. In the movie “Murder on the Orient Express,” Kenneth Branagh decided to mix the two most popular movie genres - detective and drama. The premiere of the masterpiece is scheduled for early November 2017. By the way, the main role of the incomparable Hercule Poirot will be played by none other than Bran.
Personal life
Kenneth Branagh from 1989 to 1995 was married to Emma Thomson. After the couple broke up, the filmmaker began an affair with actress Helena Bonham Carter, and later they also broke up. Since 2003, he has been married to Lindsay Brannock, an art director who collaborated with his ex-lover Helena.