British actors often become popular in Hollywood. This happened with Paul Bettany. An attractive Englishman played many different roles - from a religious fanatic to a romantic tennis player. Each image succeeds him surprisingly well and brings more and more fans.
But what is he really like?
Childhood
It seems that Paul Bettany from birth had every chance to become a celebrity. He was born into a creative family: his mother is the famous pop singer Ann Kettle, and his father is an actor of the prestigious Shakespeare Theater, a talented dancer and teacher of theater arts. Not only Paul's parents are famous. His grandmother, Olga Gwynn, was a real celebrity at the beginning of the twentieth century and played on the stages of several famous London theaters. Thus, we can say that he comes from a real acting dynasty. However, the actor has an older sister Sarah, who went a completely different way. So his talent is not only successful genes, but also his own skill.
Family tragedy
Not everything in the life of the actor was cloudless. The boy hated school, where he was constantly teased and humiliated. Paul Bettany, whose height is now almost two meters, was already the tallest in the class, which seemed to be an entirely suitable reason for ridicule. But this was not the main trouble.
When Paul was still a teenager, his younger brother Matthew fell from the roof and fell into a coma. Doctors said that he would be bedridden forever and unlikely to regain consciousness, after which his parents decided to disconnect him from the life support apparatus. The tragedy could not pass without a trace - Paul's father and mother divorced, and he left home and began to rent an apartment.
To earn a living and rent, he played the guitar. Depression constantly tormented the guy who wandered aimlessly along the streets of London, he drank every now and then and did not see any chance in life for a change for the better. During frequent binges, he even tried drugs a couple of times. The situation was aggravated by the news that the father had discovered a homosexual orientation in himself and was preparing for a sex change. This Paul could not accept. It is not known how his story would end if it were not for his friend Dan Fredenberg, who advised him to go to acting school.
The beginning of an acting career
In an attempt to cope with depression, Paul applied to the Drama Center in London and successfully passed the entrance exams. He studied with the best British teachers and immediately proved himself. He was quickly noticed and he began to appear in theatrical productions.
At first, Paul worked on the stage of the West End, and then he was invited to the Shakespeare Theater, in which his father had previously worked. In 1996, viewers first saw him as a movie actor. He played in the film Waterloo Sharpe, which was not very popular. After that, he received episodic roles in the films After the Rain and Addiction. In parallel, he took part in the series. The real success was brought in 2000, when actor Paul Bettany took part in the film "Gangster No. 1". This role not only made him famous, but also provided the award of the British Cinema Association.
Overseas invitation
Films with Paul Bettany attracted the attention of American directors. The first Hollywood way was the narrator Jeffrey Chaucer - a tape called “The Knight's Story” was released in 2001. Immediately after participating in this film, Paul Bettany received an offer to play in the film “Mind Games”. The tape turned out to be Oscar-winning, and not only - it was on the set of this film that Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly met.
Despite the fact that in the movie they did not have a single common scene, in life they became close friends.
During this period, the British actor made a successful career in Hollywood. One after another, such films as "My Heart", "Day of Reckoning", "Master of the Seas" were released. Soon, Paul Bettany, whose filmography significantly increased after moving to America, will become a real star, starring in the film "Wimbledon". But in front of her there will also be filming with Lars von Trier. They became a real test for Paul.
On the set of Dogville
There are legends about the difficulty of working with a brilliant Scandinavian director in Hollywood. Nevertheless, Paul Bettany, whose filmography did not yet include such unusual films, boldly went to the shooting of “Dogville”. Lars von Trier settled all the actors in the same hotel, where he eavesdropped on their conversations, and once he knocked on Paul’s room drunk and naked. The work process was also not easy - the director allowed himself to shout at the actors. He constantly arranged some kind of antics, tested everyone for strength every minute.
But the actors managed, and the world saw a bizarre art house tape, the role in which many seem to be one of the best in the career of Paul Bettany. The film itself is considered mandatory. In addition to the fact that on the set Bettany was able to make sure of his acting talent finally, participation in the tape helped him to figure out his relationship with Jennifer.
At that time, he met with another girl, and Connelly was only a friend to him, but the frequent telephone conversations and her sincere support made him realize this is a true feeling.
Happy personal life
Returning from Sweden, Paul Bettany decided to part with his girlfriend, Laura Fraser, with whom they had a very uneven and tense relationship. With Jennifer Connelly, he managed to find what he had been looking for all his life. Actors played a wedding in Scotland, in one of the small cathedrals, inviting only friends and relatives. Soon the first-born appeared in the family - on August 5, 2003, the couple had a son, Stellan, whom Paul named in honor of his close friend Stellan Skarsgård.
Before his appearance, the couple raised their son Jennifer from a previous marriage. Paul received Kai with all his heart. The couple decided to live in New York so that the boy could sometimes communicate with his biological father, and although Bettany honestly admitted in an interview that he misses London, he does not regret such a choice.
New roles
A rich personal life did not prevent the talented actor from appearing on the screen again and again. He played many worthy roles. Separately, it is worth noting the “Origin”, where Paul played Darwin, and his beloved Jennifer got the role of the scientist’s wife. The tape was released in 2009. Work in the films “Legion”, “Shepherd” and “Young Victoria” deserve attention.
Many fans are surprised at how much Paul Bettany transforms into her characters. Photographs and movie frames seem to portray different people.
The frenzied monk from The Da Vinci Code does not resemble Lord Melbourne from Young Victoria. And this is not surprising - in an interview, the actor admitted that the scenes of self-torture brought him, if not physical, but moral pain. He has not attended church since the death of his brother Matthew, although he was raised by a Catholic mother. All the roles of religious people are given to him is especially difficult. It was for such an amazing dedication in every picture of Paul that thousands of fans around the world fell in love.
Honored Recognition
The British Empire Awards named Bettany the best actor in the UK. His works were noted by various film critic societies, viewers of the popular MTV channel at the Movie Awards, he was nominated for the film guild and BAFTA awards, his track record also includes an Oscar nomination.
In total, during his acting career, Paul received more than twenty different awards, each of which he absolutely deserved.
This figure arouses fair respect among fans, but Bettany himself, with typical English self-irony, is especially proud of those nominations in which he received nothing.
The work of recent years
In 2011, a replenishment occurred in the friendly family of Connelly and Bettany - the daughter Agnes was born. Paul had long dreamed of having many children, so the third child became real happiness for him. But nothing prevents the young father from actively acting in films. Together with his wife, no less demanded in cinema, Paul often appears on the screens.
So, in 2012, the world saw the tape "Avengers", in the same year the film "Blood" was released. 2013 thrilled fans of Iron Man-3, and most recently, the film “Excellence” was released. In the coming months, it is planned to release a film called "Missing Rooms". At the moment, the actor is busy filming the Maccabray and Iron Man 4 tapes, both of which are planned for 2015. In addition, work is underway on the film "Destroyer", the release date of which is currently unknown. In it, Paul Bettany will play one of the main roles. There is no doubt that the acting career of a wonderful Briton will not end there.