Keira Knightley

Born Keira Christina Knightley
26 March 1985 (1985-03-26) (age 24)
Teddington, London, England, UK
Occupation Actress
Years active 1998–present
Keira Christina Knightley (pronounced born 26 March 1985) is an English film actress. She began her career as a child and came to international prominence in 2003 after co-starring in the films Bend It Like Beckham and Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy.

Knightley has appeared in several Hollywood films and earned nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress for her role as Elizabeth Bennet in Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice. Two years later she again was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, as well as the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in Atonement.

In 2008, Forbes claimed Knightley to be the second highest paid actress in Hollywood (behind Cameron Diaz), having reportedly earned $32 million in 2007, making her the only non-American person on the list of highest paid actors or actresses. However, Knightley has denied such a figure.

The 2008 release was penned by her mother, Sharman Macdonald, and directed by John Maybury. She then filmed The Duchess, based on the best-selling biography, Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman in which she played Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire; the film was released in cinemas on 5 September 2008 in the U.K.

Knightley appears in the present-day drama Last Night, in which she co-starred with Eva Mendes, Sam Worthington and Guillaume Canet. It is directed by Massy Tadjedin In April 2009, Knightley began work on an adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s dystopian novel, Never Let Me Go. Filming took place in Norfolk and Clevedon.

Upcoming films for 2009 include London Boulevard, with Colin Farrell, the script of which is written by William Monahan, who will also make his directing debut.

Knightley successfully auditioned for the role of Eliza Doolittle, in the Columbia Pictures planned remake of the stage musical My Fair Lady to be produced by Cameron Mackintosh although no release date has yet been scheduled. She will also work on The Beautiful and the Damned, a biopic about the life and relationship of American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald and his novelist wife Zelda Sayre. The film is directed by John Curran and scheduled for release in 2010.

In 2008 she was attached to play Cordelia in a big screen adaptation of King Lear which was subsequently abandoned. Knightley has confirmed that she will not be starring in the fourth installment of Pirates of the Caribbean.

Knightley’s Valentino gown at the 2006 Golden Globe Awards won her much acclaim and even landed her the top spot on Steven Cojocaru’s “Best Dressed List” on Entertainment Tonight, while the dress she wore to the 2006 Academy Awards was donated to the charity Oxfam, where it raised ￡4,300.

Knightley has warned children who dream of the celebrity life that it’s not all what it seems to be. “It frightens me when kids go, ‘I want to be famous.’” In a recent interview with the BBC Knightley said that she feels “de-humanised.” She also said that when a person becomes a celebrity, the public doesn’t care that the person’s life is constantly watched.

While she has no current plans to leave the world of film, Knightley has said that she could not imagine subjecting a child to the media. She is quoted as saying; “I’m not planning to have children at the moment… everyone changes, and I’m sure there will be a time I will want to do something different. I could completely see myself moving away .”

Knightley contributed her voice to a 2007 Robbie the Reindeer animation, all profits of which will be donated to Comic Relief. In 2004, she travelled to Ethiopia with a group that included Richard Curtis, who had directed her in Love, Actually, on behalf of that charity.

In April 2009, Knightley appeared in a video to raise awareness of domestic abuse. The video was directed by Joe Wright, who directed Knightley in Atonement, and shot for “Women’s Aid”, a U.K. based women and children aid group. The video has created controversy, with some sources calling it too graphic, while other groups support the video for showing a realistic depiction of domestic violence.

Knightley, who lives in London, is involved with her Pride and Prejudice co-star Rupert Friend. Knightley has stated she has no plans to be married in the near future. She previously dated Northern Irish fashion model Jamie Dornan, as well as actor Del Synnott, who, according to some reports, attempted suicide after their relationship ended, although Synnott and Knightley deny these claims.

Knightley has denied rumours she is anorexic, although she did say—after her appearance at the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest premiere led to media speculation that her extremely slender figure was due to an eating disorder—that her family has a history of anorexia. Knightley sued the Daily Mail after they claimed she lied about having anorexia; the article said that a teenage girl died from anorexia, indicating that Knightley’s physical appearance may have influenced her in some way. She was awarded a settlement for it. In July 2006, Knightley said she has become a workaholic, detailing that “the last five years have blended into one. I can’t tell you what was last year and what was the year before” and specifying that she was “working too much” and was “quite frightened that if I continue at this rate I will start to hate what I love,” even suggesting that she would take a one-year break from acting to travel and focus on her personal life.

2006 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest Elizabeth Swann Nominated — Empire Award for Best Actress
2007 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End Elizabeth Swann People’s Choice Award – Favorite Female Action Star
Silk Hélène Joncour
Atonement Cecilia Tallis Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
Empire Award for Best Actress
Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
2008 The Edge of Love Vera Phillips
The Duchess Georgiana Cavendish Nominated — British Independent Film Award for Best Actress
Nominated — People’s Choice Award for Favorite Female Movie Star
2009 Last Night Joanna Reed Post-production
2010 Never Let Me Go Ruth Post-production
London Boulevard Lillian Palmer Filming
The Beautiful and Damned Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald Pre-production

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