Sunday, June 24, 2012

Michael Sheen biography

 
Michael Christopher Sheen, OBE (born 5 February 1969), is a Welsh stage and screen actor. After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Sheen made his professional debut in 1991, starring opposite Vanessa Redgrave in When She Danced at the Globe Theatre. He worked mainly in theatre throughout the 1990s and made notable stage appearances in Romeo and Juliet (1992), Don’t Fool With Love (1993), Peer Gynt (1994), The Seagull (1995), The Homecoming (1997) and Henry V (1997). His performances in Amadeus at the Old Vic and Look Back in Anger at the National Theatre were nominated for Olivier Awards in 1998 and 1999, respectively.
In the 2000s, while continuing to make sporadic stage appearances, Sheen became known primarily as a screen actor. In 2003, he was nominated for a third Olivier Award for his performance in Caligula at the Donmar Warehouse and had a breakthrough performance as the British politician Tony Blair in the television film The Deal. He received a BAFTA Award nomination in 2004 for his work in the ITV drama Dirty Filthy Love. In 2006, Sheen starred as the troubled comic actor Kenneth Williams in BBC Four's Fantabulosa! and came to the attention of an international audience when he reprised his role as Blair in The Queen. Both performances were BAFTA Award-nominated. Sheen received a fourth Olivier Award nomination in 2006 for portraying the broadcaster David Frost in Frost/Nixon at the Donmar Warehouse and he later revisited the role of Frost in the 2008 film adaptation of the play. In 2009, Sheen appeared in two fantasy films, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans and The Twilight Saga: New Moon, and starred as the outspoken football manager Brian Clough in The Damned United.
In the 2010s, Sheen has divided his time between film, television and theatre work. In 2010, he made a four-episode guest appearance in the NBC comedy 30 Rock and was nominated for an Emmy Award for his portrayal of Blair in the HBO film The Special Relationship. He appeared in the science-fiction film Tron: Legacy (2010) and Woody Allen's romantic comedy Midnight in Paris (2011). At Easter 2011, Sheen directed and starred in National Theatre Wales's The Passion, a 72-hour secular passion play staged in his hometown of Port Talbot. From October 2011 until January 2012, Sheen played the title role in Hamlet at the Young Vic. In 2013, he will star in Showtime's twelve-episode drama Masters of Sex.
Sheen had an eight-year relationship with English actress Kate Beckinsale from 1995 until 2003; they have one daughter. He is in a relationship with Canadian actress Rachel McAdams and lives in Los Angeles, California. He is the president of TREAT Trust Wales, the Welsh ambassador of FILMCLUB and a patron of numerous charitable organisations including Scene & Heard.

Early life

Sheen was born in Newport, Wales, the son of Irene (née Thomas), a secretary, and Meyrick, a British Steel personnel manager. He has one younger sister, Joanne. When he was five, the family moved to Liverpool, England but settled in his parents' hometown of Baglan in Port Talbot, Wales three years later. Port Talbot is also the hometown of actors Richard Burton and Anthony Hopkins. Director Sam Mendes has described Sheen as "a stage creature" and attributed that to the actor's Welsh roots. "I'm serious. He's Welsh in the tradition of Anthony Hopkins and Richard Burton: fiery, mercurial, unpredictable."
A keen footballer, Sheen was scouted and offered a place on Arsenal F.C.'s youth team at the age of 12 but his family were unwilling to relocate to London, England. He later said he was "grateful" for his parents' decision as the chances of forging a professional football career were "so slim". "It would have meant moving from Wales to London as a family. It was just too big an upheaval." "My career would have been over years ago now", he noted. He lost interest in playing football in his early teens.
Sheen was raised in a theatrical family – his parents were both involved in local amateur operatics and musicals and, later in life, his father worked as a part-time professional Jack Nicholson look-alike. In his teenage years, Sheen was involved with the West Glamorgan Youth Theatre and, later, the National Youth Theatre of Wales. "It was a brilliant youth theatre", Sheen has said, "and it taught me not only a lot about acting, but also about work ethic; it was very disciplined." He was influenced by the performances of Laurence Olivier and the writings of theatre critic Kenneth Tynan – "the combination of those two things kind of blew my head off."
Sheen was educated at Blaenbaglan Primary School, Glan Afan Comprehensive School and, finally, Neath Port Talbot College where he sat A-levels in English, Drama and Sociology. He considered studying English at university but instead decided to attend drama school. He moved to London in 1988 to train as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), having spent the previous year working in a Welsh fast food restaurant called Burger Master to earn money. Sheen was granted the Laurence Olivier Bursary by The Society of London Theatre in his second year at RADA. He graduated in 1991 with a BA in Acting.

Personal life  

Sheen had a relationship with actress Kate Beckinsale from 1995 until 2003. They have one daughter.
Sheen had an eight-year relationship with English actress Kate Beckinsale from 1995 until 2003. They met when cast in a touring production of The Seagull in early 1995 and began living together shortly afterwards. Beckinsale credited Sheen with saving her from "a hospital for the criminally insane". Their daughter, Lily Mo Sheen, was born in 1999 in London, England. The actress has said she was "embarrassed" that Sheen never proposed but remarked, "If you keep a library book out long enough, you feel it's yours." Their relationship ended in early 2003, after the filming of Underworld. Beckinsale had persuaded director Len Wiseman to cast Sheen in the film but, while on set, she and Wiseman (who was married) fell in love. She relocated to Los Angeles, California and married Wiseman in 2004.
Sheen also moved from London to Los Angeles following the split in order to live close to his daughter. "I like LA", he has remarked. "It's grown on me and it's my home for now, but I wouldn't choose to live in LA if it wasn't for my daughter... Once Lily's older and able to move around, I'll probably return to the UK." He remains friends with both Beckinsale and Wiseman. "We were very lucky in that we didn't have an acrimonious split," Beckinsale has said. "We are still very close and [our daughter] sees us around each other." "He's absolutely one of my most favourite people ever." "I love him dearly – I would miss him dreadfully if he wasn't in my life." Sheen has said that Beckinsale "will always be one of the most important people in my life. I have real love for her and a lot of affection for Len."
Sheen had a long-distance relationship with English ballet dancer Lorraine Stewart from late 2004 until mid-2010. He is currently in a relationship with Canadian actress Rachel McAdams, whom he met on the set of Midnight in Paris in July 2010.
Sheen does not adhere to any religion, having asked his parents at the age of seven if he could stop attending church. He has said that he usually votes for the Labour Party and has criticised the Conservative Party's Big Society initiative, describing it as "a totally cosmetic bit of PR". "Rather than trying to encourage people to do more voluntary work, I would say look at the people who are doing the work already and give them more support."

Awards and recognition

Theatre awards
Screen awards
Other honours
Sheen was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2009 New Year Honours list for his services to drama. He was awarded the freedom of the borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales in 2008 for his services in the field of the dramatic arts. He is an Honourary Fellow of the University of Wales, Newport, the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and Swansea Metropolitan University, and has been awarded the James Joyce Award by University College Dublin.

List of performances

Main article: Michael Sheen performances
In a career spanning twenty-one years to date, Sheen has 30 theatre credits, 37 film credits and 17 television credits.
Sheen has also appeared in many radio productions, particularly in the early years of his career. Notable radio play appearances include Strangers on a Train (1994) opposite Bill Nighy, The Importance of Being Earnest (1995) opposite Judi Dench, Romeo and Juliet (1997) opposite Kate Beckinsale, Troy (1998) opposite Paul Scofield and The Pretenders (2004) opposite, again, Paul Scofield. He has narrated five novels for BBC Radio 4 and Naxos AudioBooks: Crime and Punishment (1994), The Idiot (1995), The Picture of Dorian Grey (1995), A White Merc With Fins (1997) and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2007).




Filmography

2010: TRON: Legacy - Castor
2010: Beautiful Boy - Bill Carroll
2010: The Special Relationship (TV movie) - Tony Blair
2010: 30 Rock (TV series) - Wesley
2010: Alice in Wonderland - White Rabbit (voice)
2010: Unthinkable - Steven Arthur Younger
2009: A Child's Christmases in Wales (TV movie) - Narrator (voice)
2009: New Moon - Aro Volturi
2009: My Last Five Girlfriends - Burnam
2009: The Damned United - Brian Clough
2009: Underworld: Rise of the Lycans - Lucian
2008: Frost/Nixon - David Frost
2007: Music Within - Art
2006: Blood Diamond - Rupert Simmons
2006: The Battle for Rome (TV mini-series) - Nero
2006: HG Wells: War with the World (TV movie) - H.G. Wells
2006: Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire (TV series) - Emperor "Nero" Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus
2006: The Queen - Tony Blair
2006: Kenneth Williams: Fantabulosa! (TV movie) - Kenneth Williams
2006: Underworld: Evolution - Lucian
2005: The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse - Jeremy
2005: Kingdom of Heaven - Priest
2005: Dead Long Enough - Harry Jones
2004: Dirty Filthy Love (TV movie) - Mark Furness
2004: Laws of Attraction - Thorne Jamison
2003: Timeline - Lord Oliver
2003: The Deal (TV movie) - Tony Blair
2003: Underworld - Lucian
2003: Bright Young Things - Miles
2002: The Four Feathers - William Trench
2002: Heartlands - Colin
1999: Doomwatch: Winter Angel (TV movie) - Angel (voice)
1997: Wilde - Robbie Ross
1996: Mary Reilly - Bradshaw
1995: Othello - Lodovico
1993: Maigret (TV series) - Philippe
1993: Gallowglass (TV series) - Joe

Quotes

"It's interesting that in searching for monsters to play you often end up playing leaders."


 

Other Facts

His voice can be heard on several of the Naxos Audiobooks.

Played Jimmy Porter in a 1995 revival of "Look Back in Anger" by John Osborne (Gregory Hersov - director) at the Manchester Royal Exchange Theatre.

Played Konstantin in a 1995 revival of Anton Chekhov's "The Seagull" (Robert Sturua - director) with the Thelma Holt Theatre Company on a UK tour.

Appeared as Lenny in a 1996 revival of "The Homecoming" by Harold Pinter (Roger Mitchell - director) at the Lyttelton Theatre, Royal National Theatre.

Appeared as Peer Gynt in a 1994 revival of Henrik Ibsen's "Peer Gynt" (adaptation by Frank McGuiness, Yukio Ninagawa - director) for the National Theatre Endemble at the Barbican Theatre, London and in Oslo, Norway and Tokyo, Japan.

Appeared as Romeo in a 1992 revival of Williams Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" (Gregory Herson - director) at the Manchester Royal Exchange Theatre followed by a UK Tour.

Appeared as Alexandros Eliopolos in Sherman's 1991 play "When She Danced" which starred with Vanessa Redgrave (Robert Ackerman - director) at the Globe Theatre, London.

As a member of the theatre company Check By Jowl, his credits include: "Don't Fool With Love" (Declan Donellan, 1993), Fred in "Moonlight" (a new play by Harold Pinter, David Leveaux - director at the Almeida Theatre, London). Sheen was nominated for Sunday Times Royal National Theatre Ian Charleston Award for his performance.

In 1997, together with Helen McCrory he created Foundry, a new writing company.

As one of the founders of Thin Language, a theatre company for Wales, he appeared in and/or directed the 1997 theatrical productions of "Badfinger" (by Simon Harris) at the Donmar Warehouse, London and in "Wales" and "Forever Yours Mary Lou" by Trembly-Author (Welsh adaptation Sian Evans) in Swansea, Cardiff and London.

Appeared as Henry V in a 1997 production of "Henry V" by William Shakespeare (Ron Daniels - director) with the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford, at the Barbican, London and on UK tour. He was a finalist for the 1997 Royal National Theatre-Sunday Times Ian Charleston Award for his performance.

Appeared as Caligula in a 2003 production of "Caligula" by Albert Camus (translation by David Greig, Michael Grandage - director) at the Donmar Warehouse, London. He was awarded the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor, The Critics Circle Theatre Award for Best Actor and was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award (2003 season) for Best Actor for his performance.

Appeared as Jimmy Porter in a 1999 revival of "Look Back In Anger" by John Osborne (Gregory Hersov - director) at the Lyttelton Theatre, London. He was nominated in 2000 for the Evening Standard Drama Award for Best Actor and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor for his performance.

Appeared as W.A. Mozart in a revival of "Amadeus" by Peter Shaffer (Peter Hall - director) at the Old Vic, London (1998), and in New York (2000) and Los Angeles. He was nominated for the Outstanding Actor in a Play - Outer Critics Circle Award, and for the Laurence Olivier for Best Supporting Performance in a Play for his performance.

Appeared as Norman in a 1995 revival of "The Dresser" by Ron Harwood - Drum Theatre, Plymouth/ Lyttelton Theatre (National Theatre) in 1999.

Appeared in a 1994 production of "Le Livre de Spencer" by 'Z?no Bianu-Author' (Lluis Pasqual - director) at the Od?on-Th??tre de l'Europe in Paris, France.

Played Daniel in the 1996 premiere of "The Ends of the Earth" by David Lan (Andrei Serban - director) at the Royal National Theatre.

Appeared as Lord Fancourt Babberley in a 1994-95 revival of "Charley's Aunt" by Brandon Thomas (Emil Wolk - director) with Ian Puleston-Davies who would go on to write Dirty Filthy Love (2004) (TV) which Sheen starred in.

Played Martin Remington Gammon in the 2005 premiere of "The U.N. Inspector" (a new adaptation of Gogol's "The Government Inspector") at the National Theatre in London.

Played David Frost in "Frost/Nixon", a new play by Peter Morgan Donmar Warehouse/ Gielgud Theatre, London (2006)/ Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, NYC (2007).

(1993) He acted in Harold Pinter's play, "Moonlight," at the Almeida and Comedy Theatres in London, England with Anna Massey CBE, Douglas Hodge, Sir Ian Holm CBE, directed by Harold Pinter CBE.
 
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