|
|
Hugh Grant
|
|
Born: Sep 9, 1960
|
|
Born September 9, 1960, in London, England. Grant had a modest upbringing in West London; his father ran a carpet business and his mother was a teacher. A bright and scholarly youth, Hugh attended Oxford as an English major, but turned to acting as a creative outlet in his final year. In 1982, Grant made his screen debut in Privileged while still a student. He went on to do theatre and television work, but it was not until 1987’s Merchant-Ivory production of Maurice that Grant received international recognition. He won the Venice Film Festival’s Best Actor Prize for his portrayal of a young man confronting his homosexuality at the turn-of-the-century.
Although Grant went on to play more memorable roles as the terminally shy and sickly Chopin in James Lapine’s Impromptu and as a journalist in 1993’s James Ivory production of The Remains of the Day with Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson, it was his next role in 1994’s Four Weddings and a Funeral that propelled him to Hollywood stardom. Richard Curtis, a friend of Grant’s and a Four Weddings ’ writer, wrote the part with him in mind, so Grant embodied the character with charismatic grace and ease. His portrayal of a young, charmingly disheveled aristocrat who falls for a glamorous American, played by Andie MacDowell, appealed to audiences everywhere and made him an international star.
Grant met his longtime girlfriend, Elizabeth Hurley, in 1987 while working on Rowing in the Wind in Madrid. He was playing Lord Byr...[MORE]
|
|
|
