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Eddie Redmayne is an English actor, singer and model, well known for his role as Stephen Hawking in the movie “The Theory of Everything.” Here are 45 interesting facts about the Academy Award winner -
- He is the first man born in the 1980s to have won an acting Oscar.
- Redmayne was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2015 Queen's Birthday Honours List for his services to drama.
- He is well known for his performance as Stephen Hawking in “The Theory of Everything,” in the year 2014.
- He won the Academy Award for Best Actor, the Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and the BAFTA Award, for his performance.
- He is one of the 17 actors, who have won an Academy Award for playing a real alive person.
- Edward John David Redmayne was born on January 6, 1982, in Westminster, London, England.
- His father Richard Redmayne, is a businessman and his mother Patricia owns a relocation business.
- His paternal great-grandfather, Sir Richard Redmayne was a civil and mining engineer.
- He has four siblings - an older brother – James, a bank-director, a younger brother - Thomas, and an older half-brother – Charles, an Internet-entrepreneur and half-sister - Eugenie.
- He has English, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh ancestry.
- Redmayne went to Colet Court, and later attended Eton College, in the same year as Prince William Windsor.
- He made is screen debut playing a minor role in an episode of “Animals Ark,” in the year 1998.
- He went on to star in BBC mini-series “Tess of the d'Urbervilles,” the miniseries “The Pillars of the Earth,” and the two-part mini-series “Birdsong.”
- His professional stage debut was for Shakespeare's “Globe” in “Twelfth Night,” in the role as Viola, in the year 2002.
- He graduated with a degree in History of Art from Trinity College, Cambridge, with 2:1 Honors in the year 2003.
- He was spotted by Lucy Bevan, a casting director, while performing in a play called “Goats.”
- Eventually, he was cast in the role of Alex Forbes, in his first feature film “Like Minds,” in the year 2006.
- Following this movie, he appeared in several films including “The Good Shepherd,” “Powder Blue,” “Savage Grace,” “The Other Boleyn Girl,” “Hick,” “Glorious 39,” and “Jupiter Ascending.”
- His performance in Edward Albee's “The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?” garnered him an award for Outstanding Newcomer at the 50th Evening Standard Theatre Awards as well as the Best Newcomer Award at the Critics' Circle Theatre Awards.
- He modeled for Burberry with Alex Pettyfer in the year 2008.
- The next year, he starred in a new play “Red,” by John Logan at the Donmar Warehouse in London.
- He received the 2010 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, and the 2010 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play, for his performance in the play.
- He also had the chance the reprise his role again at the John Golden Theatre on Broadway, for a 15-week run from 11 March to 27 June 2010.
- He was cast as King Richard II in the Michael Grandage’s “Richard II,” at the Donmar Warehouse.
- He won the Critics' Circle's Award for Best Shakespearean Performance - "The John and Wendy Trewin Award for best Shakespearean performance" for the role.
- He was featured in the annual list of International Best Dressed by Vanity Fair in September 2012.
- He starred in the 2011 British drama film “My Week with Marilyn,” in the role of a filmmaker Colin Clark.
- His performance was praised by many critics, including David Rooney from Hollywood Reporter, who called Redmayne’s scenes with Michelle Williams, who played the role of Marilyn Monroe, was captivating.
- He played the role of Marius Pontmercy in the musical film “Les Misérables,” which won a number of awards.
- His performance in the movie was well received and many critics often singled him out of the cast for praise.
- He was praised by Bloomberg News quoting "Eddie Redmayne—most recently seen as the eager young production assistant in ‘My Week with Marilyn’—delivers by far the most moving and memorable performance in the film as the young firebrand Marius, who, along with his fellow students, is caught up in France's political upheavals in the 19th century."
- Redmayne was appointed as the ambassador of Into Film, film education charity.
- For his role as Stephen Hawking in the movie “The Theory of Everything,” he lost about 15 pounds.
- He trained for around 4 months to learn to control his body, with a dancer.
- He met with more than 40 ALS patients and even kept a chart tracking the order in which Hawking’s muscles declined.
- He considered the role "a hefty challenge" as the film wasn't shot chronologically.
- He used to stand in front of a mirror for hours contorting his face and has remained motionless and hunched over between takes.
- An osteopath even told him that he had altered the alignment of his spine.
- Hawking said in an email to director James Marsh about Redmayne’s performance that in the movie there were certain points when he thought he was watching himself.
- He married Hannah Bagshawe, a public relations executive in the finance industry, on December 15, 2014.
- Redmayne announced that he will play the role of Newt Scamander in the film adaptation of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” a “Harry Potter” spin-off, with a screenplay by J. K. Rowling.
- He will also be portraying the transgender pioneer, Lili Elbe, in the biographical drama “The Danish Girl,” directed by Tom Hooper, an Academy Award winning director. The movie is scheduled to be released in January 2016.
- His role in the movie has been the subject of controversy; however, his performance has been met with critical acclaim.
- Some critics have even labeled Redmayne as a frontrunner to win the Academy Award for Best Actor, for his performance.
- He was voted #1 in the list of “50 Best Dressed British Men,” by GQ magazine.
