Tom Wilkinson

Biography

Thomas Geoffrey Wilkinson was born on 5 February 1948 in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, the son of Marjorie and Thomas Wilkinson, a farmer. At the age of 11, he and his family moved to Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada, where they lived for five years before returning to the United Kingdom and running a pub in Cornwall. Wilkinson graduated in English and American literature from the University of Kent at Canterbury. While at university, Wilkinson became preoccupied with acting and directing with the University of Kent Drama Society (now called T24 Drama Society). After finishing his degree, Wilkinson then attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, graduating in 1973. Wilkinson made his acting debut on stage at the Nottingham Playhouse. In 1976 he appeared his first film, the thriller Smuga cienia, directed by Andrzej Wajda, an adaption of Joseph Conrad's novel The Shadow-Line. He later joined the Royal Shakespeare Company and made his West End debut as Horatio in the 1981 RSC production of William Shakespeare's Hamlet at the Aldwych Theatre, for which he was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. He went on to act in supporting roles in the British thriller Parker (1984), the biographical film Sylvia (1985), and the mystery Wetherby (1985). He also worked on several British television series, most notably portraying Raymond Gould in the ITV mini-series First Among Equals (1986). He was simultaneously appearing in this series on television and on the West End stage in Henrik Ibsen's Ghosts, in which he played Pastor Manders. In 1988, he played Dr. Stockmann in a West End production of Ibsen's An Enemy of the People at the Playhouse Theatre. For his performance, he was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Actor of the Year in a Revival. Wilkinson had a small but important role as the dying father, Mr. Dashwood, in the Ang Lee-directed Sense and Sensibility (1995), and played a villain in the adventure drama The Ghost and the Darkness (1996). The following year, he gained acclaim for his leading role as Gerald Cooper, an ex-foreman who reluctantly joins a group of unemployed steelworkers as a stripper, in the ensemble cast comedy-drama The Full Monty (1997). For his performance, he won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. That same year, he portrayed Marquess of Queensberry in the biographical drama Wilde and Hugh Stratton in the romantic drama Oscar and Lucinda. In 1998, he acted in the British romantic costume drama Shakespeare in Love starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, and Judi Dench. The film received acclaim and Wilkinson, along with the cast, won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. He played the evil British Ambassador/Juntao in the buddy cop movie Rush Hour (1998) starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, and General Lord Cornwallis in the historical war drama film The Patriot (2000) starring Mel Gibson and Heath Ledger. Wilkinson won wider critical acclaim for his portrayal of grieving father Matt Fowler in Todd Field's In the Bedroom (2001), with co-stars Sissy Spacek and Marisa Tomei. For this performance, he won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. He then took roles in the period films The Importance of Being Earnest (2002) and Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003). For his role as Roy/Ruth Applewood in the HBO film Normal he received a nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award and Golden Globe Awards. In 2005, he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). In 2008, he won a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for playing Benjamin Franklin in the HBO limited series John Adams. His other Emmy-nominated roles were as Roy/Ruth Applewood in the HBO film Normal (2003), James Baker in the HBO film Recount (2008), and Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. in the limited series The Kennedys (2011).