Birth Name
Kate Elizabeth Winslet
Nickname
English Rose
Corset Kate
Corset Kate
Height
5' 6½" (1.69 m)
Mini Biography
Ask Kate Winslet what she liked about any of her characters,
and the word "ballsy" is bound to pop up at least once. The British
actress has made a point of eschewing straightforward pretty-girl parts in
favor of more devilish damsels; as a result, she's built an eclectic resume;
that runs the gamut from Shakespearean tragedy to modern-day mysticism and
erotica.
Born into a family
of thespians -- parents Roger Winslet and Sally Bridges-Winslet were both stage actors, maternal
grandparents Oliver and Linda Bridges ran the Reading Repertory Theatre, and
uncle Robert Bridges was a fixture in London's West End
theatre district -- Kate came into her talent at an early age. She scored her
first professional gig at 11, dancing opposite the Honey Monster in a
commercial for a kids' cereal. She started acting lessons around the same time,
which led to formal training at a performing arts high school. Over the next
few years she appeared on stage regularly and landed a few bit parts in
sitcoms. Her first big break came at age 17, when she was cast as an obsessive
adolescent in Heavenly Creatures (1994). The film, based on the true story
of two fantasy-gripped girls who commit a brutal murder, received modest
distribution but was roundly praised by critics.
Still a relative
unknown, Winslet attended a cattle call audition the next year for Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility (1995). She made an immediate impression
on the film's star, Emma Thompson, and beat out more than a hundred other
hopefuls for the part of plucky Marianne Dashwood. Her efforts were rewarded
with both a British Academy Award and an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Winslet
followed up with two more period pieces, playing the rebellious heroine in Jude (1996) and Ophelia in Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet (1996).The role that transformed Winslet from art house attraction to international star was Rose DeWitt Bukater, the passionate, rosy-cheeked aristocrat in James Cameron's Titanic (1997). Young girls the world over both idolized and identified with Winslet, swooning over all that face time opposite heartthrob Leonardo DiCaprio and noting her refreshingly healthy, un-emaciated physique. Winslet's performance also garnered a Best Actress nomination, making her the youngest actress to ever receive two Academy nods.
After the swell of unexpected attention surrounding Titanic (1997), Winslet was eager to retreat into independent projects. Rumor has it that she turned down the lead roles in both Shakespeare in Love (1998) and Anna and the King (1999) in order to play adventurous soul searchers in Hideous Kinky (1998) and Holy Smoke (1999). The former cast her as a young single mother traveling through 1960s Morocco with her daughters in tow; the latter, as a zealous follower of a guru tricked into a "deprogramming" session in the Australian outback. The next year found her back in period dress as the Marquis de Sade's chambermaid and accomplice in Quills (2000). Kate holds the distinction of being the youngest actor ever honored with four Academy Award nominations (she received her fourth at age 29.)
Off camera, Winslet
is known for her mischievous pranks and familial devotion. She has two sisters, Anna Winslet and Beth Winslet (both actresses), and a brother, Joss.
In 1998, she married assistant director Jim Threapleton. They had a daughter, Mia Honey Threapleton, in October 2000. They divorced in 2001. She later married director Sam Mendes in 2003 and gave birth to their son, Joe Alfie Winslet-Mendes, later that year. After seven years of marriage, Kate announced that she and Sam amicably separated in February 2010.
In 1998, she married assistant director Jim Threapleton. They had a daughter, Mia Honey Threapleton, in October 2000. They divorced in 2001. She later married director Sam Mendes in 2003 and gave birth to their son, Joe Alfie Winslet-Mendes, later that year. After seven years of marriage, Kate announced that she and Sam amicably separated in February 2010.
Trivia
- As of January 2009, she is the youngest actress to rack up 6 Oscar nominations.
- Won Best Actress, Toronto Film Festival for Heavenly Creatures (1994), shared with Melanie Lynskey. [1995]
- Runner-Up for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle for Holy Smoke (1999). [1999]
- Nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Rec.Arts.Movies.* Critics Circle for Quills (2000). [2000]
- Runner-Up for Best Actress, National Society of Film Critics for Holy Smoke (1999). [2000]
- Runner-Up for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). [2004]
- Chris Tookey, of the British newspaper "Daily Mail," chose her as Best Actress of the Year for her roles in The Holiday (2006) and Little Children(2006). [2006]
- Is a fan of Rufus Wainwright's CD, "Poses" (mentioned in one of her ads for AmEx).
- Nominated for Best Actress in a Dramatic Performance, Excellent Dynamic Activism (EDA) Awards/The Alliance of Women Journalists for Little Children (2006). [2006]
- In an interview for the London Evening Standard, she revealed she has taken a year off (from April 2006 to April 2007) from her career, to spend more time with her family. [2007]
- Official Celebrity Spokesperson for Lancôme. [2007]
- Her children refer to very close friend Leonardo DiCaprio as "Uncle Leo. " He also bought Kate an inscribed gold ring, after they filmed Revolutionary Road (2008). However, Winslet keeps the inscription a secret.
- Was named one of '50 Most Beautiful' by People Magazine in 2005.
- Auditioned for the role of "Elizabeth" in Kenneth Branagh's Frankenstein (1994). Helena Bonham Carter got the role, but Branagh was so impressed by Winslet that he offered her the part of "Ophelia" in Hamlet (1996).
- Involved, along with Sherilyn Fenn, Rufus Sewell, Miranda Richardson and Paul McGann in the 1998 film project "Johnny Hit and Run Pauline". The film was to be executive produced by Emma Thompson, and written and directed by Fay Efrosini Lellios. The shooting was set to start in June 1998 in New Hampshire. The film was canceled due to financial withdrawal. [1998]
- Lives in New York City. She also owns a home in Gloucestershire, England.
- Placed third equal (with Anne Hathaway) for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle for Revolutionary Road (2008). [2008]
- The Holiday (2006) was the first movie that Kate used her own accent and didn't develop a special voice for her character.
- Sister-in-law of Edmund Harcourt.
- Only the third person in history to win two acting Golden Globes in the same year (Best Actress, Drama for Revolutionary Road (2008) and Best Supporting Actress for The Reader (2008)).
- As of 2009, she is only one of six performers who won a Golden Globe Award as Best Lead Actor/Actress in a Motion Picture Drama without being nominated for an Oscar for that same role (hers for Revolutionary Road (2008)). The others are Spencer Tracy in The Actress (1953),Anthony Franciosa in Career (1959), Omar Sharif in Doctor Zhivago (1965), 'Shirley Maclaine' in Madame Sousatzka (1988), Jim Carrey in The Truman Show (1998). However, of those six performers, Winslet is the only one to be nominated and win an Academy Award for a leading role but for a different role, in a same year.
- The producers of the The Reader (2008) tried to promote Winslet as Supporting Actress during the Oscar race 2009 in order to enhance her chances to get nominated twice (for Best Supporting Actress for The Reader (2008) and Best Lead Actress for her role in Revolutionary Road(2008)). The Academy overthrew this plan by nominating Winslet for Best Lead Actress for her performance in The Reader (2008), leaving aside her performance in Revolutionary Road (2008), although she won several other award nominations in both categories for the respective movies. According to Academy rules, an actor is eligible for only one nomination in a single category.
- Is one of eight actresses to have won the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critics' Choice Award, Golden Globe Award and SAG Award for the same performance. The others in chronological order are Julia Roberts for Erin Brockovich (2000), Renée Zellweger for Cold Mountain (2003),Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005), Helen Mirren for The Queen (2006), Jennifer Hudson for Dream girls (2006), Mo'Nique for Precious(2009) and Natalie Portman for Black Swan (2010).
- Was originally cast as Nola Rice in Woody Allen's Match Point (2005), but dropped out at the last minute, so she could spend her time with her child. The role went to Scarlett Johansson .
- Was in consideration for the part of Satine in Moulin Rouge! (2001) but Nicole Kidman, who went on to receive a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, was cast instead.
- Returned to work eleven months after giving birth to her daughter Mia in order to begin filming The Life of David Gale (2003).
- Returned to work five months after giving birth to her son Joe in order to begin filming Romance & Cigarettes (2005).
- Born at 7:15 am-BST.
- Announced that she had separated amicably from husband Sam Mendes two months previously (15 March 2010).
- Is just 12 years older than Evan Rachel Wood, who played her daughter on "Mildred Pierce" (2011).
- Virgin Group billionaire Richard Branson credited Kate with 'helping to carry' his 90-year-old mother out of his burning Caribbean-island house, where Winslet and her two children were staying (August 2011).