Anthony Hopkins facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Anthony Hopkins
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Hopkins at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival
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Philip Anthony Hopkins
31 December 1937 |
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| Years active | 1960–present |
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Works
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Full list |
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| Children | 1 |
| Awards | Full list |
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a famous Welsh actor. He is known for his amazing performances in movies and on stage. Anthony Hopkins has won many awards, including two Academy Awards (also known as Oscars), four BAFTA Awards, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. He also received special awards for his long and successful career. In 1993, Queen Elizabeth II made him a "Sir" for his great work in drama.
After finishing college in 1957, Hopkins trained at a famous acting school in London. A well-known actor named Laurence Olivier noticed his talent and invited him to join the Royal National Theatre in 1965. There, he performed in many famous plays, including King Lear. He won an award for his role in the play Pravda in 1985. His last stage play was in 1989.
Hopkins started acting in films early in his career. Some of his first movies include The Lion in Winter (1968) and The Elephant Man (1980). He won two Oscars for Best Actor. The first was for playing Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991). The second was for playing an older man with memory loss in The Father (2020). He became the oldest person to win a Best Actor Oscar for this role. Other popular movies he was in include The Mask of Zorro (1998) and the Marvel Thor movies (2011–2017).
On television, Hopkins won a British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his role in War and Peace (1972). He also won two Primetime Emmy Awards for his performances in TV movies like The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case (1976) and The Bunker (1981). More recently, he starred in the HBO series Westworld (2016–2018).
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Early Life and Education
Philip Anthony Hopkins was born on December 31, 1937, in Port Talbot, Wales. His father, Richard Arthur Hopkins, was a baker. Anthony remembers his father's hard-working hands, which helped him stay humble.
When he was young, Anthony found school difficult. He preferred art, like painting, drawing, and playing the piano, over his studies. To help him focus, his parents sent him to a boys' school in 1949. He later said he felt like a "poor learner" and thought he was "stupid" when he was growing up.
When he was 15, Anthony met the famous Welsh actor Richard Burton. This meeting inspired him to become an actor. He went to the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama in Cardiff and graduated in 1957. After serving in the British Army for two years, he moved to London to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
Acting Career
Early Stage and Film Roles (1960s-1970s)
Anthony Hopkins began his acting career on stage in 1960. In 1965, the famous actor Laurence Olivier invited him to join the Royal National Theatre in London. Hopkins even filled in for Olivier during a play in 1967. Olivier praised Hopkins, saying he was a "young actor... of exceptional promise."
Hopkins first appeared on TV in 1967. His first big film role was in The Lion in Winter (1968), where he played Richard the Lionheart. This role earned him an award nomination. He also played famous people like Charles Dickens in a 1970 TV film and Pierre Bezukhov in the TV mini-series War and Peace (1972), for which he won a TV award.
In the 1970s, Hopkins starred in several films, including A Bridge Too Far (1977), a World War II movie. He also played a psychologist in the Broadway play Equus in 1974, earning him another award.
Becoming a Star (1980s-1990s)
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In 1980, Hopkins starred in David Lynch's film The Elephant Man. He played a doctor who helps a severely deformed man. The film was highly praised. In 1981, he played Adolf Hitler in the TV film The Bunker, winning an Emmy Award for his powerful performance.
He continued to act in plays and films, including The Bounty (1984) with Mel Gibson. In 1985, he won a Laurence Olivier Award for his role in the play Pravda. He also performed in Shakespeare's King Lear and Antony and Cleopatra on stage.
In 1991, Hopkins became world-famous for playing the chilling character Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs. He won an Oscar for Best Actor for this role. The film also won Best Picture. He played Lecter again in Hannibal (2001) and Red Dragon (2002). His portrayal of Hannibal Lecter is considered one of the greatest film villains ever.
In the 1990s, Hopkins starred in many other successful films. He played Professor Van Helsing in Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992). He also reunited with actress Emma Thompson in the highly praised films Howards End (1992) and The Remains of the Day (1993). For The Remains of the Day, he was nominated for another Oscar and won a BAFTA Award. He also played C. S. Lewis in Shadowlands (1993).
Later Career and Recent Success (2000s-Present)
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In 2000, Hopkins narrated the movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas. He continued to take on diverse roles. In 2003, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He said his favorite role was playing Burt Munro in The World's Fastest Indian (2005), because he felt a connection to the character.
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In 2006, he received the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award for his lifetime achievements in film. In 2008, he received the highest award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the BAFTA Fellowship.
From 2011 to 2017, Hopkins played Odin, the king of Asgard, in the Marvel Comics Thor movies. He also played Alfred Hitchcock in the film Hitchcock (2012). In 2014, he appeared in the movie Noah.
In 2015, Hopkins starred in the BBC Two play The Dresser with Ian McKellen. He described this role as a "highlight of my life." From 2016 to 2018, he starred as Robert Ford in the HBO sci-fi series Westworld, earning another Emmy nomination.
In 2019, Hopkins played Pope Benedict XVI in the film The Two Popes, alongside Jonathan Pryce. Both actors received high praise and nominations for their performances.
In 2020, Hopkins starred in The Father, playing a man dealing with Alzheimer's disease. His performance was highly praised, and he won his second Oscar for Best Actor, becoming the oldest person to win an acting Oscar. He accepted the award from Wales, saying he didn't expect it at 83 years old.
More recently, he appeared in Armageddon Time (2023) and The Son (2022). In 2023, he played Nicholas Winton in One Life and Sigmund Freud in Freud's Last Session. He also appeared in the Netflix film Rebel Moon. In 2024, he played Herod the Great in the Netflix film Mary.
Other Activities
Supporting Good Causes
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Anthony Hopkins supports many charities. He is the President of the National Trust's Snowdonia Appeal, which raises money to protect Snowdonia National Park in Wales. In 1998, he gave £1 million to help buy parts of Snowdon. Because of his help, he was named one of the 100 Welsh Heroes in 2004.
He has also supported the YMCA in his hometown of Port Talbot for over 20 years. He volunteers at the Ruskin School of Acting in California. Hopkins is also a member of the environmental group Greenpeace and has spoken out against whaling. He supports RAPt (Rehabilitation for Addicted Prisoners Trust), which helps prisoners with addiction.
Hopkins is a big fan of the Welsh comedian Tommy Cooper. In 2008, he helped unveil a statue of Cooper in his hometown, even wearing Cooper's famous fez.
Music and Directing
Anthony Hopkins has loved composing music his whole life. He once said he would have gone to music college if he had been better at school. In 1986, he released a song called "Distant Star."
In 2007, he announced he would take a break from acting to tour the world with his music. He has written music for concerts, including "The Masque of Time." In 2011, the famous violinist André Rieu released an album that included a waltz Hopkins composed in 1964. Hopkins had never heard his own song, "And the Waltz Goes On", played by an orchestra before. In 2012, he released an album of his classical music called Composer.
Hopkins has also directed films. In 1990, he directed a film about the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. In 1995, he directed August, a film set in Wales. His first original screenplay, Slipstream, which he also directed and scored, premiered in 2007.
Personal Life
Anthony Hopkins lives in Malibu, California. He became a naturalized American citizen in 2000, but he still keeps his British citizenship. He has been married three times. He married Stella Arroyave in 2003, and he says she helped him through tough times.
Hopkins has a daughter from his first marriage. He has openly shared that he has not always been the best father.
In 2008, he started a weight loss program and lost a lot of weight. In 2017, he shared that he was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome a few years earlier. He described it as a "great gift." He has a pet cat named Niblo. He also enjoys a pescatarian diet, meaning he eats fish but no meat.
He is a big fan of the British TV comedy Only Fools and Horses. He once said he would love to appear on the show.
Acting Credits and Awards
Anthony Hopkins was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1987. Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 1993 for his contributions to the arts. He has also received honorary degrees from universities. In 1996, he was made a "freeman" of his hometown, Port Talbot.
He has won many awards for his acting, including two Academy Awards, four BAFTA Awards, and two Primetime Emmy Awards. He also has nominations for many other prestigious awards. When he won his second Oscar for The Father in 2020, he became the oldest person to win the Best Actor award.
Hopkins has also received special lifetime achievement awards. In 2006, he received the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award. In 2008, he received the BAFTA Fellowship, the highest award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame since 2003.
Images for kids
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Hopkins at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival
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Richard Attenborough directed Hopkins in five films, and in the 1970s described him as "unquestionably the greatest actor of his generation".
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Hopkins portrayed Sir Frederick Treves in The Elephant Man (1980).
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Isabella Rossellini and Hopkins in Berlin to shoot scenes for The Innocent (1993)
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Lecter T-shirt worn by Hopkins in Hannibal on display at the London Film Museum
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Hopkins photographed by Oliver Mark, Berlin 2001
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Hopkins at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival
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Panorama of Snowdonia in north Wales which Hopkins described as "one of the most beautiful places in the world and Snowdon is the jewel that lies at its heart. It must be cherished and protected."
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Anthony Hopkins Centre at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Cardiff
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Hopkins at the 2009 Tuscan Sun Festival
See also
In Spanish: Anthony Hopkins para niños
- List of oldest and youngest Academy Award winners and nominees
- List of British Academy Award nominees and winners
- List of actors with Academy Awards nominations
- List of actors with two or more Academy Award nominations in acting categories
- List of actors with two or more Academy Awards in acting categories
