Joe Wright facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Joe Wright
Wright in 2015
Born	Joseph Wright (1972-08-25) 25 August 1972 (age 52) London, England
Occupation	Film director
Years active	1997–present
Spouse(s)	Anoushka Shankar ​ ​ (m. 2010; div. 2019)​
Partner(s)	Haley Bennett (2017–present)
Children	3

Joseph Wright (born on August 25, 1972) is an English film director. He is known for directing many popular movies, including historical dramas like Pride & Prejudice (2005) and Atonement (2007). He also directed the action movie Hanna (2011) and the exciting film Darkest Hour (2017).

Joseph Wright: A Film Director's Journey

Early Life and Starting Out

Joseph Wright always loved art, especially painting. When he was young, he made films using a special Super 8 camera. He also spent evenings acting in a drama club. Joseph has dyslexia, which means he learns differently. He left school without getting his main exams.

He started his career working at his parents' puppet theater in London. He also took acting classes and worked as an actor. Later, he studied fine art and film at a college called Central St Martins. During his last year, he won a scholarship to make a short film for the BBC. This film won several awards!

In the 1990s, Joseph worked at a company that made music videos. He did many different jobs there, like finding actors for videos. This helped him get the chance to direct some music videos himself. He also worked part-time as a roadie, helping set up equipment for electronic music bands. He says the exciting UK rave music scene influenced his work.

Making TV Shows

After his first short film was a success, Joseph was asked to direct a TV series called Nature Boy (2000). He then directed other TV shows, including Bodily Harm (2002). In 2003, he directed the highly praised Charles II: The Power and the Passion. This show won a BAFTA Award for Best Drama Series.

More recently, in 2022, Joseph started directing an eight-part TV show. It is based on a popular book about the rise of the Italian leader Benito Mussolini. In 2023, he was also working on a show for HBO. This show is about a very rich heiress named Huguette Clark.

Directing Big Movies

In 2005, Joseph Wright directed his first big movie, Pride & Prejudice. This film was very popular and starred Keira Knightley. It received many awards and nominations, including four Academy Award nominations. Joseph himself won a BAFTA award for Most Promising Newcomer.

His next movie was Atonement (2007), based on a famous book. He worked with Keira Knightley again, and James McAvoy and Saoirse Ronan also starred. This film was nominated for seven Golden Globe Awards. It also received seven Academy Award nominations and won for Best Original Score. At the BAFTA Awards, it won Best Film.

Joseph then directed The Soloist (2009), starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr.. This movie tells the true story of a musical genius who became homeless.

Famous Films You Might Know

In 2011, Joseph reunited with Atonement star Saoirse Ronan for the action movie Hanna. Saoirse plays a 15-year-old girl who has been trained since birth to be an assassin. Critics really liked this movie, with one calling it a "first-rate thriller."

In 2012, Joseph directed Anna Karenina, based on a classic book. The cast included Keira Knightley, Jude Law, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

He also directed Pan (2015), which tells the story of how Peter Pan began. This movie starred Hugh Jackman and Rooney Mara. However, the film was not very popular with critics and did not make much money. Some people were also upset because Rooney Mara, who is of European background, played the character Tiger Lily, who is usually shown as Native American.

Joseph's 2017 film Darkest Hour is about a very important month in the life of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Gary Oldman played Churchill and won an Academy Award for his performance.

His Unique Directing Style

Joseph Wright won a BAFTA award for his first big movie, Pride & Prejudice. He was also the youngest director to have a film open the Venice Film Festival with Atonement. Joseph is inspired by other British film directors. He also knows a lot about art history and sometimes tries to make his shots look like famous paintings.

Many of his films, like Charles II, Pride & Prejudice, Atonement, and Hanna, have long, continuous shots. For example, Atonement has a five-minute shot of the Dunkirk evacuation. Joseph once joked that he just likes "showing off"!

Family Life

Joseph Wright was engaged to actress Rosamund Pike from 2007 to 2008.

He was married to the British-American musician Anoushka Shankar from 2010 to 2019. They have two sons named Zubin and Mohan.

Since 2017, Joseph has been in a relationship with American actress Haley Bennett. Their daughter was born in 2018. As of 2019, the family lives in the UK.

What He Has Directed

Here are some of the films and TV shows Joseph Wright has directed or helped produce:

Short Films

• Crocodile Snap (1997)
• The End (1998)
• "Coco Mademoiselle: Chanel" (2014)
• Princess & Peppernose (2021)

Feature Films

He has also been an Executive Producer for films like Lost Angels: Skid Row Is My Home (2010) and Locke (2013).

TV Shows

Commercials

• "Chanel No. 5: Wherever I Go" (2012)
• "Chanel No. 5: There You Are" (2012)

Awards He Has Won

Joseph Wright's films have won many awards and nominations. Here are some of the main ones:

He won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer in 2005 for Pride & Prejudice.

Actors in his films have also been nominated for or won Academy Awards:

• Gary Oldman won Best Actor for Darkest Hour (2018).
• Keira Knightley was nominated for Best Actress for Pride & Prejudice (2006).
• Saoirse Ronan was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for Atonement (2008).

See also

In Spanish: Joe Wright para niños