Jonathan Pryce facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Sir Jonathan Pryce CBE
Pryce at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival
Born	John Price (1947-06-01) 1 June 1947 (age 78) Carmel, Flintshire, Wales
Alma mater	Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1972–present
Spouse(s)	Kate Fahy ​ (m. 2015)​
Children	3
Awards	Full list

Sir Jonathan Pryce (born John Price; 1 June 1947) is a famous Welsh actor. He is well-known for his amazing performances on stage, in movies, and on TV. He has won many important awards, including two Tony Awards for his theatre work and two Laurence Olivier Awards. He was also made a knight for his contributions to drama.

Jonathan Pryce has also been nominated for an Academy Award, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and two British Academy Film Awards. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he started his acting journey on stage in the early 1970s.

Jonathan Pryce: Early Life and Start in Acting

Jonathan Pryce was born John Price on June 1, 1947, in Carmel, Flintshire, Wales. His parents, Margaret Ellen and Isaac Price, ran a small grocery shop. He grew up with two older sisters and was raised in the Welsh Presbyterian faith.

He went to Holywell Grammar School. At 16, he first went to art college. Later, he trained to be a teacher at Edge Hill College. While studying there, he joined a college theatre play. His tutor was so impressed that they suggested he become an actor. They even applied for him to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Pryce won a scholarship to study at RADA.

When he joined the actors' union, Equity, he changed his name to "Jonathan Pryce." This was because another actor already had a very similar name. While at RADA, he worked as a salesman, selling velvet paintings door-to-door.

Jonathan Pryce's Career: From Stage to Screen

Becoming a Well-Known Actor (1972–1984)

After finishing at RADA, Jonathan Pryce joined the Everyman Theatre in Liverpool. He later became its artistic director. He also performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company. His very first screen role was a small part in a TV show called Doomwatch in 1972.

He gained a lot of attention for his role in the play Comedians. He even won a Tony Award for this role when the play moved to Broadway in 1977. Around this time, he also appeared in his first movie, Voyage of the Damned.

In 1980, Pryce played the main role in Hamlet at the Royal Court Theatre. This performance won him an Olivier Award. He also had a small but important role in the radio series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. In 1983, he starred as the scary Mr. Dark in the film Something Wicked This Way Comes.

Becoming a Star (1985–2002)

Jonathan Pryce had a big breakthrough in the movie Brazil (1985). He played the main character, Sam Lowry, in this unique science fiction film. After Brazil, he appeared in films like Haunted Honeymoon (1986).

He continued to perform on stage, playing the lead in Macbeth from 1986 to 1987. He also worked again with director Terry Gilliam in The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988).

One of his most famous stage roles was as The Engineer in the musical Miss Saigon in 1990. He won an Olivier Award for this role in London. When the show moved to Broadway, there was a discussion about casting a non-Asian actor in an Asian role. However, after much support from other actors, he was allowed to perform. He then won a Tony Award for his performance in 1991.

In the 1990s, Pryce starred in the TV mini-series Selling Hitler (1991) and the TV movie Barbarians at the Gate (1993), for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award. He also played Fagin in a revival of the musical Oliver! in 1994.

In 1995, he starred with Emma Thompson in the film Carrington. For his role in this movie, he won the Best Actor Award at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. He also played Colonel Juan Perón in the movie Evita (1996) and a villain named Elliot Carver in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997).

In the early 2000s, Pryce continued to appear in various films. He also received great praise for his role as Professor Henry Higgins in the London stage production of My Fair Lady in 2001.

Theatre and Big Movie Roles (2003–2013)

In 2003, Jonathan Pryce joined the cast of the popular Disney Studios film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. He played Governor Weatherby Swann, the father of Elizabeth Swann (played by Keira Knightley). He returned to this role in the sequels, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007).

He also appeared in other big movies like The Brothers Grimm (2005), which was his third film with director Terry Gilliam. In 2005, he was nominated for another Olivier Award for his role in the play The Goat or Who is Sylvia?.

From 2007 to 2008, he played Shelly Levene in a new London production of David Mamet's play Glengarry Glen Ross. He also lent his voice to the video game Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 in 2008. In 2009, he played the President of the United States in the film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, a role he returned to in G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013).

Recent Success and Awards (2015–Present)

In 2015, Jonathan Pryce joined the cast of the popular HBO series Game of Thrones as the High Sparrow. He enjoyed playing this character because of how important he was to the story. That same year, he also played Shylock in The Merchant of Venice at The Globe Theatre, with his real-life daughter Phoebe playing Shylock's daughter.

In 2018, he played Don Quixote in Terry Gilliam's film The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. He also starred in the play The Height of the Storm in London and on Broadway, receiving excellent reviews for his performance as an elderly man dealing with early dementia.

Late in 2019, Pryce played Pope Francis in the acclaimed Netflix film The Two Popes, alongside Anthony Hopkins as Pope Benedict XVI. Many people praised his performance, and he received his first ever Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for the film.

In 2020, it was announced that Jonathan Pryce would play Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh in the final two seasons of Netflix's award-winning historical drama series The Crown. For this role, he received a nomination for a Golden Globe Award. Since 2022, he has also appeared as David Cartwright in the series Slow Horses.

Jonathan Pryce: Personal Life

Jonathan Pryce has been married twice. In 1972, he met actress Kate Fahy at the Everyman Theatre. After being together for many years, they got married in 2015. They live in London and have three children. Although he was raised in the Presbyterian Church of Wales, he is no longer religious.

In 2006, the University of Liverpool gave Pryce an honorary doctorate. He is also a fellow of the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. In 2009, he was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE). In 2021, he was made a knight for his services to drama and charity.

Acting Credits

Film

Note: The source for Pryce's filmography is taken from the British Film Institute.

Television

Note The source for Pryce's television appearances comes from the British Film Institute.

Theatre

Video games

Images for kids

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  Pryce in October 2007

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  Pryce with Adam Driver, Stellan Skarsgård, and Terry Gilliam at premiere of The Man Who Killed Don Quixote at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival

Awards and Honours

See also

In Spanish: Jonathan Pryce para niños