James McAvoy

Infobox actor


imagesize = 200px
caption = McAvoy in 2007
birthname = James Andrew McAvoy
birthdate = birth date and age|1979|04|21|df=yes
birthplace = Glasgow, Scotland, UK
yearsactive = 1995 - present
spouse = Anne-Marie Duff (2006 - )
baftaawards = Rising Star Award
2006
Best Actor - Scotland
2006 "The Last King of Scotland"

James Andrew McAvoy (pronounced|ˈmækəvɔɪ; born birth date|df=yes|1979|04|21) [cite web|url=http://www.jamesmcavoy.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=341|title=News|publisher=JamesMcAvoy.com|accessdate=2007-04-18] is a Scottish stage and screen actor known for his roles in "Atonement", "The Last King of Scotland", "Wanted", "Frank Herbert's Children of Dune " and the British TV series "Shameless". McAvoy has won the BAFTA Rising Star Award and a BAFTA Scotland award. He has also been nominated for an ALFS Award, two BAFTA Awards, a European Film Award, and a Golden Globe award.

Biography

Early life

McAvoy was born in Glasgow, Scotland, the son of Elizabeth (née Johnstone), a psychiatric nurse, and James McAvoy, a builder. [ [http://www.jamesmcavoy.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=97 ‘I like knowing I’m about to do something bad’ :: James McAvoy :: Welcome to James McAvoy Online ! ] ] [http://www.tiscali.co.uk/entertainment/film/biographies/james_mcavoy_biog.html James McAvoy Biography ] ] McAvoy's parents divorced when he was seven, and he subsequently lived with his maternal grandparents, Mary and James Johnstone, in the Drumchapel area of Glasgow. His mother lived with them intermittently but McAvoy has not been in contact with his father since childhood. [ [http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,1920915,00.html "The Real McAvoy"] , "The Observer", October, 2006. Retrieved on 16-03-2008.] McAvoy attended St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary in Jordanhill, Glasgow, a Catholic school, and briefly considered joining the Catholic priesthood. [cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title =A young actor creating a buzz | work = | pages = | language = | publisher =Telegraph.co.uk | date = | url =http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2006/09/30/bfmcav30.xml | accessdate =2007-09-05 ] [cite news | last = | first = | coauthors = | title =Trying to be good | work = | pages = | language = | publisher ="The Guardian" | date =2005-11-26 | url =http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,1650947,00.html | accessdate =2007-09-05 ] Graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 2000. His sister, Joy McAvoy, is a singer. [ [http://www.filmreference.com/film/98/James-McAvoy.html James McAvoy Biography (1979-) ] ]

Career

McAvoy's first roles were in David Hayman's "The Near Room" in 1995 and then as Anthony Balfour in Pat Barker's "Regeneration" in 1997. He received his first big break was a role in the Steven Spielberg-produced miniseries "Band of Brothers". His first international starring role was as Leto Atreides II in the 2003 Sci Fi Channel miniseries "Frank Herbert's Children of Dune" (adapted from Frank Herbert's novels). The same year he also appeared in several episodes of the BBC sitcom "Early Doors" and co-starred in Paul Abbott's acclaimed thriller serial "State of Play". In 2004 he starred as Steve McBride in another Abbott-written drama series, "Shameless" on Channel 4, for which he was nominated for the British Comedy Award for Best TV Newcomer. He also appeared in two other productions: "Wimbledon" as Paul Bettany's obnoxious brother, Carl Colt; and he played disabled character Rory O'Shea in the Irish film Inside I'm Dancing. In 2005 he starred in three productions: he played Ben in the Royal Court Theatre's production "Breathing Corpses" and an adaptation of Macbeth in the four-part BBC production "ShakespeaRe-told"; he also portrayed Mr. Tumnus, the Faun, in "The Chronicles of Narnia"; he also played as Max/Johnny-2008 in "Penelope".

In 2006, McAvoy starred alongside Forest Whitaker as Dr. Garrigan in "The Last King of Scotland." The film is an adaptation of Giles Foden's novel of the same name and gives a fictionalized account of the regime of the brutal Ugandan dictator Idi Amin during the 1970s, as seen by his (fictional) personal physician and adviser. The character of Garrigan is a composite of several men who were close to Amin, most notably Englishman Bob Astles, who was a top adviser to Amin during his regime and became known in Uganda as "The White Rat". [ [http://www.dailynews.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=502&fArticleId=210731 "Uganda's White Rat"] . "Daily News (South Africa)." Retrieved 16-4-2008.]

That same year, McAvoy took the lead role in "Starter for 10". The film, which was adapted from the novel of the "Starter for Ten" by David Nicholls, follows the exploits of the nerdy Brian Jackson as he navigates his first year at Bristol University during the mid-1980s. McAvoy won the new Mary Selway/Orange Rising Star Award at the 2006 BAFTA Awards for his role. He also completed filming of "Penelope" in 2006, but due to distribution problems the film was not put in wide release until 2008. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472160/releaseinfo "Penelope" staring Reese Witherspoon and Christina Ricci, release dates on IMDB.com] , Retrieved 31-3-2008.]

In 2007 McAvoy appeared in two critically acclaimed films: "Becoming Jane", a fictional romance inspired by the life of Jane Austen, and "Atonement", an adaptation of Ian McEwan's award-winning 2001 novel. McAvoy was nominated for a Golden Globe for his role in "Atonement". During this time he workshopped scenes for the film "Three Way Split" for directors Neil Hunter and Tom Hunsinger, [cite news | last =Curtis | first =Nick | coauthors = | title = A London love story | work = | pages = | language = | publisher ="This is London" | date =2007-07-26 | url =http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/film/article-23405901-details/A%20London%20love%20story/article.do | accessdate =2007-09-05 ] but will not take part in the actual film.

McAvoy's latest film, "Wanted", was released on 25 June 2008. [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0493464/releaseinfo "Wanted" release dates on IMDB.com] , Retrieved 16-3-2008.] Loosely based on the comic book miniseries by the same name, McAvoy plays Wesley Gibson, a twenty-five year old everyman who is offered the opportunity to avenge the death of his father, who was an assassin. The character is then trained by his father's partner, Sloan (Morgan Freeman), and by Sloan's second-in-command, Fox, played by Angelina Jolie. McAvoy will appear in the forthcoming film "The Last Station", planned for worldwide release in Spring 2009. [ [http://thelittlefilmcompany.filmtrackonline.com/news.aspx?page=1&currentpage=1&startindex=1492&articleid=7285e121-2391-4efa-9c3d-d8f6512b74b4 The Last Station press release] , Retrieved on 29-5-2008.] The film is based on the 1990 novel by Jay Parini about the final year of Leo Tolstoy's life, and co-stars McAvoy's wife, Anne-Marie Duff. He has been reportedly tipped to play Bilbo Baggins, the lead role in the new movie version of "The Lord Of The Rings" prequel "The Hobbit" [cite news|url=http://socialitelife.celebuzz.com/2008/05/29/james_mcavoy_to_play_bilbo_baggins.php/|title=James McAvoy to Play Bilbo Baggins|publisher="A Socialite's Life"|date=2008-05-29] but has denied he has been cast in the role at this point. [cite news|url=http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=56170|title=McAvoy denies Hobbit rumours|publisher="Sci Fi Wire"|date=2008-06-18]

McAvoy is a celebrity supporter of the British Red Cross with whom he traveled to Uganda to raise awareness of the projects there [ [http://www.redcross.org.uk/standard.asp?id=79467 Profile on the Red Cross site] .

Personal life

McAvoy previously dated Scottish actress Maddy Freeman (stage name Maddy King [ [http://www.tiscali.co.uk/entertainment/film/biographies/james_mcavoy_biog/4 James McAvoy Biography ] ] ); they began dating when he was 16 [ [http://www.jamesmcavoy.com/index.php?name=Sections&req=viewarticle&artid=32&page=1 GLASGOW HERALD INTERVIEW - August 2003 :: James McAvoy :: Welcome to James McAvoy Online ! ] ] and broke up in 2003. [ [http://www.tiscali.co.uk/entertainment/film/biographies/james_mcavoy_biog/9 "James McAvoy Biography"] . Retrieved on 2008-03-24.] He married actress Anne-Marie Duff in 2006. They live in London. He enjoys science fiction and is a fan of Celtic Football Club. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/faces/james_mcavoy.shtml "Discover more about the stars of BBC Drama: James McAvoy"] . Retrieved on 2008-03-14.] He considers himself a spiritual person but no longer practices Catholicism. [ [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2006/09/30/bfmcav30.xml "A young actor creating a buzz"] . Retrieved on 2008-03-17.]

tage and screen credits

Filmography

Theatre

*"The Tempest", Brunton Theatre - Ferdinand
*"Romeo and Juliet", The Courtyard Hereford (1999) - Romeo
*"West Side Story", The Courtyard Hereford (1999) - Riff
*"Beauty and the Beast", Adam Smith Theatre (1999-2000, pantomime) - Bobby
*"Romeo and Juliet" (2000) - Romeo
*"The Reel of the Hanged Man", Traverse Theatre (2000) - Gerald
*"Lovers", Royal Lyceum Theatre - Joe
*"Out In The Open", Hampstead Theatre (2001) - Iggy
*"Privates On Parade", Donmar Warehouse (2001-2002) - Pt Steven Flowers
*"Breathing Corpses", Royal Court Theatre (2005) - Ben

References

External links

*imdb name | id=0564215 | name=James McAvoy
* [http://themovie-fanatic.com/spotlights/stars/james_mcavoy/ James McAvoy Comprehensive profile]
* [http://www.redcross.org.uk/standard.asp?id=66436 James McAvoy visits Uganda]
* [http://www.stv.tv/content/out/film/videointerviews/display.html?id=opencms:/out/films/video_interviews/James_McAvoy_x_Keira_Knightleyx_A_200709 James McAvoy "Atonement" video interview] (with Keira Knightley), September 2007
* [http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,2164372,00.html "'I feel on the edge of failure'"] "The Guardian" feature story, 7 September 2007. (Accessed 23 September 2007).
* [http://www.premiere.com/features/4625/exclusive-james-mcavoy-this-summers-most-wanted.html "James McAvoy: Most Wanted]