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Trivia
Birth name: Leonard Gary Oldman
Date of birth: 21 March 1958
Place of birth: New Cross, London, England, UK
Nickname: Gary
Height: 5' 10" (1.78 m)
Spouse: Donya Fiorentino (16 February 1997 - 13 April 2001) (divorced) 2 children,
Uma Thurman (October 1990 - 1992) (divorced),
Lesley Manville (1987 - 1990) (divorced) 1 child.
Brother of Laila Morse.
The only other actor since Lon Chaney Sr. to be named "Man of a Thousand Faces" due to his ability to become whatever character he plays.
Considered a career in music.
His sister is EastEnders actress Laila Morse.
The only other actor since Lon Chaney Sr. to be named "Man of a Thousand Faces" due to his ability to become whatever character he plays.
Has one son, Alfie Oldman (b. 1988), from his first marriage to Lesley
Manville.
Oldman's portrayal of Norman Stansfield in Léon is generally regarded as one of the best villains in movie history, ranking 43rd on the Online Film Critics Society's list of the Greatest Screen Villains Of All Time.
Dated Isabella Rossellini, met through Immortal Beloved (1994).
Sons, with Donya Fiorentino: Gulliver Flynn Oldman (b. 20 August 1997)
and Charlie John.
Was arrested for drunk driving in L.A. and released on bail the next
morning. His passenger in the car was pal, Kiefer
Sutherland. [8 August 1991]
He has played the Devil in both the Guns N' Roses music video for "Since I Don't Have You" as well as the BMW short film Beat the Devil.
His library includes essays on Bertolt Brecht, poetry by Roger McGough,
a biography of Montgomery Clift, The Elizabethan World Picture, all
things Shakespeare, and Jane Austen.
Has used a different speaking voice (i.e. accent) in practically every
movie he's ever been in.
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead was released on DVD the day after his 47th birthday.
He and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) co-star Timothy Spall have both played the character of Rosencrantz; Spall in Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet (1996), Oldman in Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990).
He was awarded the 1985 London Critics Circle Theatre Award (Drama
Theatre Award) for Best Actor for his performance in The Pope's Wedding.
Has played Lee Harvey Oswald in both JFK (1991) and "Who Was Lee
Harvey Oswald?" (1992) (mini).
Oldman appears in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire with Ralph Fiennes. Both of them have played villains in Hannibal Lecter films. Oldman played Mason Verger in Hannibal, and Fiennes played Francis Dolarhyde in Red Dragon.
Dated model-actress Ailsa Marshall from 2002-2005.
Oldman's almost unrecognisable performance in Tony Scott's True Romance was based on a fellow actor friend named Willi One Blood - coincidentally, both of them acted together the next year in Léon.
Nil By Mouth contains 470 instances of the word "fuck", a record that stood until the 2005 release of The Devil's Rejects
Was orginally signed to play the Prison Warden in _Longest Yard, The
(2005)_ before negotiations fell through. That role was then given to
James Cromwell.
His film Nil by Mouth (1997) is loosely based upon his own life growing
up in London.
Submitted a recorded voice audition for General Grievous in Star Wars:
Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005). George Lucas later chose the
anonymous audition of Matthew Wood for the role instead.
Notably, the biggest award Oldman ever received was the British Academy Award for Best Screenplay for Nil By Mouth.
Henry & June (1990) is the only film in which he's been credited as
"Maurice Escargot."
Appears in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) with Ralph Fiennes.
Both of them have played villains in the Hannibal Lecter series: Fiennes
played Francis Dolarhyde in Red Dragon (2002), and Oldman played Mason
Verger in Hannibal (2001).
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) was released on DVD the
day after his 47th birthday.
Member of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1993
Graduated from Rose Bruford Drama College 3 year acting course BA-Hons,
London, England
In one episode of The Simpsons titled ["[I Am Furious Yellow]]" Bart asks Homer his opinion about being portrayed by John Goodman in the "Angry Dad" movie. Homer then states "That's so obvious- it should be Gary Oldman!".
In two movies, his characters have had dynamic relationships with mob
bosses named Falcone. In Romeo Is Bleeding (1993), he was working FOR
Don Falcone, and in Batman Begins (2005), he was working to bring down
Carmine Falcone. In both instances, his character was a cop.
Despite a number of critically acclaimed roles, he has never been nominated for an Academy Award.
Like Ian McKellen, he has taken on popular characters in screen
adaptations of cult favorite fantasy novels and comic books. He appeared
as James Gordon in Batman Begins (2005) and as Sirius Black in the
middle three Harry Potter films.
Although he has spent much of his career playing psychotic and sadistic
characters, he has recently moved away from that on screen image by
playing more like able, sympathetic characters like Sirus Black in
"Harry Potter" and Jim Gordon in Batman Begins (2005)
He is one of the voice talents in the upcoming latest installment of the Spyro series, The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning alongside Elijah Wood and David Spade
Actor Ryan Gosling lists Oldman as his favorite actor.
He and his ex-wife, Uma
Thurman, have both appeared in Batman films. Thurman played Poison
Ivy in Batman & Robin (1997), and Oldman played James Gordon in
Batman Begins (2005).
Uncle of Gerry Bromfield and 'Tracy Bromfield'.
His performance as Sid Vicious in "Sid & Nancy" (1986) is
ranked #62 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time
(2006).
Trained at Rose Bruford Drama School Sidcup, Kent. Others who trained
there include actors Freddy Jones, Ray Fearon, Tom Baker and Stephen
Armourae.
The nickname "Crazy Gary Oldman" is believed to have originated in a 2004 parody of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on the Livejournal site Movies in 15 Minutes, where Oldman's character Sirius Black is on a wanted poster, screaming: "I'M SO CRAZY! LOOK AT ME! I'M CRAZY GARY OLDMAN!". Since that, this gag has been repeated in several parodies, and the name obviously caught on. Although the name is popular among fond fans, Oldman himself is not very happy at being called "crazy". Other nicknames include "The Lord of the Accents" and "The Chameleon".
Despite a number of critically acclaimed roles, he has never been
nominated for an Academy Award.
In February 2006, an angry reaction from Harry Potter fans arose, due to rumours that Oldman might not play Sirius Black in the new Harry Potter film. The basis for these rumours is the lack of any information about his involvement and his agents stating that they had heard nothing. Things finally settled down when Douglas Urbanski confirmed in an interview on March 21 that an agreement had been reached.
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