Gemma Arterton
Encyclopedia
Gemma Arterton is an English actress. She played the eponymous protagonist in the BBC adaptation of Thomas Hardy
's Tess of the D'Urbervilles
, and starred in the feature films St Trinian's, the James Bond
film Quantum of Solace, Clash of the Titans
, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Tamara Drewe
. She was nominated for a BAFTA, in the Rising Star category.
, Kent
, the elder daughter of Sally-Anne, a cleaner
, and Barry Arterton, a welder
. Arterton was born with polydactyly
, and was brought up, along with her sister, Hannah Jane, by their single mother, on a council estate in Gravesend. Arterton's parents divorced when she was five, and her father remarried in 1996. She attended Painters Ash Primary School in Northfleet
, then attended Gravesend Grammar School for Girls
on Pelham Road in Gravesend, she took a performance arts course at the Miskin Theatre in Dartford
(part of North West Kent College
) and trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
on a full grant
.
, while she was still at drama school. Similarly, she made her stage debut as Rosaline in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost
at the Globe Theatre
, London in July 2007 before graduating later that year. She made her film debut in St Trinian's
(2007) as Head Girl Kelly.
In 2008, she appeared in the James Bond
film, Quantum of Solace. Chosen from around 1,500 candidates, Arterton plays Bond Girl Strawberry Fields, in what is described as a "nice-sized role". On her character, Arterton describes Strawberry Fields as "the thinking man's crumpet
". In 2008, she played the eponymous protagonist in the BBC adaptation of Thomas Hardy
's Tess of the D'Urbervilles
. Also in 2008, she played the role of Elizabeth Bennet
in the ITV serial Lost in Austen
. Her most controversial role was in the 2009 film The Disappearance of Alice Creed
in which Arterton's character is kidnapped and abused in several graphic nude scenes.
She is the face of Avon
's Bond Girl 007 fragrance which launched in October 2008. Having already started in a series of low-key adverts for cosmetics company Avon, in May 2008, Arterton requested a role opposite model Kate Moss
for Rimmel
, but was blocked on contractual terms under her Avon contract.
In 2010, she made her West End debut in the UK premiere of The Little Dog Laughed. She was originally attached to star in a new adaptation of Wuthering Heights as Catherine Earnshaw, however, she later left the project. She is set to star in Burden of Desire
.
Arterton was seen in the 2010 films Clash of the Titans
and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
, and played the lead in Tamara Drewe
. In 2011, Arterton was nominated twice by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts
for her performances in Tamara Drewe and The Disappearance of Alice Creed.
Arterton has been cast to play Gretel, a modern spin on the children's tale Hansel and Gretel
. The character will be an older version of the classic character who works alongside her brother Hansel (Jeremy Renner
) as they track down witches for money.
, Andalucia, Spain.
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet. While his works typically belong to the Naturalism movement, several poems display elements of the previous Romantic and Enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural.While he regarded himself primarily as a...
's Tess of the D'Urbervilles
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (TV serial)
Tess of the D'Urbervilles is a 4-hour BBC television adaptation of Thomas Hardy's book of the same name. The script is by David Nicholls. It tells the story of Tess Durbeyfield, a low-born country girl whose family find they have noble connections....
, and starred in the feature films St Trinian's, the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film Quantum of Solace, Clash of the Titans
Clash of the Titans (2010 film)
Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy and action remake of the 1981 film of the same name . The story is very loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010...
, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Tamara Drewe
Tamara Drewe (film)
Tamara Drewe is a 2010 comedy film directed by Stephen Frears.The screenplay was written by Moira Buffini, based on the newspaper comic strip of the same name written by Posy Simmonds...
. She was nominated for a BAFTA, in the Rising Star category.
Early life
Arterton was born Gemma Christina Arterton in GravesendGravesend, Kent
Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. It is the administrative town of the Borough of Gravesham and, because of its geographical position, has always had an important role to play in the history and communications of this part of...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, the elder daughter of Sally-Anne, a cleaner
Cleaner
Cleaner is the name of a German project specializing in electronic music. Formerly known as Cleen, Myer released several albums on the American industrial music record label, Metropolis Records, as well as the labels Zoth Ommog and Accession Records....
, and Barry Arterton, a welder
Welder
A welder is a tradesman who specializes in welding materials together. The materials to be joined can be metals or varieties of plastic or polymer...
. Arterton was born with polydactyly
Polydactyly
Polydactyly or polydactylism , also known as hyperdactyly, is a congenital physical anomaly in humans, dogs, and cats having supernumerary fingers or toes....
, and was brought up, along with her sister, Hannah Jane, by their single mother, on a council estate in Gravesend. Arterton's parents divorced when she was five, and her father remarried in 1996. She attended Painters Ash Primary School in Northfleet
Northfleet
Northfleet is a town in the Borough of Gravesham in Kent, England. Its name is derived from North creek , and the settlement on the shore of the River Thames adjacent to Gravesend was known as Norfluet in the Domesday Book, and Northflet in 1201...
, then attended Gravesend Grammar School for Girls
Gravesend Grammar School for Girls
Mayfield Grammar School is a selective secondary school located off the B261 in Gravesend, Kent, England. The school accepts girls at age 11 by examination and both girls and boys at age 16, based on their GCSE results...
on Pelham Road in Gravesend, she took a performance arts course at the Miskin Theatre in Dartford
Dartford
Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, east south-east of central London....
(part of North West Kent College
North West Kent College
North West Kent College is a college of Further and Higher Education. It merged with the National Sea Training School in the nineties. The college is located over four sites. The two main campuses are:...
) and trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...
on a full grant
Grant (money)
Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
.
Career
Arterton won her first professional role in Stephen Poliakoff's Capturing MaryCapturing Mary
Capturing Mary is a BBC television drama , written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was aired on BBC Two on 12 November 2007...
, while she was still at drama school. Similarly, she made her stage debut as Rosaline in Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost
Love's Labour's Lost
Love's Labour's Lost is one of William Shakespeare's early comedies, believed to have been written in the mid-1590s, and first published in 1598.-Title:...
at the Globe Theatre
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613...
, London in July 2007 before graduating later that year. She made her film debut in St Trinian's
St Trinian's (2007 film)
St Trinian's is the sixth in a long-running series of films based on the works of cartoonist Ronald Searle. The first five films form a series, starting with The Belles of St Trinian's in 1954, with sequels in 1957, 1960, 1966 and 1980....
(2007) as Head Girl Kelly.
In 2008, she appeared in the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film, Quantum of Solace. Chosen from around 1,500 candidates, Arterton plays Bond Girl Strawberry Fields, in what is described as a "nice-sized role". On her character, Arterton describes Strawberry Fields as "the thinking man's crumpet
Thinking man's crumpet
In British English, the term the thinking man's crumpet refers to a woman who is intelligent and good looking, particularly one who has a high profile in the broadcast media...
". In 2008, she played the eponymous protagonist in the BBC adaptation of Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet. While his works typically belong to the Naturalism movement, several poems display elements of the previous Romantic and Enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural.While he regarded himself primarily as a...
's Tess of the D'Urbervilles
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (TV serial)
Tess of the D'Urbervilles is a 4-hour BBC television adaptation of Thomas Hardy's book of the same name. The script is by David Nicholls. It tells the story of Tess Durbeyfield, a low-born country girl whose family find they have noble connections....
. Also in 2008, she played the role of Elizabeth Bennet
Elizabeth Bennet
Elizabeth Bennet, later Elizabeth Darcy, is the protagonist in the 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She is often referred to as Eliza or Lizzy by her friends and family...
in the ITV serial Lost in Austen
Lost in Austen
Lost in Austen is a four-part 2008 British television series for the ITV network, written by Guy Andrews as a fantasy adaptation of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen...
. Her most controversial role was in the 2009 film The Disappearance of Alice Creed
The Disappearance of Alice Creed
The Disappearance of Alice Creed is a 2009 British thriller film about the kidnapping of a young woman by two ex-convicts. The film is written and directed by J Blakeson and stars Gemma Arterton as the captured Alice Creed, with Martin Compston and Eddie Marsan as Danny and Vic, the...
in which Arterton's character is kidnapped and abused in several graphic nude scenes.
She is the face of Avon
Avon Products
Avon Products, Inc. is a US cosmetics, perfume and toy seller with markets in over 140 countries across the world and sales of $9.9 billion worldwide as of 2007.-Business Model:...
's Bond Girl 007 fragrance which launched in October 2008. Having already started in a series of low-key adverts for cosmetics company Avon, in May 2008, Arterton requested a role opposite model Kate Moss
Kate Moss
Kate Moss is an English model. Moss is known for her waifish figure and popularising the heroin chic look in the 1990s. She is also known for her controversial private life, high profile relationships, party lifestyle, and drug use. Moss changed the look of modelling and started a global debate on...
for Rimmel
Rimmel
Rimmel is a cosmetics brand, now owned by Coty, Inc.. The House of Rimmel was originally founded by Eugene Rimmel in 1834 in Regent Street, London, UK....
, but was blocked on contractual terms under her Avon contract.
In 2010, she made her West End debut in the UK premiere of The Little Dog Laughed. She was originally attached to star in a new adaptation of Wuthering Heights as Catherine Earnshaw, however, she later left the project. She is set to star in Burden of Desire
Burden of Desire
Burden of Desire is a large mass-market book based on the Halifax Explosion of 1917 written by Canadian-born journalist Robert MacNeil...
.
Arterton was seen in the 2010 films Clash of the Titans
Clash of the Titans (2010 film)
Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy and action remake of the 1981 film of the same name . The story is very loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010...
and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (film)
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a 2010 sword-and-sorcery action film written by Jordan Mechner, Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro, and Carlo Bernard; directed by Mike Newell; produced by Jerry Bruckheimer; and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures...
, and played the lead in Tamara Drewe
Tamara Drewe (film)
Tamara Drewe is a 2010 comedy film directed by Stephen Frears.The screenplay was written by Moira Buffini, based on the newspaper comic strip of the same name written by Posy Simmonds...
. In 2011, Arterton was nominated twice by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts
British Academy of Film and Television Arts
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is a charity in the United Kingdom that hosts annual awards shows for excellence in film, television, television craft, video games and forms of animation.-Introduction:...
for her performances in Tamara Drewe and The Disappearance of Alice Creed.
Arterton has been cast to play Gretel, a modern spin on the children's tale Hansel and Gretel
Hansel and Gretel
"Hansel and Gretel" is a well-known fairy tale of German origin, recorded by the Brothers Grimm and published in 1812. Hansel and Gretel are a young brother and sister threatened by a cannibalistic hag living deep in the forest in a house constructed of cake and confectionery. The two children...
. The character will be an older version of the classic character who works alongside her brother Hansel (Jeremy Renner
Jeremy Renner
Jeremy Lee Renner is a two-time Academy-Award-nominated American actor and musician. Renner appeared in films throughout the 2000s, mostly in supporting roles. He came to prominence in films such as Dahmer , S.W.A.T. , Neo Ned , 28 Weeks Later and The Hurt Locker...
) as they track down witches for money.
Personal life
Arterton had a six month relationship with Spanish equestrian Eduardo Munoz that ended in December 2008. On 5 June 2010, she married Stefano Catelli, a sales manager, at a secret ceremony in ZuherosZuheros
Zuheros is a mountain village located in the province of Córdoba, Spain. According to the 2006 census , it has a population of 821 inhabitants. Nearby are scenic walking routes and the Murcielagos cave.-External links:...
, Andalucia, Spain.
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Capturing Mary Capturing Mary Capturing Mary is a BBC television drama , written and directed by Stephen Poliakoff. It was aired on BBC Two on 12 November 2007... |
Liza | Television film |
| 2007 | St Trinian's St Trinian's (2007 film) St Trinian's is the sixth in a long-running series of films based on the works of cartoonist Ronald Searle. The first five films form a series, starting with The Belles of St Trinian's in 1954, with sequels in 1957, 1960, 1966 and 1980.... |
Kelly Jones | Nominated — Empire Award for Best Newcomer Nominated — National Movie Award for Best Actress |
| 2008 | Three and Out Three and Out Three And Out is a 2008 British comedy film directed by Jonathan Gershfield. It premiered in London on the 21 April 2008 and was released in the UK and Ireland on 25 April 2008.-Plot:... |
Frankie Cassidy | |
| 2008 | RocknRolla RocknRolla RocknRolla is a 2008 British crime film written and directed by Guy Ritchie, and starring Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Mark Strong, Toby Kebbell, Tom Hardy, Idris Elba, Karel Roden, and Thandie Newton... |
June | |
| 2008 | Quantum of Solace | Strawberry Fields | Empire Award for Best Newcomer |
| 2009 | Desiree | ||
| 2009 | St. Trinian's II: The Legend of Fritton's Gold St. Trinian's II: The Legend of Fritton's Gold St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold is a 2009 comedy film directed by Oliver Parker and Barnaby Thompson, both of whom directed the previous film in the series... |
Kelly Jones | |
| 2010 | Clash of the Titans Clash of the Titans (2010 film) Clash of the Titans is a 2010 fantasy and action remake of the 1981 film of the same name . The story is very loosely based on the Greek myth of Perseus. Directed by Louis Leterrier and starring Sam Worthington, the film was originally set for standard release on March 26, 2010... |
Io Io (mythology) Io was, in Greek mythology, a priestess of Hera in Argos, a nymph who was seduced by Zeus, who changed her into a heifer to escape detection. His wife Hera set ever-watchful Argus Panoptes to guard her, but Hermes was sent to distract the guardian and slay him... |
Nominated — Teen Choice Award 2010 Teen Choice Awards 2010 Teen Choice Awards were held on August 8, introducing a lot of new categories now separated into "Movie", "TV", "Music", "Summer", "Fashion" and "Other". The show aired on August 9, 2010 on Fox, co-hosted by Katy Perry, who also performed, and Cory Monteith, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, and... for Choice Breakout Female |
| 2010 | Alice Creed | ||
| 2010 | Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (film) Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a 2010 sword-and-sorcery action film written by Jordan Mechner, Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro, and Carlo Bernard; directed by Mike Newell; produced by Jerry Bruckheimer; and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures... |
Princess Tamina | Nominated — Scream Award 2010 Scream Awards The Scream Awards is an award show dedicated to the horror, sci-fi, and fantasy genres of feature films, hosted and sponsored by Spike TV. The show was created by executive producers Michael Levitt, Cindy Levitt, and Casey Patterson... for Best Breakout Performance Female Nominated — Teen Choice Award for Choice Fantasy Actress |
| 2010 | Tamara Drewe Tamara Drewe (film) Tamara Drewe is a 2010 comedy film directed by Stephen Frears.The screenplay was written by Moira Buffini, based on the newspaper comic strip of the same name written by Posy Simmonds... |
Tamara Drewe | |
| 2012 | Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters is an upcoming American action horror comedy film directed by Tommy Wirkola. The film will be made in 3-D and is slated for release on March 2, 2012.... |
Gretel | Filming |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Lost in Austen Lost in Austen Lost in Austen is a four-part 2008 British television series for the ITV network, written by Guy Andrews as a fantasy adaptation of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen... |
Elizabeth Bennet Elizabeth Bennet Elizabeth Bennet, later Elizabeth Darcy, is the protagonist in the 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She is often referred to as Eliza or Lizzy by her friends and family... |
Two episodes – 1.1 and 1.4 |
| 2008 | Tess of the D'Urbervilles Tess of the D'Urbervilles (TV serial) Tess of the D'Urbervilles is a 4-hour BBC television adaptation of Thomas Hardy's book of the same name. The script is by David Nicholls. It tells the story of Tess Durbeyfield, a low-born country girl whose family find they have noble connections.... |
Tess Durbeyfield | Four episodes – 1.1–1.4 |