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Cate Blanchett Profile |
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Birth Date: May 14, 1969
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Birth Place: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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Birth Name: Catherine Elise Blanchett
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Height: 5'9"
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Biography |
Cate Blanchett was born on May 14, 1969, in
Melbourne, Australia. With an Aussie mother and a Texan
father, she was exposed to a range of cultures. When Cate
was merely 10 years old, her father passed away, leaving her
mother to take care of not only Cate, but also a younger
sister and older brother. Her first taste of acting came
when she joined a drama group at her Methodist College,
playing small roles in small time plays.
At the University of Melbourne, Blanchett began studying art
history before she decided to continue her education abroad.
After spending some time in England, she did some traveling
in Egypt, where she was asked to be an extra in a boxing
movie being shot nearby.
After gaining a new perspective during her travels,
Blanchett enrolled and was accepted to an exclusive dramatic
arts school in Sydney, Australia: the National Institute of
Dramatic Art. She finally found her niche and excelled,
graduating with much promise. One of her first big breaks
arrived when she appeared with fellow Aussie Geoffrey Rush
in a Sydney theater production, Oleanna, for which she
picked up the Best Actress Rosemount Award from the Sydney
Theater Critics Circle.
She began to dominate the Australian theater and television
scene (she appeared on the Australian Broadcasting
Commission's Heartland), and won Best Supporting Actress
awards from the Australian Film Institute and the Film
Critics Circle of Australia, both for her role in 1997's
Thank God He Met Lizzie. That same year, interest poured in
from the U.S. when she starred as half of Oscar and Lucinda,
along with Ralph Fiennes.
It took only one year for Blanchett to see her world change
completely. She was cast as Queen Elizabeth I in 1998's
Elizabeth, which garnered incredible critical praise. Her
role as the British monarch was awarded with the Best
Actress title by The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, as
well as by the Broadcast Film Critics Association, Chicago
Film Critics, and the Online Film Critics Society, to name
but a few. Her brilliant work was also recognized by the
Screen Actors Guild and at the Oscars, with Best Actress
nominations (she lost to Gwyneth Paltrow at both ceremonies,
for her work in another period piece, Shakespeare in Love).
With one amazing undertaking, Blanchett transformed into a
great leading lady.
Projects began to roll in from all over after Elizabeth;
1999 saw the release of Pushing Tin with Billy Bob Thornton
and Angelina Jolie, the romantic comedy An Ideal Husband,
and The Talented Mr. Ripley. The whirlwind continued in 2000
with The Gift, costarring Katie Holmes, and The Man Who
Cried, followed by Bandits, Charlotte Gray and The Shipping
News in 2001. Her fan base grew as people began to witness
Blanchett's chameleon-like qualities.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was
released during the 2001 holiday season, and proved to be a
hit among avid Tolkien fans and nonfans alike. Blanchett, as
the Elf Queen Galadriel, enchanted all, and she reprized her
role in the next two chapters of the trilogy, The Lord of
the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) and The Lord of the Rings:
The Return of the King. 2002's Heaven with Giovanni Ribisi,
and 2003's Veronica Guerin, Coffee and Cigarettes, and The
Missing continued to pad her image as a wonderful actress.
In 2004, Cate portrayed Katharine Hepburn alongside Leonardo
DiCaprio in The Aviator. Her incredible performance was
rewarded with a Best Supporting Actress award at the 2005
Academy Awards ceremony.
In every movie on her resume, Blanchett has contributed
something new to the acting world, and with her refreshing
take on the business, we can't wait to be impressed by yet
another one of her roles. Married to film editor and
screenwriter Andrew Upton since 1997, Blanchett gave birth
to her first son, Dashiell John, in 2001, and her second,
Roman Robert, in 2004. Cate Blanchett next added Little Fish
(2005) to her filmography along with The Life Aquatic,
starring Bill Murray and Owen Wilson, that same year.
In 2006, Cate was nominated for another Golden Globe award
for Best Supporting Actress in her role as a teacher who
gets romantically involved with one of her much younger
students in the film Notes on a Scandal (2006). That same
year, she also played Bob Dylan, of all people, in the film
I'm Not There. |
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Other
Information |
She was the first person to win the Critics Circle Theatre
award for Best Newcomer and Lead Actress in the same year.
One of the performances which won her this award was for her
role in David Mamet's Oleanna, opposite Shine (1996) star
Geoffrey Rush.
Has an older brother named Bob who works in the computer
field, and a younger sister, Genevieve who is a theater
designer.
When she was 18, Cate was on vacation in Egypt. A fellow
guest at a cheap hotel in Cairo asked if she wanted to be an
extra in a movie, and the next day she found herself in a
crowd scene, cheering for an American boxer who was losing
to an Egyptian. She dreaded the experience and walked off
from the movie.
Attended Methodist Ladies College (MLC) in Melbourne,
Australia and was the School Drama Captain.
Her father, a Texan ad executive, died of a heart attack
when she was ten years old.
After completing work on the Lord of the Rings trilogy in
the role of Galadriel, she kept and bronzed her elf ear
prosthetics.
Was considered for the role of Clarice Starling in Hannibal
(2001). The part eventually went to Julianne Moore.
Son, Dashiell John Upton, born December 2001. He was named
after the author of classic crime novel The Maltese Falcon
(1941), Dashiell Hammett.
In an interview she gave to Fox Television Network, she
admitted blushingly that she had accepted the role of
Galadriel, the Elf Queen, in The Lord of the Rings trilogy
because she always wanted to appear in a movie wearing
pointed ears.
Enjoys making lists and crossing items off as she
accomplishes them.
Chosen as one of People Magazine's "50 Most Beautiful."
[1999]
Children: Dashiell John, born on December 3, 2001 in London,
England; Roman Robert, born on April 23, 2004
Has been in 5 movies where the title contains the name of
the character she plays: Veronica Guerin (2003), Charlotte
Gray (2001), Elizabeth (1998), Thank God He Met Lizzie
(1997), and Oscar and Lucinda (1997). [March 2004]
Was originally going to play the role of Anna in Mike
Nichols's latest film Closer (2004/I), but due to her second
pregnancy she had to drop out, so it was recast with Julia
Roberts instead.
Second son, Roman Robert, with Andrew Upton, born 23 April
2004 in London, England.
Was the original 'Tim-Tam' girl in the series of commercials
promoting the product.
September 2004: Flew back home to Melbourne, Australia to
launch the skincare range from SK-II at Australia's leading
department store Myer.
Was set to play "Portia" in Michael Radford's adaptation of
William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice (2004), thus
re-uniting with actor Joseph Fiennes, her co-star from the
blockbuster Elizabeth (1998), but had to drop out after
discovering her pregnancy. This also would have reunited her
with Ian McKellen, with whom she appeared in "The Lord of
the Rings" trilogy, who would have played "Shylock". He too
ultimately left the project.
By winning the Oscar for her portrayal of Katharine Hepburn,
she became the first person to give an Oscar-winning
portrayal of a previous Oscar winner.
In The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), she appears
with Anjelica Huston, and in The Aviator (2004), she works
with Danny Huston, the daughter and son, respectively, of
director John Huston. In addition to having played Katharine
Hepburn, who appeared in The African Queen (1951), directed
by John Huston, she also appeared in a remake of a film that
John Huston appeared in: The Lord of the Rings: The Return
of the King (2003).
In The Aviator (2004), she works opposite Leonardo DiCaprio,
who plays Howard Hughes. The year before, she appeared in
The Missing (2003/I) with Tommy Lee Jones. Jones played
Hughes years earlier in The Amazing Howard Hughes (1977)
(TV).
Nominated for Best Female Performance in the Belvoir St
Theatre Company's production of "Hamlet".
Won the Rosemont Best Actress Award for her performance in
"Oleanna".
1992: Graduated from Australia's NIDA (National Institute of
Dramatic Art).
Was unknowingly pregnant while portraying the pregnant
journalist in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004).
Her first two Oscar Nominations are for playing real,
historical figures (Queen Elizabeth II and Katharine
Hepburn).
Won Best Female Actor, Helpmann Award for her performance in
"Hedda Gabler". [2005]
Appeared next to Hugo Weaving in 9 different projects:
"Bordertown" (1995) (mini), "Drama School" (2000), Little
Fish (2005), The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the
Ring (2001), The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
(2003), The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age (2004) (VG),
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), The Making of
'The Lord of the Rings' (2002) (V), Quest for the Ring
(2001) (TV).
Is of French descent.
In "The Lord of the Rings", she worked with Elijah Wood and
Sean Astin, who played "Frodo" and "Sam", respectively. Also
appearing with her in those films, as well as in The Aviator
(2004), was Ian Holm, who played "Frodo" in the BBC radio
series. In Notes on a Scandal (2006), she worked with Bill
Nighy, who played "Sam" in the BBC radio series. In The
Golden Age (2007), she worked with Samantha Morton, who is
engaged to Ian Holm's son, Harry Holm.
She participated in six films nominated for the Best Picture
Academy Award, four of them in a row: Elizabeth (1998), The
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002), The Lord of the
Rings: The Return of the King (2003), The Aviator (2004) and
Babel (2006).
In Bandits (2001), she works with Troy Garity. In The
Aviator (2004), she plays Katharine Hepburn, who appeared
with Garity's mother, Jane Fonda and grandfather, Henry
Fonda, in On Golden Pond (1981).
Was considered for the role of Jane Smith in Mr. & Mrs.
Smith (2005).
15th February 2005: Attended the 2005 Elle Style Awards held
at London's trendy Spitalfields Market. Posed for photos
with fellow Australian Kylie Minogue, who was presented with
a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Her Texan father met her mother in Melbourne.
Was officially in the BAFTA longlist (Equivalently, the
semi-finals) for Best Actress in a Leading Role, for her
role in Notes on a Scandal (2006) (unlike the Oscars, where
she was competing for Supporting Role), which consisted of
15 finalists for each category (except Animated Film).
However, she was eliminated in the next round, which the
five official nominees were selected. [2007] |
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