49 Facts About Ralph Fiennes

1.

Ralph Fiennes has received various accolades including a BAFTA Award and a Tony Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards and an Emmy Award.

2.

Ralph Fiennes made his film debut playing Heathcliff in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights.

3.

Ralph Fiennes starred in the Harry Potter film series as the main antagonist Lord Voldemort.

4.

In 2011, Ralph Fiennes made his directorial debut with his film adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy Coriolanus, in which he played the titular character.

5.

Ralph Fiennes followed this with The Invisible Woman where he portrayed Charles Dickens.

6.

Since 1999, Ralph Fiennes has served as an ambassador for UNICEF UK.

7.

Ralph Fiennes was born in Ipswich, England on 22 December 1962.

8.

Ralph Fiennes is the eldest child of Mark Ralph Fiennes, a farmer and photographer, and Jennifer Lash, a writer.

9.

Ralph Fiennes is the grandson of Maurice Fiennes, great-grandson of Alberic Arthur Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, and great-great-grandson of Frederick Benjamin Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 16th Baron Saye and Sele.

10.

Ralph Fiennes's siblings are actor Joseph Fiennes; Martha Fiennes, a director ; Magnus Fiennes, a composer; Sophie Fiennes, a filmmaker; and Jacob Fiennes, a conservationist.

11.

The Ralph Fiennes family moved to Ireland in 1973, living in County Cork and County Kilkenny for some years.

12.

Ralph Fiennes was educated at St Kieran's College for one year, followed by Newtown School, a Quaker independent school in County Waterford.

13.

Ralph Fiennes went on to pursue painting at Chelsea College of Arts before deciding that acting was his true passion.

14.

Ralph Fiennes trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art between 1983 and 1985.

15.

Ralph Fiennes began his career at the Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park, and at the National Theatre before achieving prominence at the Royal Shakespeare Company.

16.

Ralph Fiennes first worked on screen in 1990 and made his film debut in 1992 as Heathcliff in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights opposite Juliette Binoche.

17.

Ralph Fiennes had a major role in Peter Greenaway's film The Baby of Macon with Julia Ormond, which provoked controversy and was poorly received.

18.

Ralph Fiennes gained weight to represent Goth, but shed it afterwards.

19.

Ralph Fiennes later stated that playing the role had a profoundly disturbing effect on him.

20.

In 1999, Ralph Fiennes had the title role in Onegin, a film which he helped produce.

21.

Ralph Fiennes portrayed Francis Dolarhyde in the 2002 film, Red Dragon, a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal.

22.

In 2005, Ralph Fiennes starred in Fernando Meirelles's The Constant Gardener acting alongside Rachel Weisz.

23.

Ralph Fiennes received a British Academy Film Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

24.

Ralph Fiennes is a patron of the Shakespeare Schools Festival, a charity that enables school children across the UK to perform Shakespeare in professional theatres.

25.

Ralph Fiennes gained worldwide prominence for his portrayal as Lord Voldemort, the antagonist in the Harry Potter franchise.

26.

In 2006, Ralph Fiennes returned to the stage in Faith Healer alongside Ian McDiarmid.

27.

In February 2009, Ralph Fiennes was the special guest of the Belgrade's Film Festival FEST.

28.

Ralph Fiennes filmed his version of Shakespeare's Coriolanus in the Serbian capital of Belgrade.

29.

Ralph Fiennes reunited with Kathryn Bigelow for her Iraq War film The Hurt Locker, released in 2009, appearing as an English Private Military Contractor.

30.

Ralph Fiennes replaced Dame Judi Dench as M in subsequent Bond films.

31.

In 2013, Ralph Fiennes was both the director and the leading actor in the well-received film The Invisible Woman.

32.

Ralph Fiennes used his time as a young porter at London's Brown's Hotel to help construct the character.

33.

In 2015, Ralph Fiennes starred in Luca Guadagnino's thriller A Bigger Splash alongside Dakota Johnson and Tilda Swinton.

34.

Ralph Fiennes plays the fictional Laurence Laurentz, an acclaimed European film director in the movie.

35.

Ralph Fiennes received the Special Achievement Award for Outstanding Artistic Contribution at the Tokyo International Film Festival for directing the film The White Crow.

36.

In 2019, Ralph Fiennes played the MI6 agent Norman Darbyshire in Taghi Amirani's feature documentary Coup 53.

37.

In 2020, Ralph Fiennes voiced a tiger in the family fantasy adventure film Dolittle starring Robert Downey Jr.

38.

Later in 2021, Ralph Fiennes starred in Matthew Vaughn's period spy film The King's Man and Cary Joji Fukunaga's James Bond film No Time to Die.

39.

In 2021, Ralph Fiennes returned to the stage in David Hare's latest play Straight Line Crazy at the Bridge Theatre in London.

40.

Ralph Fiennes's performance has received rave reviews with Variety declaring, "Fiennes is all boldly convincing, controlled threat, his monomania teetering on the edge of malevolence".

41.

In 2022, Ralph Fiennes starred as chef Julian Slowik in the Mark Mylod-directed comedy horror The Menu.

42.

Ralph Fiennes is set to reunite with the director Wes Anderson in the film The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, an adaptation of a short story by Roald Dahl, and will star opposite Benedict Cumberbatch, Dev Patel and Ben Kingsley.

43.

Ralph Fiennes is a UNICEF UK ambassador and has undertaken work in India, Kyrgyzstan, Uganda, and Romania.

44.

Ralph Fiennes is a member of the Canadian charity Artists Against Racism.

45.

Ralph Fiennes met English actress Alex Kingston while they were both students at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

46.

Annis and Ralph Fiennes announced their separation on 7 February 2006, after 11 years together, in a parting described as "acrimonious", following rumours that he had an affair with the Romanian singer Cornelia Crisan.

47.

On 7 September 2017, Ralph Fiennes was granted Serbian citizenship, which was awarded to him because of his work in the country.

48.

Ralph Fiennes has stated in an interview with the Evening Standard, 'I don't collect anything as such.

49.

Ralph Fiennes speaks some Russian, which enabled him to play Alexander Pushkin in The White Crow.