Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Wilkinson,
OBE (born 12 December 1948) is an English actor.
Personal life
Wilkinson was born in
Leeds,
West Yorkshire, the son of Thomas Wilkinson, Sr., a
farmer.
[Tom Wilkinson Biography. Tiscali.co.uk.][Tom Wilkinson biography. Yahoo! Movies.] At the age of four, he moved with his family to
Canada, where they lived for several years before returning to
England and running a
pub in
Cornwall.
Wilkinson graduated from the
University of Kent, where he was a member of
T24 Drama Society (then named UKCD) and attended the
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
Wilkinson currently lives in London with his wife, actress
Diana Hardcastle and his two children, Alice, 21, and Mollie, 18.
Career
Wilkinson made his television debut in the mid-
1970s and worked on several British
television series, most notably the mini-series
First Among Equals (1986). He first gained critical acclaim with his appearance as Mr Pecksniff, in the
BBC's 1994 adaptation of
Martin Chuzzlewit. He made only the occasional film (including a brief appearance in 1995's
Sense and Sensibility). After becoming part of the ensemble cast of the smash hit
The Full Monty in 1997, a role which earned him a
BAFTA, he began to take film roles more frequently including supporting parts in
Oscar and Lucinda,
Wilde,
Shakespeare in Love, and
The Patriot.
His portrayal of the grief stricken father, Matt Fowler, in
Todd Field's
In the Bedroom, received international praise from critics
[In the Bedroom at Meta Critic]. For the role, he was named
Best Actor of the Year by The New York Film Critics Circle, and went on to be nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Actor. That success was followed up by
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,
Normal,
The Exorcism of Emily Rose,
Batman Begins, and
Separate Lies. [Official Casting for John Landis' 'Burke & Hare' Comedy]
In 2007 Wilkinson played the manic depressive attorney Arthur Edens in
Michael Clayton and garnered much critical acclaim and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
He received a
Doctor of Letters honorary degree from the University of Kent in July 2001.
[www.kent.ac.uk/about/hongrads/honorary-grad00.html] In the New Year's Honours List published 31 December 2004, he was appointed an
OBE for services to
drama.
In 2008, Wilkinson portrayed American patriot
Benjamin Franklin in the HBO mini-series
John Adams. In the HBO movie,
Recount, Wilkinson, with an uncanny resemblance, also portrayed American
statesman and lawyer,
James A. Baker, in Baker's capacity as Chief Counsel to
George W. Bush during the 2000 U.S. Presidential Election controversy, receiving an
Emmy Award for the former and a nomination for the latter. He also received a
Golden Globe Award and
Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for his role in
John Adams. Wilkinson stars in the Horror comedy Burke and Hare, who is directed by
John Landis.
[Fisher, Serkis, Wilkinson in 'Burke and Hare']
Filmography
