Thandie Newton

Infobox actor
name = Thandie Newton


caption=Newton at the 2007 BAFTAs
birthname = Thandiwe Adjewa Newton
birthdate = birth date and age|1972|11|6
birthplace = London, England [http://www.kamwilliams.com/2008/03/thandie-newton-run-fatboy-run-interview.html]
deathdate =
place =
othername =
yearsactive = 1991-present
spouse = Ol Parker (1997-present) 2 children
homepage =
academyawards =
goldenglobeawards =
emmyawards =
tonyawards =
baftaawards = Best Supporting Actress
2005 "Crash"
sagawards = Best Cast - Motion Picture
2005 "Crash"

Thandiwe Adjewa "Thandie" Newton (born 6 November 1972) is a BAFTA- and SAG Award-winning English [http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article4666651.ece] [http://www.tribune.ie/archive/article/2008/sep/21/when-thandie-met-condi/] [http://sensoryoverload.typepad.com/sensory_overload/2004/08/thandie_newton_.html] actress. She has appeared in a number of successful British and American films, including The Pursuit of Happyness, Run, Fat Boy, Run, and Crash.

Biography

Early life

Newton is the daughter of Nyasha, a Zimbabwean health-care worker, and Nick Newton, a white [cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2008/may/28/water.usa|title='I was so incredibly self-conscious'|publisher="The Guardian"|author=Barton, Laura|date=2008-05-28] English laboratory technician and artist. [http://movies2.nytimes.com/gst/movies/filmography.html?p_id=52472 biography at nytimes.com] ] [http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800018708/bio biography at yahoo movies] ] Her birthplace has been incorrectly reported to be Zambia in biographies, but she has confirmed in interviews that she was born in London, during a two week trip by her parents.BBC Two (4 June 2008), "A Taste of My Life", Series 4, Thandie Newton -- "Quote: "Nigel Slater (host): You were born in London but you didn't stay here for long did you? You went down to Cornwall? Thandie Newton (answers): Actually I don't know how my mum and dad managed to do this. But we lived in Zambia, and my mum was pregnant with me. And I was born on a two week trip back to London, and then we went back to Zambia and my brother was born there. And we ended up coming to England finally when I was three years old. So my dad could help out with the family antique business."] News Blaze (24 March 2008), [http://newsblaze.com/story/20080324113427tsop.nb/topstory.html Thandie Newton "Run, Fatboy, Run" Interview with Kam Williams] ] The name "Thandiwe" means "beloved"fact|date=October 2008 in Ndebele, Zulu, Xhosa or Swazi and the name "Thandie" is pronounced "TAN-dee". According to Newton, her mother is a Zimbabwean Shona Princess. [cite web| url = http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2005/08/05/bfthandie05.xml | title = Daily Telegraph] She was raised in London and Penzance, Cornwall, and educated at Downing College, Cambridge.

Career

Newton made her film debut in "Flirting" (1991). She gained international recognition in the Merchant-Ivory production of "Jefferson in Paris" as Sally Hemings, which led to her being cast in Jonathan Demme's "Beloved" (1998), in which she played the title character. She played the female lead Nyah Hall in the film "". When this film went over schedule, she had to pull out of the film "Charlie's Angels"fact|date=October 2008, and her character ultimately went to Lucy Liu.

Between 2003 and 2005, Newton played Makemba "Kem" Likasu, the love interest, and later wife of Dr. John Carter on the American television series "ER", and in 2004 also appeared in "The Chronicles of Riddick" and "Crash". In the latter, she played a wealthy black woman who, along with her husband, finds herself the target of a racist policeman (played by Matt Dillon). Newton was honoured with a BAFTA award for Best Supporting Actress in 2006. She also played Chris Gardener's wife, Linda Gardener, in "The Pursuit of Happyness".

In addition to her film and television credits she played the title role in a 2006 radio pantomime version of "Cinderella". [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6183903.stm Doctor Who poised for radio panto] from BBC News]

In 2007, she starred alongside Eddie Murphy in the comedy "Norbit" as his love interest, and opposite Simon Pegg as his ex-girlfriend in the comedy "Run Fat Boy Run".

Newton's next role will be her portrayal of U.S. National Security Advisor-turned Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in "W.", Oliver Stone's upcoming film biography of President George W. Bush, set to begin production in 2008.

Newton was an introducer at Wembley Stadium on 7 July 2007 for the UK leg of Live Earth. She was due to introduce Al Gore to the concert, but he was delayed, leaving Newton to tell jokes to try and entertain the audience.fact|date=October 2008

Personal life

Newton married English writer/director/producer Ol Parker in 1998. The couple have two daughters: Ripley, born in 2000, and Nico, born in 2004. Her daughters were named after the character Ripley in the "Alien" films and Nico from The Velvet Underground.

In 2006, she contributed a foreword to "We Wish: Hopes and Dreams of Cornwall's Children", a book of children's writing published in aid of the NSPCC. In it, she writes vividly about her childhood memories of growing up in Cornwall and the way in which the county's vibrant cultural heritage made it easy for her to "enrich every situation with layers of magic and meaning". [ [http://www.wewish.org.uk We Wish - Hopes and dreams of Cornwall's children ] ]

Newton swapped her BMW X5 for a Toyota Prius after protesters bombarded the car with eggs at the gates of her daughters’ school. She then wrote to her celebrity friends, asking them to join her in switching to more environmentally sound cars.Craig McLean [http://living.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=19422007 Telling it like it is] Scotsman.com - 7 January 2007]

Filmography

Awards and nominations

* BAFTA
** 2006, Best Supporting Actress: Crash (Winner)
* BET Award
** 2006, Best Actress: (Nominated)
* Black Movie Awards
** 2006, Best Supporting Actress: Crash (Nominated)
* Black Reel Awards
** 2006, Best Supporting Actress: Crash (Nominated)
** 2003, Best Actress: The Truth About Charlie (Nominated)
** 2000, Best Actress: Besieged (Nominated)
* Image Awards
** 2007, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: The Pursuit of Happyness (Nominated)
** 2006, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: Crash (Nominated)
** 2003, Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture: The Truth About Charlie (Nominated)
** 2001, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: (Nominated)
** 1999, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: Beloved (Nominated)
* Razzie Award
** 2001, Worst Supporting Actress: (Nominated)
* Screen Actors Guild
** 2006, Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture: Crash (Winner)

References

External links

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###@@@KEY@@@### s-achsuccession box
title=BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role
years=2006
for "Crash"
before=Cate Blanchett
for "The Aviator"
after=Jennifer Hudson
for "Dreamgirls"