Clive Owen

British actor Clive Owen (1965-) was born and raised in Coventry, England. Two years after high school, he entered the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, England, from which he graduated in 1986.

His professional stage debut was with the Young Vic Company with which he played Claudio in "Measure for Measure" and Romeo in "Romeo and Juliet". Soon his sex appeal and acting talent awarded him a series of TV contracts:

Casts

• 1988: Teamed with actors David Thewlis and Diana Quick in Beeban Kidron's road-trip tale "Vroom";
• 1989: US TV debut as a dark psychopath in "Precious Bane", a two-part segment of the PBS series "Mystery!";
• 1990-1991: Played lead heroic character in British Central Television series "Chancer";
• 1991: Won praise for his performance as Saskia Reeves's incestuous brother in Steven Poliakoff's drama "Close My Eyes";
• 1993: Directed by Steven Poliakoff as a Jewish doctor in "Century";
• 1993: Played an Irish graduate of West Point who goes off to fight in the Civil War in the American TV-movie debut, "Class of '61" (ABC);
• 1994: Appeared as a seductive hedonist in "The Return of the Native" (CBS);
• 1996: First US feature film "The Rich Man's Wife" as Halle Berry's lover;
• 1996: Starred as a British private investigator in the ITV series "Sharman";
• 1997: Cast in leading role of a concentration camp inmate in Sean Matthias' adaptation of Martin Sherman's "Bent";
• 1999: Played title role in Mike Hodges' "Croupier" with Alex Kingston; the film became a popular art-house hit upon its following year release in the USA;
• 1999: Introduced character of Detective Inspector Ross Tanner, a policeman suffering from a virus that affects his ability to see, in the BBC series "Second Sight"; aired on PBS in the USA;
• 2000: Co-starred as a prisoner with a flair for gardening in "Greenfingers"; screened at the Toronto Film Festival; first screen appearance opposite Helen Mirren;
• 2001: Reprised role of Tanner in a second series of "Second Sight" (BBC-1); aired on PBS in the USA;
• 2001: Had lead role in a series of five short film advertisements for BMW shown over the Internet at http://www.bmwfilms.com;
• 2001: Played the valet to a visiting guest at "Gosford Park", the Robert Altman-directed period mystery; second screen teaming with Helen Mirren;
• 2002: Co-starred in a villainous turn in "The Bourne Identity";
• 2002: Starred opposite Angelina Jolie in the love story "Beyond Borders";
• 2002/09/18: Eon Productions have emphatically denied a tabloid's claim that Clive Owen will replace Pierce Brosnan as British spy James Bond.

Awards

• 2001: Received Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble for "Gosford Park";
• 2001: Received Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Ensemble for "Gosford Park";
• 2001: Received Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Acting Ensemble for "Gosford Park";
• 2001: Received The Actor for Outstanding Performance by the Cast of a Theatrical Motion Picture for "Gosford Park".

Family

• Father: Country-western singer. Divorced from Owen's mother c. 1968; did not see son again until c. 1984.
• Mother: Divorced from Owen's father; remarried.
• Wife: Sarah-Jane Fenton. Actress. Met when they appeared together as "Romeo and Juliet"; married c. 1994.
• Daughter: Hannah Owen. Born in 1997.
• Daughter: Eve Owen. Born in September 1999.

Links & Sources

• Clive's bio: http://www.murphsplace.com/owen/cobio.html
• Young Vic Theatre Company: http://www.youngvic.org/

How to reach Clive Owen:

ICM
Oxford House, 76 Oxford Street
London W1D 1BS
England

Before you leave...

Jani: Are you a believer in astrology?
Jack: No. But then, I'm a Gemini, and Geminis don't believe in astrology.

(From Croupier)