Rachel Hurd-Wood: biography
Rachel Clare Hurd-Wood is a British actress and photo model. She earned her fame as a child when she played Wendy Darling in Peter Pan (2003). Besides, the audience liked the movies Perfume: The Story of a Murderer, Dorian Gray, and Tomorrow, When the War Began where she starred.
The would-be celebrity was born in Streatham, South London. The girl’s father, Philip Hurd-Wood, was a screenwriter and a theater actor. The mother, Sarah, kept the house and brought up the kids: Rachel and her younger brother, Patrick.
Hurd-Wood lived in the capital until eight, when the family moved to a country mansion in Surrey; it was built in the Victorian epoch. Rachel went to the Rodborough school; Literature, Philosophy, and History of Art were her favorite subjects.
At the age of 16, the young woman chose Science as her major. She had had several roles in movies and received much recognition among critics and ordinary viewers, yet she dreamed of becoming a marine biologist and studying dolphins. By the moment of graduation, Rachel realized her knowledge was not advanced enough to build a science career. As a result, she enrolled at University College London to study linguistics.
Hurd-Wood could not give up acting, though. She had to choose after the first college year whether she would continue her studies or go to Australia for shooting: she was invited to a large project to play the main character. Rachel chose the second option and quitted her studies. Since that moment, the young woman has been engaged in cinematography professionally.
Movies
Rachel Hurd-Wood was twelve when she got the first invitation for the audition: producers offered her the part of Wendy Darling, the “mother” of the lost boys, in the family fairy tale Peter Pan. This work brought young Rachel recognition; she was even nominated for the prestigious Saturn Award. Jeremy Sumpter personified the boy who did not want to grow up. The young actors had the chance to collaborate with Jason Isaacs, Olivia Williams, and Ludivine Sagnier.
The child actress also played the victim of evil spirits Betsy in the thriller An American Haunting and little Imogen Helhoughton in the detective Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Silk Stocking.
At the age of 16, the young woman enjoyed a new wave of fame: she personified Laura Richis in Tom Tykwer’s psychological thriller Perfume: The Story of a Murderer based on Patrick Süskind’s novel under the same title. The main character, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Ben Whishaw), is obsessed with the desire to create a unique fragrance that would make people go crazy. He murders 13 innocent girls to extract their smell.
The citizens of the French town are disturbed by the crimes. When the last girl, Laura Richis, is found dead, the perfumer is caught. Before his execution, Grenouille uses a single drop of his perfume and turns into a messiah for those present. It was the third time when Hurd-Wood portrayed a murder victim.
The actress’s characters continued to die: she appeared in the scandalous thriller Dorian Gray. Sibyl Vane was the first woman seduced by Dorian Gray (Ben Barnes); he immediately left her, and desperate Sibyl jumped into a river from a bridge.
The fantasy action Solomon Kane brought the change of the stage type: Rachel’s character became the dark forces’ victim but survived thanks to Solomon (James Purefoy). The knight had spent much time in a monastery and knew how to fight against the devil.
The Australian drama Tomorrow, When the War Began (2010) made the artist a professional. It is the story about a group of teenagers who go camping for a weekend and find their families killed as they come back; a gang is ruling the city.
Further on, Hurd-Wood accepted only the lead part offers. She participated in the fantasy thriller Hideaways and personified Mae; James Furlong (Harry Treadaway) who has supernatural abilities meets her.
In 2014, Rachel joined the cast of the melodrama Highway to Dhampus with Gunner Wright. The next year brought the TV project Home Fires about the pre-war epoch in an English town in Cheshire. Besides, the actress expanded her filmography with the fantastic horror Second Origin. After a massive catastrophe on the planet, only two people survive: Alba and Dídac. They have to learn how to live a new life.
Personal life
Rachel Hurd-Wood does not get into tabloid articles or gives the paparazzi a reason to talk about her romances. The artist keeps secret the details of her private life while her social activities are absolutely open.
Rachel donates much money and supports the children’s organization that helps Great Ormond Street Hospital in London. In 2009, the poster with the artist’s autograph was auctioned; the woman announced that the money would be given to the hospital. It was the most expensive item in the history of the charity foundation.
Rachel and other movie celebrities often to Surrey on Christmas and organize Wonderland-style shows for terminally ill children. Little patients not only watch performances but also participate in them.
Judging by the actress’s Instagram photos, she is happily married to the actor Russ Bain who is famous for his parts in the series Castle, Intelligence, and Snatch. In 2018, he appeared in Mission: Impossible – Fallout starring Tom Cruise. The lovers married in fall 2017.
Present days
Today, the actress is not a frequent guest on the TV screen. In 2016, she appeared in the American series Spark; the next year was marked with the thriller series Clique. The Revenger: An Unromantic Comedy (2019) is the most recent project starring Robert Kazinsky and Samantha Barks.
Rachel Hurd-Wood’s net worth is $2 million in 2019.
Filmography
- 2003 — Peter Pan
- 2005 — An American Haunting
- 2006 — Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
- 2009 — Dorian Gray
- 2009 — Solomon Kane
- 2010 — Tomorrow, When the War Began
- 2011 — Hideaways
- 2014 — Highway to Dhampus
- 2015 — Second Origin
- 2017-present — Clique
