Lily James: biography
Lily James is a British movie actress. Lily has gained popularity after her participation in the TV series Secret Diary of a Call Girl, and later in the British series shot on the original script, Downton Abbey. But the actress has gained international fame after her roles in the full-length Hollywood pictures: a fantasy Wrath of the Titans, a fairy-tale Cinderella and a parodic mash-up horror Pride and Prejudice and Zombies in which Lily James has played the leading role.
Lily Chloe Ninette Thomson who is known to her fans as the actress Lily James, was born in April 1989 in Esher in the English County of Surrey. Since early childhood, the girl demonstrated creative abilities and considerable artistic skills. Her parents have noticed it and have sent their daughter to Tring Park School for the Performing Arts in Hertfordshire.
After Lily James had finished the school, she went to London where she was studying at the well-known Guildhall School of Music and Drama. In 2010 after having received the diploma of Guildhall School Lily began to take her first steps in the acting career.
Movies
The future British actress has taken a stage pseudonym of Lily James. She has begun her career with a small role in the series. The young actress has taken part in a couple of episodes of the family melodrama Just William. Next year in 2011 she again performed a role in the series. Then Lily received a more significant role: she appeared in eight episodes of the series Secret Diary of a Call Girl.
Along with her work on the movie set the young actress tried herself on the stage. Sometimes Lily James appeared on the stage of various London theaters. In Richmond on the scene of Orange Tree Theatre, she demonstrated her brilliant acting skills in two plays by Martin Crimp. Moreover, she performed the character of Desdemona in the Shakespearean play staged by the director Daniel Evans. Lily's considerable talent and acting skills were evident, and the representatives of the legendary Young Vic Theatre have noticed her and invited her to join them.
The actress became successful and famous after the release of extremely popular series Downton. In this tape, Lily has received quite a prominent role, even though it was not the leading one. She has embodied the charming lady Rose MacClare. At first, her heroine was temperamental and was making rush actions, but by the end of the series, she has turned into a real lady.
The actress has become even more famous after her participation in the fighter with fantasy elements under the title Wrath of the Titans. The latter movie is a large-scale project of Jonathan Liebesman in which Lily James has performed the role of Korrina. Due to this film, the actress has finally asserted herself on the star pedestal.
The year 2012 was very plentiful for the actress. She took part in several projects at the same time. The pictures Broken and Fast Girls have had considerable success both at critics and the spectators.
After the three-year break, the actress has come back and appeared in the secondary role in the American drama Burnt. And then Lily's acting career began to take off, and she started to receive some leading parts in world-famous blockbusters.
In March 2015 the fairy tale Cinderella directed by Kenneth Branagh came out on the screen. Such well-known actresses as Alicia Vikander, Saoirse Ronan, and others have auditioned for the role of Cinderella. But it was Lily James who got this role. Such stars of British cinematography as Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, and Richard Madden have performed in this screen adaptation of the fairy tale. It isn't surprising that the project has had tremendous success.
On the 27th of February, 2015 the actress visited Russia during the promo tour of the movie Cinderella. Lily James attended the popular Russian show Evening Urgant and met the performer of Russian movie’s title song, the singer Alsou.
In 2016 Russian spectators have got a fantastic opportunity to see another one screen version of the legendary novel War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. The 8-series project of Tom Harper was shot in several countries including Russia. The Palace Square of St. Petersburg, the Cathedral of the Dormition, Catherine Palace in Tsarskoye Selo and Yusupov Palace on Moika – all these sights are shown in the movie. Lily James has transformed into the character of Natasha Rostova.
The rising British star already has more than twenty roles in the movies in her assets.
Personal life
The actress prefers to keep her own life in secret. But her fans have learned that her heart is not free. Lily has relations with her colleague Matt Smith. Most cinema lovers know this actor due to his role in of Doctor Who in the same name series.
At present Lily James has romantic relations which haven't led to the official marriage yet. But the beautiful actress already thinks about the future celebration. She says that on the one hand she dreams about the magnificent wedding in Las Vegas, and on the other hand she wants to have a modest wedding ceremony in the circle of her relatives and close friends. Soon we will know what variant Lily James have chosen.
The actress has appeared together with her beloved man in the movie Pride and Prejudice and Zombies which came out on the screen in 2015. Lily has performed the role of Elizabeth Bennet, the leading character of the movie. Matt has played the role of Mr. Collins.
Lily James has an official verified account on Instagram. The young British actress has 800 thousand subscribers on her Instagram. Here the girl publishes picturesque landscapes, new photo shoots, pictures with her friends. All the photos are presented in soft light colors and this way it creates the general stylish look of the page.
Lily James at present
In 2016 Lily James has acted as Elizabeth Bennet in the parody horror movie Pride and Prejudice and Zombie. The novel of Seth Grahame-Smith became the basis for the movie. In his book, the writer has interpreted the classic novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen with the help of mash-up shots. He has turned habitual from the school times book into post-apocalyptic reading about a zombie apocalypse in prissy old England.
In this new reading, Elizabeth Bennet is the master of martial arts and arms, and Mr. Darcy embodies the concentration of the social stereotypes, but at the same time, he also cruelly kills zombies. The spreading epidemic makes heroes forget about pride and prejudice and unite in the struggle against zombies.
The year 2016 has brought one more leading role to the actress. The spectators know her role from their literature lessons. This time the character was presented in the most traditional reading. Lily James has performed Juliet in the movie- play Romeo and Juliet by the famous play by William Shakespeare.
This classical plot about the love of the successors of two rival families and the following tragic denouement came out in Great Britain on the 12th of May, 2016, and on the 9th of August, 2016 in Russia.
In 2017 Lily James took part in the long-awaited criminal fighter Baby Drive directed by Edgar Wright where she played the secondary role of Debora. The critics positively met this movie. The crime thriller tells the story of a young and stylish guy who has dangerous and criminal work: he helps the bandits to get away from the crime scene. But when the guy decides to get out of the game, he begins to have problems not with the low, but with the crime world.
Also in 2017 the actress has got the significant female role in the biographic drama Darkest Hour. The movie tells about the first decisions of , in the office of the Winston Churchill prime minister of Great Britain. Churchill came to power in exceptional circumstances, and as his first step of the new prime minister, he refused to cooperate with Hitler.
Lily James played the role of Elizabeth Layton in this drama.
This premiere of this movie took place on the 1st of September, 2017 at Telluride Film Festival. The picture will come on the big screen on the 12th of January, 2018.
Filmography
- 2011 – Secret Diary of a Call Girl
- 2012 – 2015 – Downton Abbey
- 2012 - Wrath of the Titans
- 2012 - Broken
- 2012 – Fast Girls
- 2015 - Cinderella
- 2015 - War & Peace
- 2015 – Burnt
- 2016 – Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
- 2016 – Romeo and Juliet
- 2017 – Baby Drive
- 2017 – Darkest Hour
