Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - Final Trailer
Watch Trailer Video
Showing posts with label Harry Potter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Harry Potter. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
Saturday, July 21, 2018
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - Official Comic-Con Trailer & Johnny Depp's Surprise Appearance as Grindwelwald
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - Official Comic-Con Trailer
Crimes Of Grindelwald - Fantastic Beasts Full Trailer
Comic Con 2018
Published on Jul 21, 2018
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - In
Theaters November 16 http://www.FantasticBeasts.com/ https://www.facebook.com/fantasticbea... https://www.instagram.com/fantasticbe... https://twitter.com/FantasticBeasts
Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Fantastic
Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” is the second of five all new adventures in
J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World™. At the end of the first film, the powerful
Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) was captured by MACUSA (Magical
Congress of the United States of America), with the help of Newt Scamander
(Eddie Redmayne). But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escaped custody
and has set about gathering followers, most unsuspecting of his true agenda: to
raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings.
In an effort to thwart
Grindelwald’s plans, Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) enlists his former student
Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead.
Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends
and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.
The film features an ensemble
cast led by Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra
Miller, with Jude Law and Johnny Depp. The cast also includes, Zoë Kravitz,
Callum Turner, Claudia Kim, William Nadylam, Kevin Guthrie, Carmen Ejogo, and
Poppy Corby-Tuech. “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” is directed by
David Yates, from a screenplay by J.K. Rowling.
The film is produced by David
Heyman, J.K. Rowling, Steve Kloves and Lionel Wigram. Slated for release on
November 16, 2018, the film will be distributed worldwide in 2D and 3D in
select theatres and IMAX by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment
Company.
Everything we noticed from the Fantastic Beasts: The
Crimes of Grindelwald Comic-Con trailer
The Pottermore News Team
Saturday 21st July 2018
The Elder Wand! A familiar mirror! Mini-Newt! More
Hogwarts! The new Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald trailer, which
debuted at San Diego Comic-Con today, is chock-full of wizarding treats. Here’s
a few that we found particularly enchanting.
Oh, but watch the
trailer first, obviously.
The trailer begins with a flashback to Newt’s Hogwarts
days (where we learn he has been rocking that curly mop hairstyle since his
teens) and see him being taught to tackle a Boggart by... Jude Law’s Albus
Dumbledore! How intriguing. In the Harry Potter books, we know that Albus
Dumbledore used to teach Transfiguration – now we see him teaching Defence
Against the Dark Arts. Was he subbing in? In an interview with Entertainment
Weekly, Jude Law says Dumbledore wasn’t teaching Transfiguration ‘at this stage’.
We know Dumbledore is a multi-talented guy (check his various accolades) so he probably did both.
The flashback reveals that Newt’s Boggart (a creature that transforms into whatever
the witch or wizard fears the most) is not a Mummy, or a Banshee, or anything
horrible and scaly, but a simple writing desk. It turns out Newt’s greatest
fear is... gasp! Working in an office!
MACUSA officials float a bedraggled Grindelwald (Johnny
Depp) through what appears to be a cell block in MACUSA’s prison.
However, based on what we see later on in the trailer,
his incarceration clearly doesn’t last very long…
‘Magic blooms only in rare souls. Still, we must skulk in
the shadows. But the old ways serve us no longer.’
A definitely-not-locked-up-anymore Grindelwald (with
shorter hair, this time) delivers a grand speech to who are presumably his
followers. The speech touches on the themes we saw in the first Fantastic
Beasts film – with American wizards living in hiding from No-Majs: enforcing
stricter rules than we’ve seen in wizarding Europe. Grindelwald tells his crowd
that those ways ‘serve us no longer’ – which surely must mean one thing: a
rebellion.
Dumbledore’s voice explains that
Grindelwald had a vision that he would rise to dominance in the wizarding
world. Much like how Voldemort was guided by a Prophecy, it seems Grindelwald is also
haunted by future events yet-to-come. We can also glimpse a moment in the
trailer where Grindelwald sees a golden ghostly form of Credence… Does Credence
have something to do with it?
Actress Claudia Kim plays a character
only known as ‘the Maledictus’ (which means someone carrying a ‘blood curse’)
and seems to be connected to Credence somehow. In this trailer, we seem them
strolling along looking shady, at any rate. Let’s also bear in mind that Credence
is seen looking at circus posters, and we already know that the Maledictus is
one of the circus’s big attractions.
It wouldn’t be a Fantastic Beasts movie
without some fantastic beasts – and a couple of new ones are introduced to us
here. First, we see some big cat-like animals with giant blue, fluorescent eyes
that don’t seem to fit a description from our Fantastic Beasts and Where to
Find Them textbooks. We
also see a giant inquisitive bird-like animal eyeing up Jacob, and a giant
hairy behemoth giving Newt, of all people, a fright. Any budding Magizoologists
out there know what these could be?
Another new, nifty bit of magic we
haven’t seen before: a disembodied gloved hand pointing at St Paul’s Cathedral.
We’re guessing it’s not recommending a bit of sight-seeing. When Newt grabs it,
it actually takes him to Dumbledore, like a Portkey or Apparating or somewhere
in between. We’ve got to hand it to Dumbledore – that’s some very cool magic.
Well, that is definitely not a pair of thick, woollen
socks. One stand-out scene in the trailer shows us Dumbledore looking into a
rather grand-looking mirror. On closer inspection, we see this simply must be
the Mirror of Erised - the enchanted mirror that Harry
discovers in his first year of Hogwarts. The Mirror famously shows the subject
what they desire most, and Dumbledore once told Harry that grown men had gone
mad trying to seek the enchanted glass’s contents.
When Harry asked an older Dumbledore what he saw in the
mirror in Philosopher’s Stone, the kindly headmaster claimed it was simply a
pair of socks. In Deathly Hallows, Harry realises Dumbledore must have seen his
late family, in the same way he did. However, in the mirror in this scene, it
is Dumbledore’s old friend Grindelwald that looms behind him.
When the first
trailer came out we panicked
due to the lack of Nifflers. Where are the Nifflers, we cried in despair.
Thankfully we are thrilled to report that Newt’s mischievous long-snouted,
gold-grabbing friend is back once again in this trailer – popping out of Newt’s
case, sniffing around Paris. We’re sure there’s lots of lovely, shiny Parisian
jewellery to be found, little friend.
Zoë Kravitz, portraying Leta Lestrange, finally speaks in
the new trailer – mournfully telling Newt ‘he never met a monster he couldn’t
love’. Hagrid, much? So, is Leta talking about herself or one of Newt’s
fantastic beasts here? Either way, as certified nosy parkers, we are very much
looking forward to finding out more about Leta and whether she is one of the
bad guys, the good guys, or somewhere in the middle…
And bearing that question in mind, we do
see Leta working alongside Tina and Newt in this action sequence together.
Despite the other Lestranges we know about, maybe Leta isn’t so bad after all?
We already know of Ezra Miller’s return to the franchise,
despite his ambiguous ending in the first Fantastic Beasts film. But not only
is Credence in this film – definitely not dead – he’s more powerful and
seething with rage. Or is that desperation? Credence is clearly learning to
harness his intense powers… as we’ve seen in the previous trailer he seems to
be able to control his Obscurus now. And although Credence seems to be in a bad
way, we are glad that the charismatic Ezra is back for more magical larks.
Newt, alongside his brother, Theseus,
face Grindelwald in a fiery showdown. Behind Grindelwald is a character we know
is called Vinda Rosier (we see her standing with him quite a few times,
actually...) holding a glowing, golden orb-like object. We’ll take a wild guess
that’s not some sort of premium version of a Remembrall...
We’ve seen the Deathly
Hallows symbol pop up quite a lot in Fantastic Beasts so far –
as a necklace, creeping up in film posters, the screenplay, etc. In the
trailer, we see embers of it dissipate in a puff of smoke. But why, exactly? We
certainly know of Grindelwald’s obsession with the Deathly Hallows, an
obsession he once shared with Dumbledore. And we definitely know that at least
one Deathly Hallow features in the film because…
Well, that settles that. The Elder Wand, one of the three
Deathly Hallows, is definitely in Grindelwald’s possession during the events of
this movie. There is simply no mistaking its recognisable berry-esque carvings
that we remember oh-so-well from the Harry Potter films.
As far as we know, the next person to take the wand was
Dumbledore after their famous 1945 duel. The
Crimes of Grindelwald is set in the 1920s so... blimey, does
that mean Grindelwald owns the wand for at least two decades? That doesn’t
sound like a fun two decades, if so.
Just when we think the trailer is over – we get a pretty
incredible surprise right after the end-titles – it’s only world-famous
alchemist Nicolas Flamel, creator of the Philosopher’s Stone! Flamel, played by Brontis
Jodorowsky, is rather understandably confused for a ghost by poor, perplexed
Jacob (imagine what it’ll be like when Jacob meets an actual ghost) and the
pair have a fabulously awkward, creaky handshake. Well, Nicolas is getting on a
bit…
‘The fate of one, the future of all.’
These enigmatic words are emblazoned across the trailer
throughout – and of course we’re now wondering who ‘the one’ is. Is it
Grindelwald, with his vision? Is it Newt? Is it Dumbledore? Is it the Niffler?!
Okay, maybe not him. But we’re not ruling anybody out here!
Hopefully, all of our questions will be answered upon the
release of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of
Grindelwald, coming out 16 November.
Tuesday, May 9, 2017
JK Rowling, Pan Macmillan and Waterstones take top prizes at the British Book Awards
JK Rowling, Pan Macmillan and Waterstones take top prizes at the British Book Awards
Pan Macmillan and Waterstones are two of the biggest
winners at this year's British Book Awards, aka The Nibbies, after being
crowned Publisher of the Year and Book Retailer of the Year.
Pan Macmillan has been named Publisher of the
Year for the second time in three years, after claiming the title in
2015.
It was awarded the prize, sponsored by Bertram Books,
after its TCM sales jumped 30% in 2016. A large chunk of the increase
is down to sales of Joe Wicks and Julia Donaldson titles - two of the three
highest-grossing authors of 2016. Judges said the publisher also showed
"outstanding" support of retailers and diversity in publishing,
after making a £50,000 donation to Creative Access. It
triumphed from a shortlist comprising HarperCollins, Little, Brown Book Group,
Michael Joseph, Penguin General, Quercus, The Quarto Group and
Transworld.
The judges said: "Pan Macmillan was incredibly strong in nearly
every area it published into in 2016. There's a palpable sense of
enthusiasm and energy about it . . . this is a company that just keeps building
and building and building."
Waterstones, meanwhile, was named Book
Retailer of the Year, sponsored by Bonnier Publishing, after a
"transformative year" culminating in its return
to profitability in
2016.
The chain used promotions and bookseller recommendations to
create unlikely bestsellers and improved its online offering, according to the
judges, who commended m.d James Daunt for his “visionary leadership”.
"Last year showed that publishers simply cannot do without
Waterstones," judges said. "Its staff do a phenomenal job - they're
brilliant at taking books people haven't heard of and turning them into
something huge."
Publishing success
Nosy Crow has won this year's Children's
Publisher of the Year award, sponsored by Tesco, after progressing from
start-up to 13th-biggest UK children's publisher in a mere six years.
It took the title after sales shot up by more than 70% in
2016. "Nosy Crow's growth is incredible - but sustainable too. It's not
just cashing in on a mega author but making its publishing work across the
board," judges said. "Digital isn't just an add-on but embedded
. . . It's got a very strong identity and sense of purpose, and it's now firmly
established among the big publishing players."
Head of Zeus meanwhile was crowned this
year's Independent Publisher of the Year, sponsored by Firsty Group, for
sustaining a "hugely impressive" pace of growth.
In 2016 it saw another sharp rise in print, e-book and
rights sales and broadened its list with two new imprints. Its chief executive
Amanda Ridout was commended in particular for her "superb
leadership", described by the judges as "a force of nature doing a
fantastic job".
Collins Learning won Academic, Educational & Professional Publisher
of the Year. It was recognised for achieving a steep rise in international
sales, in emerging markets in particular; increasing its share across many
parts of the UK's primary and secondary markets; establishing itself as a clear
leader in the home revision market; and for fully integrating digital
technology into its offering with collinsdictionary.com. "It has
stayed very focused on the areas of publishing and territories it wants to
conquer and has nailed them all," praised the judges.
John Murray, one of Hachette's oldest
imprints, going into its 250th year in 2018, was crowned Imprint of
the Year, sponsored by Clays.
The judges saluted the imprint as "a prestige brand
that really values its authors" and praised the leadership of the
"super-talented" publisher Mark Richards and m.d. Nick Davies. It
increased the value of its TCM sales by half, through the consistency of strong
performers like Andrew Michael Hurley, Matthew Syed and Jeremy Hutchinson,
while e-book sales also bucked a trade-wide trend of decline.
"The name might be old but the publishing stays new and exciting,"
said judges.
Among other awards bestowed on
publishers;
Juliet
Mabey, publisher of Oneworld, was crowned this year's Editor of the Year.
The accolade follows Oneworld's success last year
winning Independent Publisher of the Year, and also follows a second Man Booker
Prize win the for press, after Paul
Beatty was given the
award for The Sellout last year. The judges hailed Mabey as
"groundbreaking . . . bringing things into the UK market from around
the world we would never otherwise see". Jenny Tyler meanwhile was highly
commended for "a year of quality, profitable publishing" at Usborne.
Drilling down to the work of publicity
and marketers behind publishing success stories, Anna-Marie Fitzgerald was
singled out to win the PPC-sponsored Publicity Campaign of the Year for her
work promoting Sarah Perry's The
Essex Serpent (Serpent's
Tail).
Working with only a three-figure publicity
budget, Fitzgerald is credited for her "superb planning and execution
of a budget campaign for a potentially difficult book", involving the
constant reinvention of her campaign and "exemplary" author care,
generating extensive media interest - a key factor in the book's
six-figure sales. "It shows what can happen when a publicist gets
passionate about a book and makes it resonate with others," said judges.
Kate Green meanwhile was highly commended for Watching
the Wheels by Damon
Hill (Pan Macmillan).
Marketing Strategy of the Year, sponsored by
Nielsen, meanwhile went to Lean
in 15: The Sustain Plan by
Joe Wicks (Pan Macmillan)
- as "a
campaign that got absolutely everywhere" and was "full of great ideas
and imaginative use of Joe Wicks' fanbase". Highly commended went to Trayaurus and the Enchanted Crystal by DanTDM (Orion).
Bringing Books to Readers
Book Retailer of the Year
Waterstones came top of a shortlist that comprised several
other prize-winning booksellers.
Dublin's The Gutter Bookshop, also shortlisted for Book
Retailer of the Year, picked up a cheque from Gardners for £5,000 after
being crowned Independent Bookshop of the Year. The
shop "punches way above its weight", according to
the judges, who remarked on its "outstanding" service and marketing,
along with its "welcoming" environment and "carefully
chosen" range that has earned it a devoted following. Its
win marks the first time a retailer in Ireland has claimed the
title.
Tales on Moon Lane in London's Herne Hill
meanwhile scooped Children's Bookseller of the Year, sponsored by
Macmillan Children's Books, for going "over and beyond the call of
duty" for its customers.
It put on a record number of events in 2016,
including its own half-term reading festivals and co-ordination of the
Southwark School Reading Festival, and it launched Can't Put it Down - a
website for self-published authors and indie publishers and a Moon Lane
Education portal for schools. Working with literacy charity Beanstalk, the
bookshop also runs a "Moon Lane Ink" scheme giving students the
opportunity to run pop-up bookshops in schools. "Children's publishers
have many reasons to be thankful for what it does," said judges.
The Royal Horticultural Society picked
up Non-Traditional Retailer of the Year, sponsored by The Quarto Group.
Only the second time the award honouring retailers
opening up new channels to market has been presented- RHS was selected over
rivals the National Trust, Snapplify and Royal Museums Greenwich for its
"superb curation", "knowledgeable staff"
and "extensive stock". It offers a definitive range of
titles for gardening enthusiasts and stocks other genres to the tune
of 10,000 titles at its flagship Wisley site. The judges said its
operation was as good as any pure bookshop's and advised publishers to
"sit up and take notice".
Blackwell's, Rebecca MacAlister from
its flagship in Oxford took home the title of Individual Bookseller of the
Year, sponsored by HarperCollins.
She was praised for revolutionising the image and
performance of the high-profile bookshop, providing “outstanding” customer
service and justly earning the loyalty of her large team. Highly commended was
Jo Heygate from Pages of Hackney.
Also focused on bringing books to readers,
the title of Library of the Year, sponsored by The Reading
Agency, went to Camberwell Library in London.
The institution doubled numbers of issues and new
borrowers in 2016 - its first full year of operation - and was
praised for using imaginative promotions including "Choose a Book for
Camberwell Library".
Star individuals
J K
Rowling was awarded The BA Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Book
trade. Her impact on the trade was dubbed "remarkable" and beyond it
she was hailed "a loud and proud force for good".
"Rowling has received numerous accolades
and awards, but it was booksellers that first recognised her talent and sold
her books, and in 1998 the Booksellers Association (BA) made her its Author of
the Year. Two decades on, we are delighted to honour J K Rowling for what has
been a truly Outstanding Contribution to the Book Trade," said a
spokesperson for the BA.”
On receiving the Outstanding Contribution to the book
trade, Rowling said: “How thrilled I am to receive the Bookseller’s Association
Outstanding Contribution Award. Twenty years ago I would hardly have
believed I’d have a book published, let alone an accolade as wonderful as this;
I am truly honoured and overwhelmed. But tonight is really all about you, the
booksellers, without whom of course there would be no bestsellers. I want to
thank you all for supporting my books throughout the years –this award is
really for you!”
In addition to Mabey of Oneworld's win as
Editor of the Year and MacAlister's as Book Retailer of the Year, Kate Hibbert
of Little, Brown Book Group was honoured as Rights Professional of the Year.
She won the award, sponsored by the Frankfurt Book Fair,
for her "budget-smashing" record of hundreds of deals in dozens of
territories in 2016 and her "inspirational" leadership that has
earned her "universal admiration" from authors and colleagues
worldwide. She takes the award home after five years of being shortlisted
for the prize.
The
title of Literary Agent of the Year, sponsored by The Orion Publishing
Group, was awarded to Catherine Clarke of Felicity Bryan Associates, as
"an agent who puts in yards for her authors, resolutely focused on not
just their next bestseller but their whole careers".
The Oxford-based agent has a diverse list across
non-fiction, children's and YA, with notable successes in 2016 including Peter
Frankopan and Meg Rosoff, and is a prominent campaigner for authors' rights via
the Association of Authors' Agents. "You get the sense she has been
building up to something big and this was the year it came together," said
judges.
Saturday, January 28, 2017
John Hurt, Oscar-Nominated Star of 'The Elephant Man & 'Alien' legend,' Dies at 77
John Hurt, Oscar-Nominated Star of 'The Elephant Man,' Dies at 77
Alien (2/5) Movie CLIP - Chestburster (1979) HD
The British actor of stage and screen also received an
Academy Award nom for 'Midnight Express' and was memorable in 'Alien,' three
Harry Potter films and 'Doctor Who.'
John Hurt, the esteemed British actor known for his burry
voice and weathered visage — one that was kept hidden for his most
acclaimed role, that of the deformed John Merrick in David Lynch’s The Elephant Man — has died, according to reports from
several British newspapers. He was 77.
The two-time Oscar nominee's six-decade career also included
turns on the BBC’s Doctor
Who and in A
Man for All Seasons (1966), Midnight Express (1978) and three Harry Potter
films.
He announced in June 2015 that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
On screens big and small, Hurt died what seemed a
thousand deaths. “I think I’ve got the record,” he once said. “It got to a
point where my children wouldn’t ask me if I died, but rather how do you die?”
On his YouTube page, a
video titled “The Many Deaths of John Hurt” compiled his cinematic demises in 4
minutes and 30 seconds, from The
Wild and the Willing (1962)
to Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), 40 in all.
One of his most memorable came when he played Kane, the
first victim in Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979), in which he collapses over a
table and a snakelike alien bursts out of his chest. (How'd they do that? There
was an artificial chest screwed to the table, and Hurt was underneath.)
“Ridley didn’t tell the cast,” executive producer Ronald
Shusett told Empire magazine in 2009. “He said,
‘They’re just going to see it.’ ”
“The reactions were going to be the most difficult
thing,” Scott explained. “If an actor is just acting terrified, you can’t get the genuine
look of raw, animal fear. What I wanted was a hardcore reaction.”
Hurt then lampooned the famous torso-busting scene for
director Mel Brooks — whose production company produced 1980's The
Elephant Man — for
the 1987 comedy Spaceballs.
The
Elephant Man
received eight Academy Award nominations, including one for Hurt as best actor,
but went home empty on Oscar night. (Hurt lost out to Robert De Niro as boxer
Jake LaMotta in Raging
Bull.)
In 1980, he recalled the extensive makeup needed to become
the kind-hearted man with the monstrous skull.
“It never occurred to me it would take eight hours for
them to apply the full thing — virtually a working day in itself. There were 16
different pieces to that mask,” he said. “With all that makeup on, I couldn’t
be sure what I was doing. I had to rely totally on [Lynch].”
Hurt also garnered an Oscar best supporting actor
nomination and a Golden Globe win in 1979 for Midnight
Express, in which he portrayed a heroin addict in a Turkish prison.
The Alan Parker drama was based on the true story of Billy Hayes (played by
Brad Davis), an American college student caught smuggling drugs.
“I loved making Midnight
Express,” he said in 2014. “We were making commercial films then
that really did have cracking scenes in them, as well as plenty to say, you
know?”
His more recent film appearances came in Snowpiercer (2013), The Journey (2016) and Jackie (2016). He is set to be seen in the
upcoming features That Good Night and My Name Is Lenny and was to play Neville Chamberlain in
the upcoming Joe Wright drama Darkest Hour.
John Vincent Hurt was born Jan. 22, 1940, in
Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England. He studied art at his parents’ behest,
earning an art teacher’s diploma. Disillusioned with the prospect of becoming a
teacher, Hurt moved to London, where he won an acting scholarship at the Royal
Academy of Dramatic Art. He studied there for two years, securing bit parts in
TV shows.
“I wanted to act very early. I didn’t know how to become
an actor, as such, nor did I know that it was possible to be a professional
actor, but I first decided that I wanted to act when I was 9,” he told The Guardian in 2000. “I was effused with a feeling
of complete and total enjoyment, and I felt that’s where I should be.”
Hurt made his London stage debut in Infanticide in the House of
Fred Ginger in 1962.
That year, he acted in his first film, The
Wild and the Willing, and his role as the duplicitous baron Richard
Rich in Oscar best picture winner A
Man for All Seasons helped him become more widely known in the
U.S.
Hurt often played wizened, sinister characters. In his
younger years, his wiry frame, sallow skin and beady eyes curled together in
performances that bespoke menace and hard-wrought wisdom. He was especially
effective playing psychologically ravaged characters, like when he was a jockey
plagued with cancer in Champions (1984) or the viciously decadent
Caligula in the 1976 BBC miniseries I,
Claudius.
Hurt brought his peculiarly powerful persona to the role
of Mr. Ollivander in Harry
Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
and Harry Potter and the Deathly
Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
and Part 2 (2011).
He also had a recurring role as Trevor “Broom”
Bruttenholm in Hellboy (2004) and Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008) and was the voice of the
character in the 2007 TV movie Hellboy
Animated: Blood and Iron.
Other film credits include The Sailor From Gibraltar (1967), Sinful Davey (1969), 10 Rillington Place (1971), The Osterman Weekend (1983), White Mischief (1987), King Ralph (1991) and Rob Roy (1995). He played a fascist leader of
Great Britain in V
for Vendetta (2006)
and was Professor Oxley in Indiana
Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008).
Hurt also was known for his rich, nicotine-toned timbre,
which won him many voiceover assignments. He was the narrator in The Tigger Movie (2000), Dogville (2003), Manderlay (2005) and Charlie Countryman (2013) and lent his dulcet utterances
to The Lord of the Rings (1978), Watership Down (1978), The Black Cauldron (1985), Thumbelina (1994) and the Oscar-nominated short
film The Gruffalo (2009).
“I have always been aware of voice in film. I think that
it’s almost 50 percent of your equipment [as an actor],” he once said. “It’s as
important as what you look like, certainly on stage and possibly on film as
well. If you think of any of the great American stars, you think of their
voices and their looks, any of them — from Clark Gable to Rock Hudson.”
For the small screen, Hurt starred in the TV shows The Storyteller, The Alan Clark Diaries, The Confession and Merlin and in the miniseries Crime and Punishment and Labyrinth. He
notably played the War Doctor in the 2013-14 season of Doctor Who.
On participating in the Whovian fandom, Hurt said in 2013: “I’ve done a couple of
conferences where you sit and sign autographs for people and then you have
photographs taken with them and a lot of them are all dressed up in alien suits
or Doctor Who whatevers. I was terrified of doing it
because I thought they’d all be loonies, but they are absolutely, totally
charming as anything. I’m not saying it’s the healthiest thing — I don’t know
whether it is or isn’t — but they are very charming.”
The accomplished stage actor performed with the Royal
Shakespeare Company and Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. In 1994, he starred
opposite Helen Mirren in Bill Bryden’s West End production of A Month in the Country,
and he scraped out an edgy and vigorously dour performance in Samuel Beckett’s
autobiographical one-man drama Krapp’s
Last Tape in 1999.
When asked about the difference between film and stage
acting, Hurt explained: “It’s rather like two different sports. You use two
completely different sets of muscles.”
In 2012, Hurt was honored with a lifetime achievement award
by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, then was knighted by Queen
Elizabeth II in July 2015.
Survivors include his fourth wife Anwen Rees-Myers, whom
he married in 2005, and sons Alexander and Nicholas.
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