Eddie Redmayne

Eddie Redmayne (born January 6, 1982, London, England) is a British actor known for his transformative performances in such films as The Theory of Everything (2014), for which he won an Academy Award.

Early career

Redmayne was raised in London. He began acting at a young age, training at the Jackie Palmer Stage School and performing with the National Youth Music Theatre. He appeared as part of the ensemble in a production of Oliver! (1994) directed by Sam Mendes at the London Palladium. After graduating from Eton College, Redmayne enrolled at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he performed in student productions while studying art history. Prior to graduating in 2003, he starred as Viola in a 2002 Shakespeare’s Globe production of Twelfth Night at the Middle Temple Hall in London.

Redmayne continued to accrue stage credits, including a turn as a gay teenager in Edward Albee’s The Goat; or, Who Is Sylvia? (2004). He later moved into television roles, notably portraying the earl of Southampton opposite Helen Mirren in the miniseries Elizabeth I (2005).

Britannica Quiz

Oscar-Worthy Movie Trivia

Red and The Theory of Everything

Redmayne’s first major film role was as disturbed Bakelite plastics heir Antony Baekeland in Savage Grace (2007), about the twisted relationship between Baekeland and his mother (played by Julianne Moore). After he took supporting roles in the films Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) and The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), Redmayne returned to TV in the acclaimed miniseries Tess of the D’Urbervilles (2008) and The Pillars of the Earth (2010).

Redmayne trod the boards as the son of a U.S. presidential nominee in Now or Later (2008) and as an assistant to painter Mark Rothko in Red (2010), a role that earned him a Tony Award for best performance by a featured actor. In the film My Week with Marilyn (2011), Redmayne assumed the role of Colin Clark, a film production assistant who forms a friendship with an erratic and distraught Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams). Redmayne then joined the cast of the film adaptation of the musical Les Misérables (2012). He won both the Golden Globe Award and the Academy Award for best actor for his portrayal of legendary physicist Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything (2014).

The Danish Girl, Fantastic Beasts, and The Day of the Jackal

Redmayne then assumed the role of Lili Elbe, a Danish painter who was born male and later became the first documented person to undergo gender-reassignment surgery, in The Danish Girl (2015). His performance earned Redmayne an Oscar nomination. He next starred as Newt Scamander, an expert on magical creatures, in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016), a Harry Potter prequel featuring a screenplay by J.K. Rowling. He reprised the role in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022). In 2019 Redmayne appeared as a meteorologist in The Aeronauts, an action-adventure film based on an actual balloon expedition in 1862.

In The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020) Redmayne portrayed Tom Hayden, who was among a group of political activists tried for their antiwar activities during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Redmayne later earned accolades—including an Olivier Award for best actor in a musical—for his performance in a West End production of Cabaret (2021–22). He continued with the play when it transferred to Broadway in 2024, and that year he received a Tony nomination. Redmayne later starred in the well-received miniseries The Day of the Jackal (2024), an updated take on Frederick Forsyth’s novel about an elusive assassin.

Get Unlimited Access

Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.

Subscribe