EMMA THOMPSON

Born in April 1959, Emma Thompson grew up in England and was drawn to writing and the arts, eventually pursuing an English degree at Cambridge’s Newnham College. She made her way onto the small screen when she finished school, breaking out in the mid-1980s with appearances on shows like Tutti Frutti and Fortunes of War. Thompson received critical acclaim for her performance in Howards End, which won her several accolades under her belt. She became the first woman to be nominated for two films in the same year. Her performance and her screenplay in Sense and Sensibility earned widespread praise, earning her yet another Academy Award nomination, this one for Best Adapted Screenplay.

In several Harry Potter films, she also played Professor Trelawney and starred in more complex dramas like Saving Mr. Banks. Thompson continued to grace the scenes while appearing in blockbuster hits like Beauty and the Beast as part of her comeback to more mainstream films. She was thrilled to discover a dozen years later that she was being given better roles now than when she was younger.