Anthony Hopkins

Parents: Muriel Anne Yeats (b.1913) and Richard Arthur Hopkins (died in 1981).

Into the 1991 restoration of Spartacus , scenes were reintroduced which had been cut from the picture's 1967 reissue. One such segment has Laurence Olivier, in the role of Marcus Crassus, attempting to seduce the slave Antoninus (played by Tony Curtis). But the original soundtrack for this segment had become lost. And so, Olivier having died in 1989, Anthony Hopkins imitated the voice of Olivier (whom Hopkins had understudied at the Old Vic) for the scene's re-created soundtrack. (The surviving Tony Curtis presumably supplied his own voice.)

Into the 1991 restoration of Spartacus (1960), scenes were reintroduced which had been cut from the picture's 1967 reissue. One such segment has Laurence Olivier, in the role of Marcus Crassus, attempting to seduce the slave Antoninus (played by Tony Curtis). But the original soundtrack for this segment had become lost. And so, Olivier having died in 1989, Anthony Hopkins imitated the voice of Olivier (whom Hopkins had understudied at the Old Vic) for the scene's re-created soundtrack. (The surviving Tony Curtis presumably supplied his own voice.)

Has played a (future) king of England (Richard Lionheart in The Lion in Winter ) and two U.S. Presidents. Interestingly, President Richard Nixon and his brothers were all named after British kings, so it's likely that he played Nixon's namesake.

Has played a (future) king of England (Richard Lionheart in The Lion in Winter (1968)) and two U.S. Presidents. Interestingly, President Richard Nixon and his brothers were all named after British kings, so it's likely that he played Nixon's namesake.

His favorite horror film is Rosemary's Baby (1968).

Has the distinction of twice playing former British Prime Minister David Lloyd George in Young Winston and "The Edwardians" .

Has the distinction of twice playing former British Prime Minister David Lloyd George in Young Winston (1972) and "The Edwardians" (1972).

Won a Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Play for "Equus" .

1975: Conquered his alcoholic addiction.

Won a Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Play for "Equus" (1975).

Admitted that he felt very intimidated by the real Lt. Col. John Frost, who he played in the movie A Bridge Too Far when Frost visited the set one day to see how things were going.

Admitted that he felt very intimidated by the real Lt. Col. John Frost, who he played in the movie A Bridge Too Far (1977) when Frost visited the set one day to see how things were going.

Was offered the part of Colonel Colin Caine in Lifeforce .

For his stage performance in "Pravda", he was awarded the 1985 London Critics Circle Theatre Award (Drama Theatre Award) for Best Actor, and the Laurence Olivier Theatre Award in 1986 for Outstanding Achievement.

For his stage performance in "Pravda", he was awarded the 1985 London Critics Circle Theatre Award (Drama Theatre Award) for Best Actor, and the Laurence Olivier Theatre Award in 1986 (1985 season) for Outstanding Achievement.

Was offered the part of Colonel Colin Caine in Lifeforce (1985).

9/20/05: On "The Oprah Winfrey Show" , he said that he is most proud of The Silence of the Lambs , The Remains of the Day and Proof .

Has three roles in common with Brian Cox. Both of them have played Titus Andronicus. Hopkins appeared on stage as King Lear in 1986, the same year that Manhunter , which starred Cox as Hannibal Lecter, was released. He was succeeded in the role of Lear by Cox in 1991, the same year that he succeeded Cox in the role of Hannibal Lecter.

Has three roles in common with Brian Cox. Both of them have played Titus Andronicus. Hopkins appeared on stage as King Lear in 1986, the same year that Manhunter (1986), which starred Cox as Hannibal Lecter, was released. He was succeeded in the role of Lear by Cox in 1991, the same year that he succeeded Cox in the role of Hannibal Lecter.

9/20/05: On "The Oprah Winfrey Show" (1986), he said that he is most proud of The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Remains of the Day (1993) and Proof (2005).

1987: Awarded Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

His performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs is ranked #15 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.

2006: His performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs is ranked #70 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time.

With a little over 16 minutes of screen time, his performance as Hannibal Lector in The Silence of the Lambs , is the shortest ever to win a Best Actor Oscar.

His Oscar-winning performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs was ranked #1 on the American Film Institute's Villains list in its compilation of the 100 Years of The Greatest Screen Heroes and Villains.

Received his Academy Award for The Silence of the Lambs 11 years to the day of his father's death.

Is proud of his improvisational touches as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs such as: the unnerving effect on Jodie Foster when he mocked her character's West Virginia accent; the distorion of the word "chianti" and the vile slurping sound he makes after he describes eating the "census-taker." Hopkins also notes that Hannibal never blinked his eyes when he spoke.

Is proud of his improvisational touches as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) such as: the unnerving effect on Jodie Foster when he mocked her character's West Virginia accent; the distorion of the word "chianti" and the vile slurping sound he makes after he describes eating the "census-taker." Hopkins also notes that Hannibal never blinked his eyes when he spoke.

Received his Academy Award for The Silence of the Lambs (1991) 11 years to the day of his father's death.

His Oscar-winning performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) was ranked #1 on the American Film Institute's Villains list in its compilation of the 100 Years of The Greatest Screen Heroes and Villains.

2006: His performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) is ranked #70 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time.

His performance as Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) is ranked #15 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.

He chose to play Prof. Van Helsing in Dracula because he was still riding the success of his portrayal of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs and wanted to pick a role as far removed from Lecter as possible.

He chose to play Prof. Van Helsing in Dracula (1992) because he was still riding the success of his portrayal of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) and wanted to pick a role as far removed from Lecter as possible.

1993: Knighted in the New Year Honors List.

Appears in Nixon with Dan Hedaya, and The Good Father with Jim Broadbent. Hedaya later played Nixon in Dick , and Broadbent played Nixon in Dirty Tricks (TV).

Has the distinction of portraying two U.S. Presidents: Richard Nixon in Nixon , and John Quincy Adams in Amistad . He received Oscar nominations for both performances.

Has the distinction of portraying two U.S. Presidents: Richard Nixon in Nixon (1995), and John Quincy Adams in Amistad (1997). He received Oscar nominations for both performances.

Appears in Nixon (1995) with Dan Hedaya, and The Good Father (1985) with Jim Broadbent. Hedaya later played Nixon in Dick (1999), and Broadbent played Nixon in Dirty Tricks (2000) (TV).

He and Frank Langella both received Best Actor nominations for playing Richard Nixon, in Nixon (1995) and Frost/Nixon (2008), respectively. Though not the first or only pair of actors to receive nominations for the same part, they are only the second male pair where neither of them won the Oscar. Hopkins lost to Nicolas Cage, while Langella lost to Sean Penn. Previously, Jason Robards and Leonardo DiCaprio have both been nominated for playing Howard Hughes. Robards lost his Oscar to Timothy Hutton, while DiCaprio lost his to Jamie Foxx. Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro had both won for their portrayals of "Vito Corleone". José Ferrer won an Oscar, and Gérard Depardieu received a nomination for playing "Cyrano". John Wayne won the Oscar and Jeff Bridges was nominated for playing "Rooster Cogburn".

Ate the same menu as Pablo Picasso during the filming of Surviving Picasso , in which he played Picasso.

Ate the same menu as Pablo Picasso during the filming of Surviving Picasso (1996), in which he played Picasso.

Was considered for the role of Mr. Freeze in Batman & Robin until director Joel Schumacher decided that Mr. Freeze must be "big and strong like he was chiseled out of a glacier". The role went to Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Had a brush with death while shooting The Edge in Alberta, Canada. He fell in a river, and was rushed to hospital to be treated for hypothermia.

Had a brush with death while shooting The Edge (1997) in Alberta, Canada. He fell in a river, and was rushed to hospital to be treated for hypothermia.

Was considered for the role of Mr. Freeze in Batman & Robin (1997) until director Joel Schumacher decided that Mr. Freeze must be "big and strong like he was chiseled out of a glacier". The role went to Arnold Schwarzenegger.

During filming of Amistad (1997), he astounded the cast and crew by memorizing a seven page speech in one go. Steven Spielberg was so impressed that he insisted on calling him "Sir Anthony" throughout the shoot rather than Tony.

Has played two characters that lost a hand by having it severed: in Titus and Hannibal .

Has twice played a character who loses a hand by having it severed with a meat cleaver: in Titus (1999) and Hannibal (2001).

Was considered for the role of Jack Byrnes in Meet the Parents (2000).

Was listed as a potential nominee on the 2005 Razzie Award nominating ballot. He was suggested in the Worst Supporting Actor category for his performance in the film Alexander , however, he failed to receive a nomination. Had he gotten the nomination, it would have been his first in 24 years. He was previously nominated for Worst Actor in the film A Change of Seasons at the very first Razzie Awards.

Was listed as a potential nominee on the 2005 Razzie Award nominating ballot. He was suggested in the Worst Supporting Actor category for his performance in the film Alexander (2004), however, he failed to receive a nomination. Had he gotten the nomination, it would have been his first in 24 years. He was previously nominated for Worst Actor in the film A Change of Seasons (1980) at the very first Razzie Awards.

Turned down the role of Alfred Pennyworth in Batman Begins .

In Invercargill, New Zealand, there is a drama school named after him--The Anthony Hopkins School of Dramatic Arts. He was present for its opening, as he was in Invercargill filming scenes for the The World's Fastest Indian at the time.

In Invercargill, New Zealand, there is a drama school named after him--The Anthony Hopkins School of Dramatic Arts. He was present for its opening, as he was in Invercargill filming scenes for the The World's Fastest Indian (2005) at the time.

Turned down the role of Alfred Pennyworth in Batman Begins (2005).

Was set to play Jor-El in Superman Returns , but when director Brett Ratner left the project, so did Hopkins.

Was set to play Jor-El in Superman Returns (2006), but when director Brett Ratner left the project, so did Hopkins.