Kenneth Branagh

Sir Kenneth Branagh
Background information
Born	Kenneth Charles Branagh December 10, 1960 (age 60) Belfast, Northern Ireland
Nationality	Irish British
Alternate names	Ken Branagh Kenny Branagh
Occupation	Actor, director, producer
Years active	1981-present
Spouse	Emma Thompson (1989-1995) Lindsay Brunnock (2003-present)
Partner	Helena Bonham Carter (1994-1999)

Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh is a Northern Irish actor, director, and producer. He has directed numerous adaptations of Shakespeare's plays, such as Henry V, Othello, Much Ado About Nothing, and Hamlet. His other film credits Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Wild, Wild West, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and voiced Miguel in the 2000 DreamWorks animated film, The Road to El Dorado.

For Disney, Branagh directed the 2015 live-action adaptation of Cinderella and the 2020 film, Artemis Fowl. He also played Herr Knopp and Gestapo in Swing Kids.

Branagh directed the 2011 film, Thor, which served as the fourth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He also did an uncredited voice appearance as the Asgardian Distress Caller at the beginning of Avengers: Infinity War. He will direct the upcoming Fox film, Death on the Nile, in which he will reprise his role of Hercule Poirot from 2017's Murder on the Orient Express.

Gallery

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Sir Kenneth Branagh speaks at the Wallander III panel at the 2012 Summer TCA Tour.

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Sir Kenneth Branagh at the premiere of Cinderella in March 2015.

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Sir Kenneth Branagh visits The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in July 2016.

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Sir Kenneth Branagh visiting Jimmy Kimmel Live in October 2017.

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Sir Kenneth Branagh at his Chinese Theatre Handprint ceremony in October 2017.

Trivia

• He was considered for the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. However, Ewan McGregor was cast in the role instead.
• Branagh was once married with Dame Emma Thompson from 1989 to 1995, of which they met in 1987 during the filming of the BBC television series, Fortunes of War, and has appeared together in several films such as Look Back in Anger, Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, Dead Again, and Peter's Friends, and both couple would eventually separate in 1995 due to Branagh's affair with Helena Bonham Carter. In addition, Branagh, Thompson, and Bonham Carter would later went on to appear in the Harry Potter franchise, albeit in different films; as well as participated in the respective Disney live-action adaptations (of which Branagh directed 2015's Cinderella, with Bonham Carter featuring as the Fairy Godmother, while Thompson played as Mrs. Potts in 2017's Beauty and the Beast, respectively).