Keira Knightley

Keira Knightley

Keira Christina Knightley ( /ˌkɪərə ˈnaɪtli/; born 26 March 1985) is an English actress and model. She began acting as a child on television and made her film debut in 1995. Knightley had a supporting role as Sabé in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999) and her first significant role came in The Hole (2001). She gained widespread recognition in 2002 after co-starring in the film Bend It Like Beckham and achieved international fame from 2003 as a result of her appearances in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series (2003–07).

After the Pirates of the Caribbean films, Knightley is best known for starring in costume dramas – in Pride & Prejudice (2005); Atonement and Silk (both 2007); The Duchess (2008); A Dangerous Method (2011) and Anna Karenina (2012). Knightley has also appeared in a variety of genres of Hollywood films, including the romantic comedy Love Actually (2003); the historical action King Arthur (2004); the psychological thriller The Jacket and the biographical action Domino (both 2005); the drama The Edge of Love (2008); the film noir London Boulevard, the dystopian science fiction Never Let Me Go, the romantic drama Last Night (all 2010) and the dark comedy Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012).

Knightley has earned nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress for her role as Elizabeth Bennet in Joe Wright's 2005 adaptation of Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice. Two years later she again was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress, as well as the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in Wright's Atonement. In 2008, Forbes claimed Knightley to be the second highest-paid actress in Hollywood, having reportedly earned $32 million in 2007, making her the only non-American on the list of highest-paid actresses.