Keira Christina Knightley (; born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Having worked extensively in both the British and the American film Industries, she has garnered such accolades as an Empire Award and multiple nominations for the British Academy, the Golden Globe, and the Academy Awards. Knightley featured as the highest-paid English actress on Forbes Celebrity 100 in 2008.
After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles. Her first on-screen appearance was in the 1993 television film, Royal Celebration. She then played Natasha Jordan, a young girl whose mother is involved in an extramarital affair, in the romantic drama A Village Affair (1995). After appearing in a spate of television films through the mid-to-late 1990s, including Innocent Lies (1995), The Treasure Seekers (1996), Coming Home (1998), and Oliver Twist (1999), Knightley landed the role of Sabe, Padme Amidala's handmaiden and decoy, in the 1999 science fiction blockbuster Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. Her dialogue was dubbed over by Natalie Portman, who played Padme. Knightley was cast in the role because of her close resemblance to Portman; even the two actresses' mothers had difficulty telling their daughters apart when they were in full makeup. In her first major role, the 2001 Walt Disney Productions feature film Princess of Thieves, Knightley played the daughter of Robin Hood. To prepare for the film, she trained for several weeks in archery, fencing and horse riding. Concurrently, she appeared in The Hole, a thriller that received a direct-to-video release in the United States. The film's director Nick Hamm described her as "a young version of Julie Christie". Knightley also took on the role of Lara Antipova in the miniseries adaptation of Doctor Zhivago, which first aired in 2002 to positive reviews and high ratings. In the same year, Knightley starred as a pregnant drug addict in Gillies MacKinnon's drama film Pure. Co-starring Molly Parker and Harry Eden, the film had its world premiere at the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival. In a retrospect review for AboutFilm.com, Carlo Cavagna noted Knightley's screen presence and wrote that "[although Knightley] doesn't have half of Parker's ability [...], she has spunk and grit [and] shines brightly in Pure". Despite having appeared in over a dozen film and television roles, Knightley struggled to get a breakthrough. That changed in 2002, when she starred in Gurinder Chadha's sports comedy film Bend It Like Beckham, which was a smash hit both in the UK and the United States, grossing over $76.6 million. It also surprised film critics who were laudatory of its "charming" and "inspiring" nature, social context and the cast's performances. Knightley and her co-star Parminder Nagra, who played the central roles of aspiring footballers, attracted international attention for their performances in the film. To prepare for their roles, they underwent three months of extensive football training under the English football coach Simon Clifford. Knightley, who was initially skeptical of the project, went on to win the London Film Critics' Circle for Best Newcomer and the Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Breakthrough Performance. In an interview with Tracy Smith she said, "I remember telling friends I was doing this girls' soccer movie [...] And nobody thought that it was gonna be any good." Film critic James Berardinelli, who was largely laudatory of the film and the "energetic and likable" cast, noted that Knightley and Nagra brought, "a lot of spirit to their instantly likable characters".
How did her career begin?
After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles. After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles. After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles. After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles. After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles.
After getting an agent at the age of six, Knightley began working in commercials and small television roles.