Kate Beckinsale Kate Beckinsale Kathrin Romary Beckinsale (born 26 July 1973) is a British actress. After some minor television roles, she made her film debut in "Much Ado About Nothing" (1993) while still a student at the University of Oxford. She appeared in British costume dramas such as "Prince of Jutland" (1994), "Cold Comfort Farm" (1995), "Emma" (1996), and "The Golden Bowl" (2000), in addition to various stage and radio productions. She began to seek film work in the United States in the late 1990s and, after appearing in small-scale dramas "The Last Days of Disco" (1998) and "Brokedown Palace" (1999), she
Kate Beckinsale because she knew Bale well: "If it was a stranger, it would have been easier." While Frances McDormand's performance as Bale's mother was widely praised, Beckinsale received negative reviews. Holden found the film "superbly acted, with the exception of Ms. Beckinsale, whose tense, colourless Alex conveys no inner life." Critic Lisa Schwarzbaum was unimpressed by the "tedious" characters and criticised "the fussy performances of Bale and Beckinsale" in particular. The film has grossed over $4 million worldwide. Beckinsale became known as an action star after playing a vampire in 2003's "Underworld". The film was markedly different from her previous work,