The best representatives of the English theater school in Hollywood

It’s no secret that you can become a successful actor in Hollywood without the appropriate education. This is proved by many now very successful celebrities, for example, Johnny Depp. However, English talents who go to America for world fame and big money, as a rule, have theatrical experience behind them and are quite impressive. These include Gary Oldman, Kenneth Branagh and others.

In his youth, Gary Oldman was seriously interested in music and even wanted to become a pianist, but left this dream for the sake of acting. The inspiration for changing the future profession was the game of Malcolm McDowell, which impressed the young Oldman. So, by the end of school, he had already firmly decided to study theatrical art. In 1978, Rose Bruford College graduate Gary Oldman joined the Greenwich Youth Theatre.

For 9 years of work on the stage, the Briton has gained some fame in theatrical circles and has received several awards, including the Best Actor category from the magazine of the British Drama Theater Association. A prominent young man with a nervous, piercing game attracted the attention of director Colin Gregg, thanks to whom he discovered the world of cinema.

In 1986, Gary Oldman played his first significant screen role in the film Sid and Nancy. His character, the bassist of the popular Sex Pistols, was played to perfection. Oldman was so laid out in this work that after filming he had to be hospitalized, but it was from her that his journey to Hollywood began.

In the late 80s, many representatives of British theater schools came to American cinema. Some of them even began to be called the "British gang". Among them, along with Oldman was his friend Tim Roth. In 1990, the film Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, directed by Tom Stoppard and based on his own play, was released in theaters. And if critics called Oldman’s game phenomenal, then Tim Roth remained in the shadows for some time.

Despite the indifference of critics, Rota was noticed by aspiring director Quentin Tarantino. The partnership of these two geniuses saw the light of the day works that are the pearls of the filmography of both. These are the cult drama "Reservoir Dogs" (1992), the favorite of the Cannes Film Festival and the winner of the "Oscar" picture "Pulp Fiction" (1994), the black comedy "Four Rooms" (1995). In 1996, Tim Roth was nominated for an Oscar for playing the villain in Rob Roy. Oldman received a nomination only in 2012 for his work in the British film Spy Get Out.

A bright representative of the English theater school in Hollywood is the enigmatic Tilda Swinton. An aristocrat from a wealthy ancient family, she received an excellent education. The theater became for her, first of all, an opportunity for bold experiments in reincarnation. She could play not only different heroines, but also heroes. For example, one of her most famous theater roles is Mozart. Subsequently, the talent of the male game came in handy for her in the cinema in the film "Orlando".

Tilda Swinton was in no hurry to move to Hollywood. Her first American project took place in the early 2000s, when the actress was already over forty. Thriller "The Beach" with a young star partner DiCaprio brought Swinton worldwide fame and new proposals from across the ocean. In 2008, Tilda Swinton received an Oscar for her supporting role in the crime drama Michael Clayton.

In the early 1980s, Tilda Swinton was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Society, a troupe of British actors that included Gary Oldman and Kenneth Branagh. The latter is one of the brightest representatives of the classical English school in Hollywood, famous for numerous productions based on Shakespeare’s plays. He successfully combines his acting career in Hollywood with work in the theater, and also directs domestic and American films. Among them are adaptations of Shakespeare’s works so beloved by the actor – "Henry V" (1989), "Much Ado About Nothing" (1993) and "Hamlet" (1996).