Biography of Daniel Radcliffe
Who hasn't heard the name of Daniel Radcliffe, the young British actor who played Harry Potter in the legendary series of films about the world of wizards? And although the last part of the franchise has long been released, his popularity is growing every year thanks to his innate talent and truly English intelligence, which makes each image of Daniel Radcliffe unique.
Pictured: Daniel Radcliffe
Daniel Radcliffe
Daniel Jacob Radcliffe. Born July 23, 1989 in London (England). British theater and film actor. Performer of the role of Harry Potter in the Harry Potter film series.
Daniel Radcliffe was born on July 23, 1989 in London.
When Daniel was 5 years old, he made his debut in a school play as a monkey.
Radcliffe was educated at two private schools for boys: Sussex House School, and the City of London School. However, he found it difficult to attend school because his role in the first Harry Potter film made his classmates hostile towards him.
Daniel Radcliffe in movies
He began acting in films in 1999. He made his debut in the BBC film “David Copperfield” in the title role of young David Copperfield.
In the same 1999, he auditioned for the role of Harry James Potter in the film directed by Chris Columbus “Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone” based on the novel by J. K. Rowling. Filming began in 2000 and release took place in 2001. The film tells the story of how the orphan Harry Potter lived in the house of his relatives until he was 11 years old, enduring their bad attitude. But suddenly he receives an invitation to study at the magical school Hogwart. It turns out that Harry is the son of two great wizards who died at the hands of an evil sorcerer. The film became a huge success, with worldwide box office receipts exceeding $970 million.
Daniel Radcliffe in the film “Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone”
Daniel Radcliffe in the film “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”
Daniel Radcliffe in the film “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2”
In 2007, Rubbish magazine published Daniel's poems, which he wrote under the pseudonym Jacob Gershon. Her mother's maiden name, Gresham, is the English version of the Jewish surname Gershon.
In 2012, he was involved in the video for the British indie band Slow Club.
Daniel Radcliffe in the film “The Woman in Black”
Daniel Radcliffe in the film “Escape from Pretoria”
Childhood. First roles
Daniel Jacob Radcliffe was born in London in 1989, the son of Alan Radcliffe and Marcy Gresham. The boy's parents were closely connected with the world of art: his father was a literary agent in a large London publishing house, and his mother worked as a casting director on television; in their youth, both tried their hand at acting.
Daniel Radcliffe's parents at the premiere of the film starring their son
Little Daniel dreamed of becoming an actor from the age of five, and when he was accepted into a private school, where six-year-old Radcliffe made a brilliant debut in an amateur production as a monkey, he began persistently asking to be taken to a television casting.
His parents were against it, since as a child Daniel suffered from dyspraxia (impaired coordination), as a result of which he was very clumsy and studied extremely poorly. Nevertheless, when the boy turned nine, Marcy gave up and brought him to the casting of “David Copperfield” based on the novel by Charles Dickens.
Daniel Radcliffe as a child
The film was sponsored by the BBC, but in 1999, shortly after its premiere on British screens, it was also seen by American viewers, who highly appreciated the performance of little Daniel: “An actor who looks so natural in the frame is a rarity, especially so young! He looked like a real orphan from the 19th century."
Little David Copperfield, Daniel Radcliffe's first role
"Harry Potter" and other projects
In 2000, Radcliffe received a cameo role in the film “The Tailor of Panama”: he played the son of the heroes Jamie Lee Curtis and Geoffrey Rush. At the same time, the search for actors began in the UK for the film adaptation of the first Harry Potter novel, published in 1997 and which has already become a cult work for children all over the world.
Childhood photo of Daniel Radcliffe (third from right)
The author of the novel, JK Rowling, set a firm condition: all the actors involved in the film had to be British. The director of the large-scale project, Chris Columbus, racked his brains for a long time in search of a young actor who, firstly, would be a native of Great Britain, and secondly, would appeal to a demanding writer. By that time, the casting had already lasted 9 months; more than 16 thousand applicants had tried out for the role of Harry Potter, and all of them were rejected. “We’ll have to make a film without Harry Potter,” members of the crew joked.
First meeting of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint
By chance, Chris came across a videotape of Copperfield, and after watching it, he immediately called an assistant with a demand to find the young actor. Radcliffe was invited to audition, but his parents were against it - they wanted their son to be an ordinary child: to study, attend clubs, play with friends, and not spend his entire childhood on the set. Chance helped: it turned out that the film’s producer, David Heyman, was closely acquainted with Radcliffe’s father, who, after much persuasion, finally gave his son up to be “torn to pieces” by the directors. And most importantly, JK Rowling was delighted with Daniel, and the boy was approved for the role of Harry Potter.
Little Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter
“I had two reactions when I found out about the role,” said Daniel, “at first I cried because I was very happy! And then, a few hours later, I woke up in the middle of the night and ran to my parents’ bedroom to ask if I had dreamed.” Daniel Radcliffe auditions for the role of Harry Potter. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone began filming in September 2000. Daniel was to play alongside Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, whom Rowling also approved. During work, everyone was amazed by Daniel's physical fitness: he performed all the stunts himself, and only in the most dangerous scenes was he doubled by stuntmen. For example, for the Quidditch game scene, the actor hung in the air on a broom at a height of several meters, and this did not scare him at all.
Harry Potter Trains the Broom
To say that Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was a great success would be an understatement - worldwide box office receipts approached the figure of a billion dollars. The emotional adventure of an orphan boy, who learned about his magical origin on his 11th birthday, drew full houses even several months after the premiere.
Still from the film "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone"
The audience admired the performance of the young actors, especially Fr. They also fell in love with the icy gaze of Draco Malfoy, played by Tom Felton, and the insidious potions teacher Severus Snape, skillfully embodied by Alan Rickman, and the wise headmaster of Hogwarts, played by Richard Harris.
Daniel Radcliffe and Tom Felton
A year later, in November 2002, the premiere of the second part, “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” took place. The audience was amazed: the good fairy tale about a boy wizard acquired dramatic shades, the characters matured, and the plot twists sometimes made them think about the appropriateness of the “12+” rental rating. This trend worsened with each new film about Harry Potter: for example, already the fourth part of the film was not recommended for viewing by persons under 13 years of age.
Still from the film "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"
In 2004, the third part, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, premiered. The film's cast has undergone significant changes: firstly, the director has changed - Columbus was replaced by the then little-known Alfonso Cuaron, secondly, Richard Harris, who passed away on the eve of filming, was replaced by Michael Gambon, and finally, the legendary Gary appeared among the actors Oldman, who took on the role of Uncle Sirius.
Daniel Radcliffe always appreciated Gary Oldman's talent
For the filming of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Daniel had to train a lot in scuba diving and stunts, for example, he once made a vertical fall from a height of 15 meters. The fourth part of the saga featured aspiring actor Robert Pattinson, who played Cedric Diggory, a gifted senior student from the Hufflepuff faculty, as well as Ralph Fiennes, made up beyond recognition, who personified the main villain of the novel, the dark magician Voldemort. The director also changed again - Mike Newell took over Cuaron's post.
Future Twilight star Robert Pattinson and Daniel Radcliffe
In 2006, Daniel Radcliffe finally added a new image to his portfolio by starring in the melodrama December Boys.
Daniel Radcliffe and December Boys
In the same year, filming of the fifth part of Harry Potter began. The actors had to leave Scotland, where work on the previous films took place, and go to Scandinavia - only there the directors found snow-covered landscapes suitable for the scenery. The director of the new film was David Yates, who “led” the franchise until the finale.
Daniel Radcliffe and Ralph Fiennes
In 2007, Radcliffe performed in West End theaters and then on Broadway, where he appeared in the play Equus, based on the play by Peter Schaeffer. According to the plot of the work, a stable boy goes crazy because of his love for horses. In one of the scenes, Daniel had to act completely naked, and when photographs from the performance hit the press, many parents spoke out to ban Radcliffe from participating in the production: “He plays in the most popular children's film, and such obscene behavior is corrupting his audience!” . Adding fuel to the fire was the fact that the actor transferred most of his fee to a fund to help suicidal LGBT teenagers. Theater critics called the play a completely successful attempt by Radcliffe to “wash away” the label of an actor of one role.
Daniel Radcliffe naked on stage (play "Equus")
Unfortunately, with the start of work on Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Daniel had no time left for the theater, although before the start of filming he managed to appear in the film by British director Brian Kirk, My Boy Jack, which told about the tragic pages from the life of Rudhyar Kipling. Here Daniel, who by that time had celebrated his 18th birthday, appeared before the audience in the guise of a military man with a youthful mustache. The character was as different from Harry Potter as possible, and this film showed that Daniel Radcliffe is not a one-man actor.
“My Boy Jack”: Daniel Radcliffe grew a mustache
The gloomy “Half-Blood Prince” was presented to the public in July 2009, and a year and a half later, the first part of the saga’s finale, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” was released. Radcliffe was extremely impressed by his collaboration with Helena Bonham Carter, who played Voldemort's assistant Bellatrix Lestrange: “Helena is one of those actors who, as soon as they hear the command “Motor!”, they simply change, not just from a character point of view , but also physically.”
Daniel Radcliffe and Helena Bonham Carter
That same year, Daniel Radcliffe was announced as the highest paid actor of the last decade. His royalties for Harry Potter actually grew exponentially. If for his participation in the first part he received “only” a million dollars, then his salary for the first “Deathly Hallows” increased 20 times, and for the next episode he was rewarded with 33 million.
2009: Daniel Radcliffe is the highest paid actor
The scale of the filming of the final part was amazing, for example, for the scene of the last battle between the forces of good and evil, 400 actors were involved who played the Death Eaters and their minions, on the one hand, and 400 actors who played the roles of students and teachers of Hogwarts, on the other. The worldwide box office of the final part of “Harry Potter” amounted to almost one and a half billion dollars. At the exit from the cinemas, many spectators cried, sadly parting with the characters they loved.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows II: final scene
One in 16 thousand. Transformation into Harry Potter
In 2000, the search for actors began in the UK for the film adaptation of the first Harry Potter novel, published in 1997 and already becoming a cult work.
The author of the novel, JK Rowling, set a firm condition: all actors involved in the film must be British. Director Chris Columbus racked his brains for a long time in search of a young actor who would appeal to the writer. By that time, the casting had already lasted nine months; more than 16,000 applicants had auditioned for the role of Harry Potter, and all of them were rejected.
Daniel Radcliffe with Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. Photo: Actor’s Facebook https://img.anews.com/media/gallery/107500715/22321496.jpg
By chance, Chris came across a videotape of David Copperfield, and after watching it, he asked his assistant to find the young actor. Radcliffe was invited to audition, but his parents were against it. However, the film's producer, David Heyman, was close to Radcliffe's father and persuaded him to allow Daniel to star. And for good reason. JK Rowling was delighted with Daniel, and the boy was approved for the role of Harry Potter.
Daniel Radcliffe in the film "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." Still from the film https://img.anews.com/media/gallery/107500715/89557096.jpg
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone began filming in September 2000. Daniel was to play alongside Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, whom Rowling also approved. Daniel performed all the stunts himself, and only in the most dangerous scenes was he doubled by stuntmen.
Further career
Harry Potter was over. During the first months, Radcliffe simply did not know what to do with himself, and eventually became addicted to drinking. “I felt absolutely inconsolable,” he shared during the interview.
After Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe became addicted to alcohol
He was saved from alcoholic melancholy by an invitation received at the end of 2011 from director James Watkins, who saw Daniel in the leading role of his new project, the mystical thriller “The Woman in Black.” This time Radcliffe played a young lawyer and single father from the Victorian era.
Daniel Radcliffe on the set of The Woman in Black
In 2012, Radcliffe played in the film adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov’s story, called “Notes of a Young Doctor.” Daniel appeared as a young rural aesculapian, Vladimir, who faced numerous unforeseen difficulties during his practice. This experience left the actor with only warm memories, especially since his favorite work is the novel “The Master and Margarita.”
Notes from a Young Doctor: Daniel Radcliffe and Jon Hamm
A year later, a new film starring Daniel Radcliffe was released, a mystical drama with elements of the absurd called “Horns.” The actor played an ordinary American guy who discovered in the morning that he had horns growing out of his head, which gave him the ability to read the innermost thoughts of others.
Daniel Radcliffe in the movie "Horns"
Another project that Radcliffe was working on at this time was the drama Kill Your Darlings, in which he played the beatnik Allen Ginsberg.
Daniel Radcliffe – Allen Ginsberg
The next couple of years, Daniel Radcliffe again devoted himself to theatrical activities, participating in the productions of “How to Become a Successful Businessman and Do Nothing for It” and “The Cripple of Inishmaan.” In addition, he starred in the comedy “Friendship and No Sex?” paired with Zoe Kazan, the melodrama “Girl Without a Complex” with Amy Schumer and Brie Larson, as well as in the biopic “Tipping Point” about the confrontation between lawyer Mike Thompson and the creators of the game “Grand Thief Auto”. Daniel Radcliffe in SpotlightParisHilton In 2021, Radcliffe starred in the black comedy The Penman in the role of... a corpse. The actor's partners were Paul Dano and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.
Daniel Radcliffe as Corpse ("The Penman")
In April of the same year, Daniel Radcliffe announced that fans would soon see him in the Broadway production of Confidential, based on the life journey of Edward Snowden.
Daniel Radcliffe with a beard
The actor kept the details secret, but noted that during the performance, spectators will be allowed to film the action and freely share videos with other Internet users right during the performance.
Daniel Radcliffe's star on the Walk of Fame
Also in 2016, the actor appeared in the sequel to the action-packed film Lie to Me with Dave Franco, Jesse Eisenberg and Woody Harrelson. Radcliffe played the main anti-hero, techno-mage Walter Mabry. Next came the film “Absolute Power,” where Radcliffe’s hero, an FBI agent, infiltrated a gang of neo-Nazis. Many critics called this role the most serious project in the Briton’s “adult” career.
Still from the film “Absolute Power”
The actor remembered 2017 for the release of the survival thriller “The Jungle” and the role of Rosencrantz in the play based on Tom Stoppard’s play “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead,” which was staged with great success at the Old Vic Theater. Interview with the actors of the play “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead” In 2021, Radcliffe played the main role in the action film “Dangerous Mission”, but despite the big name on the poster, viewers were skeptical about the film. “Although Radcliffe did his best to make his character empathetic, the writers left his efforts in vain,” critics wrote. At the same time, the actor worked on the set of the series “Miracle Workers.” Daniel plays the lowest-ranking angel who is given one last chance to save the Earth from divine wrath and destruction, and Steve Buscemi takes on the role of god.
"Miracle Workers": Daniel Radcliffe and Steve Buscemi
Personal life of Daniel Radcliffe
In November 2010, Daniel Radcliffe began dating assistant director Rosie Cocker. Then the actor admitted that he was a monogamous man, but in October 2012 their relationship came to an end.
Daniel Radcliffe and Rosie Cocker
In 2013, on the set of the film Kill Your Darlings, he met actress Erin Dark. For some time, debates about the reality of their romance continued in the community of Radcliffe fans, but soon the guesses were confirmed: Daniel and Erin appeared together at the Sundance independent film festival, after which they stopped hiding their relationship.
Daniel Radcliffe and his girlfriend
It is noteworthy that in the film there was a bed scene between their characters, and Radcliffe subsequently joked that it was after this that they became inseparable. His relationship with Erin Dark has stood the test of time, and they celebrated their five-year anniversary in 2021. However, fans have not yet received news about the couple’s wedding.
Daniel Radcliffe and Erin Darke
Personal life of the actor
In a recent interview, the favorite of millions decided to lift the curtain on his personal life and talk about his chosen one.
The Harry Potter star has been in a relationship with American actress Erin Dark for almost 7 years; the marriage has not been officially registered.
The actor recalled that he met his lover on the set of the film “Kill Your Way,” and since then they have been inseparable. Only next to Erin can he be himself.
Daniel Radcliffe now
November 2021 pleased viewers of “Miracle Workers” with a teaser for the continuation of the series, which will be released under the name “Dark Ages.” It is worth noting that the series are an anthology and are not connected by a plot. Here Radcliffe and Buscemi switch places: the former plays a prince with a strange love for poultry, and the latter plays a typical medieval peasant.
Still from the series “Darkest Hour”
In February 2021, Russian viewers will be able to see the action-packed comedy “Crazy Miles” (originally “Guns Akimbo”), first shown at the Toronto Film Festival in 2019. Daniel plays a video game developer who is not very successful in either his work or his personal life. His life is changed by registration in “street fights” for the amusement of Internet users.
Daniel Radcliffe on the set of Guns Akimbo
And 10 days after the release of “Guns of Akimbo”, the world premiere of the thriller “Escape from Pretoria” will take place, in which Radcliffe’s hero will escape from a South African prison located on the island.
“Escape from Pretoria” will be released in 2021
It is known that during the transphobic scandal associated with JK Rowling, who was convicted of ridiculing transgender people, Radcliffe also spoke out against it. The actor noted that he did not expect such behavior and harsh statements from Rowling, who literally gave him a career in cinema.
