Kate Elizabeth Winslet (born 5 October 1975) is an English actress and occasional singer. She has received multiple awards and nominations. She was the youngest person to accrue six Academy Award nominations, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Reader (2008). Winslet has been acclaimed for both dramatic and comedic work in projects ranging from period to contemporary films, and from major Hollywood productions to less publicised indie films. She has won awards from the Screen Actors Guild, British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association among others, and has been nominated twice for an Emmy Award for television acting, winning once for her role as Mildred Pierce in the 2011 mini-series of the same name.
Daughter Mia Honey Threapleton was born (in England) on the 12th October 2000, weighing in at 8 pounds 9 ounces.
Kate Winslet met husband Jim Threapleton on the set of her movie Hideous Kinky (1998), where he was working as an assistant director.
Won Best Spoken Word Album for Children, Grammy Awards, shared with Graham Greene. [2000]
Turned down the Gwyneth Paltrow role in Shakespeare in Love (1998) and the Jodie Foster role in Anna and the King (1999).
Wears size 9 shoes.
At age 11, she began attending the acting school Redroofs in Maidenhead, England, UK.
Sister of Anna Winslet, Joss Winslet and Beth Winslet. Kate is the second child.
The youngest actress ever to be nominated for two Academy Awards (for Sense and Sensibility (1995) and Titanic (1997)) (Aged 20 and 22 respectively). [1998]
Her first acting job was dancing with the Honey Monster in a commercial for Sugar Puffs cereal.
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Manchester Evening News Award for her theatre role in “What the Butler Saw” as Geraldine Barclay. [1994]
Chosen by People (USA) magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world. [1996]
She has a younger brother, Joss.
Parents: Roger Winslet (actor) and Sally Bridges-Winslet.
After her first success in the film Heavenly Creatures (1994), a reviewer predicted that she would always be associated with that character and would never be a big star.
Recorded a song for the soundtrack for the movie Christmas Carol: The Movie (2001).
Producers were so impressed at her efforts they have decided to release the ballad – called “What If?” – as a single. It reached the top ten in the UK, peaking at number six. [June 2001]
Announced that she and husband Jim Threapleton are splitting up. [3 September 2001]
[November 2001] Confirms that she is dating director Sam Mendes.
Purchased a $3 million (US) home in London with boyfriend (later husband) Sam Mendes.
They also bought a home in New York City.
She holds a unique position in Academy Awards history: Only twice have two actresses been nominated for playing the same character in the same film. The first two were Gloria Stuart and Kate in Titanic (1997). The second two were Judi Dench and Kate in Iris (2001/I).
Married director Sam Mendes in a private ceremony whilst on holiday in the West Indies in May, 2003.
Daughter Mia’s name is Italian for “my”.
Has sung in 5 of her films.
Prefers to wear boots rather than ordinary shoes because it makes her feel that her feet are “firmly on the ground.”
Missed the premiere of Titanic (1997) because she was attending the funeral of close friend and former boyfriend, Stephen Tredre.
Son, Joe Alfie Winslet Mendes, was born on December 22, 2003, in New York, and weighed 7 pounds and 13 ounces.
Resides in both London, England, and New York City, America. Her main home, however, is in Cotswolds, England.
Has a nephew, George. His mother is Beth Winslet.
Sprained her ankle on the set of Romance & Cigarettes (2005) in May 2004.
She sold her North London home in Belsize Park to Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin.
Was considered for the role of Bridget in Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001) but it was then decided she was too young to portray the role.
On the day she had to film the straitjacket scene in Hamlet (1996), she learned she had won the role of Rose in Titanic (1997).
While serving as host of “Saturday Night Live” (1975) one week after Ashlee Simpson’s “recorded song malfunction,” she opened the show by singing and dancing live.
Bust size 1996 – 34C.
Born in the same year and on the same day as Parminder Nagra.
Was born in the same hospital as her husband, Sam Mendes.
Filmed her 2005 American Express commercial in Camden Town, London, England.
First screen kiss was with Melanie Lynskey in Heavenly Creatures (1994).
Her performance as Clementine Kruczynski in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) is ranked #81 on Premiere Magazine’s 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006).
Her daughter Mia had to be delivered by Cesarean section, which made Kate feel she hadn’t given birth properly. She admitted to it only after giving birth to her son Joe (who had been delivered naturally).
Was offered the role of Eowyn in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002).
Kate married Sam Mendes, who was a childhood friend of Tom Hollander, with whom he went to Cambridge University and whom he directed in several plays. Tom and Kate were both in the film Enigma (2001).
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Premiere Magazine for Sense and Sensibility (1995)). [1995]
Won Best Film Actress, Smash Hits Magazine. [1998]
Won Sexiest Actress, Entertainment Insider Awards. [1998]
Won Film Actress of the Year, Variety Club of Great Britain. [1999]
Nominated for Best Actress, Roughcut.com Internet Movie Award for Holy Smoke (1999). [2000]
When interviewed on “Good Morning America” (1975) to promote her film The Holiday (2006), they surprised her by showing a clip which was supposedly Winslet on the Sugar Puff Commercial in 1987. However, the girl in the clip shown was not her. Winslet did not point out the error because she did not want to embarrass the researcher and get the person fired. She was then praised by the media for her caring and consideration of other people. [2006]
Her performance in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) is her personal favorite.
Along with Claude Rains (for Mr. Skeffington (1944)), Vanessa Redgrave (for Julia (1977)) and Mare Winningham (for Georgia (1995)), she is the only performer to be nominated for an Supporting Oscar (for Iris (2000)) for playing the title role in a movie. As of 2006, Redgrave is the only one to win.
As of January 2009, she is the youngest actress to rack up 6 Oscar nominations.
Won Best Actress, Toronto Film Festival for Heavenly Creatures (1994), shared with Melanie Lynskey. [1995]
Runner-Up for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle for Holy Smoke (1999). [1999]
Nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Rec.Arts.Movies.* Critics Circle for Quills (2000). [2000]
Runner-Up for Best Actress, National Society of Film Critics for Holy Smoke (1999). [2000]
Runner-Up for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). [2004]
Chris Tookey, of the British newspaper “Daily Mail,” chose her as Best Actress of the Year for her roles in The Holiday (2006) and Little Children (2006). [2006]
Is a fan of Rufus Wainwright’s CD, “Poses” (mentioned in one of her ads for AmEx).
Nominated for Best Actress in a Dramatic Performance, Excellent Dynamic Activism (EDA) Awards/The Alliance of Women Journalists for Little Children (2006). [2006]
In an interview for the London Evening Standard, she revealed she has taken a year off (from April 2006 to April 2007) from her career, to spend more time with her family. [2007]
Official Celebrity Spokesperson for Lancôme. [2007]
Her children refer to very close friend Leonardo DiCaprio as “Uncle Leo. ” He also bought Kate an inscribed gold ring, after they filmed Revolutionary Road (2008).
Was named one of ’50 Most Beautiful’ by People Magazine in 2005.
Auditioned for the role of “Elizabeth” in Kenneth Branagh’s Frankenstein (1994). Helena Bonham Carter got the role, but Branagh was so impressed by Winslet that he offered her the part of “Ophelia” in Hamlet (1996).
Involved, along with Sherilyn Fenn, Rufus Sewell, Miranda Richardson and Paul McGann in the 1998 film project “Johnny Hit and Run Pauline”. The film was to be executive produced by Emma Thompson, and written and directed by Fay Efrosini Lellios. The shooting was set to start in June 1998 in New Hampshire. The film was canceled due to financial withdrawal. [1998]
Lives in New York City. She also owns a home in Gloucestershire, England.
Placed third equal (with Anne Hathaway) for Best Actress, New York Film Critics Circle for Revolutionary Road (2008). [2008]
The Holiday (2006) was the first movie that Kate used her own accent and didn’t develop a special voice for her character.
Sister-in-law of Edmund Harcourt.
Only the third person in history to win two acting Golden Globes in the same year (Best Actress, Drama for Revolutionary Road (2008) and Best Supporting Actress for The Reader (2008)).
As of 2009, she is only one of six performers who won a Golden Globe Award as Best Lead Actor/Actress in a Motion Picture Drama without being nominated for an Oscar for that same role (hers for Revolutionary Road (2008)). The others are Spencer Tracy in The Actress (1953), Anthony Franciosa in Career (1959), Omar Sharif in Doctor Zhivago (1965), ‘Shirley Maclaine’ in Madame Sousatzka (1988), Jim Carrey in The Truman Show (1998). However, of those six performers, Winslet is the only one to be nominated and win an Academy Award for a leading role but for a different role, in a same year.
The producers of the The Reader (2008) tried to promote Winslet as Supporting Actress during the Oscar race 2009 in order to enhance her chances to get nominated twice (for Best Supporting Actress for The Reader (2008) and Best Lead Actress for her role in Revolutionary Road (2008)). The Academy overthrew this plan by nominating Winslet for Best Lead Actress for her performance in The Reader (2008), leaving aside her performance in Revolutionary Road (2008), although she won several other award nominations in both categories for the respective movies. According to Academy rules, an actor is eligible for only one nomination in a single category.
Is one of eight actresses to have won the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critics’ Choice Award, Golden Globe Award and SAG Award for the same performance. The others in chronological order are Julia Roberts for Erin Brockovich (2000), Renée Zellweger for Cold Mountain (2003), Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005), Helen Mirren for The Queen (2006), Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls (2006), Mo’Nique for Precious (2009) and Natalie Portman for Black Swan (2010).
Was originally cast as Nola Rice in Woody Allen’s Match Point (2005), but dropped out at the last minute, so she could spend her time with her child. The role went to Scarlett Johansson .
Was in consideration for the part of Satine in Moulin Rouge! (2001) but Nicole Kidman, who went on to receive a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, was cast instead.
Returned to work eleven months after giving birth to her daughter Mia in order to begin filming The Life of David Gale (2003).
Returned to work five months after giving birth to her son Joe in order to begin filming Romance & Cigarettes (2005).
Born at 7:15 am-BST.
Announced that she had separated amicably from husband Sam Mendes two months previously (15 March 2010).
Is just 12 years older than Evan Rachel Wood, who played her daughter on “Mildred Pierce” (2011).
Virgin Group billionaire Richard Branson credited Kate with ‘helping to carry’ his 90-year-old mother out of his burning Caribbean-island house, where Winslet and her two children were staying (August 2011).
Ranked as having one of the “Most Beautiful Famous Faces” by “The Annual Independent Critics List of the 100 Most Beautiful Famous Faces From Around the World” for 14 consecutive years. She was ranked #31 in 2010, #22 in 2009, #12 in 2008, #15 in 2007, #18 in 2006, #21 in 2005, #13 in 2004, #11 in 2003, #14 in 2002, #4 in 2001, #11 in 2000, #20 in 1999, #17 in 1998, and #27 in 1997.
