Olivia Williams
{{short description|British actress (born 1968)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Olivia Williams
| image = Olivia Williams July 9, 2014 (cropped).jpg
| caption = Williams in 2014
| birth_name = Olivia Haigh Williams
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1968|07|26|df=yes}}
| birth_place = North London, England
| occupation = Actress
| alma_mater = Newnham College, Cambridge
Bristol Old Vic Theatre School
| years_active = 1992–present
| spouse = {{Marriage|Rhashan Stone|2003}}
| children = 2
}}
Olivia Haigh Williams (born 26 July 1968) is a British actress who appears in British and American films and television. Williams studied drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years followed by three years at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her first significant screen role was as Jane Fairfax in the British television film Emma (1996), based on Jane Austen's novel.
She made her film debut in 1997's The Postman, followed by Rushmore (1998) and The Sixth Sense (1999). Williams also acted in the British films Lucky Break (2001), The Heart of Me (2002) and An Education (2009). She continued acting in films such as The Ghost Writer (2010), Hanna (2011), Anna Karenina (2012), Hyde Park on Hudson (2012), Sabotage (2014), Maps to the Stars (2014), Victoria & Abdul (2017), and The Father (2020).
From 2017 to 2019, she played Emily Silk in the science fiction television series Counterpart. From 2022 to 2023, Williams portrayed Camilla Parker Bowles in Netflix's historical drama The Crown in its final two seasons.
Early life
Williams was born in North London.[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/olivia-williams-the-actor-on-poor-pay-for-women-in-hollywood-bill-murray-and-bolivian-spectacled-bears-10007006.html "Olivia Williams: The actor on poor pay for women in Hollywood, Bill Murray, and Bolivian spectacled bears"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925145449/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/olivia-williams-the-actor-on-poor-pay-for-women-in-hollywood-bill-murray-and-bolivian-spectacled-bears-10007006.html |date=25 September 2015}}. The independent. Retrieved 24 May 2015 Both her parents are barristers.
Williams was educated at South Hampstead High School, an independent school for girls in Hampstead in north London, and Newnham College, Cambridge, where she graduated with a degree in English literature. She then studied drama at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School for two years and spent three years at the Royal Shakespeare Company.{{cite news |first=Gerard |last=Gilbert |title=Olivia Williams: 'I just do what I'm told' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/olivia-williams-i-just-do-what-im-told-1818815.html |work=The Independent |date=15 November 2009 |access-date=15 November 2009 |location=London |archive-date=6 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120906191727/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/olivia-williams-i-just-do-what-im-told-1818815.html |url-status=live}}
Career
File:Olivia Williams (Berlin Film Festival 2010) 2.jpg (2010)]]
File:Olivia Williams (Berlin Film Festival 2010) cropped.jpg
After graduation, Williams worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company in both Stratford-upon-Avon and London. In 1995, she toured the United States in the National Theatre production of Shakespeare's Richard III starring Ian McKellen. Her first significant appearance before the cameras was as Jane Fairfax in the British TV film Emma (1996), based on Jane Austen's 1816 novel.
Williams made her film debut in the 1997 movie The Postman, after doing a screen test for Kevin Costner. She later won the lead role of Rosemary Cross in Wes Anderson's Rushmore (1998).{{cite news|last=Hodgkinson|first=Will|title=Dead good : Returning from Hollywood to star in British movies would be a step back for most, but Sixth Sense star Olivia Williams was tempted by sex, drugs and cruelty|url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,424380,00.html|newspaper=The Guardian|date=20 January 2001|location=London|access-date=30 May 2006|archive-date=23 June 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060623183733/http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,424380,00.html|url-status=live}} She then starred as Bruce Willis' wife in the blockbuster The Sixth Sense (1999), a film she would later parody during her brief appearance in the British sitcom Spaced.{{fact|date=October 2024}}
In 2000, Williams wrote the short story "The Significance of Hair" for BBC Radio and read it on the air.{{Cite web |url=http://www.radiolistings.co.uk/programmes/o/op/opening_lines.html |title=Opening Lines |access-date=27 September 2011 |archive-date=4 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404013550/http://www.radiolistings.co.uk/programmes/o/op/opening_lines.html |url-status=live}}
Since 2001, Williams has appeared in several British films, including Lucky Break (2001), The Heart of Me (2002), for which she won the British Independent Film Award for Best Actress,{{Cite web|url=https://www.bifa.film/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313201815/http://www.bifa.org.uk/winners/2003|url-status=dead|title=British Independent Film Awards · BIFA|archivedate=13 March 2013|website=BIFA · British Independent Film Awards}} and An Education (2009). She played Mrs. Darling in the 2003 film adaptation of Peter Pan. Williams was uncredited for her role as Dr. Moira MacTaggert in the 2006 film X-Men: The Last Stand.{{Cite web |date=24 June 2022 |title=Exclusive: Gillian Anderson Joins Marvel In Major Role |url=https://www.giantfreakinrobot.com/ent/exclusive-gillian-anderson-marvel.html |last=Martin |first=Michileen |access-date=25 June 2022 |website=Giant Freakin Robot |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=19 January 2018 |title=15 Actors You Completely Forgot Were In X-Men Movies |last=Pereira |first=Sergio |url=https://screenrant.com/x-men-actors-completely-forgot-roles/ |access-date=25 June 2022 |website=ScreenRant |language=en-US}}
On TV, Williams portrayed British author Jane Austen in Miss Austen Regrets (2008) and was cast as Adelle DeWitt in Joss Whedon's Dollhouse, which ran on Fox from 2009 to 2010.{{cite news|title=Olivia Williams cast in 'Dollhouse' |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=3 April 2008 |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i1773b9d1d4828bb0949984fd99f45dbe |access-date=16 May 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080510070544/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i1773b9d1d4828bb0949984fd99f45dbe |archive-date=10 May 2008 |url-status=dead}}
In 2010, Williams won acclaim for her performance as Ruth Lang in Roman Polanski's The Ghost Writer, winning the National Society of Film Critics Award, London Critics Circle Film Award for best supporting actress and was runner-up for best supporting actress at the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards 2010.{{fact|date=October 2024}}
In Hanna (2011), Williams played Rachel, a bohemian mother travelling across North Africa and Europe, who comes into contact with the eponymous teen assassin, who is on the run. The film starred Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana and Cate Blanchett, and was a critical and sleeper hit. In 2014, Williams co-starred in David Cronenberg's Maps to the Stars, a dark comic look at Hollywood excess.{{cite news|title=Mia Wasikowska & More Join David Cronenberg's 'Maps To The Stars,' Some Story Details Revealed|work=The Playlist |url=http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/mia-wasikowska-more-join-david-cronenbergs-maps-to-the-stars-some-story-details-revealed-20130508|access-date=17 March 2013|archive-date=3 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603025727/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/mia-wasikowska-more-join-david-cronenbergs-maps-to-the-stars-some-story-details-revealed-20130508|url-status=live |last1=Jagernauth |first1=Kevin }} In 2014 she portrayed Meg Hamilton in the British mystery film Altar.{{Cite web |url=http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/92377/altar-scares-up-a-uk-dvd-release-as-the-haunting-of-radcliffe-house/ |title=Altar |date=9 March 2015 |access-date=9 March 2015 |archive-date=2 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402151400/http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/92377/altar-scares-up-a-uk-dvd-release-as-the-haunting-of-radcliffe-house/ |url-status=live}}
In 2017, Williams began appearing in the Starz science-fiction series Counterpart, playing Emily, the wife of lead character Howard Silk. In one universe she is still married to him, but her counterpart in the other universe is divorced from him. In 2021, she was cast as Camilla Parker Bowles, for the final two seasons of The Crown.{{cite web|url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/olivia-williams-my-big-royal-comeback-now-im-playing-camilla-in-the-crown-9prhg3n09|title=Olivia Williams: My big royal comeback — now I'm playing Camilla in The Crown|last=Smith|first=Julia Llewellyn|work=The Times|date=5 February 2022}}
Personal life
Williams had a seven-year relationship and then engagement to the actor Jonathan Cake which ended two weeks before their planned wedding. In 2003, she married the actor and playwright Rhashan Stone, with whom she has two daughters.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/jan/09/theatre |location=London |work=The Guardian |first=Maddy |last=Costa |title=Maddy Costa talks to actor Olivia Williams |date=9 January 2008 |access-date=12 December 2016 |archive-date=17 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180617115624/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/jan/09/theatre |url-status=live}}
After filming The Postman, she spent time in Bolivia studying spectacled bears in the rainforest.{{cite news|last=Hoggard|first=Liz|title=How we met? Olivia Williams & Susanna Paisley|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4159/is_20030413/ai_n12737588|work=The Independent on Sunday (republished on LookSmart)|date=13 April 2003|access-date=23 September 2007|archive-date=3 November 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103190400/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4159/is_20030413/ai_n12737588|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last=Ojumu|first=Akin|title=Everyone's talking about... Olivia Williams|url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/Column/0,4541,63001,00.html|newspaper=The Observer|date=4 July 1999|location=London|access-date=11 July 2006|archive-date=18 June 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060618120333/http://film.guardian.co.uk/Column/0,4541,63001,00.html|url-status=live}}
Williams was diagnosed with VIPoma in 2018 and, after treatment, became an ambassador for Pancreatic Cancer UK.{{Cite web|url=https://www.pancreaticcancer.org.uk/news-and-blogs/actor-olivia-williams-becomes-pancreatic-cancer-uk-ambassador/|title=Olivia Williams becomes Pancreatic Cancer UK ambassador|date=6 November 2019|website=Pancreatic Cancer UK}}
Filmography
=Film=
class="wikitable sortable"
|+ ! Year ! Film ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
rowspan="3"|1997
| Beck | Karen Quinn | |
Gaston's War
| Nicky | |
data-sort-value="Postman, The" | The Postman
| Abby | |
1998
| Rushmore | Rosemary Cross | |
1999
| data-sort-value="Sixth Sense, The" | The Sixth Sense | Anna Crowe | |
rowspan="3"|2000
| Audrey | |
Born Romantic
| Eleanor | |
Dead Babies
| Diana | aka Mood Swingers |
rowspan="3"|2001
| data-sort-value="Body, The" | The Body | Sharon Golban | |
Lucky Break
| Annabel Sweep / Lady Hamilton in show | |
data-sort-value="Man from Elysian Fields, The" |The Man from Elysian Fields
| Andrea | |
rowspan="2"|2002
| data-sort-value="Heart of Me, The" | The Heart of Me | Madeleine | |
Below
| Claire | |
rowspan="2"|2003
| Anne Fairfax | |
Peter Pan
| Mrs. Darling | |
rowspan="3"|2005
| Valiant | Victoria (voice) | |
Tara Road
| Ria | |
Mockingbird
| Mother | |
2006 |
rowspan="2"|2008
| Grace Scott | |
Broken Lines
| Zoe | |
2009
| data-sort-value="Education, An" | An Education | Miss Stubbs | |
rowspan="2"|2010
| data-sort-value="Ghost Writer, The" | The Ghost Writer | Ruth Lang | |
data-sort-value="Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll" | Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll
| Betty Dury | |
rowspan="3"|2011
| Emma Stiles | |
Hanna
| Rachel | |
Wild Bill
| Kelly | |
rowspan="3"|2012
| Countess Vronskaya | |
Now Is Good
| Mother | |
Hyde Park on Hudson
| |
rowspan="2"|2013
| data-sort-value="Last Days on Mars, The" | The Last Days on Mars | Kim Aldrich | |
Justin and the Knights of Valour
| Queen (voice) | |
rowspan="3"|2014
| Sabotage | Caroline Brentwood | |
Maps to the Stars
| Cristina Weiss | |
Altar
| Meg Hamilton | |
rowspan="2"|2015
| Mam Ward | |
Man Up
| Hilary | |
2016
| data-sort-value="White King, The" | The White King | Sophia (voice) | |
2017
| |
2020
| data-sort-value="Father, The" | The Father | The Woman | |
2023
| data-sort-value="Trouble with Jessica, The" | The Trouble with Jessica | Beth |
2024
| Juliette | |
=Television=
class="wikitable sortable"
|+ ! Year ! Title ! Role ! class="unsortable" | Notes |
rowspan="2"|1992
| Irene Kortman | Episode: "Still Waters" |
data-sort-value="Ruth Rendell Mysteries, The" | The Ruth Rendell Mysteries
| Jennifer Norris | Episode: "The Speaker of Mandarin" |
1996
| Emma | Jane Fairfax | Television film |
1998
| Friends | Felicity | 2 episodes |
2000
| Hera | 2 episodes |
2001
| Spaced | Knocked-down cyclist | Episode: "Help" |
2004
| Agatha Christie: A Life in Pictures | rowspan="4" | Television film |
2006
| Johanna Beijerinck |
2007
| Damage | Michelle Cahill |
2008 |
2009–2010
| Adelle DeWitt | Main role |
2010
| Terriers | Miriam Foster | Episode: "Change Partners" |
2011–2012
| Charlie Zailer | 4 episodes |
2014
| Belinda Kay | Television film |
2014–2015
| Liza Winter | Main role |
2017
| data-sort-value="Halcyon, The" | The Halcyon | Lady Hamilton | 8 episodes |
2017–2019
| Emily Burton Silk | Main role |
2020
| Homemade | Queen (voice) | Episode: "Voyage Au Bout De La Nuit" |
2021–2023
| data-sort-value="Nevers, The" | The Nevers | Lavinia Bidlow | Main role |
2022
| Olivia Williams | Episode #1.2 |
2022–2023
| data-sort-value="Crown, The" | The Crown | Camilla Parker Bowles{{cite web |last=Nugent |first=Annabel |date=30 April 2021 |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/netflix/the-crown/the-crown-olivia-williams-camilla-parker-bowles-b1840076.html |title=The Crown: Olivia Williams set to play as Camilla Parker Bowles in season five and six |work=The Independent |access-date=2 May 2021}} |
2023
| Gloria | Episode #1.6 |
rowspan="2" | 2024
| Main role |
data-sort-value="Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The" | The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
| Winterblossom the Entwife (voice) | Episode: "Eldest" |
2025
| Morgase Trakand | Main role; season 3 |
TBA
|Main role; season 3{{Cite web |last=Otterson |first=Joe |date=2024-10-15 |title='Monster' Season 3 Casts Laurie Metcalf as Ed Gein's Mother, Tom Hollander as Alfred Hitchcock and Olivia Williams as Alma Reville (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/monster-season-3-cast-laurie-metcalf-tom-hollander-olivia-williams-1236178705/ |access-date=2024-12-15 |website=Variety |language=en-US}} |
=Theatre=
Awards and nominations
- 2001: Lucky Break
- Nominated: Empire Award for Best Actress
- 2009: An Education
- Nominated: London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year
- Nominated: Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
- 2010: The Ghost Writer
- Won: London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year
- Won: National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress
- Nominated: Empire Award for Best Actress
- Nominated: Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress
- 2023 and 2024: The Crown:
- Nominated: Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
Notes
{{Reflist|2}}
Further reading
- {{Cite news |title=My Story – Olivia Williams |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/my-story--olivia-williams-1196318.html |work=The Independent on Sunday |date=6 September 1998 |location=London}}
- {{Cite news |title=Getting personal with Olivia Williams |url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/Feature_Story/feature_story/0,,74553,00.html |work=The Guardian |date=17 August 1999 |location=London}}
- {{Cite news |last=Matheou |first=Demetrios |title=Olivia in La-La land: For years she was a jobbing actor in regional theatre. Then Olivia Williams got the call from Kevin Costner. She's never looked back |url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/Feature_Story/interview/0,,75019,00.html |work=The Guardian |date=20 August 1999 |location=London}}
- {{Cite news |last=Brett |first=Anwar |title=Olivia Williams: The Heart of Me |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2003/04/23/olivia_williams_the_heart_of_me_interview.shtml |publisher=BBC |date=23 April 2003}}
- {{Cite news |last=Tennant |first=Laura |title=Olivia Williams: Growing up in public |url=http://arts.independent.co.uk/film/features/article116513.ece |work=The Independent |date=25 April 2003 |location=London}}{{dead link|date=January 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}
External links
- {{commons category-inline}}
- {{IMDb name}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Olivia Williams
|list =
{{BIFA Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film}}
{{London Film Critics Circle Award for British Supporting Actress of the Year}}
{{National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress}}
}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Olivia}}
Category:20th-century English actresses
Category:21st-century English actresses
Category:Actresses from London
Category:Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge
Category:English Shakespearean actresses
Category:English dramatists and playwrights
Category:English film actresses
Category:English radio actresses
Category:English stage actresses
Category:English television actresses
Category:English voice actresses
Category:People educated at South Hampstead High School
Category:People from Camden Town
Category:Actors from the London Borough of Camden