Emma Watson does on 15th April - check out my tribute to this Birthday Girl turning 26, at the end of this feature.
Do you also share your birthday with a well known, highly regarded & famous Actor or Actress; share your special day with a Director, Producer, Writer, Cinematographer, Singer/Songwriter or Composer of repute; or share an interest in whoever might notch up another year in the coming seven days? Then, look no further! Whilst there will be too many to mention in this small but not insignificant and beautifully written and presented Blog, here are the more notable and noteworthy icons of the big screen, and the small screen, that you will recognise, and that you might just share your birthday with in the week ahead. If so, Happy Birthday to you from Odeon Online!
Sunday 10th April
- Daisy Ridley - Born 1992, turns 24 - Actress | Producer
- Haley Joel Osment - Born 1988, turns 28 - Actor | Producer
- Barkhad Abdi - Born 1985, turns 31 - Actor
- Charlie Hunnam - Born 1980, turns 36 - Actor
- Steven Seagal - Born 1952, turns 64 - Actor | Producer | Writer
- Max von Sydow - Born 1929, turns 87 - Actor | Director
Monday 11th April
- John Milius - Born 1944, turns 72 - Writer | Producer | Director
Tuesday 12th April
- Hardy Kruger - Born 1928, turns 88 - Actor
- Andy Garcia - Born 1956, turns 60 - Actor | Producer | Writer | Director
- Claire Danes - Born 1979, turns 37 - Actress | Producer
- Saoirse Ronan - Born 1994, turns 22 - Actress
Wednesday 13th April
- Ron Perlman - Born 1950, turns 66 - Actor | Producer
- William Sadler - Born 1950, turns 66 - Actor
- Peter Davison - Born 1951, turns 65 - Actor
- Paul Sorvino - Born 1939, turns 77 - Actor | Producer | Director
- Edward Fox - Born 1937, turns 79 - Actor
Thursday 14th April
- Peter Capaldi - Born 1958, turns 58 - Actor | Writer | Director
- Robert Carlyle - Born 1961, turns 55 - Actor | Director
- Adrien Brody - Born 1973, turns 43 - Actor | Producer | Director
- Julie Christie - Born 1941, turns 75 - Actress
- Sarah Michelle Gellar - Born 1977, turns 39 - Actress | Producer
- Abigail Breslin - Born 1996, turns 20 - Actress
Friday 15th April
- Emma Watson - Born 1990, turns 26 - Actress
- Emma Thompson - Born 1959, turns 57 - Actress | Writer | Producer
- Claudia Cardinale - Born 1938, turns 78 - Actress
- Luke Evans - Born 1979, turns 37 - Actor
- Seth Rogen - Born 1982, turns 34 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director
Saturday 16th April
- Martin Lawrence - Born 1965, turns 51 - Actor | Writer | Producer | Director
- Ellen Barkin - Born 1954, turns 62 - Actress | Producer
Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson was born in Paris, France to mother Jacqueline Luesby and father Chris Watson - both lawyers. Until the age of five, the young Watson lived in Paris when her mother and father separated, at which point she moved to Oxfordshire, England to live with her mother, whilst spending weekends with her father in London. She attended the Dragon School in Oxford remaining there until 2003. From a very young age she had aspirations to become an Actress, and trained as a consequence at the Stagecoach Theatre in Oxford where she also took in singing and dancing. After leaving the Dragon School, she attended the girls independent Headington School, also in Oxford.
Following an exhaustive casting and audition process that involved eight separate auditions beginning in 1999, Watson was cast alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint in her debut screen role as Hermione Grainger in the first instalment of the hugely popular J.K.Rowling 'Harry Potter' series of books - 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'. Released in 2001 to Box Office records and critical acclaim for the three young fresh faced stars, Watson was paid US$125K for her screen debut role and picked up four award nominations and a win in the Young Artist Awards for Best Performance by a Leading Young Actress.
A year later 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' was released to further critical acclaim with another award win and a nominations for the young Actress. Two years later in 2004 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' was released which proved to be the least successful commercially of the franchise, but Watson was still praised for her performance, and further awards and nominations followed.2005's 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' broke new Box Office records as the three principle Actors by now had settled into their roles, were maturing and the on-screen chemistry between the three was clearly evident. More award wins and nominations came with Watson's performance.
'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' came in 2007, making US$940M and breaking Box Office records for its opening weekend. That year, at age just seventeen, Watson's work on the first five films to date had made her an estimated £10M and she exclaimed that she would never have to work for money again. By March 2009 she was in the Top 6 of the Forbes listed 'Most Valuable Young Stars' and in 2010 she was the highest paid female in Hollywood having earned a cool £19M in 2009.Taking a break from Potter and Grainger, Watson starred in the BBC Television Film production of 'The Ballet Shoes' which aired on Boxing Day 2007 to a significant audience, but mixed reviews. She also lent her voice talents to the animated feature 'The Tale of Despereaux' in the role of Princess Pea.
Next for release was 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince' in 2009, grossing US$935M, with the three leading cast members now all in their late teens and receiving much critical praise for their mature and energised performances. Three award nominations followed for Watson. Filming of the final book in the series was split into two films for storyline and financial reasons and was shot back to back over sixteen months from early 2009 until mid-2010. 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 1' raked in US$960M and 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2' brought home US$1.34B bringing the eight film franchise to a conclusion for all in mid-2011. For the two films combined Watson received thirteen award nominations and five wins together with a US$30M pay cheque for her role in the two concluding films.
With Harry, Ron and Hermione now behind her, Watson starred in 'My Week With Marilyn' alongside Kenneth Branagh, Judi Dench and Eddie Redmayne. From there came 'The Perks of Being a Wall Flower' in 2012 which brought much further critical recognition with six award nominations and five award wins. 'The Bling Ring' came next as Directed by Sofia Coppola, and then the chance to work with an ensemble comedy cast in Seth Rogen's 'This Is The End' in 2013, with 'Noah' for Darren Aronofsky and starring Russell Crowe in the Biblical title role with Anthony Hopkins and Ray Winstone thereafter. 'Regression' cane next in 2015 with Ethan Hawke but failed to make any kind of impression.
'Colonia' is up next for release in 2016 with Daniel Bruhl and Michael Nyqvist, with 'The Circle' currently filming with Tom Hanks. Then for 2017 there is a live action all star version of Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast' in production currently with Watson playing the lead female role of Belle.
All up Watson has 21 acting credits to her name, fifteen award wins and another 45 nominations. The gross Box Office take from the eight Harry Potter films she starred in stands at US$7.7B. In May 2014 Watson graduated from Brown's University on Rhode Island with a Bachelor's Degree in English Literature, and she is certified to teach Yoga and Meditation. She was the youngest star to grace the front cover of 'Teen Vogue' in 2005; she was the face of 'Burberry' in 2009, and appeared promoting their 2010 collection; she was awarded a Style Icon by 'Elle'; in 2011 she became the face of 'Lancome'; and in 2014 she was awarded Best British Style at the British Fashion Awards. She is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and is every active in promoting women's rights and feminism, and has done so at the highest political level, having addressed the UN in New York.
Emma Watson - forever ingrained in our minds as Hermione Grainger but nonetheless carving out a career beyond Harry Potter with critical acclaim more often than not; has achieved so much for all of her 26 years; is an outspoken activist for what she believes in; has already appeared in many 'Top Lists' often gaining a high ranking; and clearly has much to offer, is in demand, and is still only starting out. Happy Birthday to you Emma, from Odeon Online.
-Steve, at Odeon Online-
