1960–1979: Theatre roles and film debut Hopkins made his first professional stage appearance in the
Palace Theatre, Swansea, in 1960 with Swansea Little Theatre's production of
Have a Cigarette. In 1965, after several years in repertory, he was spotted by
Laurence Olivier, who invited him to join the
Royal National Theatre in London. Hopkins became Olivier's
understudy, and filled in when Olivier was struck with
appendicitis during a 1967 production of
August Strindberg's
The Dance of Death. Olivier noted in his memoir,
Confessions of an Actor, that, "A new young actor in the company of exceptional promise named Anthony Hopkins was understudying me and walked away with the part of Edgar like a cat with a mouse between its teeth." Up until that night, Hopkins was always nervous prior to going on stage. This has since changed, and Hopkins quoted his mentor as saying: "He [Olivier] said: 'Remember: "nerves" is vanity – you're wondering what people think of you; to hell with them, just jump off the edge'. It was great advice." Hopkins made his small-screen debut in a 1967
BBC broadcast of
A Flea in Her Ear. His first starring role in a film came in 1964 in
Changes, a short directed by
Drewe Henley, written and produced by
James Scott and co-starring
Jacqueline Pearce. In 1968, Hopkins got his break in
The Lion in Winter playing
Richard the Lionheart, a performance which saw him nominated for the
BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Hopkins portrayed
Charles Dickens in the BBC television film
The Great Inimitable Mr. Dickens in 1970, and
Pierre Bezukhov in the BBC's mini series
War and Peace (1972), receiving the
British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his performance in the latter. Making a name for himself as a screen actor, he appeared in
Frank Pierson's
neo-noir action thriller The Looking Glass War (1970), and
Étienne Périer's
When Eight Bells Toll (1971). The first of five collaborations with director
Richard Attenborough, in 1972 Hopkins starred as British politician
David Lloyd George in
Young Winston. Hopkins starred in a film adaptation of the
Henrik Ibsen play ''
A Doll's House (1973) alongside Claire Bloom, Ralph Richardson, Denholm Elliott, and Edith Evans. He then appeared in the comedy The Girl from Petrovka (1974) with Goldie Hawn and Hal Holbrook and also starred in the Richard Lester suspense film Juggernaut'' opposite
Richard Harris and
Omar Sharif. In October 1974, Hopkins played the psychologist Dysart in the original Broadway production of Sir
Peter Shaffer's play
Equus, starring opposite
Peter Firth. For this performance, he received the
Drama Desk Award for
Outstanding Actor in a Play for the 1974–75 season. In 1977, he played British Army officer
John Frost in Attenborough's World War II-set film
A Bridge Too Far. In 1978, he starred in the sequel to
National Velvet (1944), entitled
International Velvet with
Tatum O'Neal,
Christopher Plummer, which was directed by
Bryan Forbes. That same year, he also starred in Attenborough's psychological horror film
Magic about a demonic ventriloquist's puppet with
Gene Siskel adding it as one of the best films of the year. In 1979, Hopkins appeared as Prospero in a production of
The Tempest held at the
Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.
1980–1989: National Theatre and acclaim in
The Elephant Man (1980). In 1980, he starred in
David Lynch's
The Elephant Man as the English doctor
Sir Frederick Treves, who attends to
Joseph Merrick (portrayed by
John Hurt), a severely deformed man in 19th century London. The film received critical praise and attention from critics and received eight
Academy Award nominations including for
Best Picture. That year he also starred opposite
Shirley MacLaine in
A Change of Seasons. They famously did not get along; Hopkins later called her "the most obnoxious actress I have ever worked with". The film was a box office and critical failure. In 1981, he starred in the
CBS television film
The Bunker portraying
Adolf Hitler during the final weeks of his life in and around his underground bunker in Berlin. John O'Connor praised Hopkins in his
New York Times review: "The portrait becomes all the more riveting through an extraordinarily powerful performance from Anthony Hopkins. His Hitler is mad, often contemptible, but always understandable. Part of the problem, perhaps, is that the monster becomes a little too understandable. He is not made sympathetic, exactly, but he is given decidedly pathetic dimensions, making him just that much more
acceptable as a dramatic and historical character." For his performance, he received a
Primetime Emmy Award for
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie. That same year he starred as
Paul the Apostle opposite
Robert Foxworth as
Saint Peter in the biblical drama and miniseries
Peter and Paul (1981). In 1983, Hopkins also became a company member of
The Mirror Theater Ltd's Repertory Company. In 1984, he portrayed Deeley in
Harold Pinter's play
Old Times at the
Roundabout Theatre in New York. In 1984, he starred opposite
Mel Gibson in
The Bounty as
William Bligh, captain of the Royal Navy ship , in a more accurate retelling of the
mutiny on the Bounty. The following year, he starred as
Quasimodo in the CBS television film
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1982). The film also starred
Derek Jacobi,
David Suchet,
Tim Pigott-Smith,
Nigel Hawthorne, and
John Gielgud. He also starred in
Strangers and Brothers (1984),
Arch of Triumph (1984),
Guilty Conscience (1985),
Mussolini and I (1985), and
The Tenth Man (1988). In 1985, Hopkins starred opposite
Colin Firth in the
Arthur Schnitzler play
The Lonely Road at
The Old Vic in London. That same year, he featured as Lambert Le Roux in the
National Theatre production of
Pravda in Sir
David Hare and
Howard Brenton's satirical play on the British newspaper industry in the
Thatcher era. Receiving acclaim for his performance, Hopkins won the
Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement.
Frank Rich in his
New York Times review wrote, "Mr. Hopkins creates a memorable image of a perversely brilliant modern-day barbarian." He played the Soviet spy
Guy Burgess in the BBC film
Blunt: the Fourth Man (1986) opposite
Ian Richardson as
Anthony Blunt, fellow spy and Surveyor of The King's Pictures. In 1986 he starred in David Hare's production of
King Lear, Hopkins's favourite
Shakespeare play, at the National Theatre. Director
Jonathan Demme wanted a British actor for the role, with Foster stating, "Lecter is a manipulator and has a way of using language to keep people at bay. You wanted to see that Shakespearean monster." At the time he was offered the role, Hopkins was making a return to the London stage, performing in
M. Butterfly. He had come back to Britain after living for a number of years in Hollywood, having all but given up on a career there, saying, "Well that part of my life's over; it's a chapter closed. I suppose I'll just have to settle for being a respectable actor poncing around the West End and doing respectable BBC work for the rest of my life." The following year, Hopkins was featured in
Mark Joffe's film
Spotswood and the science fiction film
Freejack and also played supporting roles as
Charlie Chaplin's biographer in
Richard Attenborough's biographical drama
Chaplin (1992) and
Professor Van Helsing in
Francis Ford Coppola's horror adaptation ''
Bram Stoker's Dracula'' (1992). In 1992, Hopkins starred in
Merchant-Ivory's period film based on the
E. M. Forster novel
Howards End. Hopkins acted alongside
Emma Thompson and
Helena Bonham Carter where he played the cold businessman Henry Wilcox. The film received enormous critical acclaim, with critic
Leonard Maltin calling it "extraordinarily good on every level". The following year, Hopkins reunited with Merchant-Ivory and Emma Thompson in
The Remains of the Day (1993), a film set in 1950s post-war Britain based on the novel by
Kazuo Ishiguro. David Hunter of
The Hollywood Reporter praised Hopkins's performance describing it as "colossal" and a "tour de force". The film was ranked by the
British Film Institute as the
64th greatest British film of the 20th century. Starring as the butler Stevens, Hopkins named it among his favourite films. He was nominated for an
Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance and received the
BAFTA Award for Best Actor. Hopkins portrayed Oxford academic
C. S. Lewis in the 1993 British biographical film
Shadowlands, for which he was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Actor. Hopkins was Britain's highest-paid performer in 1998, starring in
The Mask of Zorro and
Meet Joe Black, and also agreed to reprise his role as Hannibal Lecter for a fee of
£15 million.
2000–2015: Established actor In 2000, Hopkins narrated
Ron Howard's live action remake of
How the Grinch Stole Christmas. He then reprised the role of
Hannibal Lecter in
The Silence of the Lambs sequel simply entitled
Hannibal (2001). Director
Ridley Scott and actress
Julianne Moore replaced Jonathan Demme and Jodie Foster who declined to participate in the sequel. Hopkins, who previously starred with Moore in
Surviving Picasso (1996), agreed to do the role approving of the script. In the book, Lecter uses bandages to disguise himself as a
plastic surgery patient. This was left out of the film because Scott and Hopkins agreed to leave the face alone. Hopkins said: "It's as if he's making a statement—'catch me if you can'. With his big hat, he's so obvious that nobody thinks he's Hannibal Lecter. I've always thought he's a very elegant man, a
Renaissance man.": When the film moves to the U.S., Hopkins changed his appearance by building up muscle and cropping his hair short "to make him like a mercenary, that he would be so fit and so strong that he could just snap somebody in two if they got ... in his way". but received mixed reviews from critics. Hopkins starred in the third film in the series
Red Dragon (2002) alongside
Ralph Fiennes,
Edward Norton,
Harvey Keitel,
Emily Watson, and
Philip Seymour Hoffman. The film received generally favourable reviews and was a box office hit. In 2003, Hopkins received a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame. Hopkins stated that his role as
Burt Munro, whom he portrayed in his 2005 film ''
The World's Fastest Indian'', was his favourite. He also asserted that Munro was the easiest role that he had played because both men have a similar outlook on life. In 2006, Hopkins was the recipient of the
Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement. In 2008, he received the
BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award, the highest award the
British Film Academy can bestow. In a 2003 poll conducted by
Channel 4, Hopkins was ranked seventh on their list of the
100 Greatest Movie Stars. On 24 February 2010, it was announced that Hopkins had been cast in
The Rite, which was released on 28 January 2011. He played a priest who is "an expert in exorcisms and whose methods are not necessarily traditional". Hopkins, an agnostic who is quoted as saying "I don't know what I believe, myself personally", reportedly wrote a line—"Some days I don't know if I believe in God or Santa Claus or Tinkerbell"—into his character to identify with it. In 2011, Hopkins said, "what I enjoy is uncertainty. ... I don't know. You don't know." On 21 September 2011,
Peter R. de Vries cast Hopkins in the role of the
Heineken owner
Freddy Heineken, in the film about his kidnapping,
Kidnapping Freddy Heineken (2015). Hopkins portrayed
Odin, the Allfather or "king" of Asgard, in the 2011 film adaptation of Marvel Comics's
Thor and would go on to reprise his role as Odin in
Thor: The Dark World in 2013, and again in 2017's
Thor: Ragnarok. Hopkins portrayed
Alfred Hitchcock in
Sacha Gervasi's biopic
Hitchcock alongside
Helen Mirren who played Hitchcock's wife,
Alma Reville. The film focuses on the filming of
Psycho and that which followed. He starred in the comedy action film
Red 2 (2013) as the main antagonist Edward Bailey. In 2014, he portrayed
Methuselah in
Darren Aronofsky's
Noah. Hopkins played
Order of the Witwiccans member Sir Edmund Burton in
Transformers: The Last Knight which was released in June 2017. In October 2015, Hopkins appeared as Sir in a
BBC Two production of
Ronald Harwood's
The Dresser, alongside
Ian McKellen,
Edward Fox and
Emily Watson.
The Dresser is set in a London theatre during
the Blitz, where an aging actor-manager, Sir, prepares for his starring role in
King Lear with the help of his devoted dresser, Norman.
Vulture stated the film "capture[d] the heart of the classic Shakespeare tragedy" and described Hopkins's performance as "devastating". In 2019, Hopkins portrayed
Pope Benedict XVI opposite
Jonathan Pryce as
Pope Francis in
Fernando Meirelles'
The Two Popes. He stated, "The great treasure was working with – apart from [director] Meirelles – Pryce. We're both from Wales. He's from the north, and I'm from the south". The film is set in the
Vatican City in the aftermath of the
Vatican leaks scandal and follows Pope Benedict XVI as he attempts to convince
Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio to reconsider his decision to resign as an archbishop as he confides his own intentions to
abdicate the papacy. In August 2019, the film premiered at the
Telluride Film Festival to critical acclaim. The film started streaming on 20 December 2019, by
Netflix. The performances of Pryce and Hopkins, as well as McCarten's screenplay, received high praise from critics, and all three men received nominations for their work at the
Academy Awards,
Golden Globes and
British Academy Film Awards. The film also stars
Olivia Colman as his daughter. It is based on a
Tony Award nominated play
Le Père by
Florian Zeller, who also directed the film.
The Father was released on 18 December 2020 by
Sony Pictures Classics. In a Q&A at the
Telluride Film Festival Hopkins praised both Colman and Zeller saying comparing the working experience saying it "might've been the highlight of my life". Hopkins mentioned how lucky he has been over the past five years working with
Ian McKellen in
The Dresser,
Emma Thompson in
King Lear, and
Jonathan Pryce in
The Two Popes. Hopkins won the
BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his performance in
The Father, making it his fourth BAFTA and his third for Best Actor. He also won a second
Academy Award for Best Actor for his role, becoming the oldest person to win an acting Oscar. Hopkins did not attend the Oscars ceremony, but accepted the award in a video posted on social media, from Wales, the following day, saying: "Here I am in my homeland in Wales. And at 83 years of age, I did not expect to get this award. I really didn't and am very grateful to the Academy and thank you." He also paid tribute to fellow nominee
Chadwick Boseman, who had died the previous year. In 2022, he acted in
James Gray's semi-autobiographical coming of age drama
Armageddon Time (2023). In an interview with
El País he said that his performance was inspired by his grandfather who had encouraged him to become an actor. Hopkins starred alongside
Jeremy Strong and
Anne Hathaway. Hopkins received positive reviews for his turn as a kindly elderly grandfather.
A. O. Scott of
The New York Times wrote, "Hopkins finds the essential grit hiding underneath the twinkle". That same year he reunited with
Florian Zeller, acting in
The Son (2022) alongside
Hugh Jackman. In 2023, Hopkins starred as stockbroker and humanitarian Sir
Nicholas Winton in the biographical drama film
One Life, and also played
Sigmund Freud in ''
Freud's Last Session. Hopkins also appeared in the Netflix science fiction film Rebel Moon directed by Zack Snyder. In 2024, Hopkins portrayed Herod the Great in the Netflix film Mary''. == Other activities ==