Keira Knightley Facts

1) In 1985, Keira Christina Knightley (Keira Knightley) was born to parents Sharman Macdonald and Will Knightley in the town of Toddington in London, England.

She was a determined girl, and at the young age of three, she even asked her parents to get her an agent.

Keira Knightley Facts – Biography

2) Keira Knightley was diagnosed with the learning problem, dyslexia at the age of six.

Nonetheless, the intelligent young girl was able to successfully grasp the information and absorbed it well.

She pursued her education, and also began to develop her acting talent.

3) At the age of six, with her own agent, Knightley began to appear in commercials and made for television movies.

Throughout the 1990s, she played minor roles in films.

In 1999, she was cast in the science fiction hit movie, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

4) In the hit movie, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Knightley acted as fellow actress, Natalie Portman’s decoy.

She was chosen for this role because of the strong resemblance actresses have.

It was said that even the girls’ mothers were unable to tell them apart when they were in full costume.

5) Knightley starred in the made for television movie, Princess of Thieves in 2001.

The role required her to undergo weeks of training in archery, horse riding, and fencing.

Keira Knightley worked hard to do well in this role.

6) Keira Knightley finally made it to the big screen with her role in the movie, Bend it Like Beckham as the main character’s best friend.

The ease of her acting style and charming good looks attracted a lot of critical attention, and it was not soon after that she was cast in her next big role in the first movie of the series of Pirates of the Caribbean.

This movie is what made Knightley the new actress that Hollywood had to have.

7) Keira Knightley began starring in a variety of films, including romantic comedies.

However, she is most popular for playing roles in period drama films.

Her facial structure and elegant acting skills have made her a top actress for playing characters from past eras.

Some of her successful films include the classic, Pride and Prejudice and Atonement.

8) The English actress has received many Academy Award nominations and Golden Globe nominations for her spectacular performances as leading and supporting actress in many movies.

9) Knightley coincidentally was a big fan of the classic piece of fiction, Pride and Prejudice since she was a little girl.

With her first hefty pay check, Knightley bought a dollhouse replica of the hero’s mansion.

She received rave reviews for her role as Elizabeth in the movie adaptation of the novel.

Knightley explains that this was because she was able to connect with the character even before going on screen or reading the script.

10) In the film, Edge of Love, Knightley was asked to sing for her role.

She had initially expected that she would be dubbed over or would have to lip sync a pre-recorded version of the song.

Surprisingly to Knightley, this was not the case, and she was asked to sing in front of the cast and crew members.

She claims that she was very afraid and nervous.

However, her original voice was used in the film.

11) Success does not always come first.

There have been roles that Keira has rejected because they go against what she is morally comfortable doing.

The movie, The Dangerous Method was almost refused by the actress due to some scenes which she believed to be too explicit.

12) Knightley has had her share of negative media.

In a story by the Daily Mail, she was accused of influencing a young girl to become anorexic, who later died due to the condition.

Although anorexia does run in her family, Knightley has repeatedly denied any accusations of being anorexic.

She successfully sued the Daily Mail for the false story they had printed, and donated the money she won to a charity that dealt with eating disorders.

13) Knightley’s philanthropic work has included donating funds to international relief funds and supporting medical research for sick children.

In 2009, Knightley starred in a video that was made to create awareness about domestic abuse.

The movie was both criticized and admired for the scenes used.

It was praised for its truthful depiction of domestic abuse.

14) Forbes magazine recorded Knightley as being the second most paid actress in Hollywood of 2008.

She had earned a total of US$ 32 million in the previous year.

She was the only non-American actress to have achieved a position on the list that year.

15) The English actress has certainly found her place amongst Hollywood film makers and North American moviegoers.

She is loved by many and her movies are watched loyally by many fans, regardless of the genre or the media attention the movie receives.

Her hard work and dedication have brought her immense success, both in the US and the UK.

16) Keira Knightley’s acting talent is no surprise to her family.

Her mother was an actress and later switched to writing plays.

Her father, Will Knightley was also an actor.

She has an older brother Caleb, who is six years her senior.

The Knightley family has been deeply immersed in the film industry.

17) Knightley’s dyslexia created many issues for her, but as a young child, she worked very hard to overcome any drawbacks of the learning disability.

She has issues reading and writing.

However, with due diligence and strong support by her family and older brother, she was able to work through the process and by her early teens, she no longer suffered from the problem.

18) Keira Knightley trains hard for her roles.

In 2004, she has been given a role to play in the movie, King Arthur.

She trained hard for three months, working four days a week in preparation for the tough skills the movie’s character required.

She practiced weightlifting, boxing and horse riding for hours each day.

19) She is not afraid to take risks.

She auditioned for the movie adaptation of the Broadway play, The Phantom of the Opera even though she knew she could not sing that well.

She later described the experience as one of her most embarrassing moments, but does not regret trying out for the role.

20) Unlike many actresses her age, Knightley does not have a history of romantic relationships.

She keeps her private life as ‘private’ as possible and has had limited boyfriends.

She dated her Pride and Prejudice co-star, Rupert Friend, for 6 years.

She is now engaged to her boyfriend of 2 years, James Righton.