Jude Law's Early Life
David Jude Heywarth Law was born on December 29, 1972 in London, England, the son of two teachers, but was referred to by his middle name, Jude. While growing up in London, he developed an early interest in acting and the theater.
In 1987, he began acting with the National Youth Music Theatre and made his first West End appearance in Les Parents terribles, which earned him a nomination for a Laurence Olivier Award and a Tony Award nod for the Broadway production. His first on-screen appearance came in the 1989 TV film The Tailor of Gloucester.
Jude Law's Career
After a few more appearances in TV, film, and theater, he earned his big break in The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) opposite Matt Damon and Gwyneth Paltrow, earning him a BAFTA Award and nominations for a Golden Globe and an Oscar. He received similar acclaim in 2003 for another Anthony Minghella directorial, Cold Mountain opposite Renée Zellweger and Nicole Kidman, earning him second Golden Globe and Oscar nods.
His other prominent roles include the period drama Road to Perdition (2003), the romantic Alfie (2004), the Nancy Meyers rom-com The Holiday (2006), as Dr. Watson in 2009's Sherlock Holmes and 2011's Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, the ever-relevant Contagion (2011), spy comedy Spy (2015), HBO miniseries The Young Pope (2016), a young Albus Dumbledore in Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald (2016), and the MCU outing Captain Marvel (2019). His 2009 return to theater with Hamlet also earned significant acclaim.
Jude Law's Personal Life
While a prominent philanthropist and activist, Law prefers to keep his private life out of the spotlight. In 1997, he married his Shopping (1994) co-star Sadie Frost, with whom he welcomed two sons, Raff and Rudy, and daughter Iris, with Raff and Iris following in their parents' footsteps. Law and Frost divorced in 2003.
He and Alfie co-star Sienna Miller began dating at the end of 2003, announcing their engagement the following year. However, it went downhill when Law released an apology after cheating on her with his children's nanny, and they ended things in 2006. He has since welcomed children with model Samantha Burke and Catherine Harding, before tying the knot once again with Phillipa Coan in 2019, who gave birth to their two children (his sixth and seventh).
To learn more about Jude Law, click here
