Toby Stephens (born 21 April 1969) is a British actor who has appeared in films in the United Kingdom, United States and India. He is known for the roles of Bond villain Gustav Graves in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day, for which he was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor, William Gordon in the 2005 Mangal Pandey: The Rising film and Edward Fairfax Rochester in the 2006 BBC television adaptation of Jane Eyre. From 2014 to 2017, he starred as Captain Flint in the Starz television series Black Sails, followed by one of the lead roles in the Netflix science fiction series Lost in Space from 2018 to 2021. He has starred as the Greek God Poseidon in Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Toby Stephens | |
|---|---|
 Stephens in 2018 | |
| Born | 21 April 1969 London, England |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Chris Larkin (brother) |
Early life
edit
Stephens, the younger son of actors Dame Maggie Smith and Sir Robert Stephens, was born on 21 April 1969 at the Middlesex Hospital in Fitzrovia, London.[1] He was educated at Aldro School and Seaford College in West Sussex.[2][3] He then trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).[4]
Career
editStephens began his film career with the role of Othello in 1992, in Sally Potter's Orlando. He has since made regular appearances on television (including in The Camomile Lawn, 1992) and on stage.
He played the title role in a Royal Shakespeare Company production of Coriolanus shortly after graduation from LAMDA; that same season he played Claudio in Measure for Measure for the RSC. He played Stanley Kowalski in a West End production of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, and Hamlet in 2004. He has appeared on Broadway in Ring Round the Moon. He played the lead in the film Photographing Fairies and played Orsino in Trevor Nunn's 1996 film adaptation of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. In 2002, he took on the role of Gustav Graves in the James Bond film Die Another Day. Aged 33 at the time of film's release, he remains the youngest actor to have played a Bond villain.[5] The following year, he depicted British double-agent Kim Philby in the BBC miniseries Cambridge Spies, co-starring with Tom Hollander, Samuel West, and Rupert Penry-Jones.
In 2005, he played the role of a British Army captain in the Indian film, The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey, portraying events in the Indian rebellion of 1857. The following year he returned to India to play a renegade British East India Company officer in Sharpe's Challenge. In late 2006, he starred as Edward Rochester in the highly acclaimed BBC television adaptation of Jane Eyre (broadcast in the United States on PBS in early 2007) and The Wild West in February 2007 for the BBC in which he played General George Armstrong Custer in Custer's Last Stand.
During mid-2007, Stephens played the role of Jerry in a revival of Harold Pinter's Betrayal under the direction of Roger Michell. Later that year, Stephens starred as Horner in Jonathan Kent's revival of William Wycherley's The Country Wife. The play was the inaugural production of the Theatre Royal Haymarket Company.[6]
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In February 2008, the Fox Broadcasting Company gave the go-ahead to cast Stephens as the lead in a potential one hour, prime time US television show, Inseparable, to be produced by Shaun Cassidy. Billed as a modern Jekyll and Hyde story, the show was to feature a partially paralysed forensic psychologist whose other personality is a charming criminal. Stephens' casting was highly unusual, because Fox had not yet approved a script nor purchased a pilot for the show. However, in mid-May 2008, The Hollywood Reporter announced that "[b]y the time the network picked up the pilot (...) [the producers'] hold on Stephens had expired (...)"[7][8]
In May 2008, Stephens performed the role of James Bond in a BBC Radio 4 production of Ian Fleming's Dr. No, as part of the centenary celebration of Fleming's birth. The production was reportedly the first BBC radio dramatisation of the novel though Moonraker was on South African radio in 1956, with Bob Holness providing the voice of Bond.[9] He has since appeared in a number of adaptations of other James Bond novels.
Also in May 2008, Stock-pot Productions announced that Stephens will have the lead role in a feature-length film entitled Fly Me, co-starring Tim McInnerny.[10] Stock-pot was the producer of One Day, a short 2006 film shown at international film festivals, in which Stephens played a small part as the boss of McInnerny's character.
On 5 October 2008, Stephens appeared onstage at the London Palladium as part of a benefit entitled "The Story of James Bond, A Tribute to Ian Fleming". The event, organised by Fleming's niece, Lucy Fleming, featured music from various James Bond films and Bond film stars reading from Fleming's Bond novels. Stephens took the part of James Bond himself in the readings.
In early December 2008, Stephens read from Coda, the last book written by friend Simon Gray, for BBC Radio 4. The excerpts from which Stephens read included Gray's description of his participation as godfather at the christening of Stephens' son Eli.
Early in 2009, Stephens appeared as Prince John in season 3 of the BBC series Robin Hood. The series aired on BBC America in the United States. Stephens appeared in two episodes of a six-part television series, Strike Back, based on the novel by Chris Ryan.[11] The series aired in May 2010.
In mid-2009, Stephens returned to the London stage in the Donmar Warehouse production of Ibsen's A Doll's House alongside Gillian Anderson and Christopher Eccleston.[12]
In 2010, he starred in the made-for-television film The Blue Geranium, a further sequel to the television series and films based on Agatha Christie's Miss Marple character.[13] The show was broadcast in the US on PBS in June 2010. Stephens starred as a highly self-centred detective opposite Lucy Punch in a three-part comedy television series for BBC Two entitled Vexed.[14]
Stephens took on a small supporting role in a short film, The Lost Explorer, the directorial debut of photographer Tim Walker. The film is based on a short story by author Patrick McGrath.[15]
On the London stage in the spring of 2010, Stephens received outstanding reviews for his performance as Henry in a revival of Tom Stoppard's The Real Thing, directed by Anna Mackmin at the Old Vic Theatre in London.[16] Of debuting at the Old Vic, where his parents performed as part of Laurence Olivier's Royal National Theatre Company, Stephens said: "It's quite moving for me to do something there. It means it has an added fascination. It was an historic place but I never saw anything when [my parents] were there, which is really sad, because I was just born. I'm a huge admirer of Stoppard's work."[17]
In 2010, Stephens appeared as Georges Danton in Danton's Death. The play was another debut for Stephens, this time at London's Royal National Theatre.[18][19]
Over the years, Stephens has continued to prolifically narrate audiobooks and perform in broadcast radio dramas. In January 2011, Stephens joined other stars in narrating portions of the King James Version of the Bible for BBC Radio 4 as part of a celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Bible's publication. Stephens performed the role of Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe in a radio serial, which debuted in February 2011. Stephens narrated another audiobook, Paul Temple and the Geneva Mystery, released in February 2011.
From 2014 to 2017, Stephens starred as Captain James Flint in the Starz television series Black Sails, a prequel to Treasure Island, set in the early 18th century during the Golden Age of Piracy.[20]
In 2016, he was cast as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair in the film The Journey.[21]
Between 2018 and 2021, he appeared as John Robinson in Lost in Space, the Netflix remake of the 1965 TV series.[22] In 2021, he featured as Damian Cray in the second season of Alex Rider.[23]
He appeared as the Greek God Poseidon in the series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, the Disney+ adaption of the books by the same name.[24]
Personal life
editStephens and New Zealand-born actress Anna-Louise Plowman were married in 2001. Their first child, a son, was born in 2007.[25] The British playwright Simon Gray (who wrote Japes, a stage play, and Missing Dates, a radio drama, both of which starred Stephens) was reported to be Eli's godfather.[26] Their daughters were born in 2009[27] and 2010, respectively.[28]
Plowman and Stephens performed together as Sibyl and Elyot in Jonathan Kent's revival of Private Lives – the Noël Coward play in which his mother starred in 1975 on Broadway – for the 2012 Chichester Festival,[29] reprised at the Gielgud Theatre in 2013.[30][31]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Orlando | Othello | |
| 1996 | Twelfth Night | Duke Orsino | |
| 1997 | Photographing Fairies | Charles Castle | |
| 1998 | Cousin Bette | Victorin Hulot | |
| 1999 | Onegin | Vladimir Lensky | |
| 1999 | Sunset Heights | Luke Bradley | |
| 2000 | The Announcement | Ross | |
| 2000 | Space Cowboys | Young Frank | |
| 2001 | Possession | Fergus Wolfe | |
| 2002 | Die Another Day | Gustav Graves | |
| 2004 | Terkel in Trouble | Justin (voice) | English dub |
| 2005 | Midsummer Dream | Demetrius (voice) | English dub |
| 2005 | Mangal Pandey: The Rising | Captain William Gordon | |
| 2006 | Dark Corners | Dr Woodleigh | |
| 2006 | Severance | Harris | |
| 2013 | Believe | Dr. Farquar | |
| 2013 | All Things to All Men | Riley | |
| 2013 | The Machine | Vincent McCarthy | |
| 2016 | 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi | Glen "Bub" Doherty | |
| 2016 | The Journey | Tony Blair | |
| 2018 | Hunter Killer | Lt. Bill Beaman | |
| TBD | The Morrigan | Malachy Crowley | |
| TBD | The Severed Sun | TBD | |
| TBD | The Split | Archie Moore | 2 part special |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | The Camomile Lawn | Oliver | |
| 1996 | The Tenant of Wildfell Hall | Gilbert Markham | |
| 2000 | The Great Gatsby | Jay Gatsby | |
| 2001 | Perfect Strangers | Charles | |
| 2002 | Napoléon | Tsar Alexander I | |
| 2003 | Essential Byron | Reader | |
| 2003 | Cambridge Spies | Kim Philby | |
| 2003 | Agatha Christie's Poirot | Philip Blake | Episode S9:E1 Five Little Pigs |
| 2004 | London | Casanova | |
| 2005 | Waking the Dead | Dr Nick Henderson | Episodes: "Subterraneans Part I" and "Subterraneans II" |
| 2005 | The Queen's Sister | Anthony Armstrong-Jones | |
| 2006 | The Best Man | Peter Tremaine | |
| 2006 | Secrets of the Dead: The Umbrella Assassin | Narrator (voice) | Episode: An account of the murder of Georgi Markov |
| 2006 | Sharpe's Challenge | William Dodd | |
| 2006 | Jane Eyre | Edward Fairfax Rochester | |
| 2007 | The Wild West – Custer's Last Stand | General George Armstrong Custer | |
| 2008 | Wired | Crawford Hill | |
| 2009 | The Best Job in the World | Narrator (voice) | |
| 2009 | Robin Hood | Prince John of England | 3 episodes |
| 2010 | Strike Back | Arlington | |
| 2010 | Lost: The Mystery of Flight 447 | Narrator (voice) | |
| 2010 | Agatha Christie's Marple The Blue Geranium | George Pritchard | |
| 2010–2012 | Vexed | Jack Armstrong | |
| 2012 | Law & Order: UK | Prof. Martin Middlebrook | Episode: "Trial" |
| 2012 | Lewis | David Connelly | Episode: "Generation of Vipers" |
| 2014–2017 | Black Sails | James McGraw / Flint | 38 episodes |
| 2015 | And Then There Were None | Dr. Edward Armstrong | |
| 2018–2021 | Lost in Space | John Robinson | 28 episodes |
| 2019 | Summer of Rockets | Samuel Petrukhin | |
| 2021 | Alex Rider | Damian Cray | 6 episodes |
| 2022 | Prisoner C33 | Oscar Wilde | |
| 2023 | Six Four | Piers Fields-Turner | 2 episodes |
| 2023 | Dodger | President Van Buren | Episode: "Coronation" |
| 2024 | Percy Jackson and the Olympians | Poseidon | 2 episodes[24] |
| 2024 | McDonald & Dodds | Mark Holgate | Episode: "The Rule of Three" |
| 2024 | One Day | Lionel | Episode 1.9 |
| 2024 | Batman: Caped Crusader | Gentleman Ghost / James "Jim" Craddock (voice) | [32] |
| TBD | A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story | TBD |
Video games
edit| Year | Title | Voice role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 007 Legends | Gustav Graves | Also likeness |
Theatre
editRadio drama and audio books
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Time and the Conways | Robin | |
| 1995 | The Prince's Choice | Coriolanus, Hamlet, Henry V, Henry IV and Edward Poins | |
| 1997 | As You Like It | Orlando | |
| 1997 | The Lifted Veil | Latimer | |
| 1997 | The Guns of Navarone | Mallory | |
| 1997 | Birdsong | ||
| 1997 | Anna Karenina | Count Vronsky | |
| 1998 | Troy | Achilles | |
| 1999 | Tales from the Arabian Nights | Narrator | |
| 1999 | Macbeth | Macbeth | |
| 2000 | Conversations with Napoleon | Reader | |
| 2001 | King Lear | Edmund | |
| 2001 | On the Road | Narrator | |
| 2002 | The Riddle of the Sands | Narrator | |
| 2002 | The Woman in White | Walter Hartright | |
| 2002 | Aeneid | Aeneas | |
| 2003 | Dionysos | Pentheus, King of Thebes | |
| 2004 | Will in the World | Reader | |
| 2005 | Much Ado About Nothing | Benedick | |
| 2006 | Shylock | Bassanio | |
| 2007 | Heart of Darkness | Narrator | |
| 2007 | Flashman on the March | Narrator | |
| 2008 | Flashman and the Dragon | Narrator | |
| 2008 | Missing Dates | Jason (Japes) | |
| 2008 | The Good Soldier | Narrator | |
| 2008 | Dr. No | James Bond | |
| 2008 | Let's Murder Vivaldi | Ben | |
| 2008 | Coda | Simon Gray | |
| 2008–2009 | The Dark Flower | Narrator | |
| 2009 | My Dark Places | James Ellroy | |
| 2009 | Journey into Space: The Host | Jet | |
| 2009 | King Solomon's Mines | Narrator | |
| 2009 | Becket | King Henry II | [33] |
| 2010 | Dick Barton Special Agent: The Mystery of the Missing Formula | Narrator | |
| 2010 | Goldfinger | James Bond | |
| 2010 | No Place Like Home | Jonathan | |
| 2011 | King James Version of the Bible | Narrator | |
| 2011 | Paul Temple and the Geneva Mystery | Narrator | |
| 2011 | Paul Temple and the Margo Mystery | Narrator | |
| 2011 | Paul Temple Intervenes | Narrator | |
| 2011 | The Lady in the Lake | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | The Big Sleep | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | Farewell, My Lovely | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | Playback | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | Carte Blanche | Narrator | |
| 2011 | The Long Goodbye | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | The High Window | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | The Little Sister | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2011 | Poodle Springs | Philip Marlowe | |
| 2012 | From Russia, with Love | James Bond | |
| 2014 | On Her Majesty's Secret Service | James Bond | |
| 2015 | Diamonds Are Forever | James Bond | |
| 2016 | Thunderball | James Bond | |
| 2018 | Moonraker | James Bond | |
| 2018 | Sea of Thieves: Athena's Fortune | Narrator | |
| 2019 | Live and Let Die | James Bond | |
| 2020 | The Man with the Golden Gun | James Bond |
Awards
edit- 1992—Ian Charleson Award Second Prize: for Bertram in All's Well That Ends Well (Swan Theatre)[34]
- 1994—Ian Charleson Award (best classical actor under 30): for Coriolanus in Coriolanus (Royal Shakespeare Company)[35]
- 1994—Sir John Gielgud Award (best actor): for Coriolanus in Coriolanus (Royal Shakespeare Company)
- 1999—Theatre World Award (debut performance on Broadway): for Hugo/Frederick in Ring Round the Moon (Lincoln Center Theater)
References
edit- ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
- ^ Anita Singh (7 July 2015). "Dame Maggie Smith's son: 'Stop calling me posh'". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
- ^ Tim Walker (21 May 2009). "Toby Stephens: Being born into the theatre was a mixed blessing". The Telegraph. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
- ^ "2011 : APPEARANCES". toby-stephens.tumblr.com. 3 February 2014. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- ^ Ivan-Zadeh, Larushka (20 March 2014). "Black Sails actor Toby Stephens: Most British scripts you get sent are just awful". Metro. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- ^ David Benedict, "Theatre Royal Haymarket Gambles", Variety, 23 July 2007, online edition. [1]
- ^ Nellie Andreeva, "Busy Pre-upfront Weekend", The Hollywood Reporter, 10 May 2008, updated 11 May 2008, Online edition. [2]
- ^ "Pilot Buzz", zap2it, 12 May 2008
- ^ "Bob Holness on Game Shows". Retrieved 14 September 2007.
- ^ Stock-pot Productions Limited, Blog, 27 May 2008 Archived 21 April 2006 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Dan French, "Richard Armitage for Sky1's 'Strike Back'", "Digital Spy", 24 August 2009 [3]
- ^ Spencer, Charles (20 May 2009). "A Doll's House, at the Donmar Warehouse – review". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 April 2014. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- ^ "Julia McKenzie returns as the fictional sleuth Miss Marple, in her seventh film The Blue Geranium for ITV1", ITV.com, 21 January 2010 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 31 January 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2010.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Katherine Rushton, "Greenlit Gets First BBC Order with Cop Comedy", "Broadcast", 23 July 2009 [4]
- ^ "Sam Elliott Connor, "The Lost Explorer," "Dazed & Confused," May 2010". Archived from the original on 4 March 2012.
- ^ Leo Benedictus, "What to say about...The Real Thing", "The Guardian", 23 April 2010 [5]
- ^ Louise Jury, "Toby's emotional debut for classic Stoppard play", London Evening Standard, 7 December 2009. "Toby's emotional debut for classic Stoppard play | News". Archived from the original on 13 December 2009. Retrieved 22 December 2009.
- ^ "Slumdog's Danny Boyle Returns to the Stage as Frankenstein," Theatre News, London Evening Standard, 21 January 2010. [6]
- ^ Terri Paddock, "20 Questions with... Toby Stephens," whatsonstage.com 19 November 2001. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 21 January 2010. Retrieved 23 January 2010.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Andreeva, Nellie (13 September 2012). "Toby Stephens Set As The Lead In Starz's Michael Bay-Produced Series 'Black Sails'". Deadline. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
- ^ McNary, Dave (10 September 2015). "Toronto: John Hurt, Toby Stephens, Freddie Highmore Join 'The Journey'". Variety. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (20 September 2016). "Toby Stephens To Topline 'Lost in Space' Netflix Remake, Maxwell Jenkins To Co-Star". deadline.com. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "'Lost in Space' dad Toby Stephens turns baddie for 'Alex Rider'". Boston Herald. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
- ^ a b Otterson, Joe (26 January 2023). "'Percy Jackson' Disney+ Series Casts Lance Reddick, Toby Stephens (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
- ^ Lawson, Mark (31 May 2007), "Prodigal Son", The Guardian (online ed.).
- ^ Janice Turner, "Simon Gray Has Lung Cancer But Won't Stop Smoking"[dead link], The Times, 24 April 2008, Online edition.
- ^ Tim Walker, "Toby Stephens: Being born into the theatre was a mixed blessing," The Daily Telegraph, 21 May 2009, Online edition.
- ^ "Maggie Smith's Grandchildren: Everything To Know About Her 5 Grandkids Maggie Smith has five grandchildren all under the age of 18 between her two sons". hollywoodlife.com. 10 May 2022.
- ^ Michael Billington (30 September 2012). "Private Lives – Minerva, Chichester". The Guardian.
- ^ Louise Jury; Josh Pettitt (4 July 2013). "It's odd kissing Toby Stephens with his wife in the cast, says Private Lives actress Anna Chancellor". Evening Standard.
- ^ Paul Taylor (4 July 2013). "Theatre review: Private Lives". The Independent.
- ^ https://x.com/ToonHive/status/1815415716650139856 [bare URL]
- ^ BBC Press Office (28 August 2009). "Classic stage plays and adaptations of major works of fiction at the heart of new drama season on Radio 3". Press release. Retrieved on 28 August 2009.
- ^ "Prized Performances". Sunday Times. 21 February 1993.
- ^ Fowler, Rebecca. "Ribands in the cap of youth". Sunday Times. 12 March 1995.
Interviews and articles
edit- The Independent – It'll Be All Right on the Night (27 March 1994)
- The New York Times – It's Not Romantic or Oedipal: It's Just the Family Business (24 April 1999)
- The Times – My Cultural Life[dead link] (23 November 2002)
- The Sunday Telegraph – Villain with a Past (16 December 2002)
- San Francisco Chronicle – Traitor? It's No Easy Gig (19 October 2003)
- Stephens on Hamlet, Essay for RSC Website (2004)
- The Times – Interview: Toby Stephens (4 July 2004)
- The Telegraph – The Perils of Being Posh on TV (16 March 2006)
- The Independent – Toby Stephens: My Life in Travel (18 March 2006)
- The Times – Every Woman Has Her Own Idea of Mr. Rochester[dead link] (29 August 2006)
- The Guardian – Prodigal Son (31 May 2007)
- The Times – Mr. Rochester Takes His Bow[dead link] (3 September 2007)
- The Evening Standard – Restoring His Humour (2 October 2007)
- Angel & North – Charming Chameleon (2007)
- SFX – Meet the New James Bond (20 May 2008)
- BBC Press Office – Robin Hood returns to BBC One (27 March 2009)
- The Daily Telegraph – Being Born into the Theatre was a Mixed Blessing (21 May 2009)
- The Times – Diary: Toby Stephens[dead link] (20 June 2009)
- London Evening Standard – Toby Stephens to Face Family History at Old Vic (23 March 2010)
- The Times – Toby Stephens: Of course I'd act with my mother[dead link] (1 April 2010)
- The Spectator – Silencing the Voices (17 July 2010)
- The Guardian – This much I know: Toby Stephens (18 July 2010)
- OfficialLondonTheatre.com – The Big Interview: Toby Stephens (28 July 2010)