Movies on the blog: Alyson Stoner: Rosamund Pike

Rosamund Mary E Pike (born 27 January 1979) is an English actress. She first came to attention at age 23 for playing Bond girl Miranda Frost in Die Another Day (2002). Her first screen credit was in 1998 for the television film A Rather English Marriage. She won the BIFA Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2004 for The Libertine and also received BIFA nominations for her performances as Helen in An Education (2009) and Lisa in Made in Dagenham (2010). Other film appearances include Pride & Prejudice (2005), Fracture (2007), Barney's Version (2010), and Gone Girl (2014).

Her performance as Amy Elliott-Dunne in Gone Girl was met with critical acclaim, receiving numerous award nominations, including for the SAG, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Academy Award for Best Actress.

On television, Pike played the role of Gudrun Brangwen in Women in Love in 2011. On stage she has performed in the West End in several productions, including Hitchcock Blonde in 2003, Alma in Summer and Smoke in 2006, Gas Light in 2007, and Hedda Gabler in 2010.

Early life

Pike was born in Hammersmith, London, the only child of opera singers Caroline (nÃ©e Friend) and Julian Pike. Pike's father is now a professor of music and head of Operatic Studies at the Birmingham Conservatoire.

The family travelled across Europe until she was seven, following wherever her parents' performing careers took them. Pike won a scholarship to Badminton School in Bristol, and while appearing as Juliet in a production of Romeo and Juliet at the National Youth Theatre, was noticed by an agent who helped her embark upon a professional career.

After being turned down by every stage school she applied to, she gained a place to read English Literature at Wadham College, Oxford from which she graduated. She took a year off to pursue her acting career, garnering stage experience in David Hare's Skylight, Arthur Miller's All My Sons, and several plays by Shakespeare; she achieved an Upper Second class degree in 2001.

Career

While she was still at the university, Pike made appearances on British television shows, including A Rather English Marriage (1998), Wives and Daughters (1999), and Love in a Cold Climate (2001), a miniseries based on Nancy Mitford's novels The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate. She also appeared as Sarah Beaumont in an episode of the series Foyle's War, during which she was required to smoke a cigarette almost constantly.

After graduating she considered working at Waterstone's bookshop, due to a lack of acting opportunities, but was offered a role as a Bond girl and MI6 agent assigned to aid James Bond in Die Another Day. She also appeared in the special show Bond Girls Are Forever and, shortly afterwards, the BAFTA tribute to the James Bond series. Pike then played Elizabeth Malet in The Libertine (2004), co-starring Johnny Depp, which won her the Best Supporting Actress award at the British Independent Film Awards. In the same year, she portrayed Rose in The Promised Land, a film about Israel, and starred as scientist Samantha Grimm in the cinematic adaptation of the computer game series Doom. In 2005, she appeared as Jane, the elder sister of Elizabeth (played by Keira Knightley), in Pride & Prejudice. Pike then starred in the film adaptation of Anne Michaels's novel Fugitive Pieces. She also starred as a successful attorney in the film Fracture, opposite Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling.

Her stage credits include Hitchcock Blonde by Terry Johnson (in a role requiring her to appear completely nude on stage with only a pair of high heels) and Tennessee Williams' Summer and Smoke, both in London's West End, and Gaslight at London's Old Vic Theatre. Pike has said that she would be happy to do at least one play every year. In 2009, she played the title character in Madame De Sade during the Donmar's West End season.

She appeared in the British film Made in Dagenham and in the Canadian film Barney's Version where she plays Miriam. In 2010, she starred in a production of Hedda Gabler on UK tour. Pike has recorded voicework for a lead role in the film Jackboots on Whitehall and lent her voice to a new series of James Bond audio-books, narrating The Spy Who Loved Me. In 2010 Pike played the part of Pussy Galore in the BBC Radio 4 adaptation of Fleming's Goldfinger. In 2011, Pike played the part of Kate Sumner in the 2011 Bond spoof film Johnny English Reborn, playing a psychologist and English's love interest. The film is a sequel to the 2003 film Johnny English and was a box office success, taking over $160Â million.

In 2012, she played the role of Queen Andromeda in the fantasy epic Wrath of the Titans. She replaced Alexa Davalos, who had played the role in Clash of the Titans and had dropped out due to a scheduling conflict. Taking the role in Wrath of the Titans meant she had to drop out of consideration for a role in the forthcoming Superman film. Although the film was not well received by critics, it grossed over $300Â million and critics considered her performance to be one of the film's highlights. She also starred as Helen Rodin, the female lead alongside Tom Cruise in the thriller Jack Reacher, an adaptation of the novel One Shot by author Lee Child. The film opened to positive critical reception and had grossed over $218Â million.

After a supporting role in the critically acclaimed The World's End (2013), Pike was seen in the David Fincher-directed thriller film Gone Girl (2014), a film adaptation of Gillian Flynn's novel of the same name. Featuring opposite Ben Affleck, Pike was cast as Amy Dunne, a woman who goes missing on her fifth wedding anniversary. According to Fincher, he cast Pike in the role as he wanted someone who was not widely known, Pike having not appeared in any major leading role prior to the film's commencement. The film emerged as a box office hit, earning over $356 million in global ticket sales. The movie and Pike's performance both earned widespread acclaim from critics. Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair wrote that the film is "Smartly shot, detailed ... and performed" and called Pike's portrayal "a star-makingly good performance, spellbinding in its operatic mix of tones and temperatures." Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter reviewed that she "is powerful and commanding ... Physically and emotionally, Pike looks to have immersed herself in this profoundly calculating character, and the results are impressive." In 2015 she will voice Lady Penelope in the upcoming remake of Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds produced by ITV in conjunction with Weta Workshop.

Personal life

In 2007 she was engaged to film director Joe Wright, but he called off the wedding in 2008.

Since December 2009, she has been in a relationship with Robie Uniacke, a mathematical researcher. They have a son, Solo (born 6 May 2012). On 2 December 2014, she gave birth to the couple's second son.