Oliver James (actor)

Last updated

Oliver James
Born
Oliver James Hutson

1980or1981(age 43–44)
Alma mater Guildford School of Acting
Occupation(s)Actor, musician, singer, songwriter
Years active2002–2012

Oliver James (born Oliver James Hutson; [1] 1980or1981) is an English, musician, singer, and songwriter and former actor.

Contents

Acting career

James trained at the Guildford School of Acting and made his acting debut in the made-for-television short film School's Out as Dean. He then appeared in an episode for the BBC television series The Afternoon Play .

In 2002, James was cast as the role of Ian Wallace in the teen romantic comedy What a Girl Wants . The film was directed by Dennie Gordon and co-starred Amanda Bynes. The movie was released in 2003, to mixed critical reception, and a moderate box office with worldwide earnings of $50,732,139. [2] [3]

In 2004, James was cast to portray the role of Jay Corgan in New Line Cinema's musical drama film Raise Your Voice . The film which was directed by Sean McNamara and co-starred Hilary Duff. The film received negative reviews from critics and was a box-office bomb earning worldwide $14,867,514. [4] [5]

In 2006, James signed on for the BBC drama television series The Innocence Project portraying the role of Nick Benitz. The eight-episode first season received negative reviews from critics. [6] Ratings were very poor and the BBC chose to pull the series midway through season one, with the show not being renewed for a second season. [7]

In 2009, James portrayed the role of Ben in Paramount Home Entertainment's Direct-to-DVD sequel Without a Paddle: Nature's Calling . The film received negative reviews. [8]

In 2011, James appeared in a leading role in the TV film Roadkill . In 2012, he appeared in the TV film Black Forest.

Music career

Shortly after appearing in The Afternoon Play, James joined a boy band produced by Simon Fuller. He quit the band as soon as he was cast in What A Girl Wants. For What a Girl Wants, he learned to play the guitar and sang the songs "Long Time Coming" and "Greatest Story Ever Told", which appear on the film's soundtrack. He played the acoustic guitar and sang the last song in Raise Your Voice.

Filmography

Film
YearTitleRoleNote
2003 What a Girl Wants Ian Wallace
2004 Raise Your Voice Jay Corgan
2009 Without a Paddle: Nature's Calling BenDirect-to-DVD
Television
YearTitleRoleNote
2002School's OutDeanTV film
2003 The Afternoon Play DaveEpisode: "Girls Weekend"
2006–2007 The Innocence Project Nick BenitzRegular (8 episodes)
2011 Roadkill RyanTV film
2012Black ForestGallenTV film
2012 Dark Matters: Twisted But True Tempalov/Prisoner2 episodes

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morgan Freeman</span> American actor and producer (born 1937)

Morgan Freeman is an American actor, producer, and narrator. In a career spanning five decades, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as a nomination for a Tony Award. He was honored with the Kennedy Center Honor in 2008, an AFI Life Achievement Award in 2011, the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2012, and Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award in 2018. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cameron Diaz</span> American actress (born 1972)

Cameron Michelle Diaz is an American actress. Prolific in both comedy and drama, her films have grossed over $3 billion in the U.S. box-office. Her output of romantic comedies in the late 1990s and early 2000s established her as a prominent sex symbol and one of Hollywood's most bankable stars, and in 2013 she was named the highest-paid actress over 40. Diaz has received various accolades, including nominations for a British Academy Film Award and four Golden Globe Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andie MacDowell</span> American actress and model (born 1958)

Rosalie Anderson MacDowell is an American actress and former fashion model. MacDowell is known for her starring film roles in romantic comedies and dramas. She has modeled for Calvin Klein and has been a spokeswoman for L'Oréal since 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judi Dench</span> British actress (born 1934)

Dame Judith Olivia Dench is an English actress. Widely considered one of Britain's greatest actors, she is noted for her versatility, having appeared in films and television programmes encompassing several genres, as well as for her numerous roles on the stage. Dench has garnered various accolades throughout a career that spans seven decades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards, four British Academy Television Awards, six British Academy Film Awards, and seven Olivier Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julianne Moore</span> American actress (born 1960)

Julie Anne Smith, known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent films, and for her roles in blockbusters. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two Emmy Awards. In 2015, Time named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world, and in 2020, The New York Times named her one of the greatest actors of the 21st century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anna Faris</span> American actress and podcaster (born 1976)

Anna Kay Faris is an American actress and podcaster. Known for playing comedic roles, she rose to prominence with the lead part of Cindy Campbell in the Scary Movie film series (2000–2006). Her film credits include The Hot Chick (2002), Lost in Translation (2003), Brokeback Mountain (2005), Just Friends (2005), My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006), Smiley Face (2007), The House Bunny (2008), What's Your Number? (2011), The Dictator (2012), and Overboard (2018).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naomi Watts</span> British actress (born 1968)

Naomi Ellen Watts is a British actress. After her family moved to Australia, she made her film debut there in the drama For Love Alone (1986). She appeared in three television series, Hey Dad..! (1990), Brides of Christ (1991), and Home and Away (1991), and the film Flirting (1991). Ten years later, Watts moved to the United States, where she initially struggled as an actress. She took roles in small-scale films until she starred in her breakthrough role as an aspiring actress in David Lynch's mystery film, Mulholland Drive, in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mena Suvari</span> American actress (born 1979)

Mena Alexandra Suvari is an American actress, producer, fashion designer and model. The accolades she has received include a Screen Actors Guild Award, along with nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award and a BAFTA Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mila Kunis</span> American actress (born 1983)

Milena Markovna "Mila" Kunis is an American actress. Born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and raised in Los Angeles, she began playing Jackie Burkhart on the Fox television series That '70s Show (1998–2006) at age 15. She has voiced Meg Griffin on the Fox animated series Family Guy since 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Dinklage</span> American actor (born 1969)

Peter Hayden Dinklage is an American actor. Portraying Tyrion Lannister on the HBO television series Game of Thrones (2011–2019), Dinklage won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series a record four times. He also received a Golden Globe Award in 2011 and a Screen Actors Guild Award in 2020 for the role. Dinklage has a common form of dwarfism known as achondroplasia, and stands 4 ft 5 in (1.35 m) tall. He has used his celebrity status to raise social awareness of dwarfism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne Hathaway</span> American actress (born 1982)

Anne Jacqueline Hathaway is an American actress. Her accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Her films have grossed over $6.8 billion worldwide, and she appeared on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list in 2009. She was among the world's highest-paid actresses in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zoe Saldaña</span> American actress (born 1978)

Zoë Yadira Saldaña-Perego is an American actress. Known primarily for her work in science fiction film franchises, she has starred in four of the six highest-grossing films of all time, including the top three. Films she has appeared in have grossed more than $15 billion worldwide and, as of 2024, she is the second highest-grossing lead actress and the highest-grossing actress overall. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marley Shelton</span> American actress (born 1974)

Marley Eve Shelton is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Wendy Peffercorn in David Mickey Evans's coming-of-age comedy The Sandlot (1993), the Customer in Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez's neo-noir anthology film Sin City (2005), Dr. Dakota Block in Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's double-feature film Grindhouse (2007), and Sheriff Deputy Judy Hicks in two installments of Wes Craven's Scream franchise (2011–2022). Her other notable films include Pleasantville (1998), Never Been Kissed (1999), Sugar & Spice (2001), Valentine (2001), Bubble Boy (2001), and Rampage (2018).

Shari Headley is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Lisa McDowell in the 1988 box-office hit romantic comedy film Coming to America and its sequel Coming 2 America (2021). Headley also has appeared in films The Preacher's Wife (1996) and Johnson Family Vacation (2004).

<i>Barnyard</i> (film) 2006 film by Steve Oedekerk

Barnyard is a 2006 animated comedy film produced by Nickelodeon Movies and O Entertainment and distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film is produced, written and directed by Steve Oedekerk and features an ensemble cast of Kevin James, Courteney Cox, Sam Elliott, Danny Glover, Wanda Sykes, Andie MacDowell, Tino Insana, John DiMaggio and David Koechner. It tells the story of Otis, a carefree Holstein cow who learns the value of responsibility when he becomes the leader of his farm home's community after his adoptive father's death from a coyote attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judy Greer</span> American actress (born 1975)

Judith Therese Evans, known professionally as Judy Greer, is an American actress. She is primarily known as a character actress who has appeared in a wide variety of films. She rose to prominence for her supporting roles in the films Jawbreaker (1999), What Women Want (2000), 13 Going on 30 (2004), Elizabethtown (2005), 27 Dresses (2008), and Love & Other Drugs (2010).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kristen Wiig</span> American actress and comedian (born 1973)

Kristen Carroll Wiig is an American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. First breaking through as a performer with the Los Angeles comedy troupe The Groundlings, Wiig achieved stardom in the late 2000s for her seven-season tenure on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live (SNL) from 2005 to 2012.

Chelan Lauren Simmons is a Canadian actress and former professional model. She is known for her role as Ashley Freund in Final Destination 3 (2006), Helen Shyres in Carrie (2002), Good Luck Chuck (2007), and Tucker & Dale vs. Evil (2010). She is also known for her roles in the television series It (1990), Wonderfalls (2004), Kyle XY (2006–2009), and The L.A. Complex (2012).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abigail Breslin</span> American actress (born 1996)

Abigail Breslin is an American actress. Following a string of film parts as a young child, she rose to prominence at age 10 when she played Olive Hoover in Little Miss Sunshine (2006), for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Breslin went on to establish herself as a mainstream actress with roles in films such as No Reservations (2007), Nim's Island, Definitely, Maybe, My Sister's Keeper, Zombieland, Rango (2011), The Call, August: Osage County, Maggie (2015), and Stillwater (2021). Her other projects include the Fox series Scream Queens (2015–2016), where she portrayed Libby Putney, her first regular role on television.

Pixie Love Davies is a British actress. Born and raised in England, she began her career in 2012, starring in the BBC's The Secret of Crickley Hall. After making her film debut in Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger (2012), she appeared in several other features, including Out of the Dark (2014) and Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016). In 2018, she had her breakout role as Annabel Banks in Disney's Mary Poppins Returns. Davies also voiced Adel in Netflix's The Magician's Elephant.

References

  1. Archived 24 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "What a Girl Wants". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  3. "What a Girl Wants (2003)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  4. "Raise Your Voice". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  5. "Raise Your Voice (2004)". Box Office Mojo. 21 November 2004. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  6. Dowell, Ben (5 October 2006). "First Review: The Innocence Project | Media |". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  7. Ben Dowell (4 December 2006). "Innocence lost on BBC1 viewers | Media | The Observer". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
  8. "Without a Paddle: Nature's Calling". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 4 April 2012.