Childhood & Early Life
Ewan Gordon McGregor was born on 31 March 1971, in Perth, Scotland, to James Charles Stewart and Carole Diane. His father was a physical education teacher and his mother was a school administrator and a teacher.
He was brought up in Crieff, a small town, and studied at ‘Morrison’s Academy’ and later joined the ‘Perth Repertory Theater.’
He then went on to study drama at the ‘Guildhall School of Music and Drama.’ Here, he studied alongside Alistair McGowan and Daniel Craig
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Career
He landed a major role as ‘Private Mick Hopper’ in ‘Lipstick on Your Collar,’ a musical-comedy, in 1993. The same year, he also starred in the British television mini-series ‘Scarlet and Black.’
In 1994, he was lauded for his performance in a thriller titled ‘Shallow Grave,’ for which he won an important award.
In 1996, he got his first major breakthrough when he was cast to play a heroin addict in ‘Trainspotting,’ which was a film adaptation of a novel of the same name.
In 1997, he was cast as ‘Duncan Stewart’ in an episode in the famous television series ‘ER.’ His role earned him a nomination at the prestigious ‘Primetime Emmy Awards.’
In 1998, he was cast as the protagonist in ‘Little Voice.’ The following year, he starred as ‘Jedi Obi-Wan-Kenobi’ in the hit film ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.’
From 1998 to 1999, he starred in the theatre production of ‘Little Malcolm and His Struggles against the Eunuchs,’ which opened at the ‘Hampstead Theatre.’ It was later transferred to the ‘Comedy Theatre.’
He appeared as ‘Christian’ in ‘Moulin Rouge!’ alongside Nicole Kidman in 2001. He reprised his role as ‘Jedi Obi-Wan-Kenobi’ in ‘Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones’ the following year.
In 2003, he was cast opposite Renee Zellweger in ‘Down with Love,’ which was a light-hearted, romantic film. The same year, he also appeared in the fantasy film ‘Big Fish’ where he played ‘Edward Bloom.’ His role in the drama ‘Young Adam’ earned him a lot of accolades.
He was once again cast as ‘Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi’ in ‘Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith’ in 2005, following which he lent his voice for two animated films, ‘Robots’ and ‘Valiant.’ Furthermore, he was cast opposite Scarlett Johansson in ‘The Island.’
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From 2005 to 2007, he starred in ‘Guys and Dolls’ at the ‘Piccadilly Theatre.’
In 2007, he starred in ‘Cassandra’s Dream.’ Two years later, he appeared in ‘I Love You Philip Morris,’ ‘Amelia,’ and ‘Angels & Demons.’ The same year, he worked on the production of ‘Othello’ and also reprised his role as ‘lago’ for ‘BBC Radio 3.’
In 2012, he appeared in ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’ and ‘The Impossible,’ both of which earned him nominations at prestigious award ceremonies. In 2013, he appeared in ‘Jack the Giant Slayer’ and ‘August: Osage County.’
In 2015, McGregor starred in the action comedy film ‘Mortdecai.’ The same year, he was also seen in films like ‘Last Days in the Desert’ and ‘Miles Ahead.’ The following year, he played prominent roles in ‘Jane Got a Gun’ and ‘Our Kind of Traitor.’
McGregor starred as the titular character in ‘Christopher Robin’ in 2018. The same year, he also played ‘Cole’ in ‘Zoe.’
In 2019, he played ‘Danny Torrance’ in ‘Doctor Sleep,’ the film adaptation of Stephen King's novel of the same name. The following year, he played a fictional supervillain named ‘Black Mask’ in ‘Birds of Prey.’
Personal Life & Legacy
Ewan McGregor married Eve Mavrakis and they have four daughters: Clara Mathilde, Esther Rose, Jamyan, and Annouk. On 19 January 2018, McGregor filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences.
He is a UNICEF ambassador and is an avid motorcyclist. He has also been part of a vaccination program wherein he traveled by foot to administer vaccines to children in India, Nepal, and the Republic of Congo.
He stated that he was a functioning alcoholic, but gave up alcohol.
