Who is Gemma Arterton? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

British Celebrities Born In February

Boyfriend: Rory Keenan

Also Known As: Gemma Christina Arterton

Age: 36 Years, 36 Year Old Females

Family:

Spouse/Ex-: Stefano Catelli (m. 2010–2015)

father: Barry Arterton

mother: Sally-Anne

siblings: Hannah Arterton

Actresses British Women

Height: 5'7" (170 cm), 5'7" Females

Notable Alumni: North West Kent College, Gravesend Grammar School For Girls

More Facts

education: Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art, Gravesend Grammar School for Girls, North West Kent College

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Childhood & Early Life

Gemma Arterton was born on 2nd February 1986 in Gravesend, Kent, in Greater England. Her mother Sally-Anne was a cleaner while her father Barry Arterton was a welder. She has a sister Hannah Arterton, who also became an actress.

She studied at Gravesend Grammar School for Girls, and it was during this time that she started acting. She made her stage debut in an amateur production of ‘The Boy Who Fell into a Book’. She won the best actress prize at a local festival for her performance. She later received a government grant to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art from where she graduated in 2008.

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Career

Gemma Christina Arterton’s first professional acting role was in the play ‘Capturing Mary’, while she was still at drama school. She soon made her film debut with a role in the comedy film ‘St Trinian’s’ in 2007. The film was a commercial success, earning around four times its budget. It was met with mixed reviews.

She started earning international popularity following her role in the 2008 film ‘Quantum of Solace’. Directed by Marc Forster, the film is about the British spy James Bond trying to seek justice following the death of his lover. The film was a commercial success, and became the seventh highest grossing films of the year. It was met with average reviews. Arterton won the Empire Award for Best Newcomer for her performance.

In 2008, she was also seen in the miniseries ‘Tess of the D’Urbervilles’. She also appeared in the TV series ‘Lost in Austen.’ The next year, she was seen in the thriller film ‘The Disappearance of Alice Creed’. The film is about the kidnapping of a young woman by ex-convicts.

In 2010, she appeared in the play ‘The Little Dog Laughed’. She also appeared in the financially successful fantasy movies ‘Clash of the Titans’ and ‘Prince of Persia: Sands of Time’.

After appearing in the films ‘Byzantium’ (2012) and ‘Song for Marion’ (2012), she appeared in the dark fantasy action horror film ‘Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters’ in 2013. Though the film was a huge success commercially, it was met with negative reviews from the critics. The same year, she starred alongside Justin Timberlake in the crime thriller film ‘Runner Runner’. The film was a commercial success but was met with negative reviews.

In 2014, she played the titular lead role in the comedy drama film ‘Gemma Boverty’. The film was a commercial failure. Her more recent works include ‘100 Streets’ (2016), ‘Orphan’ (2016) and ‘The Escape’ (2017).

Major Works

Gemma Arterton came to international recognition for her role in the James Bond film ‘Quantum of Solace’. Directed by Marc Forster, the film revolves around the British spy James Bond, who is trying to avenge the death of his former lover. Other actors who starred in the film are Daniel Craig, Mathieu Amalric, Olga Kurylenko, Jeffrey Wright, and Judi Dench. The film did quite well, earning nearly $600 million on a $200 million budget. Critical reception was mostly mixed.

Arterton played the female lead in the action fantasy film ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’. Directed by Mike Newell, the film also starred Jake Gyllenhaal, Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina, and Ronald Pickup. The film was mostly based on the video game ‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’. It was a commercial success, earning around $336 million on a budget of around $150-200 million. It was met with mixed reviews from the critics.

She is also known for her role in ‘Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters,’ which was directed by Tommy Wirkola. The film is a continuation of the popular folktale ‘Hansel and Gretel.’ In the movie, the siblings have now grown to become witch exterminators for hire. The other actors in the film were Jeremy Renner, Famke Janssen, Peter Stormare and Derek Mears. The film did well commercially, earning around $226 million on a $50 million budget. However, the film was met with mostly negative reviews from the critics.

Personal Life

Gemma Arterton married Italian businessman Stefano Catelli in 2010. However, they eventually separated in 2013 and the divorce was finalized in 2015.

Since 2016, she has been in a relationship with Rory Keenan. They starred together in the play ‘Saint Joan’. Previously, she had dated Franklin Ohanessian, John Nolan, and Eduardo Munoz.

Gemma Arterton Biography