Thandie Newton

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Birthday:

6 November 1972, Westminster, London, England, UK

Birth Name:

Melanie Tandiwe Newton

Height:

160 cm

Thandie Newton was born in London. She is the daughter of a Zimbabwean mother, Nyasha, a health-care worker from the Shona tribe, and Nick Newton, a British father who worked as a lab technician. She lived in Zambia until political unrest caused her family to move back to the UK. She then lived in Cornwall in the southwest of Britain until the age of 11. At that time she enrolled in London's Art Educational School, where she studied modern dance. However, a back injury forced her to quit dancing. This led to her auditioning for films and receiving her first role in John Duigan's Flirting (1991). She then moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue acting and her then-boyfriend. Her British accent limited the amount of work she was getting, and she returned to Britain, where she went to Cambridge University to study, eventually receiving a degree in anthropology. Between semesters, she continued her acting and became noticed and in-demand for future film roles. Show less «

It was hysterical. We wanted to make it naughty and fun. When the camera stopped rolling, it was hard to stop laughing. - about her love sce...Show more »

It was hysterical. We wanted to make it naughty and fun. When the camera stopped rolling, it was hard to stop laughing. - about her love scene with Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible II (2000). Show less «

I use the film industry as a pleasure for work and that kind of thing and it's not a pursuit to make me feel happy in my life.

Having children is life-changing, to state the obvious. It's a gigantic shift in your life and I welcomed it. Not to put too fine a point on...Show more »

Having children is life-changing, to state the obvious. It's a gigantic shift in your life and I welcomed it. Not to put too fine a point on it, there's something about the shame that goes with sexual exploitation, deviance, whatever. As a woman, having a baby psychologically erases it all from your body. And that, for me, was incredibly important. Show less «

I don't put the pressure on myself to be a very successful movie star. I want to enjoy being an actor and I want to be challenged by the rol...Show more »

I don't put the pressure on myself to be a very successful movie star. I want to enjoy being an actor and I want to be challenged by the roles I take. What is lovely is that I'll get sent a small movie, and you know that by virtue of me being involved they get their money and that's fantastic. Show less «

God, yeah, I'm good at playing the emotionally strangled person. The woman who is in the worst place in her life. That's me!

Ten years ago, I probably would have bemoaned the fact that I started out [in the film business] so young - but now I'm grateful - truly gra...Show more »

Ten years ago, I probably would have bemoaned the fact that I started out [in the film business] so young - but now I'm grateful - truly grateful. [September 2008] Show less «

When I am out and about I feel watched. It's become second nature. The only time I get to be private is in my work. That is when I liberate ...Show more »

When I am out and about I feel watched. It's become second nature. The only time I get to be private is in my work. That is when I liberate the ego. The blessed-out sensation of liberating the ego. Show less «