While American moviegoers got their first eyeful of Paul Bettany as the frequently naked Geoffrey Chaucer in the cheeky "A Knight's Tale" (2001), British theatergoers were already aware of the tall, handsome blond from his year-long stint at the Royal Shakespeare Company and his work in such West End fare as Stephen Daldry's acclaimed 1992 revival of "An Inspector Calls.”

Biography:

Born in London but raised in Harelsdent, Bettany dropped out of school at age 16 and spent the next two years as a street performer in and around London. After a year working at a home for the elderly, he decided to enroll in drama school and following graduation quickly gained employment. In addition to appearing in over a dozen theatrical productions in four years, Bettany was also seen on the small screen in the British series "Sharpe's Waterloo" (1997) and as Steerforth in "David Copperfield" (TNT, 2000).

Bettany made his feature film debut in the small role of a Nazi officer in the feature adaptation of "Bent" (1997) and went on to act in "Land Girls" (1998) before earning praise as the youthful incarnation of "Gangster No. 1" (2000). Bettany also starred in "Dead Babies" (2000), adapted from Martin Amis' novel and landed a supporting role in "A Beautiful Mind" (2001), the Ron Howard-directed biopic of mathematician John Forbes Nash, Jr. His performance as the charismatic, inspirational roommate of Russell Crowe's Nash gave Bettany some much deserved attention in the American press. After a December 2002 wedding to his "A Beautiful Mind" cast mate Jennifer Connelly, Bettany was cast in the Thaddeus O'Sullivan drama "The Heart of Me" (2003). The romantic drama starred Bettany as a loving husband who finds himself having a torrid affair with his wife's Bohemian sister.

The actor re-teamed with Russell Crowe for the high-seas adventure "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" (2003), where he played Stephen Maturin the ship's doctor of the H.M.S. Surprise and close ally to Captain, Lucky Jack Aubrey (Crowe). Aubrey's intent to take the crew on a perilous mission caused Bettany's character question whether the journey is professionally or personally motivated and puts a serious strain on their longtime friendship; Bettany and Crowe's pre-established relationship both on-screen and off helped bring the characters' to life.

The actor's next move was to establish himself as a leading man on his own, starring in the romantic comedy "Wimbledon" (2004) as a washed up tennis ace whose passions are reignited by a love match with a feisty young up-and-comer (Kirsten Dunst), leading him to compete in the sport's most prestigious competition. Bettany then starred in Scottish filmmaker’s Paul McGuigan’s medieval murder thriller, “The Reckoning” (2004), playing a priest on the lam after leaving the church for committing adultery. He encounters a troupe of traveling actors led by the charismatic Martin (Willem Dafoe) who arrive at a village and find a woman (Elvira Minquez) about to be sentenced for witchcraft and murder. Defying the tradition of performing Biblical plays, the troupe instead stages a real-life crime drama to find the true culprit.

Bettany then appeared in “Firewall” (2006), playing a ruthless and resourceful thief who kidnaps the family of a computer security specialist (Harrison Ford) in order to rip off $100 million from a bank protected by the specialist’s own security system. He next appeared in one of the most controversial and anticipated movies to come along in decades, “The Da Vinci Code” (2006), directed by Ron Howard from Dan Brown’s mega-blockbuster book. Bettany played an assassin for Opus Dei, a secretive society trying to subvert a famed symbologist (Tom Hanks) called to the Louvre Museum where a curator has been murdered, leaving behind a trail of mysterious symbols and clues that lead to a secret that has been guarded for the past 2000 years, the revelation of which could destroy the very foundations of society.

Facts:

Name: Paul Bettany

Height: 6' 3''

Sex: M

Nationality: British

Birth Date: May 27, 1971

Birth Place: Harlesden, London, England, UK

Profession: Actor

Education: Studied at the London Drama Centre in Chalk Farm, London

Husband/Wife: Jennifer Connelly (actress; born December 12, 1970; met while filming A Beautiful Mind; married January 1, 2003)

Relationship: Laura Fraser

Father: Thane Bettany (actor, drama teacher)

Mother: Anne Kettle (a school secretary)

Sister: Sarah Bettany (older)

Brother: Matthew Bettany (younger; died after a fall when he was only eight years old)

Grand Mother: Olga Gwynne (actress)

Son: Stellan (born August 5, 2003; mother: Jennifer Connelly)

Step son: Kai Dugan (born July 1997; father: David Dugan; mother: Jennifer Connelly)

Claim to fame: His role as Charles Herman in A Beatiful Mind (2001)9)