Even from an early age, Beckinsale was always a creative and sensitive soul. She won the prestigious W. H. Smith Young Writers’ Competition two years in a row, once for short stories and once for poetry. She battled with anorexia throughout her adolescence, but eventually overcame the disease.

Her acting career started when she landed a role in One Against the Wind in 1991, a television film concerning World War II. In this same year, the brainy Brit began attending Oxford University where she studied Russian and French literature. Her major acting break was the Kenneth Branagh production of Much Ado About Nothing in 1993, which also starred Emma Thompson, Keanu Reeves, Michael Keaton, and Denzel Washington. Beckinsale continued film work while attending Oxford, but she was eventually faced with a decision. Continue her schooling for one more year to obtain her degree, or pursue a rapidly developing film career.

In the end, after much deliberation, she chose to continue acting. Beckinsale knew how temperamental the entertainment world could be, and she didn’t want to waste the momentum she had gained from her previous film work. In 1995, she starred in Cold Comfort Farm, a British comedy that was very well received in the United States (in public opinion and at the box office). She also had roles in Haunted in 1995 and Emma in 1996, in which she played the title character.

Beckinsale went on to star in the 1997 con artist comedy Shooting Fish, in which she starred with Stuart Townsend, real life love of Oscar winner Charlize Theron. Beckinsale’s next big break was the 1999 drama Brokedown Palace. Working with Claire Danes and Bill Pullman, Beckinsale and Danes portrayed two young tourists framed for smuggling drugs into Thailand.

In 2000, Beckinsale took the lead in the film adaptation of Henry James’ novel The Golden Bowl. She worked with Uma Thurman and Nick Nolte. But it was 2001 that made Beckinsale a star. She took a role in the blockbuster Pearl Harbor with Ben Affleck, and she starred in the delightful, whimsical and romantic comedy Serendipity. Her chemistry and teamwork with John Cusack make this still one of Beckinsale’s more memorable roles.

Instead of taking the next big budget role that came her way, Beckinsale accepted the lead in an independent film called Laurel Canyon. She starred with Oscar winner Frances McDormand and future Batman portrayer Christian Bale. Following in the indie track, she took a role in Tiptoes in 2003, with Gary Oldman, Patricia Arquette, and Matthew McConaughey.

Her career from that point on has been a blur of blockbusters. In 2003, she played Selene in Underworld, a vampire caught in a war between her race and the werewolves. On the set of this film, she worked with Michael Sheen, with whom she had a daughter in 1999 whom she named Lily. Also at that time, on this set, she met director Len Wiseman whom she went on to marry in 2004.They are currently still together. In 2004, she played two very different roles; she played a vampire hunter in Van Helsing and she played Ava Gardner in Scorsese’s The Aviator. The year 2006 saw the release of Underworld: Evolution and Click, a lighthearted comedy starring Saturday Night Live funnyman Adam Sandler.

Beckinsale continues to find meaningful and successful work. In 2006 she started post-production for a drama entitled Snow Angels.

YUDDY