Michael Sheen

A native of Wales, Michael Sheen trained at London’s Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts where he won the Laurence Olivier Bursary Award. He made his stage debut in London’s West End with director Robert Ackerman’s When She Danced. He was then nominated for the Ian Charleson Award for his performance in the play Don’t Fool With Love. Sheen next joined the Royal National Theatre, where he performed in productions of Henry V and Look Back in Anger.

Sheen began making appearances on British television series and TV movies such as Gallowglass (1993), then made his feature film debut in Othello (1995), working alongside Kenneth Branagh and Laurence Fishburne. He next worked with Julia Roberts and John Malkovich in Mary Reilly (1996), and then with Jude Law and Vanessa Redgrave in Wilde (1997). Sheen returns to his stage roots as often as possible and received a nomination for the Outer Critics Circle Award for his role as Mozart, opposite David Suchet as Salieri in Amadeus, which opened in London, then moved to Broadway in December 1999.
His first major role in an American studio film was in The Four Feathers (2002), starring Heath Ledger. After playing the lead role in Heartlands (2002) for director Damien O’Donnell, Sheen landed the role of Lycan leader Lucien in Underworld (2003), starring his longtime girlfriend Kate Beckinsale. Sheen and Beckinsale have a daughter, Lily, born in January 1999, but during the filming of the movie, their relationship fell apart. Beckinsale became engaged to Underworld (2003) director Len Wiseman in June 2003.

Sheen divides his time between London and Los Angeles.