John Hurt career is marked by his appearance in more than 120 films and multiple roles in theater and television.
The actor Sir John Hurt, who died at the age of 77 due to cancer, was a versatile actor, with a distinctive voice and whose imposing presence made him one of the most admired and loved performers inside and outside the United Kingdom.
Hurt, remembered for his portrayal of "The Elephant Man" or in the film "Alien," is known to younger generations as Mr. Ollivander, the magic wand maker in the film version of the boy wizard Harry Potter stories.
During six decades in show business, Hurt was twice nominated for an Oscar from the Hollywood Academy for his roles in "The Elephant Man" and "Midnight Express."
His outstanding career is marked by interpretations of classic works on stage and famous Hollywood films.
Born on January 22, 1940 in the city of Chesterfield, in the county of Derbyshire, in the north of England, John Vincent Hurt comes from a religious family since his father, in addition to being a mathematician, was a parish priest in the town of Woodville, north English.
She took her first steps as an actor at her primary school in Kent, a county in the southeast of England, where she played a girl in a children's production about the story of two minors who sought happiness with the help of a fairy.
After living for a few years in Kent, Hurt's father was appointed parish priest in Grimbsy, in the county of Lincolnshire, so the family moved to this area of northern England.
During his adolescence, his parents wanted Hurt to look for an honorable job so they suggested that he look for a job as an art teacher, so he moved to London and spent time at St Martin's School of Art.
In 1960, Hurt obtained a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, which allowed him to begin his career as an actor despite the initial reluctance of his parents.
Two years later, he landed a small role in the romantic film "The Wild and the Willing", which allowed him to earn his first salary, then 75 pounds (84 euros) a week.
Established in the British capital, Hurt began to have roles in theater and met the actress Annette Robertson, whom he married, although the marriage lasted just two years.
His most important offer came to play Richard Rich in the film "A Man for All Seasons." Although his role was not very relevant, the success of the film, which won several Oscars, allowed him to rise to fame.
Five years later, Hurt was nominated for a British Bafta award for his role as Timothy Evans in the film "10 Rillington Place," a true story about the case of a man who was convicted and hanged for a murder he had not committed.
In 1975, he won a Bafta for his portrayal of Quentin Crisp, in the television adaptation about the life of that actor and writer.
On the small screen, Hurt will be remembered for stepping into the shoes of the tyrannical Roman emperor Caligula in a BBC adaptation of "I, Claudius."
In 1978, Hurt came close to winning an Oscar for his role as heroin addict Max in Alan Parker's film "Midnight Express," and a year later he became even more famous for his role in the film "Alien." especially for the surprising scene in which a small monster is expelled from his chest.
However, for filmmakers, his most notable role was that of Joseph Merrick in the film "The Elephant Man," for which he had to put on a special mask that took eight hours to put on.
In his personal life, the British actor lost his partner of more than 15 years, Marie-Lise Volpeliere-Pierrot, in 1983, when she died after suffering a fall from a horse.
In 1984 he married actress Donna Peacok, whom he divorced in 1990, the year in which he remarried Joan Dalton, a production assistant, with whom he had two sons, Alexander and Nicholas.
That marriage ended in 1996, after which he began a relationship with the Irish Sarah Owens, from whom he separated in 2002, and three years later he married producer Anwen Rees-Meyers.
Hurt's career is marked by his appearance in more than 120 films, as well as numerous roles in theater and television, which earned him the title of "knight," awarded to him by Queen Elizabeth II in 2015 for his services to the world of interpretation.
