Jude Law's Biography

David Jude Heyworth Law, better known as Jude Law, was born on 29 December 1972 in south east London. His parents, Peter and Margaret, were teachers who chose the Jude middle name because of Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure.

Jude Law went to Dulwich College and from 12 was in a theatre group. He left school at 16 and acted in Granada TV's soap, Families.

Jude Law then had a spell with the Royal Shakespeare Company. In the mid-nineties he acted in both the National Theatre production of Les Parents Terribles and the Broadway version named Indiscretions, for which he was nominated for a Tony.

Since then Jude Law has appeared in numerous films of uneven quality, including Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, The Wisdom of Crocodiles, eXistenZ, The Talented Mr Ripley (Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Enemy at the Gates, AI: Artificial Intelligence, The Road to Perdition, Cold Mountain (Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role), The Aviator, Closer, and Alfie.

Jude Law married Sadie Frost in 1997, but they divorced in October 2003. They had three children - Rafferty, Iris, and Rudy.

Jude Law then got engaged to actress Sienna Miller, however, there was a hiccough, when he admitted having an affair with his children's nanny.

Eventually they went their different ways.

Jude Law was once named "sexiest man alive" by People magazine.

In 2007, Jude Law starred alongside Norah Jones in My Blueberry Nights, which opened the Cannes Film Festival.

In the same year he appeared opposite Sir Michael Caine in the remake of Sleuth, originally starring Caine and Sir Laurence Olivier.

In September 2007, Jude Law was arrested on suspicion of actual bodily harm for allegedly attacking a photographer outside his home, however he later revealed that the authorities had told him that no further action would be taken.

Also in September 2007, it was announced that Jude Law would play Hamlet, directed by Kenneth Branagh, in London in 2009.

In 2008, Jude Law paid a visit to Afghanistan and the footage featured in the documentary, The Day After Peace.

In 2009, Jude Law gained good reviews for his performance as Hamlet.

In July 2009, it was revealed that Jude Law was to become a father for the fourth time following a relationship with an American model Samantha Burke.

In September 2009, Samantha Burke gave birth to a baby girl Sophia weighing 5lb 12oz.

At the end of 2009 Jude Law starred as Dr Watson alongside Robert Downey Jnr's Sherlock Holmes in Guy Ritchie's film Sherlock Holmes.

On 26 January 2010, Jude Law won the award for Best Shakespearean Performance at the Critics' Circle Theatre Awards for his role as Hamlet in Michael Grandage's production.

In August 2011, Jude Law appearance in the Donmar Warehouse's revival of Eugene O'Neill's Anna Christie was critically acclaimed.

In 2016, Jude Law was cast in the lead role in Sky Atlantic's The Young Pope.