ACTOR
Bob Hoskins
43 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (43)
- #001
Bob Hoskins left school at 15 and took a series of odd jobs, including working as a fire-eater in a circus.
- #002
In his early years before acting, Hoskins held many unusual jobs, among them tending camels in Syria and later packing fruit on a kibbutz in Israel.
- #003
Hoskins claimed he never took an acting lesson in his life and believed he had an "all natural" talent.
- #004
Hoskins did not begin acting until he was 26.
- #005
On 8 August 2012, Hoskins announced his retirement from acting after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in the autumn of 2011.
- #006
Hoskins played Smee, Captain Hook's right-hand man, in both Hook (1991) and Neverland (2011).
- #007
Hoskins portrayed four Second World War leaders on film: Nikita Khrushchev in Enemy at the Gates (2001), Winston Churchill in World War II: When Lions Roared (1994), Benito Mussolini in Mussolini and I (1985) and Lavrentiy Beria in The Inner Circle (1991).
- #008
Hoskins's grandmother was a Romani (Gypsy), and his film The Raggedy Rawney (1988) was based on the stories she told him.
- #009
Before discovering acting, Hoskins worked as a porter, a truck driver and a window cleaner.
- #010
Hoskins was the only child of an accountant and a nursery school teacher.
- #011
Hoskins was cremated at Highgate's Harrison Funeral Home without a funeral or memorial service; his ashes were later buried in Highgate West Cemetery.
- #012
Hoskins adopted an American accent for the role of Eddie Valiant in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988).
- #013
Hoskins was a friend of the actor and gangster John Bindon and gave a character reference for him at the Old Bailey murder trial; Bindon was acquitted.
- #014
Hoskins turned down the role of Harry Lyme in Home Alone (1990).
- #015
Hoskins was the father of Rosa Hoskins (born 1983) and Jack Hoskins (born 1986) with Linda Banwell.
- #016
Hoskins was the first choice to play Buster Edwards in Buster (1988), but the producers decided the London villain role was too close to his earlier parts in The Long Good Friday (1980) and Mona Lisa (1986), and cast the singer Phil Collins instead.
- #017
Hoskins studied at and graduated from the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, England.
- #018
Hoskins spent several seasons at the Royal National Theatre and the Old Vic in London, appearing in works ranging from Shakespeare to Chekhov and Shaw.
- #019
Hoskins's father was a communist and raised him as an atheist.
- #020
Hoskins was the father of Alex Hoskins (born 1968) and Sarah Hoskins (born 1972) with Jane Livesey.
- #021
Bob Hoskins took a three-year accounting course but dropped out.
- #022
All of the dialogue for the character Wermit in In Search of La Che (2011) is quoted from Bob Hoskins.
- #023
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of the Penguin in Batman Returns (1992), which went to Danny DeVito.
- #024
In 1967, at the age of 25, Hoskins briefly volunteered at the Zikim kibbutz in Israel and also herded camels in Syria.
- #025
Bob Hoskins turned down the role of Ralph in Romancing the Stone (1984), which went to Danny DeVito.
- #026
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man 2 (2004), which went to Alfred Molina.
- #027
The obituary in The Guardian was written by Helen Mirren, who had appeared with him in The Long Good Friday (1980) and Last Orders (2001).
- #028
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Horace Slughorn in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), which went to Jim Broadbent.
- #029
In 1986, Bob Hoskins signed on to play Al Capone in The Untouchables, but then director Brian De Palma decided to sign Robert De Niro instead, which led Paramount to pay Bob £130,000 for doing nothing.
- #030
In 1983, Hoskins's voice was used in a Weetabix commercial, and in the late 1980s and early 1990s he appeared in commercials for the recently privatised British Gas and British Telecom (now BT Group).
- #031
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Senator Ralph Owen Brewster in The Aviator (2004) before Alan Alda was cast.
- #032
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Salvatore Maroni in The Dark Knight (2008), which went to Eric Roberts.
- #033
According to Barry Letts in Beginning the End: Making 'The Time Warrior' (2007), Hoskins was his first choice for the role of Irongron in The Time Warrior: Part One (1973). Hoskins was not available for the role, but he recommended David Daker, who was cast instead.
- #034
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Dr. Weeks in American Friends (1991), which was played by Alun Armstrong.
- #035
Bob Hoskins's favourite book was Christopher Isherwood's "Mr Norris Changes Trains".
- #036
Bob Hoskins appears in the music video for Jamie T's song "Sheila".
- #037
Bob Hoskins was the first choice for Pop Larkin in The Darling Buds of May (1991). It was ultimately decided that his fame as a film actor would cause problems, and David Jason got the role.
- #038
In 1986, Bob Hoskins was named Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival for Mona Lisa.
- #039
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Leo Lemke in The Butcher's Wife (1991), which went to George Dzundza.
- #040
Bob Hoskins was considered for the role of Lieutenant Senna in the 1991 film Cinayet, which went to Vincent Guastaferro.
- #041
While filming Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988), Bob Hoskins had to perform for months by imagining the cartoon characters in his mind. After the film was completed, he was still hallucinating the characters, which was driving him crazy. He took a year off from acting.
- #042
Bob Hoskins was born on exactly the same date as Chelcie Ross.
- #043
Bob Hoskins has two children, named Jack and Rosa.
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