ACTOR · BORN 1985
Keira Knightley
- Born
- 26 March 1985, Teddington, London, England, UK
- Known for
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), The Imitation Game (2014), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
88 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
All facts (88)
- #001
The resemblance between Keira Knightley and Natalie Portman meant that during the filming of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999), their own mothers could not tell them apart when it came to makeup.
- #002
Her birth name was supposed to be "Kiera", but her mother made a spelling mistake on the birth certificate.
- #003
At the age of 20, she was the fifth youngest woman ever nominated for the Best Actress Oscar in Academy Awards history.
- #004
During the premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007), she fell asleep from exhaustion and never watched the film in full. She has said that she does not own her own films on DVD and that after seeing them at the premiere she never revisits them.
- #005
Her role as the decoy queen in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) was kept secret to avoid spoiling the surprise, and promotions maintained that Portman played both the Queen and the decoy.
- #006
In January 2007, the Daily Mail published an article about a girl who had died of anorexia that wrongly suggested Keira Knightley was also anorexic, showing a photo of her in a bikini alongside an emotional quote from the girl's mother: "If pictures like this one of Keira carried a health warning, my darling daughter might have lived." Knightley successfully sued the Mail for libel.
- #007
She has said that auditioning for the role of Christine in The Phantom of the Opera (2004) was the most embarrassing moment of her life because "I knew I couldn't sing it." The role ultimately went to trained opera singer Emmy Rossum, as told to Marie Claire in 2005.
- #008
She is dyslexic. During her teenage years she had to wear special glasses to help her read.
- #009
She shot her first topless scene at the age of 15 in The Hole (2001), which was filmed in 2000 and released in 2001. Because of her age, her mother had to consent for legal reasons and the set was closed.
- #010
By the time she was 23, Forbes ranked Knightley as the second highest-paid actress in Hollywood, with estimated earnings of 32 million dollars in 2007. She was also the only non-American actress on the list at that time (2008).
- #011
She is the mother of two children with her husband James Righton: daughters Edie Righton (born 25 May 2015) and Delilah Righton (born 13 September 2019).
- #012
Her hero is her Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) co-star Geoffrey Rush.
- #013
Bend It Like Beckham (2002) became the first Western film shown on North Korean television in 2010; the screening marked the 10th anniversary of diplomatic relations between North Korea and the United Kingdom.
- #014
She is close friends with Carey Mulligan, whom she met on the set of Pride & Prejudice (2005).
- #015
She was considered for the role of Selina Kyle/Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises (2012), but Anne Hathaway was cast instead.
- #016
She was initially set to play Mary Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), but was dropped from the cast before filming began, and Scarlett Johansson was later cast in her place.
- #017
While auditioning for the role of Jackie Price in The Jacket (2005), she had suffered food poisoning a few days earlier. She decided to attend the audition anyway, and the producers liked her "acting" for the scene, since Jackie Price was to be a woman dealing with many issues of loss and pain and generally physically ill.
- #018
Her father is English and was born in South West Essex, Essex. Her mother, who is of Scottish and Welsh descent, was born in Glasgow, Scotland.
- #019
The green satin dress she wore in Atonement (2007) was voted the public's favourite film costume of all time in a poll by Sky Movies and In Style magazine.
- #020
Her first name means "dark".
- #021
Johnny Depp is one of Keira Knightley's favourite actors. She worked with him on Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007).
- #022
In 2004 the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford, England, ran a poll asking filmgoers to vote for the actor and actress they would most like to see play Romeo and Juliet, and the winners were Knightley and James Marsters. More than 2,000 people voted for over 150 different actors for each role. Keira beat Kate Winslet, Nicole Kidman, Scarlett Johansson and Juliet Landau in the vote. Knightley said, "I'm absolutely thrilled to have topped the poll, especially as Juliet is a role I would very much like to play in the future."
- #023
Keira Knightley attended Teddington School in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.
- #024
She was considered for the role of Peggy Carter in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), but Hayley Atwell was cast instead.
- #025
At 16 she went to Esher College to study for her A Levels, but she dropped the course when she was offered the role of Lara Antipova in Doctor Zhivago (2002).
- #026
In June 2007 she appeared on Forbes' list of the 100 Most Powerful Celebrities for the first time, ranking 71st and finishing ahead of other high-profile actresses such as Scarlett Johansson and Reese Witherspoon.
- #027
As of February 2006 she said she planned to keep living in London and would not move to Los Angeles to further her career in American films.
- #028
She was recently honoured with the TCFF North Star Excellence Award for her performances in "The Laggies" and "The Imitation Game".
- #029
In a poll commissioned by the Royal National Institute of Blind People in the United Kingdom to mark the 70th anniversary of its Talking Books service, she was voted the second sexiest voice, after Sir Sean Connery.
- #030
She married her boyfriend of two years, James Righton, in a private ceremony before 11 guests at the town hall in Mazan, just 19 kilometres from Marseille. The bride wore a strapless white tulle dress and pink heels, along with a short Chanel jacket and a daisy-chain style wreath on her head.
- #031
To prepare for King Arthur (2004) she trained four days a week for three months, lifting weights for about two hours and then spending three hours boxing, fighting or horse riding - Cosmopolitan, August 2004.
- #032
She had a relationship with Rupert Friend, whom she met on the set of Pride & Prejudice (2005) (December 2005-December 2010).
- #033
She auditioned for the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) in London, England, and was accepted.
- #034
Nine months after giving birth to her daughter Edie, she returned to her film career to begin shooting Collateral Beauty (2016).
- #035
She was ranked as having one of the most "Beautiful Famous Faces" by "The Annual Independent Critics List of the 100 Most Beautiful Famous Faces From Around the World." She placed 15th in 2010, 12th in 2009, 4th in 2008, 1st in 2007, 1st in 2006, 2nd in 2005, 7th in 2004, 9th in 2003 and 13th in 2002.
- #036
She had a relationship with Jamie Dornan (August 2003-August 2005).
- #037
She took diction lessons early in her career.
- #038
She is the face of Chanel's perfume "Mademoiselle".
- #039
She was appointed an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to drama and charity in London, England.
- #040
She suffers from "dentophobia" (a deep fear of dentists).
- #041
Keira Knightley campaigned for the female lead in The Rum Diary (2011) but lost the role to Amber Heard.
- #042
Keira Knightley is the daughter of actor Will Knightley and actress and playwright Sharman Macdonald.
- #043
Her mother is Sharman Macdonald, the author of "When I Was a Girl, I Used to Scream and Shout" and "The Winter Guest," who moved from acting to writing.
- #044
To prepare for their collaboration on David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method (2011), Keira Knightley and Cronenberg met for the first time via Skype. She had to demonstrate some of the eccentric expressions she would have to use in the film, but the Skype meetings froze several times, which embarrassed her greatly.
- #045
In December 2005, the Daily Mirror named her "Actress of the Year."
- #046
She was chosen as the Most Beautiful Woman and Most Beautiful Face by Independent Critics (indiecritics.com).
- #047
Five months after giving birth to her daughter Edie, she returned to work to begin performing in the Broadway production of "Thérèse Raquin."
- #048
She was initially cast as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady but later withdrew from the project; Carey Mulligan was then chosen in her place.
- #049
She is a supporter of West Ham United F.C. Women.
- #050
When she finished filming Misbehavior (2020), she was two months pregnant with her daughter Delilah, and six months after giving birth to Delilah she returned to work to begin filming Silent Night (2021).
- #051
She was voted the Sexiest Movie Star of All Time in an Empire magazine poll.
- #052
She bought a flat in Richmond Upon Thames (2005) but said she spent only a few weeks there; she plans to fill it with her own painted canvases.
- #053
Her 21st birthday party cost more than $30,000. Actors, designers and other industry figures attended.
- #054
She had her navel pierced a week before she turned 13.
- #055
On 23 June 2016, along with Sir John Hurt, Helena Bonham Carter, Idris Elba and Cara Delevingne, Knightley declared her support for the United Kingdom remaining in the European Union ahead of the 2016 UK EU membership referendum.
- #056
She was voted number 1 on New Woman magazine's 2004 list of the 50 Most Beautiful Celebrities.
- #057
She likes collecting shoes. She wears a size nine shoe.
- #058
In 2006 she was considered for the role of Kate Meer in Neil James's film "Ghost Seeker: Genesis." Both Lindy King (Knightley's manager) and Knightley herself liked the script, but the shooting schedule for Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007) meant the project had to go ahead without her.
- #059
In 2006, Keira Knightley was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).
- #060
The Jacket (2005) was the first film in which Keira Knightley used an American accent.
- #061
Keira Knightley ranked 10th on Forbes' list of the Top 20 Highest-Earning Young Superstars (2007).
- #062
Keira Knightley was a bridesmaid at the wedding of her brother Caleb Knightley to Kerry Nixon, held at Pollokshields Burgh Hall in Glasgow.
- #063
Tatler declared Keira Knightley the most desirable single woman in the United Kingdom.
- #064
Keira Knightley is good friends with Sienna Miller.
- #065
Keira Knightley ranked 5th on Entertainment Weekly's "30 Under 30" actors list (2008).
- #066
Keira Knightley is the younger sister of Caleb Knightley.
- #067
Keira Knightley is an idol in various forum communities on HeavenGames.com, one of the best-known websites devoted to real-time strategy computer games.
- #068
In 2008, Keira Knightley ranked 87th on the Telegraph's list of "the 100 most powerful people in British culture."
- #069
Keira Knightley attended Jennifer Lopez and Chris Judd's engagement party.
- #070
Keira Knightley ranked 11th in FHM magazine's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005" special issue.
- #071
Keira Knightley was chosen by Glamour magazine as "Most Glamorous Film Actress."
- #072
Keira Knightley was considered for the role of Ann in the film Akşam (2007), but could not take it due to scheduling conflicts.
- #073
Keira Knightley attended a pre-Emmy party, where she bought a pair of earrings for $7,500.
- #074
Keira Knightley is the paternal granddaughter of William (1899–1977) and Violet (née Jones) Knightley (1907–1997).
- #075
Keira Knightley ranked 9th on Maxim magazine's list of the Top 100 Women of 2006.
- #076
Keira Knightley ranked 20th on Maxim magazine's list of the Hottest 100 Women of 2007.
- #077
Keira Knightley ranked 15th on the AfterEllen Hot 100 list, in which lesbian and bisexual women vote for the sexiest women in entertainment.
- #078
Keira Knightley ranked 18th on FHM's 2005 "100 Sexiest Women in the World" list.
- #079
Keira Knightley ranked 10th on FHM's 2008 "100 Sexiest Women in the World" list.
- #080
Keira Knightley ranked 9th on Empire magazine's 100 Sexiest Stars list.
- #081
Keira Knightley ranked 53rd on Maxim magazine's 2005 Top 100 Women list.
- #082
Keira Knightley ranked 69th on FHM's 2011 "100 Sexiest Women in the World" list.
- #083
Keira Knightley ranked 5th in FHM magazine's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2006" supplement.
- #084
Keira Knightley ranked 54th on FHM UK's 2010 "100 Sexiest Woman in the World" list.
- #085
After being diagnosed with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) at the age of 22, Keira Knightley wanted to quit acting.
- #086
Keira Knightley ranked 29th on FHM Australia's 2011 "100 Sexiest Women in the World" list.
- #087
Keira Knightley speaks only English, her native language.
- #088
Keira Knightley has a personal trainer, according to Tatler, 2005.
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