ACTOR · BORN 1962

Ralph Fiennes

Born: 22 December 1962, Ipswich, Suffolk, England, UK
Known for: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Schindler's List (1993), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

17 archived facts 7 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026

Ralph Fiennes (born 22 December 1962) is an actor best known for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Schindler's List and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

17 Interesting Facts About Ralph Fiennes

Interesting Facts (2)

#001
When he noticed that children watching the filming were scared of him as "Lord Voldemort" in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), he knew he had the character right.
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#002
On 7 September 2017, Fiennes was granted Serbian citizenship. Awarded as a honorary (with full rights) by the government of the Republic of Serbia.
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Production Story (1)

#003
Fiennes was reluctant to take the role of Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005). In a television interview on AMC's Sunday Morning Shootout (2003) on November 20, 2005, he claimed to have been unimpressed with the previous three Harry Potter films. Fiennes was apparently nonplussed at the idea of appearing in the fourth film of a series and stated that he had "never bought into [the] world" of Harry Potter. Family members urged him to take the role while other friends counseled against it. He eventually changed his mind after Goblet of Fire director Mike Newell showed Fiennes preproduction conceptions of what the character of Voldemort might look like: "The little kid in me that likes to dress up and be bad went 'Yeah! I want to do it!'".
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Behind the Scenes (4)

#004
His tattoo in Red Dragon (2002) took eight hours to apply.
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#005
He filmed his role as Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) in only two days.
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#006
He gained several pounds of muscle for his role in Red Dragon (2002).
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#007
When he noticed that children watching the filming were scared of him as "Lord Voldemort" in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), he knew he had the character right.
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Characters & Cast (2)

#008
He has shared two roles with Peter O'Toole. They have both played Hamlet on stage, and both played T.E. Lawrence.
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#009
Belgrade (Serbia), sightseeing locations for filming "Coriolanus", Shakespeare play set in modern time.
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Easter Eggs & References (2)

#010
He makes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance in the video for Robert Palmer's 1992 hit single "Every Kinda' People".
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#011
He and his The End of the Affair (1999) co-star Julianne Moore have acted in separate Hannibal Lecter films: he in Red Dragon (2002) and she in Hannibal (2001).
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Career & Awards (2)

#012
On 3 March 2001, he received the William Shakespeare Award from the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, D.C. Past recipients include Mel Gibson, Patrick Stewart, Lynn Redgrave, Kenneth Branagh and Kevin Kline.
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#013
He has appeared twice on the cover of GQ magazine: in August 1994 and July 1998.
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Life & Family (4)

#014
He is the oldest of six children. His younger siblings are Martha Fiennes (b. 1964), Magnus Fiennes (b. 1965), Sophie Fiennes (b. 1967), and Jacob Mark Fiennes and Joseph Fiennes (b. 27 May 1970). He also has a foster brother, Michael Emery (b. 31 December 1952), who has been with the family since he was 11.
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#015
He is the eighth cousin of King Charles III.
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#016
His uncle, Nicholas Lash, is a former priest and Cambridge theology professor, and his great-uncle, Dom Patrick Moore, is a Benedictine monk.
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#017
He is the fourth cousin of Lord Saye & Sele, owner of Broughton Castle, which appears in Shakespeare in Love (1998) as Viola's house.
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Clash of the Titans — Ralph Fiennes comes up in the facts on that page
Jojo Rabbit — Ralph Fiennes comes up in the facts on that page
Seven Years in Tibet — Ralph Fiennes comes up in the facts on that page

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Schindler's Listas Amon Goeth

Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

Wikipedia English Wikipedia article
IMDb IMDb name page (biography and trivia)

Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work