Martin Freeman Biography

Martin John Christopher Freeman (born 8 September 1971) is an English actor, who became known for portraying Tim Canterbury in the original UK version of sitcom mockumentary The Office, Dr. John Watson in the British crime drama Sherlock, Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit film trilogy, and Lester Nygaard in the dark comedy-crime drama TV series Fargo.

His other notable film roles include the romantic comedy Love Actually (2003), the comic science fiction film The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), the semi-improvised comedy Nativity! (2009), and the comedic Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, most prominently in the sci-fi comedy The World's End (2013). Among other accolades, he has won an Emmy Award, BAFTA Award and an Empire Award, with nominations including two other Emmy Awards, two other BAFTA Awards, a Saturn Award, and a Golden Globe Award.

Early life

Freeman was born in Aldershot, Hampshire, the youngest of five children. His parents, Philomena (ne Norris) and Geoffrey Freeman, a naval officer, separated when Freeman was a child. When Freeman was 10 years old, his father died of a heart attack. Freeman attended the Salesian School, Chertsey before attending Brooklands College for media studies. His older brother Tim became a musician with the group Frazier Chorus.

Freeman was raised as a Roman Catholic. Although his family was not strict in their religious practices, his religion had a profound influence on him. As a child, he was asthmatic, and had to undergo a hip operation for what he has described as a "dodgy leg".

Career

Freeman joined a youth theatre group at 15, but it was not until he was 17 that his confidence in his acting led to the decision to pursue it as a career. He went on to attend the Central School of Speech and Drama. Freeman has appeared in at least 18 TV shows, 14 theatre productions, and several radio productions. He is notable for his role as Tim Canterbury in The Office, a role which, he said in 2004, "cast a very long shadow" for him as an actor. He appeared in the sitcom Hardware. He also appeared in several films, including Ali G Indahouse (2002) and Love Actually (2003).

He began to move into more serious dramatic roles on television with his appearance as Lord Shaftesbury in the 2003 BBC historical drama Charles II: The Power and The Passion. He can also be seen making a brief appearance in the first episode of the second series of This Life. Freeman also starred in the BBC television series The Robinsons and had a cameo in episode 1 of Black Books. In 2007, he appeared in The All Together written and directed by Gavin Claxton, as well as the Bill Kenwright theatre production of The Last Laugh. He is featured in the video for Faith No More's cover of "I Started a Joke". In May 2009, he starred in Boy Meets Girl, a four-part drama that charts the progress of characters Veronica and Danny after an accident which causes them to swap bodies.

He currently plays Dr. John Watson in Sherlock, the BBC contemporary adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes detective stories. The first episode of Sherlock, "A Study in Pink", was broadcast on 25 July 2010 to critical acclaim. For his performance in the role he won the BAFTA award for Best Supporting Actor, 2011 and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie.

He played Bilbo Baggins, the main character, in the three-part Peter Jackson film series The Hobbit. Accolades that his performance in the first part, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, garnered him include Best Hero at the 2013 MTV Movie Awards and Best Actor at the 18th Empire Awards.

Freeman appeared in all three of Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright's comedic Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, commencing with a brief non-speaking role in Shaun of the Dead as Yvonne's boyfriend, Declan, followed by a brief cameo in Hot Fuzz as a police officer. He was a main cast member in the 2013 finale to the trilogy, The World's End. On 5 October 2013, he was presented with a fellowship bearing his name by the members of University College Dublin's Literary & Historical Society. In April 2014, Freeman began playing insurance salesman Lester Nygaard in the dark comedy-crime drama series Fargo. For his performance in this series, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Critics' Choice Television Award. He opened in the title role in Shakespeare"?s play Richard III in July 2014 at Trafalgar Studios.

In 2015, Freeman starred as producer Milton Fruchtman in the television film The Eichmann Show, based on the filming, by blacklisted TV director Leo Hurwitz, of the 1961 trial of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann. The film intercut dramatic scenes with historical footage from the trial. The Daily Telegraph described the film as "absolutely enthralling". He also played Everett Ross in Captain America: Civil War, which released in May 2016.

In 2017, Freeman will star in Cargo, a feature length remake of a 2013 short film of the same name. Later in the year he will appear opposite Sarah Lancashire in Labour of Love, a political comedy by James Graham, at the Noel Coward Theatre. Labour of Love charts both the evolution of the UK Labour Party in recent decades, and its presence in a tight-knit Nottinghamshire community. Freeman portrays fictional Labour MP David Lyons, whose modernising ideas pit him against the traditional left-wing constituency agent Jean Whittaker (Lancashire).

Personal life

Freeman lived in Potters Bar in Hertfordshire with his partner, actress Amanda Abbington, whom he met on the set of Channel 4's Men Only in 2000. The couple have two children together: Joe (born 2006) and Grace (born 2008). They have appeared in other productions together, including Sherlock, Swinging with the Finkels, The Debt, The Robinsons, and The All Together. On 22 December 2016, Freeman announced in an article in the Financial Times that he and Abbington had separated.

Freeman is a close friend of actor Simon Pegg, who is godfather to his son, Joe.

In an edition of Who Do You Think You Are? aired on 19 August 2009, Freeman discovered that his grandfather, Leonard Freeman, was a medic who was killed a couple of days before the Dunkirk evacuation at the beginning of World War II. Leonard's father, Richard, was born blind and had been a piano tuner and organist at St Andrew's Church, West Tarring and later a music teacher in Kingston upon Hull.

Freeman is a pescetarian. He has struggled with religion, stating that "my relationship with my belief has never been easy." Despite these struggles, he has said his Catholic faith remains intact. In 2011, Freeman took part in a charity cricket match to raise money for victims of the Christchurch earthquake.

Freeman has been an outspoken supporter of the Labour Party. As a teenager, he supported Britain's now-defunct Militant political group and volunteered with the Labour Party Young Socialists. In 2015, Freeman appeared in a party election broadcast to endorse the Labour party ahead of the 2015 UK general election. In August 2015, he endorsed Jeremy Corbyn's campaign in the Labour Party leadership election. In a session at the Edinburgh International Television Festival he said: "I happen to think that he is the most impressive one of the four. I do." He added that Corbyn was the "most impressive one as an individual".

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1998	I Just Want to Kiss You	Frank	Short film
2000	The Low Down	Solomon
2001	Round About Five	The Man	Short film
2001	Fancy Dress	Pirate
2002	Ali G Indahouse	Richard Cunningham
2003	Love Actually	John
2004	Blake's Junction 7	Vila	Short film
2004	Call Register	Kevin
2004	Shaun of the Dead	Declan	Cameo
2005	The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy	Arthur Dent
2006	Confetti	Matt Norris
2006	Breaking and Entering	Sandy Hoffmann
2007	Dedication	Jeremy
2007	The Good Night	Gary Shaller
2007	Hot Fuzz	Met. Sergeant
2007	Lonely Hearts	The Pig	Short film
2007	The All Together	Chris Ashworth
2007	Rubbish	Kevin	Short film
2007	Nightwatching	Rembrandt van Rijn
2008	Rembrandt's J'Accuse	Rembrandt van Rijn	Documentary
2009	Nativity!	Paul Maddens
2009	Swinging with the Finkels	Alvin Finkel
2010	Wild Target	Hector Dixon
2010	The Girl is Mime	Clive Buckle	Short film
2011	What's Your Number?	Simon
2012	The Pirates! Band of Misfits	The Pirate with a Scarf	Voice
2012	Animals	Albert
2012	The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	Bilbo Baggins
2013	The World's End	Oliver Chamberlain
2013	Svengali	Don
2013	Saving Santa	Bernard D. Elf	Voice
2013	The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug	Bilbo Baggins
2013	The Voorman Problem	Dr. Williams	Short film
2014	The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies	Bilbo Baggins
2015	Midnight of My Life	Steve Marriott	Short film
2015	Tubby Hayes: A Man in a Hurry	Narrator	Documentary
2016	Whiskey Tango Foxtrot	Iain MacKelpie
2016	Captain America: Civil War	Everett K. Ross
2017	Cargo	Andy	Post-production
2018	Black Panther	Everett K. Ross	Post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1997	The Bill	Craig Parnell	Episode: "Mantrap"
1997	This Life	Stuart	Episode: "Last Tango in Southwark"
1998	Casualty	Ricky Beck	Episode: "She Loved the Rain"
1998	Picking up the Pieces	Brendan	Episode: "1.7"
1999	Exhaust	The Car Owner
2000	Bruiser	Various Characters	6 episodes
2000	Lock, Stock...	Jaap	2 episodes
2000	Black Books	Doctor	Episode: "Cooking the Books"
2001	World of Pub	Various Characters	5 episodes
2001	Men Only	Jamie	Television film
2001-2003	The Office	Tim Canterbury	14 episodes
2002	Helen West	DC Stone	3 episodes
2002	Linda Green	Matt	Episode: "Easy Come, Easy Go"
2003	Charles II: The Power and The Passion	Lord Shaftesbury	Miniseries
2003	The Debt	Terry Ross	Television film
2003	Margery and Gladys	D.S. Stringer	Television film
2003-2004	Hardware	Mike	12 episodes
2004	Pride	Fleck	Television film
2005	The Robinsons	Ed Robinson	6 episodes
2007	Comedy Showcase	Greg Wilson	Episode: "Other People"
2007	The Old Curiosity Shop	Mr. Codlin	Television film
2008	When Were We Funniest?	Himself	4 episodes
2009	Boy Meets Girl	Danny Reed	Miniseries
2009	Micro Men	Chris Curry	Television film
2010-present	Sherlock	Dr. John Watson	13 episodes
2014	Fargo	Lester Nygaard	Season 1; 10 episodes
2014	The Life of Rock with Brian Pern	Young Brian Pern	Episode: "Jukebox Musical"
2014	Saturday Night Live	Host	Episode: "Martin Freeman/Charli XCX"
2015	The Eichmann Show	Milton Fruchtman	Television film
2015	Robot Chicken	Reverend Parris (voice)	Season 8; Episode: "Zero Vegetables"
2015	Fargo	The Narrator (voice)	Season 2; Episode: "The Castle"
2015	Toast of London	Himself	Episode: "Global Warming"
2015	Stick Man	Stick Man (voice)	TV adaptation of story by Julia Donaldson, originally illustrated by Axel Scheffler
2016-present	StartUp	Phil Rask	10 episodes
2017	Carnage - Swallowing The Past	Jeff	Television film

Awards and nominations

Year	Work	Award	Category	Result
2002	The Office	British Comedy Awards	Best Comedy Actor
2004	The Office (for "The Office Christmas Specials")	BAFTAs	Best Comedy Performance
		British Comedy Awards	Best TV Comedy Actor
	Love Actually	Phoenix Film Critics Society	Best Cast
	Love Actually	Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Award	Best Ensemble Cast
	Love Actually	Critics' Choice Movie Awards	Best Acting Ensemble
	Hardware	Rose d'Or	Best Male Comedy Performance
2011	Sherlock	BAFTAs	Best Supporting Actor
2012
	Sherlock (for "A Scandal in Belgravia")	Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
		Gold Derby TV Awards	TV Movie/Miniseries Supporting Actor
	Sherlock	Crime Thriller Awards	Best Supporting Actor
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture or Miniseries
		PAAFTJ Awards	Best Cast in a Miniseries or TV Movie
		PAAFTJ Awards	Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
		Tumblr TV Awards	Hottest Male Character in a TV Show
		Tumblr TV Awards	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
		Tumblr TV Awards	Best Male Character in a TV Series
		Tumblr TV Awards	Best Cast in a TV Show
	The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	Total Film Hotlist Awards	Hottest Actor
2013	The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey	Empire Awards	Best Actor
		Saturn Award	Best Actor
		MTV Movie Awards	Best Scared-as-S**t Performance
		MTV Movie Awards	Best Hero
		SFX Awards	Best Actor
		Shorts Awards	Visionary Actor
		New Zealand Movie Awards	Hero of the Year
		Constellation Awards	Best Male Performance In A 2012 Science Fiction Film, TV Movie, Or Mini-Series
		Tumblr Movie Awards	Best Leading Actor
		Tumblr Movie Awards	Best Ship
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Most Cinematic Moment
		Stella Awards	Best Actor in a Leading Role
	The World's End	Alternative End of Year Film Awards	Best Ensemble Cast
2014	The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug	Empire Awards	Best Actor
		MTV Movie Awards	Best Hero
		Constellation Awards	Best Male Performance In A 2013 Science Fiction Film, TV Movie, Or Mini-Series
		YouReviewers Awards	Best Hero
		Stella Awards	Best Actor in a Leading Role
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Most Cinematic Moment
		CinEuphoria Awards	Best Ensemble
	Fargo	Critics' Choice Television Awards	Best Actor in a Movie or Mini-Series
		Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Best Actor in a Motion Picture or Miniseries
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Best Ensemble in a Motion Picture or Miniseries
		Golden Globe Award	Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or Television Film
		Crime Thriller Awards	Best Actor	Nominated
	Sherlock
		Critics' Choice Television Awards	Best Supporting Actor in a Movie or Mini-Series
		Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture or Miniseries
		Online Film Critics' Awards	Best Ensemble in a Motion Picture or Miniseries
2015	The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies	MTV Movie Awards	Best Hero
		Favorite British Artists of the Year	Favourite Actor in a Motion Picture
	Fargo	Favorite British Artists of the Year	Favourite Actor in a Television Series
	Richard III	The Mousetrap Awards	Best Male Performancer
2016	Stick Man	British Animation Awards	Best Voice Performance