Die Another Day : About The Cast


PIERCE BROSNAN (James Bond), in addition to his three Bond box-office hits and many other movies, has just completed filming Evelyn for his own production company, Irish DreamTime. Previous movies produced under the Irish DreamTime banner in which he also starred include The Nephew and The Thomas Crown Affair.

Recent works include John Boorman's The Tailor of Panama, which continued the London stage-trained actor's character-starring roles in such films as Bruce Beresford's Mr. Johnson and Sir Richard Attenborough's Grey Owl. Brosnan has also shown his comedic skill in such films as The Mirror Has Two Faces, Mrs. Doubtfire, Mars Attacks and Love Affair, as well as in the international hit TV series Remington Steele. He earned the Empire Award (a major British acknowledgement) as Best Actor of 1999. He was also named "The Sexiest Man Alive" in the 2001 People magazine poll.

Brosnan was born in County Meath, Ireland, where he lived until the age of 11 when his family moved to London. He studied acting at the Drama Centre for three years, then went straight into a job as an acting assistant stage manager at the York Theatre. Six months later Tennessee Williams selected Pierce to create the role of McCabe in the British premiere of "Red Devil Battery Sign. " Brosnan's subsequent performance in the American miniseries The Manions of America brought his first U. S. critical acclaim and led to his casting as Remington Steele.

Along with acting, Brosnan has distinguished himself with painting, the discipline for which he originally trained.

HALLE BERRY (Jinx), currently filming Die Another Day with Pierce Brosnan, won the Academy Award® for her performance in Monster's Ball. She was also voted Best Actress by the National Board of Review and Screen Actors Guild and was nominated for a Golden Globe and an AFI Award. In Monster's Ball, also starring Billy Bob Thornton and Heath Ledger, she plays the widow of an executed prison inmate who moves in with a man in hopes of a better life, only to discover that he is connected with her husband's death.

No stranger to awards, Berry was honored last year with an Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, and NAACP Image Award for her extraordinary, critically acclaimed performance in HBO's Introducing Dorothy Dandridge.

Berry was also recently seen in the box office pleaser Swordfish with Hugh Jackman, her co-star in the action hit X-Men. She is attached to star in the X-Men sequel, which is currently in pre-production.

Berry starred opposite Warren Beatty in the critically acclaimed socio-political comedy Bulworth. Other feature film credits include Why Do Fools Fall in Love; Spike Lee's Jungle Fever; Losing Isaiah opposite Jessica Lange; Executive Decision with Kurt Russell (for which she won a Blockbuster Award for Best Actress in an Action Drama); the international hit live-action version of The Flintstones with John Goodman; The Last Boy Scout; Strictly Business; and Reginald Hudlin's Boomerang opposite Eddie Murphy.

On television, Berry starred in the highly rated ABC miniseries Oprah Winfrey Presents: The Wedding. Directed by Charles Burnett, the miniseries also starred Lynn Whitfield, Eric Thal, and Carl Lumbly.

Additional television credits include the title role in Alex Haley's miniseries Queen. The highest rated sequel in television history, her performance earned Berry the NAACP Image Award for Best Actress as well as the Best Newcomer Award from the Hollywood Women's Press Club. Berry also starred opposite Jimmy Smits in Showtime's original telefilm Soloman and Sheba.

In recognition for her achievements as an actress, the Harvard Foundation at Harvard University honoured Berry as Cultural Artist of the Year. Currently she serves as an International Spokesperson for Revlon.

TOBY STEPHENS (Gustav Graves), in keeping with a long line of interesting Bond villains, is cast as Gustav Graves in Die Another Day.

The son of the late Sir Robert Stephens and Dame Maggie Smith, Toby established himself as an actor with the Royal Shakespeare Company, winning several prestigious awards. On stage he has appeared in the title role of David Thacker's "Coriolanus," for which he was awarded the Sir John Gielgud Award for Best Actor as well as the Ian Charlson Award, Stephen Pimlott's "Measure for Measure" and "Unfinished Business," Adrian Noble's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and John Caird's "Anthony and Cleopatra. " With director Sir Peter Hall, Stephens appeared in "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "All's Well That Ends Well. "

After starring in Hall's production of "Tartuffe" on the West End stage, Stephens made his screen debut in Sally Potter's Orlando in 1992. More recently he appeared as the young Frank Corvin in Space Cowboys, Ross in The Announcement, Jay Gatsby in the TV version of The Great Gatsby, Charles in the television production of Perfect Strangers, and Fergus Wolff in Possession.

Other television credits include Sir Peter Hall's production of The Camomile Lawn, Mike Barker's The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, and Eddie Carbone's A View from the Bridge.

ROSAMUND PIKE (Miranda Frost) grew up in London, the only daughter of two professional opera singers. Her key formative years were spent on the European continent, including a liberating few months in Italy as her father worked with modernist composer Hans Werne Henze.

At 16, Rosamund was accepted at the celebrated National Youth Theatre where she spent the following three summers, culminating in her playing the lead role in "Romeo and Juliet" when she was 18. It was that performance which brought her to the attention of agent Dallas Smith, who spent the next few years closely guiding her career. The play ran over the summer holidays prior to her taking a place at Oxford, where she was to study English Literature at Wadham College.

At Oxford, Rosamund continued to act and toured with the university production of "The Taming of the Shrew. " During summer recess, the tour took her on a magical six-week trip to Japan performing in theatres in Osaka, Kyoto, and the Tokyo Globe. Just prior to leaving, she spent two days shooting her role in the BBC TV film of A Rather English Marriage starring Tom Courtenay and Albert Finney playing Finney's niece, Celia.

Rosamund also spent evenings at the local repertory theatre, the famous Oxford Playhouse. She played the part of the restoration actress Elisabeth Barry in Stephen Jeffries' play "The Libertine," as well as Ann in Arthur Miller's "All My Sons".

Before she left for Oxford, Rosamund met with a leading casting director for a project she was keen to be part of. The project was delayed and nothing came of it, but a year later she received a call out of the blue and was cast as Lady Harriet in the BBC's lavish production of Wives and Daughters. It was her first job for the BBC, and she was delighted to be working with such distinguished actors as Michael Gambon, Francesca Annis and Bill Patterson. The part of Lady Harriet was a great challenge - outstanding equestrian, razor sharp, and a real fighter - but Rosamund's strong portrayal was critically acclaimed. Vanity Fair commented that she "stood out like a banner snapping in the wind. "

She returned to Oxford to finish her degree and do a final play at the Oxford Playhouse. She played the funny, bizarre Daisy in Ionesco's "Rhinoceros" directed by local director Delphine Schrank.

During the following summer vacation she spent ten weeks filming Love in a Cold Climate, an adaptation of the Nancy Mitford books. The extraordinary cast included Alan Bates, Sheila Gish, Celie Imrie, John Standing, and Anthony Andrews. Returning to Oxford for the final three terms, she took the role of Kyra in David Mare's "Skylight" directed by young film director and fellow Oxford student James Rogan, who went on to direct Dead Bolt Dead.

RICK YUNE (Zao) is a first-generation American; his parents came to the United States from Korea in 1972. He was born in Washington, DC ,and educated at the Wharton School of Business.

To raise cash for his studies, Rick tried several jobs and was persuaded to become a photographic model in his spare time. The modeling work escalated to such an extent that it became his principal source of income during his education years. Working with photographer Bruce Weber, he was the first Asian-American model to work for leading companies such as Versace and Polo Sport. He also filmed a commercial with Cindy Crawford.

His plan at the time was to go into finance, and after college he served for a time as a trader with an investment bank, handling millions of dollars every day. As much as he enjoyed the cut and thrust of international finance, however, it was never his intention of spending his entire life as a trader.

Maintaining contact with his model agency, Rick was asked to meet movie director Scott Hicks, who was about to make a film called Snow Falling on Cedars. Rick made his motion picture debut with that film in 1999. He went on to appear in The Fast and the Furious and The Fence before joining the cast of Die Another Day this year.

A keen athlete, Rick qualified for the Olympic Trials in Tae Kwon Do (a Korean martial art) when he was 19. He changed his last name from Yun to Yune for the Screen Actors Guild when he joined the acting profession.

JOHN CLEESE (Q) takes over the role of Q after the tragic death of Desmond Llewelyn.

In addition to his work with Monty Python, Cleese's film credits as an actor include The Great Muppet Caper (1980), Time Bandits (1980), Privates on Parade (1982), Silverado (1984), Clockwise (1986), Terry Jones' Eric the Viking and Eric Idle's Splitting Heirs (1992), Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994), The Jungle Book (1995), and The Wind In The Willows (1996).

In 1988, he starred in and co-wrote (with director Charles Crichton) A Fish Called Wanda - which garnered several major awards, including Oscar®, BAFTA and Writers Guild of America nominations for Best Screenplay, as well as the Italian Oscar for Best Screenplay. Cleese also won the BAFTA Best Actor award.

In addition to starring in Fierce Creatures (1995) as Rollo Lee, Cleese also produced the film with Michael Shamberg and wrote the screenplay with Iain Johnstone.

He recently made a guest appearance on American television's 3rd Rock From the Sun, as well as appearing in Out of Towners and Isn't She Great.

In 1983 he published his first book, Families & How to Survive Them (co-written with Dr. Robin Skynner), produced as a series for BBC Radio 4 in 1990. The book remains a huge best seller. Its sequel, Life & How To Survive It, also written with Dr. Robin Skynner, was published in 1993.

DAME JUDI DENCH (M), a distinguished, multi-award-winning actress, first portrayed M, head of British Intelligence, in GoldenEye and repeated the role for Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough.

Dench received the O. B. E. (Order of the British Empire) in 1970 for services to the theatre, and subsequently became a D. B. E. (Dame of the British Empire) in 1988. She has won over 25 top awards (including six British Academy Awards) in a career that has encompassed stage, television and motion pictures. She recently received the prestigious BAFTA Fellowship, the entertainment industry's highest accolade.

Dench's work on the international stage is legendary, but she has also won awards for her performances in motion pictures. She received the Academy Award® for her performance as Queen Elizabeth I in Shakespeare in Love. Her most recent film appearances have been in Mrs. Brown, Chocolat, Iris, The Shipping News, Therese Raquin, and The Importance of Being Earnest.

Dench's television performances over recent years have included A Fine Romance (for which she won the BAFTA Award as Best Actress in a Comedy Series), The Browning Version, Mr. and Mrs. Edgehill (for which she won the American Cable Entertainment ACE Best Actress Award), Ghosts, Make and Break, Behaving Badly, Can You Hear Me Thinking?, The Torch, Absolute Hell, and six seasons of the highly-rated comedy As Time Goes By (BAFTA Nomination). Her most recent TV appearance was in The Last of the Blonde Bombshells.

SAMANTHA BOND (Moneypenny) first played Moneypenny in GoldenEye, taking over the role from Caroline Bliss (who played M's able assistant in the previous two Bond films, following Lois Maxwell in the first fourteen 007 adventures). Bond repeated the role in the last two James Bond movies, Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough.

A member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Samantha recently appeared in "A Winter's Tale" and "As You Like It. " She also played in the National Theatre productions of "The Cid" and "The Ends of the Earth". After playing the Third Lady in "Three Tall Women," she went on to star opposite Dame Judi Dench in David Hare's award-winning play "Amy's View" at the National Theatre and in the West End, later repeating the role on the Broadway stage. She also played Mary in "The Memory of Water," both on tour and in the West End.

Her recent TV appearances include roles in The Bookfair Murders, The Hunt, NCS: Manhunt, The Bombmaker and NCS 2.

WILL YUN LEE (Colonel Moon) is an emerging talent on both the big and small screens. He is an actor with an unusual depth that sets him apart from other rising young Asian actors. He will next be seen in the independent film Face directed by Bertha Bay-Sa Pan, which premiered in the dramatic competition at Sundance 2002. This was his second consecutive year appearing at Sundance, as he is well known for his role as Jimmy Nguyen in the critically acclaimed What's Cooking, which opened the festival in 2001.

Lee currently plays Danny Woo on TNT's Witchblade. Danny Woo is a hard-boiled detective who was brutally murdered at the start of the series and returns as a ghost to guide his partner (Yancy Butler). The series is now shooting its second season in Toronto.

Lee was born in Arlington, Virginia, to parents recently emigrated from Korea. He was raised by both immediate and extended family and moved often, exposed to life on the tough Bronx streets and idyllic Hawaiian beaches. By his teens he was living in the San Francisco area with his father, a Korean Tae Kwan Do grand master. Lee also became an accomplished martial artist and won an athletic scholarship to the University of California at Berkeley.

While in school, Lee worked at the East Bay Asian Youth Centre teaching high-risk teens from ghetto neighbourhoods not unlike those he had known as a child in the Bronx. It was there that his ongoing commitment to young people began, a commitment that continues to play an important role in his life.

It was also at this time that he became seriously interested in acting, and after landing a role in Nash Bridges he moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career. Guest star roles in series such as Profiler and Brimstone led to a role in the TV movie The Disciples for UPN, and soon after to What's Cooking and Witchblade.

MICHAEL MADSEN (Falco) has appeared in over sixty productions following his successful appearances in Thelma & Louise and Reservoir Dogs a decade ago, the most notable of which include Mulholland Falls (directed by Lee Tamahori), Free Willy, Wyatt Earp (playing Virgil Earp), and Free Willy 2. His most recent film appearances were in Grand Theft Auto 111, Pressure Point, Outlaw, Microwave Park, LAPD: To Protect and to Serve, Extreme Honor and The Confidence Game. He will shortly be seen in Kill Bill, Dumping Ground, A Christmas Cop, and Blueberry. He has also written three books of poetry - Beer, Blood and Ashes, Eat the Worm, and Burning in Paradise.

COLIN SALMON (Robinson) played M's Chief of Staff in Tomorrow Never Dies and The World Is Not Enough, and repeats the role in Die Another Day. He is best known in Britain as DS Bob Oswalde in the award-winning television police drama Prime Suspect II, for which he was nominated for the Best Newcomer award by British Television Industries.

Other television roles include Rathbone in Lovejoy, Bob in Midnight Movie, Bill in Tomorrow Calling, Lambert in Murder Most Horrid, Eric Hutchinson in Between The Lines, Sgt. Ryan in Soldier, Soldier, Noah in Shine on Harvey Moon, Bird in Silent Witness, the lead in the pilot for Deep Secrets, Jimmy Picket in Tales From the Crypt, Paul in No Child of Mine, Sketch in Get Up Stand Up 3, Raymond in Band of Gold, and Mackenzie in Space Island One.

On the stage he has been seen in "After Darwin," "Buddy," "All Or Nothing At All," "Head in the Machine," and "Ariadne. "

Salmon's film appearances include the role of the jazz singer in Escape Hatch, Ben in Bunch of Fives, Towler in Captives, Chas in All Men Are Mortal, the title role in Frantz Fanan, Robinson in Tomorrow Never Dies, Martin in Wisdom of Crocodiles, and, most recently, Alan in Fanny And Elvis.

Salmon directed "Blues Man" for the Young Writers' Festival at London's Royal Court Theatre.

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