After giving up painting to pursue a career in acting, Fiennes quickly bounded from his studies at RADA to acclaim onstage as Troilus and Henry VI. Although he seemed to come out of the blue in SCHINDLER'S, Fiennes actually made his film debut in an even more promising role, that of Heathcliff in EMILY BRONTE'S WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1992), the first effort from Paramount's European wing. The results, however, received only very limited release in the UK -- to bad reviews -- and the film was promptly swept under the rug. A similar fate seemed unlikely for Fiennes's second Hollywood film, QUIZ SHOW (1994), Robert Redford's drama set amid the game-show-rigging scandals of 1950s TV.
He was also nominated (this time for Best Actor) for his portrayal of the title character in 1996's Best Picture winner THE ENGLISH PATIENT.
Other notable credits include STRANGE DAYS (1995), OSCAR AND LUCINDA (1997), THE AVENGERS and THE PRINCE OF EGYPT (voice) (both 1998), SUNSHINE, ONEGIN (also producer) and THE END OF THE AFFAIR (all 1999), SPIDER, THE GOOD THIEF and RED DRAGON and MAID IN MANHATTAN (all 2002), THE CHUMSCRUBBER, CHROMOPHOBIA, THE CONSTANT GARDENER, THE WHITE COUNTESS and HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE (all 2005), LAND OF THE BLIND (2006), HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX and BERNARD AND DORIS (both 2007), and IN BRUGES, THE HURT LOCKER, THE DUCHESS, THE READER and THE GIFTED (all scheduled for 2008).
Nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role 1993: SCHINDLER'S LIST
Nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role 1996: THE ENGLISH PATIENT
2 nominations