Amy Adams Biography

Biography

Early Life

Amy Lou Adams was born August 20th, 1974, in Vicenza, Italy. Although both her parents were American, they had moved abroad several years early for her father’s work as a serviceman. In 1983, the family moved back to America, settling in Castle Rock, Colorado. When in Douglas County High School, Amy began to develop into a promising performer, taking part in the school choir - following after her father, who become a restaurant singer since returning to the US - and also trained as a ballerina, which she ultimately gave up. After her parents’ divorce, she moved with her mother to Atlanta, at which point she developed an interest in theatre performance.

Move Into Acting

In 1995, she began working as a dancer at a local dinner theatre - a job which, unbeknownst to her - would help launch her acting career. Amy was spotted by Michael Brindisi, also a theatre dinner director, who offered her better prospects at an alternative chain. In order to take the job, she moved to Minnesota - where she eventually spent 3 years. In 1999, she sustained a minor injury at the theater and received some time off work as a result. During this period, Amy auditioned for a supporting role in Drop Dead Gorgeous, which she ultimately was successful in winning. Although it received mixed reviews, her debut film was enough to encourage her to move to LA to pursue a full time career in professional acting.

Upon arriving in LA, Amy managed to find several opportunities to work, however the parts she won were often small. Throughout 2000, she appeared as guest characters on numerous TV shows, including That ‘70s Show, Charmed, Zoe, Duncan, Jack & Jane, Providence and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In addition to this, she also had roles of varying significance in smaller film projects such as The Peter Principle, Psycho Beach Party and The Chromium Hook. However, that same year Amy also appeared in FOX’s adaptation of the film, Cruel Intentions, taking Sarah Michelle Gellar’s role. Although it initially seemed to be a vehicle to establish herself in the industry, the show performed poorly, eventually leading the broadcaster to re-edit the episodes and release them as Cruel Intentions 2, which was released direct to video.

After this, Amy had further small parts in The Slaughter Rule, Pumpkin and Serving Sara, while briefly returning to television guest roles in Smallville and The West Wing, but was not making any real impact. However, her fortunes changed in 2002, when Steven Spielberg cast her as the love interest of Leonardo di Caprio’s character in Catch Me If You Can. The film garnered her much attention, as it went on to achieve both critical acclaim and financial success - taking over $350 million at the box office, far surpassing Drop Dead Gorgeous as her then most profitable movie.

Promising Actress

Following the success of Catch Me If You Can, the demand for Amy was on the rise. In 2004, she landed multi-episode roles in both King of the Hill and Dr. Vegas. However, it was not until the following year that her film choices would prove to be the pivotal point in her blossoming career. In 2005, she took a significant supporting role in the romantic comedy, The Wedding Date, which went on to perform reasonably well at the box office. Later on that year, Amy auditioned for the lead role in the indie film, Junebug. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to wide approval from critics. Despite its low budget and little marketing, the movie’s popularity grew, eventually leading to nominations for Best Supporting Actress from both the Screen Actors Guild Awards and at the Academy Awards.

Considering her success she managed to achieve with Junebug, Amy experienced something of a mixed year in 2006. A brief cameo in the Jack Black comedy, Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, was followed by the vastly more successful Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, which proved to be a commercial hit. Although these high budget movies helped raise her profile, she also appeared in less popular, lower budget projects such as Standing Still and The Ex, both of which came and went largely unnoticed. She managed a more successful stint playing Katy, Jim Halpert’s (and to a degree, Michael Scott’s) love interest in several episodes of The Office.

Established Star

After a brief stutter with Underdog, Amy returned to form in 2007, which could arguably be considered the most successful year she experienced since beginning in the industry. Director Kevin Lima cast her as Giselle in Disney’s half-animation/half-live action film, Enchanted.

Lima initially wanted to hire an actress who wasn’t well known, but after viewing Amy’s audition, he decided that of the 300 other applicants, she was the most suitable. The film proved to be a smash hit around the world, raking in over $340 million. In addition, Amy herself earned many individual awards, including a Best Actress award at the Golden Globes, as well as three nominations at the MTV Movie Awards - for Best Female, Best Comedic Performance and Best Kiss. She also sang several of the songs from the film at the 2009 Oscars ceremony. Later on that year, she appeared in Charlie Wilson’s War, opposite Tom Hanks, which was met with similar positive reviews.

Amy began 2008 by appearing in Sunshine Cleaning, a small independent drama film. Despite initial positive buzz, the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to a mixed response. As a result, it struggled to find a distributor, but upon its eventual release, Amy’s role was singled out for praise from critics. The following year, she appeared in Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, a film almost 70 years in the making. Her next film role was as Sister James in Doubt. Both the film and Amy’s performance were praised by critics. The widespread approval of her part in the film eventually led to another Oscar nomination, on this occasion for Best Supporting Actress, an award she lost to Penelope Cruz.

Amy’s next film role was as Amelia Earhart in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. Although it received somewhat mixed reviews, it still proved hugely popular with audiences, grossing well over $400 million. She closed out the year appearing opposite Meryl Streep in Julie & Julia, who eventually received an Oscar nomination for her performance. Amy started out 2010 with a slight mis-step, with the release of romantic comedy, Leap Year. Although the movie managed to turn a profit, it was widely criticised by reviewers. However, she quickly bounced back with The Fighter, which received widespread critical acclaim. For her performance, Amy also earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

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forum	Amy Adams Is Janis Joplin, Better Lock the Liquor Cabinet	Matt

Credited Name	Amy Adams
Gender	Female
Birthday	Aug. 20, 1974
Death
Primary Role	Actor
Hometown	Aviano
Country	Italy
Website
Email Address
Alias(es)

Career	$2.1B
Average	$62.5MM

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