James Fox

James Fox, born William Fox on 19 May 1939 in London, England, is an English actor whose career has spanned film, television, and stage, including a Broadway appearance in 1995 in the play Uncle Vanya. The second son of theatrical agent Robin Fox and actress Angela Worthington, he comes from a prominent family of performers and arts figures: his elder brother is actor Edward Fox, his younger brother was film producer Robert Fox, and his maternal grandfather was playwright Frederick Lonsdale. He studied acting at the Central School of Speech and Drama.

Fox made his first screen appearance at age eleven, playing Toby Miniver in The Miniver Story (1950), credited under his birth name, William Fox. His adult career gained momentum in the early 1960s with a role in The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962), and it was his performance in The Servant (1963), alongside Dirk Bogarde, Sarah Miles, and Wendy Craig, that brought him significant recognition. He received the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles for that performance in 1964. A string of notable film roles followed, including King Rat (1965), the British period comedy Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965) — featuring an international ensemble cast that included Terry-Thomas, Red Skelton, and Benny Hill — Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967), and Performance (1970), the latter co-starring Mick Jagger.

Following the completion of Performance, Fox stepped away from acting to pursue evangelical Christian ministry, working with the Navigators. During this period, his sole screen credit was No Longer Alone (1976), a film depicting the story of Joan Winmill Brown. He returned to acting in the early 1980s, appearing in the television play Country (1981) by Trevor Griffiths, followed by the films Runners (1983), A Passage to India (1984), and Comrades (1986). His performance in A Passage to India earned him a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. He also portrayed Anthony Blunt in Alan Bennett's BBC play A Question of Attribution (1992), and took on roles in Patriot Games (1992) as Lord Holmes and The Remains of the Day (1993) as Lord Darlington.

Subsequent screen work included Sexy Beast (2000), the 2001 adaptation of The Lost World as Professor Leo Summerlee, Agatha Christie's Poirot – Death on the Nile (2004) as Colonel Race, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) as Mr. Salt, and Sherlock Holmes (2009) as Sir Thomas. He played King George V in W.E. (2011), written and directed by Madonna, and appeared alongside Natalie Dormer in A Long Way from Home (2013). Fox is also a Golden Globe Award nominee.

On Broadway, Fox appeared in 1995 in Uncle Vanya, bringing his stage work to New York audiences. In his personal life, he married Mary Elizabeth Piper in September 1973; they had five children together, including actors Laurence and Jack Fox. Piper died on 19 April 2020. Through his daughter Lydia, Fox's son-in-law is actor Richard Ayoade.