Blunt has been working with theAmerican Institute for Stuttering since 2006 to help children overcome stuttering through educational resources and raise awareness of the realities of the condition. She is on the board of directors of the Institute, and hosts a gala for it to raise funds forspeech therapy scholarships for children and adults.
Early life
Blunt was born on 23 February 1983, in London.[1][2] She is the second of four children, born to a former actress and English teacher,[3] Joanna Mackie,[4] and abarrister, Oliver BluntKC.[5][6] Her mother gave up acting to parent full time before Blunt started school.[5][3] Blunt described herself as a "shy and awkward" child,[7] who began having difficulties withstuttering, a condition she described as debilitating and "like an imposter living in your body".[8][9] She experienced it at its worst between the ages of seven and fourteen.[10] Intimidated by speaking, she spent much time watching people, as well as creating elaborate games for herself[3][5] and playing thecello.[11][12] She credits a school teacher with having encouraged her to perform in class plays, where using voices different to her own allowed her to disconnect from herself and speak fluently. This also gave her the confidence to continue on the stage and discover her love of acting.[13][10] She has said that her stutter largely receded in adulthood, but still occasionally emerges under stress.[14][8][9] She was educated atIbstock Place School, a private school in the London suburb ofRoehampton,[15] followed byHurtwood House, a privatesixth-formboarding school near to themarket town ofDorking, inSurrey, known for its performing arts programme.[16] After appearing in a school play at the Edinburgh Festival, Blunt was discovered and signed by an agent.[16][17] Once she finished her school exams, she began auditioning.[17]
Career
2001–2004: Early work
In November 2001, Blunt made her professional acting debut aged 18 inPeter Hall'sWest End production of the playThe Royal Family, in which she played the granddaughter ofJudi Dench's character.[18] Critic Tom Keatinge hailed the production, writing that "Peter Hall's direction and Anthony Ward's tremendous set combine with all this to makeThe Royal Family a terrific night's entertainment", and that "it provides a vehicle for acting of the finest quality, with strong performances from the whole ensemble".[19] For her performance, Blunt was named "Best Newcomer" by theEvening Standard.[20] The following year, she portrayed Eugenie inNicholas Wright's playVincent in Brixton at the National Theatre, andJuliet inIndhu Rubasingham's production ofRomeo and Juliet atChichester Festival Theatre.[1][21] In 2003, Blunt made her screen debut in the British television dramaBoudica, about the life ofthe ancient Celtic warrior-queen who fought theRomans. That same year, she was praised for her performance as the 16th-centuryQueen Catherine Howard in the two-part British television dramaHenry VIII.[21]
In 2004, Blunt made her cinematic film debut inPaweł Pawlikowski's critically acclaimed independent British dramaMy Summer of Love, about an infatuation between two young women from differentsocioeconomic backgrounds set in the English countryside.[21][5] The film involved much improvisation, which Blunt found an interesting challenge, later stating that Pawlikowski's approach was "free spirited, collaborative and alive".[22][17] Co-starring as Tamsin, she received considerable praise and attention for her performance,[21],[23] with David Ansen ofNewsweek writing: "Press and Blunt are major discoveries ... they conjure up the role-playing raptures of youth with perfect poetic pitch".[24] Blunt won theEvening Standard British Film Award for Most Promising Newcomer and was nominated for theBritish Independent Film Award forMost Promising Newcomer.[25] She credited her experience making the film as having an impact on her career choices, stating that it was "such a foray into the great unknown ....[like] putting your feet to the fire" and she "loved that feeling of terror and excitement" and "looked for it ever since".[17][26]
Blunt's profile continued to rise, and in 2007 she appeared in four films: the horror filmWind Chill, the romantic dramaThe Jane Austen Book Club, the comedy-dramaDan in Real Life, and the biographical comedy-dramaCharlie Wilson's War.[21] In 2008, Blunt appeared inSunshine Cleaning in the role of Norah Lorkowski, an underachiever who starts a crime-scene clean-up business with her sister Rose (Amy Adams). The film premiered at the2008 Sundance Film Festival, where it received positive reviews, particularly for Adams' and Blunt's performances.Peter Travers ofRolling Stone magazine commented "This funny and touching movie depends on two can-do actresses to scrub past the biohazard of noxious clichés that threaten to intrude. Adams and Blunt get the job done."[33]A. O. Scott ofThe New York Times agreed, stating "Amy Adams and Emily Blunt [...] attack their roles with vivacity and dedication..."[34] She then starred inThe Great Buck Howard as Valerie Brennan, which premiered at the same festival.[21]
In 2012, Blunt starred in the romantic comedyThe Five-Year Engagement, directed byNicholas Stoller and co-starringJason Segel, in which she and Segel played a couple whose relationship becomes strained when their engagement is continually extended. The film earned positive reviews, with Elizabeth Weitzman of theNew YorkDaily News remarking that "Blunt has never been more relaxed, and she and Segel have a believably warm chemistry."[52] She then starred inLooper, a science fiction action film directed byRian Johnson. Blunt played Sara, a tough farm woman and single mother, who falls in love with a time-traveller. The film premiered and was the opening film at the2012 Toronto International Film Festival, and earned highly positive feedback.Todd McCarthy ofThe Hollywood Reporter credited Blunt for "effectively [revealing] Sara's tough and vulnerable sides".[53] Also that year, she starred in the comedy-dramaArthur Newman as the troubled Charlotte, who is trying to run away from her past.[54] The film received mixed-to-negative reviews.[55][56]
In 2014, Blunt starred inEdge of Tomorrow, a film adaptation of the Japanese novelAll You Need Is Kill written byHiroshi Sakurazaka.[57] Blunt played Sergeant Rita Vrataski, a Special Forces warrior tasked with training a public relations officer to defeat invading extraterrestrials. Blunt trained three months for her role, "focusing on everything from weights to sprints to yoga, aerial wire work and gymnastics", and studyingKrav Maga.[58] The film was commercially successful, grossing$370,541,256[59] and earned positive reviews. Many critics took note of the atypically dominant role portrayed by Blunt, and Justin Chang ofVariety noted that "Blunt is alert, energized and emotionally present in a none-too-taxing role."[60] For her performance, Blunt won theCritics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in an Action Movie.[61]
Blunt played the role of the Baker's Wife inThe Walt Disney Company'sfilm adaptation ofStephen Sondheim's musicalInto the Woods, directed byRob Marshall and featuring an ensemble cast.[62][63] Ironically, Blunt was pregnant throughout filming, while playing a character who is barren throughout the film's first act.[64][65] The film was a commercial success and earned generally positive reviews, with Blunt earning praise for her acting and singing. Richard Corliss ofTime remarked that "When Blunt is onscreen, these woods are alive with the magic of a fractured fairy tale...".[66] She was nominated for her second Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical for her performance.[67]
In 2015, Blunt starred in the crime thrillerSicario, directed byDenis Villeneuve. Blunt played Kate Macer, a principledFBI agent assigned to take down the leader of a powerfulMexican drug cartel. The film was selected to compete for thePalme d'Or at the2015 Cannes Film Festival, where it received critical acclaim. Blunt received considerable praise for her performance, with Dan Jolin ofEmpire magazine calling it "nuanced", and stating that "her straight-arrow-sharp determination becomes painfully dulled",[68] and whilePeter Bradshaw ofThe Guardian found her character implausible, he praised Blunt for "[brazening] out any possible absurdity with great acting focus and front".[69] Blunt was nominated for her second consecutive Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in an Action Movie.[70]
After providing her voice for the 2017 animated filmsMy Little Pony: The Movie andAnimal Crackers, Blunt made her return to live action in her husbandJohn Krasinski's horror filmA Quiet Place, which follows a family being tormented by monstrous creatures that hunt by sound.[76]Scott Beck and Bryan Woods had begun writing the script in January 2016 based on a concept they conceived in college,[77] and they wanted Blunt for the role of the mother.[78] When Krasinski re-wrote the script, he did so with Blunt in mind for the role, but did not ask her as she had just had a child and was working on another film; he was concerned that if asked she would either decline, or accept it simply to support him: "I just thought if she does this, she has to come to it on her own."[79] Blunt initially did not want to be cast, but after reading Krasinski's draft on an aeroplane flight she felt she needed to do it as the story "represented some of my deepest fears – of not being able to protect my children".[18][79] Blunt contributed to thepre-production stage of the film.[80][79]A Quiet Place was the opening night film at the 2018South by Southwest film festival, where it received critical acclaim;[81][82] Eric Kohn of IndieWire lauded the cast for "contribut[ing] credible intensity to their scenes with a degree of sophistication rare for this type of material", while Laura Prudom ofIGN remarked that "Blunt, in particular, is put through the wringer in ways that would seem almost farcical, if she didn't play them with such compelling conviction."[83][84]
Blunt played thetitle character in Rob Marshall's 2018 musical fantasy filmMary Poppins Returns. It served as a sequel to the1964 film, with Blunt taking over the role fromJulie Andrews.[85] Owen Gleiberman ofVariety found Blunt to be "practically perfect in every way" and added that she "inhabits Mary Poppins' snappishly entrancing spirit, and in the musical numbers she generates her own spit-spot radiance".[86] She received two Actor Award nominations for her performances inA Quiet Place andMary Poppins Returns, winning Best Supporting Actress for the former and her sixth Golden Globe nomination for the latter.[87][88] In 2020, Blunt guest-starred in her husband's internet seriesSome Good News, which began streaming onYouTube during theCOVID-19 pandemic.[89] She starred in the romantic dramaWild Mountain Thyme – based onJohn Patrick Shanley's playOutside Mullingar.[90] The part required her to speak with an Irish accent; neither the film nor her accent were well received.[91][92][93] In the same year,Forbes ranked her as the sixth highest-paid actress in the world, with annual earnings of$22.5 million.[94]
Blunt in 2019
Blunt reprised her role in the horror sequelA Quiet Place Part II (2021), which was released after a year-long delay due to the pandemic. It became one of the first major Hollywood films to be released theatrically since the beginning of the pandemic.[95] Peter Bradshaw bemoaned that the "excellent" Blunt did not have more screen time.[96] As with the first film, it also emerged as a commercial success.[97] Later that year, Blunt starred alongsideDwayne Johnson in the adventure filmJungle Cruise, based on theeponymous amusement ride.[98] It was released simultaneously in cinemas and digitally onDisney+ Premier Access.[99] Jeannette Catsoulis ofThe New York Times disliked the picture saying "not even Emily Blunt, doing her bestKatharine Hepburn impression, can keep this leaky boat ride afloat".[100] The following year, Blunt played an avenging mother in the television miniseriesThe English, a western byHugo Blick.[101] Critics were impressed with her performance.[102]Lucy Mangan ofThe Guardian said, "Blunt is at her best yet, giving us a woman made brave and undauntable by resolve".[103] She received anotherActor Award nomination for it.[104]
InChristopher Nolan's biographical filmOppenheimer (2023), starringCillian Murphy asJ. Robert Oppenheimer, Blunt portrayed the eponymous scientist's wifeKatherine, who was a member of theCommunist Party USA.[105] She took a pay cut to work on the film, earning$4 million in lieu of her usual$10- to $20-million salary.[106] Nolan said that he thought about "running away" from the character while writing the script as she was "terrifying", but Blunt humanised her and surprised him in how she embraced her negative qualities: "No vanity, no fear of humiliation, no wanting to control the way she would appear".[107] The film was praised, although some criticism was made of the writing for the female characters.[108][109] Blunt's performance received praise,[110][111] and was singled out for elevating the limited material she had.[112][113] Writing forEmpire, Dan Jolin said that Blunt "busts out of the supportive/suffering wife archetype as the alcoholic but sharp-witted Kitty Oppenheimer" and delivers "one of the film's most rousing scenes in an intense verbal duel with bullish lawyerRoger Robb",[114] and Tomris Laffly ofThe Wrap called her performance "subtly scene-stealing".[115] Blunt once again received nominations for the Golden Globe, Actor, and BAFTA Award,[116][117][31] in addition to her firstAcademy Award nomination forBest Supporting Actress.[118] With a worldwide gross of over$950 million,Oppenheimer emerged as Blunt's highest-grossing film.[119] Her next release that year, theNetflix crime dramaPain Hustlers oppositeChris Evans, received poor reviews from critics.[120][121]
2026 Golden Globes
Blunt next starred withRyan Gosling inDavid Leitch's action comedy filmThe Fall Guy (2024).[122] For her role as a filmmaker, she drew inspiration fromGreta Gerwig.[123] IGN's Siddhant Adlakha was appreciate of the romantic chemistry between Blunt and Gosling.[124] It did not perform well commercially.[125] She then had a voice role as Unicorn in Krasinski'slive-action animated fantasy filmIF.[126] Blunt next starred in theBenny Safdie biographical sports dramaThe Smashing Machine, starring Dwayne Johnson asMMA wrestlerMark Kerr. She played Kerr's girlfriend Dawn Staples.[127] The film received positive reviews, and Blunt received aGolden Globe nomination.[128]
Journalists have noted Blunt's versatility as an actor and her roles in various genres, including drama, comedy, musicals, and action.[137]The Guardian observed her ability to not be pigeonholed into a type of role, and wrote that she "specialises in a sort of calculated understatement", praising her "insight into what makes characters tick and her facility for accents".[5] Commenting on her engaging screen presence, Rachel Rosenblint ofElle stated that "she has a knack for playing subtle, unspoken notes like a virtuoso".[28]The New York Times regarded Blunt as having a "taste for the offbeat and a fetching lack of vanity when it comes to playing disagreeable women" and noted her "adventurous spirit" as a performer.[4] Describing the nuances of a performance,The Age wrote, "It's no wonder that Meryl Streep has already pronounced Blunt "the best young actress I've worked with in some time, perhaps ever"."[131] Aaron Hicklin said inThe Guardian that Blunt's career "has been marked by a succession of stretching new roles".[138]The Los Angeles Times assessed that from the start of her career, Blunt "has always proved up for whatever the challenge may be", and noted her "fluidity" in working between drama and comedy.[139]Screen Rant stated that Blunt has "a number of iconic roles under her belt".[140] Her work in action roles has also been singled out, withCollider writing that it is "proof that action cinema has the potential to be morally, ethically, and emotionally nuanced", and deeming Blunt one of the "rare performers" that exceed as both an actor and movie star.[135] Catherine Shoard ofThe Guardian named her "the biggest British female movie star of her generation", comparing her toKeira Knightley,Carey Mulligan,Rachel Weisz, andKate Winslet.[141]Vanity Fair commented that she has portrayed "a kaleidoscope of mesmerizing characters" and found a "delicate balance" as "a movie star with character-actor range".[18]
Advocacy
Blunt helps to promote and raise funds for theMalala Fund, a non-profit organisation that advocates for girls' education, co-founded byMalala Yousafzai.[142] She also works with Family Reach, an organisation that helps financially support families affected by cancer.[143] Blunt has also been working with theAmerican Institute for Stuttering since 2006 to help children overcome stuttering through educational resources and raise awareness of the realities of the condition.[9] She is on the board of directors of the Institute, and hosts a gala for it each year to raise funds for speech therapy scholarships for children and adults.[144][7]
Personal life
Blunt was in a relationship with Canadian singerMichael Bublé from 2005 to 2008.[145] She and American actorJohn Krasinski were introduced to each other by a mutual friend and began dating in November 2008.[146][147] They became engaged in August 2009 and married inComo, Italy, in July 2010.[147][148] They have two daughters, one born in 2014 and the other in 2016.[149][150]
In 2012, Blunt became the sister-in-law of actorStanley Tucci when he married her sister Felicity.[151] In 2015, Blunt became anAmerican citizen through naturalisation, making her a dual citizen of the UK and US.[152]
^"Emily Blunt Interview". Seacrest Studios. 3 April 2023. Event occurs at 12:37.Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved11 July 2023 – viaYouTube.[My name is] Emily Olivia Laura Blunt.
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