Tim Roth is an English actor and director, who has become famous for his roles in Reservoir Dogs (1992), Pulp Fiction (1994), directed by Quentin Tarantino, as well as the role of a psychologist in the TV series Lie to Me. Net worth: $8 million.
On the photo: Tim Roth
His Childhood and Youth
Timothy Simon Roth was born on May 14, 1961, in South London. His mother Ann was a painter and teacher, his father Ernie was a journalist, painter, member of the British Communist Party until the 1970s.
Tim Roth as a child (on the photo as Dracula in the school play)
The real surname of Tim's father was Smith, but he changed it to the German-Jewish Roth in the 1940s: partly through solidarity with the victims of the Holocaust and partly because the British were far from welcome in the countries where he had to work.
Tim Roth in his youth
As a teenager, Tim Roth wanted to be a sculptor, so after high school, he entered the London Camberwell College of Arts. However, he could not finish his studies. The young man dropped out when he became much more interested in the scene than gypsum and clay.
His Acting Career
Young Tim Roth improved his acting skills in small theaters and improvised scenes in pubs. In 1983, the guy got his first (and immediately lead) movie role - he played a skinhead in the BBC movie Made in Britain. Roth was lucky – the young actor played the bright lead roles. Despite Tim’s early movies did not become box office, he had the chance to play various characters: from the retarded and in love young man in the comedy-drama Meantime (1983) to the stern hitman in Stephen Frears’ movie The Hit (1984).
Tim Roth as a skinhead in Made in Britain
In 1989, the actor starred in Peter Greenaway’s drama The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, and a year later, he played the famous Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh in Vincent & Theo. Critics were satisfied with the work of the actor:
It is undoubtedly, Tim Roth as Vincent is the best thing in this movie ... He acts as a soft, sweet sufferer who tries to improve his skills as much as possible.
By the end of the 1980s, Tim Roth and other successful British actors, such as Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Daniel Day-Lewis, Bruce Payne and Paul McGann, were dubbed the Brit Pack in Hollywood. In fact, Tim was so famous that he had already drawn the promising directors’ attention. Among them there was Quentin Tarantino, who in 1992 gave Roth the role in his debut movie Reservoir Dogs and two years later invited him to star in Pulp Fiction with John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis and Uma Thurman. These movies became extremely popular.
Tim Roth in Pulp Fiction (a scene)
In 1995, Tarantino and Roth also collaborated on the shooting of Four Rooms, where Tim played the central character, desk clerk Ted. His role as the poor adulterine aristocrat from London in Michael Caton-Jones’ historical movie Rob Roy earned him the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in Supporting Role as well as nominations for Oscar and Golden Globe Award.
Tim Roth in Four Rooms (a scene)
In 1996, Tim starred in Woody Allen’s musical comedy Everyone Says I Love You, working on the set with Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Edward Norton and Goldie Hawn.
Tim Roth and Drew Barrymore in Everyone Says I Love You
Three years later, Roth made his directorial debut: he shot the drama The War Zone about a teenager who revealed a terrible family secret - incest and sexual abuse. The film was nominated for numerous awards; Tim received seven awards and was called the best director several times.
In 1999, Tim Roth made his directorial debut
After the movie release, Roth admitted that he was a victim of sexual abuse, but he refused to name the offender. At the end of 2016, in an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian the actor finally told that from early childhood to adolescence he was bullied by his grandfather.
According to Zoomboola.com, in 2001, the actor played General Thade in the science fiction movie Planet of the Apes, directed by Tim Burton. For this project, Roth refused to play the role of Professor Severus Snape in the series of movies about Harry Potter as a wizard. And it was not a wrong decision: the movie and his acting received the highest rating and love of the audience.
Tim Roth before shooting Planet of the Apes
Roth was considered for the role of the intellectual psychopath Hannibal Lecter in Ridley Scott’s thriller Hannibal (2001), a sequel to the 1991 movie The Silence of the Lambs. However, Anthony Hopkins confirmed his participation in the project, and he was chosen. But Tim was lucky enough to work with Francis Ford Coppola on the set of his drama Youth Without Youth (2007). Little money was spent on the shooting of this movie, and it was compensated in the first weeks of its release.
Tim Roth in Francis Ford Coppola's drama Youth Without Youth
The project of Marvel Studios takes a separate page in the life of Roth. In 2008, the actor starred as supervillain Emil Blonsky, known as Abomination, an officer and a former spy of socialist Yugoslavia, in the movie The Incredible Hulk. Its director Louis Leterrier was a fan of Roth’s work. In an interview, he said:
It`s great watching a normal Cockney boy becomes a superhero!.
From 2009 to 2011, Tim Roth starred in the TV series on Fox Lie to Me. The actor played Dr. Cal Lightman, an expert on body language, who assisted local and federal law organizations in the investigations of crimes. His character was based on a real person - the notable American psychologist and Professor Paul Ekman, though the TV series began with the statement that no one was the prototype of the character.
Tim Roth talks about the TV series Lie to Me
In 2012, Tim Roth reached a new stage in his career - he became the President of the Jury for the Un Certain Regard section, the second most important program of the Cannes Film Festival. The following year, he starred as the 8th FIFA President Joseph (Sepp) Blatter in United Passions.
Tim Roth and former FIFA President Sepp Blatter
The plot unfolds from the beginning of the last century until 2004 and glorifies a game that has become a worldwide sport and the embodiment of hope and unity. Sam Neill (as the 7th FIFA President, Joao Havelange), Thomas Kretschmann (Horst Dassler, a son of Adolf Adi Dassler, the founder of the brand Adidas), Fisher Stevens and Gerard Depardieu also starred in the movie by French director Frederic Auburtin. The release of the movie coincided with FIFA’s 110th anniversary and 2014 FIFA World Cup.
United Passions – a trailer
In 2015, Tim starred in Chronic which received a limited release in 2016. Later, for this role, the actor received an Independent Spirit Award. In the same year, Roth again worked with Tarantino on the set of his western The Hateful Eight, where Tim played executioner Oswaldo Mobray (English Pete Hicox).
Tim Roth in The Hateful Eight
In an interview, the actor confirmed that his character was the ancestor of Archie Hicox, an English Lieutenant from Tarantino’s movie Inglourious Basterds. It is interesting that in this movie Tim Roth should star as Hicox, but due to different work schedules, Michael Fassbender has played this role. Other Tarantino’s favorites such as Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Walton Goggins, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, Zoe Bell also starred in The Hateful Eight. For the first time, Tarantino worked with Channing Tatum and Jennifer Jason Leigh.
Tim Roth in the TV series Tin Star
In 2017, Tim starred as the former London detective Jim Worth, who escaped from the past in a small town, in the drama series Tin Star. The first season impressed the critics and public, so it was decided to shoot one more season.
Tim Roth in the TV series Twin Peaks
The actor also played in the third season of the TV series Twin Peaks, a continuation of the cult TV series by David Lynch, released in the 1990s.
In the summer of 2018, Tim Roth could be seen in the comedy The Con Is On. In spite of the brilliant cast (Uma Thurman, Sofia Vergara, Stephen Fry), James Oakley’s movie received low ratings.
The Con Is On – a trailer
In September 2018, it was released the drama The Padre in the USA. It tells the story of a former convict, known as Padre (Tim Roth), who escapes from his father-in-law, Marshal Nemes (Nick Nolte), and hired Colombian police officer Gaspar (Luis Guzmán).
Personal Life of Tim Roth
Tim Roth has three sons. Jack Roth, born to Lori Baker in 1984, is also an actor.
Tim Roth with his first wife Lori Baker and son Jack
In 1993, Roth married Nikki Butler, a designer of clothes and jewelry. They met at the Sundance Film Festival – according to the woman, at the time she did not know Tim and did not watch any movie, where he had acted.
Tim Roth and Nikki Butler
They have two sons – Timothy Hunter (born in 1995) and Michael Cormac (born in 1996). Butler also adopted little Jack.
Tim Roth Now
In 2019 the drama "Luce", where Tim Roth starred with Naomi Watts and Octavia Spencer, was released. In July of the same year, Tim Roth was supposed to appear in Quentin Tarantino's new film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” as the former young man of Margot Robbie's character. However, in the end, all the scenes with the participation of Roth were cut out, as according to the director, he did not fit into the film.
In 2020, Tim Roth starred in films much less than before.
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Robert Yates
Not a fan of Tim Roth, but plays convincing enough! Even if the characters are all the same for him. As it turned out, a father with many children, well, it`s great
2021-05-08 14:43:29
Virginia Lawson
Well, Tarantino`s films can also be remembered by Roth`s participation in them. Without him, something is badly remembered :)
2021-03-31 13:59:44
Jesus Palmer
Too pretentious for me! A talented, but very similar and pretentious actor
2021-03-26 17:55:58
Ida Williams
Tim Roth is always recognizable in films, but I don`t particularly like films with him. Except «Lie to Me» I didn`t see anything much :) But the series is not bad, I watched it with pleasure
2021-03-22 19:27:43
Chad Scott
Tim Roth has been in the film industry for a long time and there were a lot of roles. I saw him in the Reservoir Dogs for the very first time.
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Robert Yates
2021-05-08 14:43:29
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Virginia Lawson
2021-03-31 13:59:44
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Jesus Palmer
2021-03-26 17:55:58
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Ida Williams
2021-03-22 19:27:43
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Chad Scott
2021-03-13 16:20:11
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