Stage and film

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Fiennes' first professional stage appearance was in the West End in The Woman in Black, followed by A Month in the Country. He then became a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company for two seasons.

He made his television debut as Willy in the 1995 television film adaptation of The Vacillations of Poppy Carew. His first feature film was 1996's Stealing Beauty. In 1998, Fiennes appeared in two films that were nominated at the Academy Awards: he played Robert Dudley in Elizabeth and he portrayed William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love, receiving nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role.^{[citation needed]} He appeared in Running with Scissors (2006).

In 2001, Fiennes appeared in the film Enemy at the Gates. In 2002, he starred in the independent film, Killing Me Softly.

In 2003, he lent his voice as Proteus in the DreamWorks animated film Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas opposite Brad Pitt. The same year, he starred in the limited-release film Luther, playing Martin Luther, and he also appeared in The Merchant of Venice, in which he portrayed Bassanio. Fiennes returned to the theatre in 2006 to perform in the one-man play Unicorns, Almost about World War II poet Keith Douglas at the Old Vic.

In 2006, he appeared in the films The Darwin Awards and Goodbye Bafana. Goodbye Bafana. Fiennes portrayed James Gregory, author of the book Goodbye Bafana: Nelson Mandela, My Prisoner, My Friend.

In 2023, he appeared in the play Dear England, portraying the England football manager Gareth Southgate.

Television

Fiennes starred in the ABC science fiction series FlashForward, which debuted on 24 September 2009 and ran through 27 May 2010, as Mark Benford.^[9] He starred in Starz's 10-part series, Camelot, as the wizard Merlin.^[10]

In the second season of American Horror Story, which premiered in October 2012, Fiennes played the role of Monsignor Timothy Howard. From 2017 to 2021, Fiennes starred on the Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale as Commander Fred Waterford.

Films

Television

† released in U.S. as Egypt with the World's Greatest Explorer by the National Geographic.

Theatre

• The Woman in Black, Fortune Theatre London (1993)
• A Month in the Country, Belyaev, Guildford, Richmond and the Albery Theatre London (1994)
• A View from the Bridge, Rodolpho, Guildford, Bristol Old Vic, Strand Theatre London (1995)
• Son Of Man, Jesus Christ, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1996)||(1997)
• Les Enfants du Paradis, Lacenaire, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1996)
• Troilus and Cressida, Troilus, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Upon Avon and London (1996)||(1997)
• The Herbal Bed, Rafe Smith, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford Upon Avon and London (1996)||(1997)
• As You Like It, Silvius, Royal Shakespeare Company, London (1997)
• Real Classy Affair, Billy, Royal Court Theatre Company, London (1998)
• Christopher Marlowe's Edward II, Edward II, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield (2001)
• War Poet's Reading, Apollo Theatre (2001)
• Othello, Iago, West End, London (2002)
• Love's Labour's Lost, Berowne, Royal National Theatre, London (2003)
• Epitaph for George Dillon, George Dillon, Royal National Theatre, London (2005)||(2006)
• 2,000 Feet Away, Deputy, Bush Theatre, London (2008)
• Cyrano de Bergerac, Cyrano, Chichester Festival Theatre (2009)
• Ross, T. E. Lawrence, Chichester Festival Theatre (2016)
• Dear England, Gareth Southgate, Royal National Theatre, London (2023)

Spoken word

• 2002 – contributed to the compilation album, When Love Speaks, which consists of Shakespearean sonnets and play excerpts – "Be not afeard, the isle is full of noises" and "Our revels are now ended" (both from The Tempest)
• 2010 – starred in a series of readings of literary love scenes for The Carte Noire Readers.
• Joseph Fiennes reads Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow
• Joseph Fiennes reads The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes