Matthew Goode is a British actor, loved by the audience in the images of aristocrats and gentlemen with impeccable manners. He starred in the popular TV series Downton Abbey, The Crown, The Good Wife, as well as The Watchmen, Match Point, The Imitation Game.
Biography: early years and education
Matthew William Goode was born on April 3, 1978 in the English Exter, the main town of Devonshire. He was the fifth child in the large family of Anthony and Jennifer Goode. In addition to his sibling, he has half-brothers and a sister from his mother's previous marriage. The head of the family worked as a geologist, his wife worked as a nurse.
In an interview, Matthew said that his mother Jennifer was an orphan, but in her dreams she always imagined herself as the beloved daughter of Laurence Olivier. She was fond of theater and staged amateur performances in her free time. Sometimes she involved her younger son in her productions.
Goode grew up in a village near Exter and attended a private Exter school. Little Matthew made his acting debut on her stage at the age of six. It was the tale "The Wind in the Willows", based on the story of the Scottish writer Kenneth Graham. Its main characters are a rat, a toad, a mole and a badger, and Matthew played the small role of a mouse.
Goode started thinking seriously about his acting career at the age of 17. He approached obtaining a professional education thoroughly. First he studied drama at the University of Birmingham, then his choice fell on the Academy of Dramatic Art in London. In the theater, Matthew practically did not work, although he learned the basics of the profession on his stage. But the actor does not lose hope to fill this gap in the future. He would like to play Tom Wingfield from The Glass Menagerie by British playwright Tennessee Williams.
Actor career
Goode admits that he owes his first successes to the agents who worked with him, and, of course, to his acting luck. At 24, he made his television debut in Cinderella: The Big Sister Version, after which he appeared in separate episodes of several British TV series:
- Inspector Linley Investigates (2002);
- “He knew it” (2004);
- Miss Marple (2005).
The real success came to the actor after getting to Hollywood. In 2004, he starred in the youth comedy First Daughter, where he played an English boy who the daughter of the President of the United States falls in love with. The main female role went to Mandy Moore, and the film itself can be called a modern remake of "Roman Holiday". Goode then reincarnated as the English aristocrat Tom Hewitt in Woody Allen's thriller Match Point (2005). Matthew admitted that he was scared to work with a great director, but in the end he appeared on the screen so relaxed that he did not work in any of his subsequent works.
In 2006, Goode fell back into the romantic comedy genre. In the film "Imagine Us Together," he played the role of the groom, whose bride falls in love with another woman on their wedding day. He returned to television in the film adaptation of Gerald Darrell's book "My Family and Other Animals" (2005). But still, during this period, Matthew had a full-length movie in the first place. Since the mid-2000s, there have been several premieres every year with the participation of the British actor:
- Rewriting Beethoven (2006);
- Cheating (2007);
- Return to Brideshead (2008);
- Keepers (2009);
- The Lonely Man (2009);
- How to Get Married in Three Days (2010).
In the historical setting of the melodrama "Rewriting Beethoven" the events of the last year of the life of the great composer are highlighted. In the crime drama "Deception", the hero Matthew is the leader of a gang of criminals. The film "Return to Brideshead" tells about the life of the young artist Charles Ryder, whom fate brings together with the aristocratic family of Marchmain. Against the background of the events of the first half of the 20th century, a young man goes from aggressive atheism to understanding and respecting the religious views of others.
In the film adaptation of the popular comic book "Keepers", Matthew Goode got the role of Ozymandius, a billionaire with phenomenal abilities, who dreams of changing the world for the better at any cost. Finally, the drama "A Lonely Man" tells the story of Professor Falconer, grieving the death of his lover Jim, in the role of which Hood appears.
As can be seen from the content of the films, Matthew Goode is a versatile actor for whom there are no boundaries in his chosen profession. He is equally convincing in each of his roles, so directors are not afraid to test him in the most unexpected roles.
The psychological thriller Vicious Games (2013), where Matthew Goode played alongside Nicole Kidman and Mia Wasikowska, earned rave reviews. In the course of the film, his character Charlie Stoker turns from an attractive man into a creepy monster with frightening habits.
The creators of the film "The Burning Man" (2011) have an interesting and deep story. Chef Tom (Matthew Goode), at first glance, is a disgusting type who despises his family, colleagues, and bosses. But his past hides a personal tragedy that gradually takes viewers away from the harsh rejection of this character.
In 2014, Good appeared in the historical film The Imitation Game, where he played along with his close friend Benedict Cumberbatch. In ordinary life, the actors have known each other for many years and love to visit each other.
Since 2012, the actor has returned to television. With his participation, a whole series of serials, shot in various genres, are released. Some of them gained fame all over the world:
- Death Comes to Pemberley (2013);
- The Good Wife (2014-2015);
- Downton Abbey (2014-2015);
- Roots (2016);
- "Crown" (2017);
- "Discovery of Witches" (2018).
In recent years, among the most notable films by Matthew Goode can be called "Allies" (2016) by Robert Zemeckis and the British detective "Premonition of the End" (2017). Two films with the participation of the actor are planned for 2019 - the political thriller Official Secrets and the full-length version of the series Downton Abbey.
Personal life
Since Goode played the roles of homosexuals three times in the movie, there were rumors about the gay actor himself. In fact, in 2005, he started dating Sophia Dyumok, who worked for a clothing company. Soon the couple began to live together. In 2009, their first child was born - daughter Matilda Eve, and four years later - daughter Teddy Eleanor Rose. After the birth of their second child in 2014, Matthew and Sofia formalized their relationship. In 2015, the couple had a son, Ralph. The main secret of a strong and happy relationship, Good says, is having a favorite hobby that allows him and his wife to be distracted from family responsibilities. For Matthew, such a hobby is fishing, and Sofia prefers horse riding.
