Terence Stamp

Terence Henry Stamp (born 22 July 1938) is an English actor.

Stamp, the eldest of five children, was born on 22 July 1938 in Stepney, London, England, the son of Ethel Esther (née Perrott; 1914–1985) and Thomas Stamp (1913–1982), who was a tugboat stoker.

His early years were spent in Canal Road, Bow, in the East End, but later in his childhood the family moved to Plaistow, West Ham, Essex (now in Greater London), where he attended Plaistow County Grammar School.

His father was away for long periods with the Merchant Navy and the young Stamp was mostly brought up by his mother, grandmother, and aunts.

He grew up idolising actor Gary Cooper after his mother took him to see Beau Geste (1939) when he was three years old.

He was also inspired by the 1950s method-trained actor James Dean.

Growing up in London during World War II, Stamp endured the Blitz as a child (he would later aid Valkyrie director Bryan Singer in staging a scene where the von Stauffenbergs hide from the Allied bombings).

After leaving school, Stamp worked in a variety of advertising agencies in London, working his way up to earning a reasonable salary.

In the mid‑1950s, he also worked as an assistant to professional golfer Reg Knight at Wanstead Golf Club in east London.

He describes this period of his life positively in his autobiography Stamp Album.

Stamp won a scholarship to train at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, then performed in various provincial repertory theatres, most notably in a national tour of Willis Hall's play The Long the Short and the Tall alongside another young cockney actor Michael Caine.

Caine moved in with Stamp, and they began hanging out with Peter O'Toole in the London party scene.

Associated with the Swinging London scene of the 1960s – during which time he was in high-profile relationships with actress Julie Christie and supermodel Jean Shrimpton – Stamp was among the subjects photographed by David Bailey for a set titled Box of Pin-Ups.

After training at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London, he started his acting career in 1962.

He was called the "master of the brooding silence" by The Guardian.

His performance in the title role of Billy Budd, his film debut, earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor and a BAFTA nomination for Best Newcomer.

Stamp made his film debut in Peter Ustinov's film adaptation of Herman Melville's Billy Budd (1962).

His portrayal of the title character brought him not only an Academy Award nomination but also international attention.

He then appeared opposite Laurence Olivier in Term of Trial (1962).

Stamp collaborated with some of the most revered filmmakers.

He starred in The Collector (1965), William Wyler's adaptation of John Fowles' novel of the same name, opposite Samantha Eggar, and in Modesty Blaise (1966), for director Joseph Losey and producer Joe Janni.

Stamp was considered for the title role of Alfie (1966), but turned it down in favour of Modesty Blaise (1966).

He starred opposite Christie in Far from the Madding Crowd (1967).

Stamp reunited with producer Janni for two more projects: John Schlesinger's adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd (1967) starring Julie Christie, and Ken Loach's first feature film Poor Cow (1967).

He was approached to play the role of James Bond when Sean Connery retired from the role, but did not receive a second call from producer Harry Saltzman because, in Stamp's opinion, "my ideas about [how the role should be portrayed] put the frighteners on Harry. I didn't get a second call from him."

Stamp then travelled to Italy to star in Federico Fellini's Toby Dammit, a 50-minute portion of the Edgar Allan Poe film adaptation Histoires extraordinaires (1968, aka Spirits of the Dead).

Stamp lived in Italy for several years, during which time his film work included Pier Paolo Pasolini's Teorema (1968) opposite Silvana Mangano, and A Season in Hell (1971).

His subsequent film credits included The Mind of Mr. Soames (1970) where he played an infantile patient, A Season in Hell (1971), Meetings with Remarkable Men (1979), and The Hit (1984), which won a Mystfest Award for Best Actor, shared with John Hurt and Tim Roth.

He gained wider fame for his role as archvillain General Zod in Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980).

Also in 1984, he had the opportunity to play the Devil in a cameo in The Company of Wolves.

He also appeared in Link (1986), Legal Eagles (1986), The Sicilian (1987), and a cameo as Sir Larry Wildman in Wall Street (1987).

Other films include Wall Street (1987), Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), The Haunted Mansion (2003), Elektra (2005), Wanted (2008), Get Smart (2008), Yes Man (2008), Valkyrie (2008), Big Eyes (2014) and Last Night in Soho (2021).

He played the ranch owner, John Tunstall, in Young Guns (1988).

His film Beltenebros (1992) (aka Prince of Shadows), was awarded the Silver Bear at the 42nd Berlin International Film Festival.

For his leading role in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) he earned BAFTA Award and Golden Globe Award nominations.

Stamp began his fourth decade as an actor wearing some of the choicest of Tim Chappel's Academy Award-winning costumes for the comedy The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) which co-starred Guy Pearce and Hugo Weaving.

Known for his sophisticated villain roles, he was named by Empire as one of the 100 Sexiest Film Stars of All Time in 1995.

He has received various accolades including a Golden Globe Award, a Cannes Film Festival Award, and a Silver Bear as well as nominations for an Academy Award and two BAFTA Awards.

He then starred in The Limey (1999) earning an Independent Spirit Award nomination.

In 1999, Stamp played a lead role in The Limey to widespread critical acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival.