Gary Oldman told he couldn’t act

By Alexandra Heilbron on June 10, 2011 | 7 Comments


Award-winning actor Gary Oldman was once told by RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts) that he couldn’t act and that he should consider doing something else with his life. He told Metro newspaper that following an audition for the highly-respected British school, he was given the advice. Oldman, who was born in London, said: “Maybe I wasn’t ready, or maybe I just had a bad day? Maybe my audition wasn’t very good? But you can’t not enjoy the irony. I really wanted to go. That was my sort of dream because so many of the people I looked up to had been there.” Oldman instead received a B.A. in theatre arts in 1979 from Britain’s Rose Bruford Drama College, then went on to study with the Greenwich Young People’s Theatre. His work is revered by many of his fellow actors, including his Harry Potter co-star, Daniel Radcliffe. Oldman has also been the recipient of many acting honors, including Master Screen Artist Tribute at the USA Film Festival and an Icon Award at the 2011 British Empire Awards.



Comments & Discussion

  1. L1feless • June 10, 2011 @ 12:11 PM

    One of those honors includes awesome mustache. He won the award and it was presented to him by Tom Selic.

  2. C-Dub • June 10, 2011 @ 1:46 PM

    Yes that mustache kicks ass. He’s a great actor. Some people don’t have forsight.

  3. Germain • June 10, 2011 @ 3:12 PM

    It goes to show that those fossils at art schools sometimes don’t know what the hell they’re talking about. I noticed him when he played Oswald in JFK and followed his career since then. I always thought he was a great actor. Even his earlier work in Sid and Nancy, you could tell this guy was gonna be a great actor.

  4. JEFF • June 11, 2011 @ 1:26 PM

    Commish Gordon Rules!

  5. frank • June 12, 2011 @ 7:33 PM

    dracula,romeo is bleeding,dark knight,and who could forget his scene stealing performances in true romance and great murder in the first just to name a few!great actor

  6. Jason • June 13, 2011 @ 1:10 PM

    Guys, we’re forgetting the greatest movie of all time: THE FIFTH ELEMENT.

  7. Jo-Anne • June 13, 2011 @ 9:07 PM

    “was once told”….like how many years we talking here?


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