Receiving an Oscar nomination isn’t easy. Winning an Oscar award isn’t a walk in the park either. Regardless of the hurdles that come with winning the prestigious award, some actors have proven that they only need to appear for a few minutes to snag the coveted award.
From Anthony Hopkins’s win for appearing in Silence of the Lambs for 16 minutes to Heath Ledger appearing for a fifth of a 2-hour movie, these actors have shown how easy it is to win an Oscar. Actor Judi Dench won an Oscar for 8 minutes for portraying Queen Elizabeth I, a win she didn’t think she deserved.
Judi Dench is a distinguished actor
Dench was born on December 9, 1934, in New York to Eleanora Olive and Reginald Arthur. Dench went to the Mount School in York. Dench’s parents helped her land a regular contract with a theatre. She trained as a set designer but got interested in drama as her brother Jeff went to the Central School of Speech and Drama.
In 1957, Dench appeared on stage as Ophelia in Hamlet. She worked with the Old Vic Company from 1957 to 1961. While working with the Old Vic, Dench played Katherine in Henry V, and as Juliet in the 1960s play Romeo and Juliet.
In 1964 the 86-year-old actor made her television debut in The Third Secret. In 1966, she appeared in Four in the Morning, which earned her a BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles.
In 1968 she won a BAFTA award for Best Actress for her performance on John Hopkins. In 1979 Dench received a BAFTA nomination for her performance as Hazel Wiles in Giant’s Shoulders. She was later cast as James Bond’s boss M. The character was modeled after real-life MI5 boss Stella Rimington. Dench was the first woman to play M.
She also appeared in films such as Mrs. Brown, Tomorrow Never Dies, Tea with Mussolini, and The World Is Not Enough. Although Dench is known for appearing in numerous films over the years, her most notable role is in Shakespeare in Love, where she played Queen Elizabeth I.
Dench’s portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I was exceptional
The film Shakespeare in Love narrates the famous playwright’s quest for love. Shakespeare works as a playwright in the Rose Theatre. However, he has writer’s block and decides to seduce Rosaline so that she could convince Burbage to buy the play he was working on.
The daughter of a wealthy merchant disguises herself as a man and auditions to appear in Shakespeare’s play. She is called Viola de Lesseps and has always had a more profound interest in Shakespeare’s other plays. She wins his heart but eventually runs away after he begins questioning her.
Shakespeare sneaks into a ball at Viola’s parents’ house. The party is Lord Wessex’s marriage proposal to Viola. Lord Wessex gets wind of Shakespeare’s motives and threatens to kill him, leading to Shakespeare lying about his identity.
After encountering Viola on her balcony, they confess their love for one another before her nurse finds them. Inspired by his muse Viola, he quickly transforms the play, which was initially called Romeo and Ethel, The Pirate’s Daughter, into what is now known as Romeo and Juliet.
When Viola appears in front of the court to get approval for her marriage to Wessex, Shakespeare arrives disguised as her cousin. He challenges Wessex to a wager. Queen Elizabeth I states that she will judge the issue.
Dench won an Oscar for her performance on ‘Shakespeare in Love’
Although Dench didn’t appear predominantly in the film, her performance was nevertheless outstanding. Dench appeared for eight minutes, according to Mental Floss, bringing an intelligent and daunting Queen Elizabeth I to life. Dench won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
The British actor even joked about her Oscar win, acknowledging that she hadn’t had plenty of screentime and therefore thought she “should get a little bit of him.”
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