Famke Janssen
Early life
Famke Beumer Janssen was born on November 5, 1964, in Amstelveen, the Netherlands. She has two sisters, director Antoinette Beumer and actress Marjolein Beumer, both of whom changed their surnames to Beumer after their parents divorced.
In addition to her native Dutch, Janssen speaks English and French. She learned German, but has not kept up with it. Following her high school graduation, Janssen studied economics for a year at the University of Amsterdam, which she later called "the stupidest idea I ever had." In the early 1990s, she enrolled at Columbia University's School of General Studies to study creative writing and literature.
Career
 | This section needs to be updated. (August 2024) |
1980s - 1990s
In 1984, Janssen moved to the United States to begin her professional career as a fashion model. She signed with Elite Model Management and worked for Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, Chanel, and Victoria's Secret. She starred in a 1988 commercial for the perfume Exclamation by Coty. Her looks have been compared to 1940s movie stars like Hedy Lamarr.
After retiring from modelling in the early 1990s, Janssen had guest roles on several television series, including a starring role in the 1992 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Perfect Mate", as empathic metamorph Kamala, opposite Patrick Stewart, with whom she later starred in the X-Men film series. That same year, Janssen was offered the role of Jadzia Dax in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, but turned it down to pursue film roles. Her first film role was alongside Jeff Goldblum in the 1992 crime drama film Fathers & Sons.
In 1995, Janssen appeared in Pierce Brosnan's debut James Bond film, GoldenEye, as femme fatale Xenia Onatopp. She appeared in Lord of Illusions with Scott Bakula. In an attempt to fight against typecasting after her Bond girl performance, Janssen began seeking out more intriguing support roles, appearing in John Irvin's City of Industry, Woody Allen's Celebrity, Robert Altman's The Gingerbread Man, and Ted Demme's Monument Ave. Denis Leary, her co-star in Monument Ave., was impressed by how easily she blended in, initially not recognizing her, as she was already in character. In the late 1990s, she appeared in The Faculty, Rounders, Deep Rising, and House on Haunted Hill.
X-Men films
In 2000, Janssen played superhero Dr. Jean Grey in the 20th Century Fox film X-Men. She later reprised the role in the 2003 sequel, X2, where her character shows signs of increasing powers, but at the end of the film, she is presumably killed. Janssen returns as Jean, whose death in X2 awoke her dark alternate personality, Phoenix, in X-Men: The Last Stand (2006). For that role, she won a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress. She returned as Jean in the 2013 film The Wolverine as a hallucination of Wolverine, followed by a brief cameo for X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014).
2002–present
In 2002, Janssen landed the role of villainess Serleena in Men in Black II, but had to abandon the film due to a death in her family and was replaced by Lara Flynn Boyle. Janssen had a prominent role in the second season of the TV series Nip/Tuck, as the seductive and manipulative life coach Ava Moore, which earned her Hollywood Life's Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award. She reprised her role in the final two episodes of the series.
In 2007, she starred in Turn the River, for which she was awarded the Special Recognition Best Actress Award at the Hamptons International Film Festival. The following year, she starred in Luc Besson's Taken. Janssen continued to work in television, appearing in TV pilots for NBC's police drama Winters and Showtime's The Farm, a spinoff of The L Word set in a women's prison. Both pilots were rejected by their networks. Janssen provided the Dutch language narration for the Studio Tram Tour at all Disney theme parks.
In 2011, Janssen made her directorial debut with the drama Bringing Up Bobby. She wrote the screenplay to the film, which stars Milla Jovovich, Bill Pullman, and Marcia Cross. She reprised her role as Lenore Mills in Taken 2 (2012) and Taken 3 (2014). She starred as the main villain Muriel in Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013).
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Janssen starred in the Netflix original horror thriller television series Hemlock Grove, wherein she plays the role of family matriarch Olivia Godfrey. Janssen had a recurring role in the ABC crime thriller television series How To Get Away With Murder, appearing in 10 episodes throughout the series, beginning her role in season two of the show and concluding it in the series finale.
Janssen was cast in a starring role in the NBC crime thriller, The Blacklist: Redemption, a spin-off of the NBC series The Blacklist, in March 2016; it was picked up to series in May 2016. The following month, Janssen expressed frustration in not being cast in X-Men: Apocalypse, saying Hollywood was sexist toward older women. She said, "Women, it's interesting because they're replaced, and the older versions are never to be seen again... whereas the men are allowed to be both ages."
In 2019, she served as a juror for the Tribeca Film Festival. Also in 2019, Janssen joined Jeffrey Dean Morgan in The Postcard Killings, which was released in 2020. In 2021, Janssen starred in the Christian romantic drama film Redeeming Love and the action-thriller Dangerous.
In a March 2021 interview, she revealed to Forbes some details about her involvement with the live action adaptation of Saint Seiya, a popular anime and manga. Janssen declared that filming was supposed to take place in Europe the previous year, but production had been postponed twice due to the Coronavirus pandemic. She also hinted that she will play one of the main characters, but did not specify their name.
Activism
Janssen appeared with her dog, Licorice, a brindle Boston Terrier, in a 2007 PETA campaign to raise awareness for animal rights. The campaign used the slogan "Be an Angel for Animals." On 28 January 2008, she was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for Integrity for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime at a United Nations anticorruption conference held in Nusa Dua, Bali.
Personal life
In 1995, Janssen married writer and director Kip Williams, son of architect Tod Williams. They divorced in 2000. She has stated that she does not want to have children.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Refs. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Fathers & Sons | Kyle Christian | ||
| 1994 | Relentless IV: Ashes to Ashes | Dr. Sara Lee Jaffee | Direct-to-video film | |
| 1994 | Model by Day | Lex / Lady X | Television film | |
| 1995 | Lord of Illusions | Dorothea Swann | ||
| 1995 | GoldenEye | Xenia Onatopp | ||
| 1996 | Dead Girl | Treasure | ||
| 1997 | City of Industry | Rachel Montana | ||
| 1998 | Monument Ave. | Katy O'Connor | ||
| 1998 | The Gingerbread Man | Leeanne Magruder | ||
| 1998 | Deep Rising | Trillian St. James | ||
| 1998 | RPM | Claudia Haggs | ||
| 1998 | Rounders | Petra | ||
| 1998 | Celebrity | Bonnie | ||
| 1998 | The Adventures of Sebastian Cole | Fiona | ||
| 1998 | The Faculty | Miss Elizabeth Burke | ||
| 1999 | House on Haunted Hill | Evelyn Stockard-Price | ||
| 2000 | Love & Sex | Kate Welles | ||
| 2000 | Circus | Lily Garfield | ||
| 2000 | X-Men | Jean Grey / Phoenix | ||
| 2001 | Made | Jessica | ||
| 2001 | Don't Say a Word | Agatha "Aggie" Conrad | ||
| 2002 | I Spy | Rachel Wright | ||
| 2003 | X2 | Jean Grey / Phoenix | ||
| 2004 | Eulogy | Judy Arnolds | ||
| 2005 | Hide and Seek | Dr. Katherine Carson | ||
| 2006 | X-Men: The Last Stand | Jean Grey / Phoenix | ||
| 2006 | The Treatment | Allegra Marshall | ||
| 2007 | The Ten | Gretchen Reigert | ||
| 2007 | Turn the River | Kailey Sullivan | ||
| 2007 | Winters | Christie Winters | Television film | |
| 2008 | The Wackness | Kristen Squires | ||
| 2008 | Taken | Lenore "Lenny" Mills | ||
| 2008 | 100 Feet | Marnie Watson | Direct-to-video film | |
| 2009 | The Farm | Valentina Galindo | Television film | |
| 2010 | The Chameleon | Jennifer Johnson | Direct-to-video film | |
| 2011 | Down the Shore | Mary Reed | ||
| 2012 | Taken 2 | Lenore "Lenny" Mills | ||
| 2013 | Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters | Muriel | ||
| 2013 | The Wolverine | Jean Grey | ||
| 2013 | The Being Experience | N/A | Originally titled In the Woods | |
| 2014 | A Fighting Man | Diane Schuler | Direct-to-video film | |
| 2014 | Unity | Narrator (voice) | Documentary | |
| 2014 | X-Men: Days of Future Past | Jean Grey | Cameo | |
| 2014 | Taken 3 | Lenore "Lenny" Mills | ||
| 2015 | Jack of the Red Hearts | Kay | ||
| 2017 | The Show | Ilana Katz | ||
| 2017 | All I Wish | Vanessa | ||
| 2017 | Once Upon a Time in Venice | Katey Ford | ||
| 2018 | Status Update | Katherine Alden | ||
| 2018 | Bayou Caviar | Nic | Originally titled Louisiana Caviar | |
| 2018 | Asher | Sophie | ||
| 2019 | The Poison Rose | Jayne Hunt | ||
| 2019 | Primal | Dr. Ellen Taylor | ||
| 2020 | The Postcard Killings | Valerie Kanon | ||
| 2020 | Endless | Lee Douglas | ||
| 2021 | The Vault | Margaret | Originally titled Way Down | |
| 2021 | Dangerous | Agent Shaughnessy | ||
| 2022 | Redeeming Love | Duchess | ||
| 2023 | Door Mouse | Mama | ||
| 2023 | Knights of the Zodiac | Vander Guraad | ||
| 2023 | Boy Kills World | Hilda Van Der Koy | ||
| 2023 | Locked In | Katherine | ||
| TBA | The Experiment |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Kamala | Episode: "The Perfect Mate" |
| 1994 | Melrose Place | Diane Adamson | Episode: "Michael's Game" |
| 1994 | The Untouchables | Cleo | Episode: "Voyeur" |
| 2000–2001 | Ally McBeal | Jamie | Episodes: "The Man with the Bag", "The Ex-Files" |
| 2004–2010 | Nip/Tuck | Ava Moore | Recurring role, 11 episodes |
| 2008 | Puppy Love | Maya | Web series |
| 2013–2015 | Hemlock Grove | Olivia Godfrey | Main role |
| 2015–2020 | How to Get Away with Murder | Eve Rothlow | Recurring role, 10 episodes |
| 2015 | SuperMansion | Frau Mantis | Voice role; 2 episodes |
| 2016 | Robot Chicken | Jean Grey | Voice role; episode: "Joel Hurwitz" |
| 2016–2018 | The Blacklist | Susan Hargrave | Recurring role, 5 episodes |
| 2017 | The Blacklist: Redemption | Main role | |
| 2019 | When They See Us | Nancy Ryan | Miniseries; 2 episodes |
| 2019 | The Capture | Jessica Mallory | Episode: "Correction" |
| 2022 | Long Slow Exhale | Melinda Barrington | Recurring role |
As director
- Bringing Up Bobby (2011), as director, producer, writer
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Category | Nominated work |
Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | MTV Movie Awards | MTV Movie Award for Best Fight (shared with Pierce Brosnan) |
GoldenEye | Nominated | |
| 2000 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Supporting Actress – Horror | House on Haunted Hill | Nominated | |
| Fangoria Chainsaw Awards | Best Supporting Actress | House on Haunted Hill | Nominated | ||
| 2001 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Supporting Actress – Science Fiction | X-Men | Nominated | |
| 2006 | Hamptons International Film Festival | Golden Starfish Award for Career Achievement | The Treatment | Won | |
| High Falls Film Festival | Susan B. Anthony "Failure is Impossible" Award | The Treatment | Won | ||
| Scream Awards | Sexiest Superhero | X-Men: The Last Stand | Nominated | ||
| Best Superhero | X-Men: The Last Stand | Nominated | |||
| Best Flesh Scene (Shared with Hugh Jackman) |
X-Men: The Last Stand | Won | |||
| Teen Choice Awards | Choice Movie: Liplock (shared with Hugh Jackman) |
X-Men: The Last Stand | Nominated | ||
| 2007 | Hamptons International Film Festival | Special Recognition | Turn the River | Won | |
| Special Prize | Turn the River | Won | |||
| Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actress | X-Men: The Last Stand | Won | ||
| 2016 | Gold Derby Awards | Best Drama Guest Actress | How to Get Away with Murder | Nominated |
References
- ^ Famke Janssen at Fashion Model Directory
- ^ "Famke Janssen- Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
- ^ "Famous birthdays for Nov. 5: Kris Jenner, Famke Janssen". UPI. 5 November 2022.
- ^ Elias, Justine (15 November 1998). "Famke Janssen; Transformations As a Way of Life, Not Just on Screen". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ "Famke Janssen [1965] Stage and Screen Performer". New Netherland Institute. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
Also note that Famke retained her family name Janssen but her sisters changed their family name to Beumer.
- ^ Malanowski, Jamie (20 August 2000). "A Scene Stealer's Big Score". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 October 2009.
- ^ Toal, Drew (7–13 May 2008). "The Hot Seat: She's a hustler, baby". Time Out New York. Archived from the original on 26 July 2008. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ Ruyle, Megan (8 May 2012). "Famke Janssen". TheHill. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
- ^ "The Owl Magazine" (PDF). Columbia University School of General Studies. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
- ^ "Famke Janssen Exclamation perfume commercial". 24 March 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2011 – via YouTube.
- ^ "X-Men's Famke Janssen Changed Star Trek: DS9's Trills, Says Dax Actress". Screen Rant. 7 December 2023. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
- ^ "Famke Janssen on Tavis Smiley". PBS. 6 May 2008. Archived from the original on 23 May 2010. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ "Famke Janssen [1965] Stage and Screen Performer". New Netherland Institute. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
In 2007, she won three awards, the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress...
- ^ Robert Yaniz Jr. (29 March 2013). "'The Wolverine': Hugh Jackman on Jean Grey's Return". Screen Rant. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ^ Keyes, Rob (1 October 2012). "Famke Janssen on 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' Return: 'Stay Tuned'". Screen Rant. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ^ Malkin, Marc (30 May 2014). "X-Men: How Famke Janssen Kept Her Days of Future Past Cameo a Secret". E! News. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ^ Brodesser, Claude (18 July 2001). "Inside Move: Janssen out of 'MIB:2'". Variety. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
- ^ "Famke Janssen at the Hollywood Life Magazine's Breakthrough of the..." Getty Images. 27 July 2007.
- ^ "2007 Hamptons International Film Festival Awards". HamptonsFilmFest.org. 4 January 2008. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ Gilmore, Joan (5 August 2010). "Around Town: Bobby crew at JRB gallery". The Journal Record. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ Gina McIntyre (27 May 2014). "'Hemlock Grove' first look: Famke Janssen, Bill Skarsgard in Season 2". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (29 March 2016). "The Blacklist Spinoff Starring Famke Janssen In the Works At NBC". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (14 May 2016). "The Blacklist Spinoff Picked Up To Series, NBC, Cruel Intentions Alive". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
- ^ Ross, Dalton (22 April 2016). "X-Men: Famke Janssen pushes for return of 'older' Jean Grey". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 22 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
- ^ Lewis, Hilary (16 April 2019). "Tribeca: Aaron Rodgers, Angela Bassett, Sheila Nevins Among Jurors". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ Barraclough, Leo (15 May 2019). "Famke Janssen Joins Jeffrey Dean Morgan in 'The Postcard Killings,' First Look Image (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ Bryan Welk (29 April 2020). "DJ Caruso Adapts Romance Novel 'Redeeming Love' With Abigail Cowen, Tom Lewis". The Wrap. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ Ritman, Alex (12 November 2020). "Scott Eastwood, Tyrese Gibson to Lead Action-Thriller 'Dangerous'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ Dawson, Angela. "'For Queen And Country' Drives Famke Janssen's Character In 'The Vault'". Forbes. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- ^ "Famke Janssen Is an Angel for Animals". PETA. Archived from the original on 26 November 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ "UN Anti-Corruption Conference Opens in Bali". United Nations Information Service Vienna. 28 January 2008. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
- ^ "Famke Janssen says 'no' to kids". OK Magazine. 8 July 2008. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ Ritman, Alex (7 October 2016). "Sharon Stone's 'A Little Something for Your Birthday Rounds Out Cast (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (19 July 2016). "Rob Riggle, Famke Janssen, Wendi McMcLendon-Covey & More Round Out 'Status Update' Cast". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
- ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (19 June 2017). "Cuba Gooding Jr's Helming Debut Is 'Louisiana Caviar'; Richard Dreyfuss & Famke Janssen Star". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
- ^ Busch, Anita (27 April 2017). "Famke Janssen Joining Cast Of Michael Caton-Jones' Movie 'Asher'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 11 July 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
- ^ McNary, Dave (15 May 2018). "Famke Janssen Joins John Travolta's Crime Thriller 'The Poison Rose' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
- ^ Barraclough, Leo (15 May 2019). "Famke Janssen Joins Jeffrey Dean Morgan in 'The Postcard Killings,' First Look Image (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
- ^ Harvey, Dennis (12 March 2020). "'The Postcard Killings' Film Review". Variety. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
- ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (27 November 2018). "'X-Men' Star Famke Janssen Boards Scott Speer's Drama 'Endless'". Deadline. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ^ Kennedy, Lisa (12 August 2020). "'Endless' Review: A Young Adult 'Ghost' Story". Variety. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
- ^ Hopewell, John (12 November 2020). "Saban Films Takes 'The Vault' as TF1 Studio Closes U.K, Italy (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
- ^ Wiseman, Andrea (12 November 2020). "Scott Eastwood, Tyrese Gibson, Famke Janssen, Kevin Durand & Mel Gibson Set For Action-Thriller - AFM". Deadline. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
- ^ N'Duka, Amanda (29 April 2020). "Logan Marshall Green, Abigail Cowen, Nina Dobrev, Famke Janssen & More Star In 'Redeeming Love' Adaptation From 'Eagle Eye' Helmer D.J. Caruso". Deadline. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (8 June 2021). "Hayley Law And Keith Powers To Topline Avan Jogia's Debut Feature 'Door Mouse'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
- ^ Kit, Borys (20 September 2021). "Mackenyu, Madison Iseman, Sean Bean, Famke Janssen to Star in Live-Action 'Knights of the Zodiac' Adaptation (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- ^ Ravindran, Manori (9 May 2022). "Bill Skarsgard, Michelle Dockery Action Thriller 'Boy Kills World' Boarded by Capstone Global (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 13 May 2022.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (21 December 2022). "Famke Janssen & Rose Williams To Topline Netflix's Psychological Thriller 'Locked In' From Director Nour Wazzi; Alex Hassell, Finn Cole And Anna Friel Also Set". Deadline. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
- ^ Wiseman, Andreas (15 September 2022). "'The Experiment': Rhona Mitra, Famke Janssen & Stefanie Martini Lead Sci-Fi Horror Filming At UK's Rebellion Studios". Deadline. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
- ^ Hermanns, Grant (24 August 2018). "Famke Janssen & More Join Ava DuVernay's Central Park Five miniseries". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
- ^ Clarke, Stewart (5 March 2019). "Ron Perlman, Famke Janssen, Laura Haddock Join BBC's 'The Capture' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
- ^ Petski, Denise (9 March 2021). "Famke Janssen Joins 'Long Slow Exhale' Basketball Drama Series At Spectrum Originals". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
- ^ "GoldenEye (1995)". screenmusings.org. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "Famke Janssen". codepen.io. 6 January 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "Fangoria Chainsaw Awards (2000 Awards)". imdb.com. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "52 Famke Janssen Movies, Ranked Best to Worst". through the clutter.com. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "14th Annual Hamptons International Film Festival - "The Treatment" - Screening". gettyimages.in. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ ""The Lives of Others" and "American Blackout" Take Top High Falls Film Festival Honors". IndieWire. 14 November 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "Spike TV's Scream Awards Winners!". geeksofdoom.com. 9 October 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "Famke Janssen". mymoviepicker.com. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
- ^ "Famke Janssen (Bond Girl)". jamesbond007.se. 6 January 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
External links
