Portrait · Colleen Sturtevant; existing crop by PaulLim11 / CC BY-SA 4.0

Kate Winslet

Actor and director

Born 1975

Kate Winslet is an English actor and director, born in Reading in 1975. She grew up in a family familiar with performing and the practical work needed to support it. Her father acted but also took other jobs; her mother worked in restaurants while raising four children. In the ALL ARTS documentary, Winslet recalls playing the Ace of Hearts in an Alice in Wonderland production at eleven, an early experience of belonging onstage. Youth theatre at Reading’s Starmaker Theatre Company and training at Redroofs Theatre School in Maidenhead developed that interest. She described Redroofs as her only formal acting training, and remembered hoping that the work might lead to occasional theatre jobs. Screen roles arrived sooner than she expected. She approached characters through close attention to scripts and their lives beyond the scenes shown. Her television beginnings included Dark Season and Get Back. Heavenly Creatures took the teenage actor to New Zealand for her first feature role. She recalled receiving the news while working at a Reading delicatessen: her child agent telephoned to tell her the audition had succeeded. At BAFTA, she described a career built through collaboration, moving between unfamiliar characters rather than seeking a fixed screen identity. Sense and Sensibility cast her as Marianne Dashwood. Titanic followed with Rose DeWitt Bukater, opposite Leonardo DiCaprio. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind brought the unpredictable Clementine Kruczynski. The Reader placed her in the role of Hanna Schmitz. That performance won the 2009 Academy Award for Actress in a Leading Role. Revolutionary Road reunited her with DiCaprio as April Wheeler. Television continued to provide substantial roles. Mildred Pierce and Mare of Easttown each earned a lead-acting Emmy; the Academy also recognised her producing work on Mare with a nomination. The Regime later cast her as Chancellor Elena Vernham and credited her as executive producer. Lee brought the role of photographer Lee Miller and a producing credit. Goodbye June became her feature directing debut after her son Joe Anders wrote its screenplay. She had first intended to act and produce, then realised she wanted to direct the family drama herself. Her discussion with Krista Smith describes hiring first-time department heads and arranging the set to give the performers room to work together. The film reached Netflix in December 2025, with Winslet playing Julia and also serving as a producer. Her narration work continued with Finding Harmony: A King’s Vision, which debuted worldwide on Prime Video in February 2026. She also became an ambassador for The King’s Foundation in June 2025. The Hunt for Gollum is a future acting project: the April 2026 casting announcement names her as Marigol, a Stoor settlement matriarch, in Andy Serkis’s film scheduled for December 2027.

Verified identityCore facts checked against named sources.

Keep exploring

Connected people

ConnectionLeonardo DiCaprioCo-star in Titanic and Revolutionary Road.

ConnectionJoe AndersHer son and the screenwriter of Goodbye June.

ConnectionEllen KurasDirector of Lee, which Winslet stars in and produces.

Official records · wins and honours

Awards & Honours

Selected recognition linked to the awarding organisation or primary record.

2025
Golden GlobesNomination
Nomination — Actress — Motion Picture Drama
Lee
Official record
2025
Golden GlobesNomination
Nomination — Actress — Limited Series or TV Movie
The Regime
Official record
2023
BAFTA TelevisionCompetitive win
Leading Actress
I Am Ruth
Official record
2023
BAFTA TelevisionCompetitive win
Single Drama — credited production team
I Am Ruth
Official record
2022
Golden GlobesCompetitive win
Actress — Limited Series or TV Movie
Mare of Easttown
Official record
2022
Screen Actors GuildCompetitive win
Female Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series
Mare of Easttown
Official record
2021
Television AcademyCompetitive win
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
Mare of Easttown
Official record
2021
Television AcademyNomination
Nomination — Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series — executive producer
Mare of Easttown
Official record
2016
BAFTACompetitive win
Supporting Actress
Steve Jobs
Official record
2016
Golden GlobesCompetitive win
Supporting Actress — Motion Picture
Steve Jobs
Official record
2012
Golden GlobesCompetitive win
Actress — Limited Series or TV Movie
Mildred Pierce
Official record
2012
UK Birthday HonoursIndustry honor
CBE
Kate Winslet
Official record
2012
Screen Actors GuildCompetitive win
Female Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries
Mildred Pierce
Official record
2011
Television AcademyCompetitive win
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie
Mildred Pierce
Official record
2009
BAFTACompetitive win
Leading Actress
The Reader
Official record
2009
Academy AwardsCompetitive win
Actress in a Leading Role
The Reader
Official record
2009
Golden GlobesCompetitive win
Motion Picture Actress — Drama
Revolutionary Road
Official record
2009
Golden GlobesCompetitive win
Supporting Actress — Motion Picture
The Reader
Official record
2009
Screen Actors GuildCompetitive win
Female Actor in a Supporting Role
The Reader
Official record
2007
BAFTA Britannia AwardsIndustry honor
British Artist of the Year
Kate Winslet
Official record
2000
Grammy AwardsCompetitive win
Best Spoken Word Album for Children — with Wynton Marsalis and Graham Greene
Listen to the Storyteller
Official record
1996
BAFTACompetitive win
Supporting Actress
Sense and Sensibility
Official record
1996
Screen Actors GuildCompetitive win
Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Sense and Sensibility
Official record

Nomination — Actress — Motion Picture Drama

Nomination — Actress — Limited Series or TV Movie

Leading Actress

Single Drama — credited production team

Actress — Limited Series or TV Movie

Female Actor in a TV Movie or Limited Series

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

Nomination — Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series — executive producer

Supporting Actress

Supporting Actress — Motion Picture

Actress — Limited Series or TV Movie

CBE

Female Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie

Leading Actress

Actress in a Leading Role

Motion Picture Actress — Drama

Supporting Actress — Motion Picture

Female Actor in a Supporting Role

British Artist of the Year

Best Spoken Word Album for Children — with Wynton Marsalis and Graham Greene

Supporting Actress

Female Actor in a Supporting Role