Tilda Swinton
Known for: Acting
Katherine Matilda Swinton (born November 5, 1960) is an award-winning British actress of Scottish descent, known for her versatile roles in independent films and blockbusters. She is a recipient various accolades throughout her long career, including an Academy Award and two BAFTA Awards, in addition to being nominated for three Golden Globe Awards and five Screen Actors Guild Awards. Swinton began her career by appearing in experimental films starting with Caravaggio (1986), followed by The Last of England (1988), War Requiem (1989), and The Garden (1990). She won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival for her portrayal of Isabella of France in Edward II (1991). She next starred in Sally Potter's Orlando (1992), for which she received a nomination for the European Film Award for Best Actress. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her performance in The Deep End (2001), and followed this with appearances in Vanilla Sky (2001), Adaptation (2002), Constantine (2005), Julia (2008), and I Am Love (2009). For the film Young Adam (2003), she won the British Academy Scotland Award for Best Actress. Her performance in Michael Clayton (2007) won her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. Additionally, she won the European Film Award for Best Actress and received a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for the psychological thriller We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011). Swinton has also played the White Witch in The Chronicles of Narnia series (2005–2010) and the Ancient One in the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. Swinton was awarded the Richard Harris Award by the British Independent Film Awards in recognition of her contributions to the British film industry. In 2013, she was given a special tribute by the Museum of Modern Art. In 2020, Swinton was awarded the British Film Institute Fellowship, the highest honour presented by the institution, for her "daringly eclectic and striking talents as a performer and film-maker and recognizes her great contribution to film culture, independent film exhibition and philanthropy." That same year, The New York Times ranked her thirteenth on its list of the greatest actors of the 21st century up to that point.
Filmography
Series
Rick and Morty
The Collective (voice)
2013
Series
The Daily Show
Self
1996
Series
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Self
2015
Series
Late Night with Seth Meyers
Self - Guest
2014
Series
The Boys
Ambrosius (voice)
2019
Film
Avengers: Endgame
The Ancient One
2019
Series
What If...?
The Ancient One (voice)
2021
Series
Golden Globe Awards
Self - Nominee
1944
Film
Doctor Strange
The Ancient One
2016
Series
What We Do in the Shadows
Tilda
2019
Film
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
White Witch
2005
Series
Screen Two
Isabella
1985
Series
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
Self
2014
Series
Marvel Studios Legends
The Ancient One (archive footage) (uncredited)
2021
Film
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Madame D.
2014
Film
Isle of Dogs
Oracle (voice)
2018
Film
Constantine
Gabriel
2005
Series
The Oscars
Self
1953
Film
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Elizabeth Abbott
2008
Film
Asteroid City
Dr. Hickenlooper
2023
Film
The Killer
The Expert
2023
Film
Snowpiercer
Mason
2013
Series
ScreenPlay
Ella / Max Gerike
1986
Film
Uncut Gems
Anne - Adley's Auction Manager (voice)
2019
Series
Made in Hollywood
Self
2005
Film
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
White Witch
2008
Film
The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun
J.K.L. Berensen
2021
Film
Moonrise Kingdom
Social Services
2012
Film
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
White Witch
2010
Film
Vanilla Sky
Rebecca Dearborn
2001
Film
Burn After Reading
Katie Cox
2008
Film
Ballad of a Small Player
Cynthia Blithe
2025
Film
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio
Wood Sprite / Death (voice)
2022
Film
Hail, Caesar!
Thora Thacker / Thessaly Thacker
2016
Film
Three Thousand Years of Longing
Alithea
2022
Film
Trainwreck
Dianna
2015
Film
Suspiria
Madame Blanc / Dr. Klemperer / Helena Markos
2018
Film
Michael Clayton
Karen Crowder
2007
Film
Adaptation.
Valerie Thomas
2002
Film
The Beach
Sal
2000
Film
Okja
Lucy Mirando / Nancy Mirando
2017
Film
We Need to Talk About Kevin
Eva Khatchadourian
2011
Film
War Machine
German Politician
2017
Film
The Dead Don't Die
Zelda Winston
2019
Film
A Bigger Splash
Marianne Lane
2015
Series
Fantasmas
Water (voice)
2024
Film
The Room Next Door
Martha / Michelle
2024
Film
Broken Flowers
Penny
2005
Series
Shakespeare: The Animated Tales
Ophelia (voice)
1992
Film
Only Lovers Left Alive
Eve
2013
Film
The Zero Theorem
Dr. Shrink-Rom
2013
Film
The Personal History of David Copperfield
Betsey Trotwood
2019
Film
Young Adam
Ella Gault
2003
Film
The War Zone
Mum
1999
Series
Getting On
Elke
2009
Series
Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema
Narrator (voice)
2020
Film
Orlando
Orlando
1992
Film
The Souvenir
Rosalind
2019
Film
I Am Love
Emma Recchi
2010
Film
The End
Mother
2024
Film
The Man from London
Camélia
2008
Series
Galapagos
Self - Presenter
2006
Film
Female Perversions
Evelyn Stephens
1996
Film
Thumbsucker
Audrey Cobb
2005
Film
Cannes Uncut
Self
2023
Film
Problemista
Elizabeth
2024
Film
Radioman
Self
2012
Film
The Limits of Control
Blonde
2009
Film
Caravaggio
Lena
1986
Film
Memoria
Jessica Holland
2021
Film
The Statement
Annemarie Livi
2003
Film
The Eternal Daughter
Julie / Rosalind
2022
Film
The Deep End
Margaret Hall
2001
Film
The Human Voice
Woman
2020
Film
The Coen Brothers Story
Self
2025
Film
Julia
Julia
2008
Film
Aria
Young Girl
1987
Series
Your Cheatin' Heart
Cissie Crouch
1990
Film
Last and First Men
Narrator (voice)
2020
Film
Edward II
Isabella
1991
Series
Women, War & Peace
Narrator (voice)
2011
Film
Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon
Muriel Belcher
1998
Film
Teknolust
Rosetta / Ruby / Marinne / Olive
2002
Film
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio: Handcarved Cinema
Self
2022
Film
The Tree
2025
Series
Zastrozzi: A Romance
Julia
1986
Film
Wittgenstein
Lady Ottoline Morrell
1993
Film
Caprice
Lucky
1986
Film
Derek
Narrator (voice)
2008
Film
Broken English
The Overseer
2026
Hot Dollar
2014
Film
Blue
(voice)
1993
Film
Heart of Light: Eleven Songs for Fiji
2026
Film
Love Flesh
Self
2013
Film
The Souvenir: Part II
Rosalind
2021
Film
Stephanie Daley
Lydie Crane
2007
Film
Deep Water
Narrator (voice)
2006
Film
Travelling at Night with Jim Jarmusch
Self
2014
Film
Possible Worlds
Joyce
2000
Film
async - first light
2017
Film
David Bowie: Five Years
Self (archive footage)
2013
Film
B-Movie: Lust & Sound in West-Berlin 1979-1989
Self
2015
Film
Cannes: All Access
Self
2007
Film
Schlingensief – A Voice That Shook the Silence
Self (archive footage)
2020
Film
Conceiving Ada
Ada Augusta Byron King, Countess of Lovelace
1999
Film
Thumbsucker - Behind the Scenes
Self
2006
Film
The Last of England
The Maid
1987
Film
The Somme
Narrator (voice)
2005
Film
Exploring the Set of 'Moonrise Kingdom'
Self / Social Services
2015
Film
The Storms of Jeremy Thomas
Self
2021
Film
Personal History
2023
Film
WOLF
Narrator (voice)
2026
Film
Death for a Unicorn
Narrator (voice)
2013
Film
War Requiem
The Nurse
1989
Film
The Garden
Madonna/Voice Overs
1990
Film
Planet Tilda
2011
Jenjira’s Magnificent Dream
Film
Ashes
Self
2012
Film
Letters from Generation Rx
Narrator (voice)
2017
Film
Obertura
The Gardenerette
2024
Finding the Burn
Self / Katie Cox (archive footage)
2008
Film
Here’s Looking at You, Boy
Self
2007
Film
When Björk Met Attenborough
Narrator (voice)
2013
Film
Sleepwalkers
Violinist Working As a Copy Clerk
2007
Film
Remembrance of Things Fast: True Stories Visual Lies
1994
Karl
Self
2025
Film
Friendship's Death
Friendship
1987
Film
Egomania: Island Without Hope
Sally
1987
Film
The Protagonists
Actress
1999
Film
Man to Man
Ella / Max Gerike
1992
Film
A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things
Wilhelmina Barns-Graham (voice)
2024
Film
Instant Coffee
Self
2025
Film
The Sluggard
The Sluggard
1986
Tania Libre
Narrator (voice)
2017
Film
Transparent
2024
Film
The Party: Nature Morte
Queenie
1991
DC Insiders Run Amuck
Self
2008
Film
Song 1
Self
2012
Film
Your Cheatin' Heart
1990
Film
Moonrise Kingdom Extras - Eleven iPhone Videos by Edward Norton.
Self
2015
Film
Dreams Rewired
Narrator (voice)
2015
Film
Cycling the Frame
The Cyclist
1988
Behind Jim Jarmusch
Self
2010
Film
Antarctica: On the Edge
Narrator (voice)
2014
Film
The New Ten Commandments
Self
2008
Film
January Stories
2024
Film
Letters from Baghdad
Gertrude Bell (voice)
2017
Film
Volcano Saga
Gudrun
1989
Film
Play Me Something
Hairdresser
1989
Film
Timeslip
2025
Film
The Open Universe
Carla
1993
Film
The Gospel According to St Derek
Self
2014
Film
Strange Culture
Hope Kurtz
2007
Untitled Apichatpong Weerasethakul Dreams Project
Film
The Human Voice Q&A With Pedro Almodovar And Tilda Swinton, Hosted By Mark Kermode
Self
2020
Film
Hamlet
Ophelia
1992
Film
Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes
Narrator (voice)
2013
Film
Moments on the Set of I Am Love
Self
2009
Film
Impulse: Playing with Reality
Narrator
2024
Film
Camaraderie
2025
Film
Phantoms
2025
Film
A Flower of Forgetfulness
2026
Film
The Dilapidated Dwelling
Narrator (voice)
2000
Film
Chroma
2024
Film
Pasolini On Pasolini
narrator
2023
Film
Depuis le Jour
1987
Film
The Seasons in Quincy: Four Portraits of John Berger
Self
2017
Film
Snowpiercer: Transperceneige, From the Blank Page to the Black Screen
Self
2014
Film
Tilda Swinton: The Love Factory
Self
2002
Film
Durmiente
2022
Film
Visions of Heaven and Hell
Narrator (voice)
1994
Film
The Hexagonal Hive and a Mouse in a Maze
Self
2024
Absent Presence
2005
Tilda Swinton: The Wildcards
Self (archive)
2025
Cinema Is Everywhere
Self
2011
Film
The Stars (Are Out Tonight)
2013
Film
Derek Jarman: A Portrait
Self
1991
Film
Some Thoughts On The Common Toad
Narrator (voice)
2023
Film
Flat 19
2025
Film
Hitler's Favourite Royal
Narrator
2007
Film
Degrees of Blindness
1988
Film
Glitterbug
Self
1994
Film
The Invisible Frame
The Cyclist
2009
Film
Faceless
Narrator (voice)
2007
All Kinds of Love
Self
2023
Film
Climate of Change
Narrator (voice)
2010
Film
Goliath: Playing with Reality
Narrator (voice)
2021
Film
Phantom of the Universe
Narrator
2016
Film
Death in Her Hands
Vesta Gul
Orlando In Uzbekistan
Self
2010
Sleep Song
2022
Film
Tilda in de Menil Land
2014
Film
A Call to Arms
1989
Film
One Water
2013