Hollywood: The rise of Sir Anthony Hopkins, who won an Oscar for ‘The Father’

Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins won his second Oscar on April 26th for his turn in ‘The Father’, becoming at 83 the oldest winner. It was only the superb actor’s second golden trophy to date, after one for his chilling portrayal as a cannibal in ‘The Silence of the Lambs’. Here’s a look at the rise of Hopkins and why he made for an unlikely actor anyway.

Hopinks, born in 1937 in Port Talbot, knew by the time he was a teen that he wanted to leave Wales. He wanted fame and glory. And that dream began with his meeting with Welsh screen star Richard Burton, whose sister frequented his parents’ bakery. "I knew I wanted to get out of Wales. I wanted to be famous," he said in an interview recalling that moment.

Still, acting wasn’t on the agenda – he was a music man. And he was good at it. In 1955, Hopkins won a scholarship to study piano at the Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff. Then, after a stint with the British Army in the Royal Artillery he headed to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

But no one could deny he had charisma on stage. Hopkins made his small screen debut in 1967's ‘The White Bus’ and by the time he got his big-screen breakthrough ‘The Lion In Winter’, he was already well known. He would perform on stage quite often as well, going on to win promising newcomer at the London Theatre Critics awards in 1971.

A couple of years later, he was divorced and re-married and now thinking of making his way overseas. In the US, Hopkins made a Hollywood debut for which he would take and Emmy. He also found himself in the place he would call home for the next decade. He would then head back to the UK.

No matter how good it looked on the outside, Hopkins hated his stage slots. "To me hell would be a wet Wednesday afternoon in the Old Vic for the rest of eternity, standing onstage in wrinkled tights doing Shakespeare," he said. "I hated every minute of it."

And so he returned to Los Angeles, making TV movies and, of course, the famous 1991 hit ‘Silence Of The Lambs’. In the 90s, he would be nominated for the Oscars three more times, make his foray into directing and get a knighthood from the Queen. He would go on to move to the US permanently, even gaining citizenship.

A long-distance relationship – when he moved to LA, his wife had stayed on in London – meant estrangement and the couple called it quits in 2002 after 30 years of marriage. That same year, he met South American antiques dealer Stella Arroyave, who he’d marry a year later.

Hopkins isn’t really in touch with his daughter Abigail (from his first marriage). In 2002 he told media that he has no idea where she lives. After wishing her luck, he added: "I hope she is well… Life is life. You get on with it."

The finesse with which Hopkins wears different cloaks for different roles just goes to show that the 83 year old is still a major player. But he sees acting as a job. "As long as it's a nice location and the script is good, I don't wonder if it's a good career move and all that bull," he says. "It's a job. Point me to the camera, that's it."