Highest rated as cast or director
Biography
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.
Acted in 122
2020s
- 2026
Heart of Light: Eleven Songs for Fiji
Movie
A Flower of Forgetfulness
Movie
Broken English
The Overseer
- 2025
The Tree
Movie
Flat 19
Movie
Camaraderie
Movie
Phantoms
Movie
Timeslip
Movie
- 2024
A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things
Wilhelmina Barns-Graham (voice)
January Stories
Movie
Obertura
The Gardenerette
Chroma
Movie
Transparent
Movie
- 2023
Personal History
Movie
- 2022
Durmiente
Movie
- 2021
Embodying Pasolini
Multiple
- 2020
The Human Voice
Woman
2010s
- 2019
- 2018
- 2017
Letters from Baghdad
Gertrude Bell (voice)
async - first light
Movie
- 2016
- 2015
- 2014
Tilda in de Menil Land
Movie
- 2013
One Water
Movie
The Stars (Are Out Tonight)
Movie
- 2012
- 2011
Planet Tilda
Movie
- 2010
2000s
- 2009
The Invisible Frame
The Cyclist
- 2008
The Man from London
Camélia
Julia
Julia
- 2007
Strange Culture
Hope Kurtz
Sleepwalkers
Violinist Working As a Copy Clerk
- 2005
- 2003
- 2002
Teknolust
Rosetta / Ruby / Marinne / Olive
- 2001
- 2000
Possible Worlds
Joyce
1990s
- 1999
The Protagonists
Actress
Conceiving Ada
Ada Augusta Byron King, Countess of Lovelace
- 1998
Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon
Muriel Belcher
- 1996
- 1994
Remembrance of Things Fast: True Stories Visual Lies
Movie
- 1993
Wittgenstein
Lady Ottoline Morrell
- 1992
Orlando
Orlando
Hamlet
Ophelia
Man to Man
Ella / Max Gerike
- 1991
The Party: Nature Morte
Queenie
- 1990
Your Cheatin' Heart
Movie
Your Cheatin' Heart
Cissie Crouch · 6 episodes
The Garden
Madonna/Voice Overs
The Open Universe
Carla
1980s
- 1989
Play Me Something
Hairdresser
War Requiem
The Nurse
Volcano Saga
Gudrun
A Call to Arms
Movie
- 1988
Cycling the Frame
The Cyclist
Degrees of Blindness
Movie
- 1987
The Last of England
The Maid
Friendship's Death
Friendship
Depuis le Jour
Movie
Egomania: Island Without Hope
Sally
- 1986
Caravaggio
Lena
Zastrozzi: A Romance
Julia · 4 episodes
The Sluggard
The Sluggard
- 1985
No release date
Jenjira's Magnificent Dream
Movie
Produced 13
2020s
- 2026
Queer Edward II
Executive Producer
WOLF
Executive Producer
- 2024
- 2022
There Was a Tower: A Portrait of Mihály Víg
Executive Producer
- 2021
- 2020
2010s
- 2017
Letters from Baghdad
Executive Producer
- 2011
- 2010
2000s
- 2008
- 2007
- 2005
Directed 4
2020s
- 2024
The Hexagonal Hive and a Mouse in a Maze
Director
- 2021
Embodying Pasolini
Action Director
2010s
- 2017
The Seasons in Quincy: Four Portraits of John Berger
Director
2000s
- 2008
The New Ten Commandments
Director
Wrote 2
2010s
- 2017
The Seasons in Quincy: Four Portraits of John Berger
Writer
2000s
- 2008
Appearances62
2020s
- 2026
Queer Edward II
Self (archive footage)
WOLF
Narrator (voice)
- 2025
The Coen Brothers Story
Self
Moon: Nature's Secret Force
Self - Narrator (voice) · 3 episodes
Karl
Self
Tilda Swinton: The Wildcards
Self (archive)
Instant Coffee
Self
- 2024
Impulse: Playing with Reality
Narrator
The Hexagonal Hive and a Mouse in a Maze
Self
- 2023
Pasolini On Pasolini
Narrator
Some Thoughts On The Common Toad
Narrator (voice)
- 2022
- 2021
Goliath: Playing with Reality
Narrator (voice)
- 2020
The Human Voice Q&A With Pedro Almodovar And Tilda Swinton, Hosted By Mark Kermode
Self
Schlingensief – A Voice That Shook the Silence
Self (archive footage)
2010s
- 2017
Letters from Generation Rx
Narrator (voice)
The Seasons in Quincy: Four Portraits of John Berger
Self
- 2016
Phantom of the Universe
Narrator
- 2015
Exploring the Set of 'Moonrise Kingdom'
Self / Social Services
Moonrise Kingdom Extras - Eleven iPhone Videos by Edward Norton.
Self
Mobilisierung der Träume
Narrator (voice)
- 2014
The Gospel According to St Derek
Self
Antarctica: On the Edge
Narrator (voice)
Travelling at Night with Jim Jarmusch
Self
Snowpiercer: Transperceneige, From the Blank Page to the Black Screen
Self
- 2013
Death for a Unicorn
Narrator (voice)
When Björk Met Attenborough
Narrator (voice)
David Bowie: Five Years
Self (archive footage)
Love Flesh
Self
Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes
Narrator (voice)
- 2012
Ashes
Self
Song 1
Self
- 2011
Women, War & Peace
Narrator (voice) · 1 episode
- 2010
Climate of Change
Narrator (voice)
2000s
- 2009
Moments on the Set of I Am Love
Self
- 2008
The New Ten Commandments
Self
- 2007
Cannes: All Access
Self (archive footage)
Faceless
Narrator (voice)
Here’s Looking at You, Boy
Self
- 2006
Deep Water
Narrator (voice)
Galapagos
Self - Presenter · 3 episodes
- 2005
The Somme
Narrator (voice)
- 2002
Tilda Swinton: The Love Factory
Self
- 2000
The Dilapidated Dwelling
Narrator (voice)
1990s
- 1996
- 1994
Glitterbug
Self
Visions of Heaven and Hell
Narrator (voice)
- 1991
Derek Jarman: A Portrait
Self
1950s
- 1953
No release date
Hitler's Favourite Royal
Narrator (voice)
Thanked in the credits2
2010s
- 2017
- 2016
