Joseph Fiennes

Joseph Alberic Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes (; born 27 May 1970) is an English film and stage actor. He is known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love (1998), for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth (1998), Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates (2001), and Monsignor Timothy Howard in the second season of the TV series American Horror Story (2012–2013). He currently stars in the drama series The Handmaid's Tale (2017–present). 2Early life and family Fiennes was born in 1970 in Salisbury, England, the son of Mark Fiennes (1933–2004), a farmer and photographer, and Jennifer Lash (1938–1993), a writer. He has English, Irish, and Scottish ancestry. His surname comes from the French village of Fiennes, Pas-de-Calais. His grandfathers were industrialist Sir Maurice Fiennes (1907–1994) and Brigadier Henry Alleyne Lash. Fiennes is an eighth cousin of Charles, Prince of Wales, and a third cousin of adventurer Ranulph Fiennes and author William Fiennes. His siblings are actor Ralph Fiennes, director Martha Fiennes, composer Magnus Fiennes, film director Sophie Fiennes, and conservationist Jacob Fiennes, Joseph's twin brother. His foster brother, Michael Emery, is an archaeologis