Born:
January 27, 1965
in
Aberfeldy, Scotland
Best Known For:
X-Men 2 and numerous stage roles.
Early-life:
Alan Cumming was born in Aberfeldy, Perthshire, on January 27, 1965, to Alex and Mary. His father worked as a forester on the Atholl Estate before the entire family, including Alan's elder brother Tom, moved to the east coast of Scotland in 1969. He developed his passion for drama at school and, after taking part in amateur plays, joined the Carnoustie Theatre Club and Musical Society. Between leaving school and beginning a three-year course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, he worked at a publishers on the magazine Tops.
Career:
Cumming's cabaret act, Victor and Barry, with Forbes Masson, was critically acclaimed, winning numerous awards. TV roles quickly followed, but he continued working on the stage. Stints with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre raised his profile, as did his accolades following his film debut in the drama Prague (1992). In 1994, he starred in TV sitcom The High Life, closely followed by the movies Circle of Friends (1995), GoldenEye (1995) and Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion (1997). More recently, he has worked on three Spy Kids films (2001-2003), X-Men 2 (2003), The Tempest (2010), Burlesque (2010) and TV drama The Good Wife. A firm favourite on Broadway, Cumming won a Tony Award in 1998 for playing the MC in Caberet. He returned to the role in 2014.
Quote:
"Once in a while it's good to challenge yourself in a way that's really daunting."
Trivia:
He became a dual-national in 2008 when he was sworn in as a citizen of the United States at a ceremony in New York.