Gwendoline Christie

Gwendoline Tracey Philippa Christie is an English actress born on October 28, 1978, in Worthing, West Sussex. Raised near the South Downs alongside two older half-brothers, she attended Henfield Primary School, Warden Park Secondary School, and Varndean College. She initially trained as a gymnast until a spinal injury at age eleven led her to pursue acting instead. She later graduated from Drama Centre London in 2005. Despite early warnings regarding her exceptional height, she was inspired to remain dedicated to screen acting after watching Tilda Swinton's performance in the film Orlando.

Around 2002, Christie worked in a Brighton boutique and became the subject of photographer Polly Borland's portrait series Bunny between 2002 and 2008. Supported by mentor Simon Callow, her early stage work included playing the Queen in Cymbeline, Mag Wildwood in Breakfast at Tiffany's, and Lucifer in Doctor Faustus. On screen, she collaborated with artist Nathaniel Mellors on short films such as The Time Surgeon and the Ourhouse series, where she also worked behind the scenes. She made her feature film debut in Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus in 2009.

Christie gained widespread recognition after being cast in 2011 as the warrior Brienne of Tarth in HBO's Game of Thrones, making her screen debut in 2012. To prepare for the physical demands of the role, she underwent an intensive training regimen, gaining muscle mass and taking lessons in sword-fighting and horsemanship. Her performance across the series earned critical acclaim, culminating in a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2019, alongside Saturn Award and Screen Actors Guild ensemble nominations. Concurrently, she starred as Princess Lexi in the television series Wizards vs Aliens from 2012 to 2013.

Her film career expanded into high-profile franchises when she played Commander Lyme in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 and Captain Phasma in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Last Jedi, later reprising her Star Wars role in the animated series Star Wars Resistance. She also appeared in feature films such as The Zero Theorem, The Darkest Minds, In Fabric, and Welcome to Marwen, and co-starred as Miranda Hilmarson in the second season of the series Top of the Lake.

In subsequent years, Christie appeared in several prominent television series, playing Lucifer in Netflix's The Sandman and Principal Larissa Weems in Wednesday. She was later cast in Apple TV+'s sci-fi thriller Severance, earning a 2025 Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series. Outside of acting, she has narrated the video game Civilization VII, walked for Maison Margiela during Paris Couture Week, co-hosted Vogue's Met Gala livestream coverage, and featured on a track by Sleaford Mods. Since 2014, she has been in a relationship with fashion designer Giles Deacon.