Raised in Brisbane, Australia after his parents' split, actor Geoffrey Rush's early interest in theatre led to his 1971 stage debut in "Wrong Side of the Moon" with the Queensland Theatre Company. Known for his classical work over the years, he scored an unexpected hit with his role as Snoopy in the musical "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" the following year. A few years later he moved to France for studying but returned to his homeland within a short time and continued work as both actor and director with the Queensland stage group. After working in small roles, filmgoers finally took notice with his performance in Children of the Revolution (1996), which led to THE role of a lifetime as the alarmingly dysfunctional piano prodigy David Helfgott in Shine (1996). Rush's astonishing tour-de-force performance won him every conceivable award imaginable, including the Oscar, Golden Globe, British Film Award and Australian Film Institute Award. The role not only put him on the international map, but on the "A" list in Hollywood.
Some Major Film Lead Roles
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) as Barbossa
Candy (2006) as Casper
Munich (2005) as Ephraim
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004) as Peter Sellers
Intolerable Cruelty (2003) as Donovan Donaly
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) as Barbossa
Finding Nemo (2003) (voice) as Nigel
Swimming Upstream (2003) as Harold Fingleton
The Banger Sisters (2002) as Harry Plummer
Frida (2002) as Leon Trotsky
Lantana (2001) as John Knox
The Tailor of Panama (2001) as Harold 'Harry' Pendel
House on Haunted Hill (1999) as Stephen H. Price
Mystery Men (1999) as Casanova Frankenstein
Shakespeare in Love (1998) as Philip Henslowe
Elizabeth (1998) as Sir Francis Walsingham
Children of the Revolution (1996) as Zachary Welch
Twelfth Night (1987) as Sir Andrew Aguecheek
Starstruck (1982) as Floor Manager
Hoodwink (1981) as Detective 1
