Stephen hawking biography film actor

Home / Scientists & Inventors / Stephen hawking biography film actor

His life is turned upside down when he is diagnosed with Charcot's disease, but thanks to his genius and Jane's unfailing support, he will revolutionize science and redefine the limits of medicine and the universe.

Where and when can you see A Wonderful Story of Time in France?

A Wonderful Story of Time will be available on Netflix from February 16, 2025.

Synopsis:In England in 1963, Stephen, a brilliant Cosmology student at Cambridge University, is determined to find a simple and effective answer to the mystery of the universe's creation.

As The Independent remarked, “Redmayne gives a brilliant performance: one that captures Hawking’s restless intellectual curiosity, his drive, and humor.” To celebrate Focus Features' 20th year anniversary, we’re showcasing this December exemplary films like The Theory of Everything whose star won the Academy Award® for Best Actor.

Watch The Theory of Everything now on iTunes or Amazon

Portrait of an Icon Eddie Redmayne featurette for The Theory of Everything

In 2004, screenwriter Anthony McCarten found Jane Hawking's memoir Travelling to Infinity: The True Story Behind the Theory of Everything a unique way to tell the story of Stephen Hawking.

His friends helped him use a cutting-edge speech synthesizer which gave him a distinctive new voice. His controversial new theory – that the information is transmitted into other universes – demonstrated he was still rethinking his image of the Universe.

2009

Stephen declares ‘I’m not retiring’

As required by Cambridge University regulations, Hawking stepped down from the post of Lucasian Professor of Mathematics when he turned 67.

By now, he could no longer use his hand to operate his wheelchair, and could only communicate by moving his cheek muscles to control his speech synthesizer.

For director Marsh, Redmayne’s hard work paid off. His life was in the balance.

Doctors could only save Stephen by performing an operation that robbed him of his ability to speak. M-theory's conclusions were unpalatable to many who had spent their lives searching for a theory of everything, and some physicists dismiss M-theory as little more than speculation.

2014

Hawking celebrated on the silver screen

In ‘The Theory of Everything’, Eddie Redmayne gave an Oscar-winning portrayal of Hawking.

The film was based on the book ‘Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen’, by Stephen’s first wife Jane.

Now he could only communicate by raising his eyebrows. Hawking believes its success is down to giving people access to great philosophical questions, but acknowledges human interest boosted sales. As a student he was drawn to physics and maths as he believed they offered the most fundamental insights into the world. The award “belongs to one exceptional family: Stephen, Jane, Jonathan and the Hawking children,” exclaimed Redmayne.

The only problem was finding an actor capable of embodying all that made Hawking iconic.

More than being a brilliant scientist and a man suffering with ALS, Hawking was, as producer Lisa Bruce points out, “a father, a husband, and—under it all—an eternal optimist.” The film traces the full arc of his life with Jane (Felicity Jones) from his romance and marriage to his family life to the dissolution of their relationship.

[Read more]

What to watch today on streaming? He was a vigorous supporter of the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics.

Hawking was an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA), a lifetime member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States.

The film received five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and Eddie Redmayne was unanimously praised for his outstanding performance, earning him numerous awards.

Inspired by Jane Hawking's memoir, Voyager vers l'infini : ma vie avec Stephen, the film faithfully blends the couple's intimate moments with Stephen's revolutionary scientific advances.

stephen hawking biography film actor

Nimoy made the necessary contact, and Hawking played a holographic simulation of himself in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) in 1993. In 2002, Hawking was ranked number 25 in the BBC's poll of the 100 Greatest Britons. The work cemented his reputation as a key thinker of his generation. “I will be its custodian.” His humility in accepting the award was also the key to his success in portraying his character.

The couple decided to marry quickly, because they did not know how long Stephen had to live.