In 1984, Hurt was the definitive Winston Smith in Michael Radford's version of Orwell's 1984. He received his first Oscar nomination for playing a supporting role in the harrowing Midnight Express and a second nomination for his sensitive portrayal of the horribly deformed John Merrick - but for his voice, Hurt was unrecognizable beneath pounds of latex and makeup.
On television, Hurt made his name in the telemovie The Naked Civil Servant and furthered his growing reputation as the twisted Caligula on the internationally acclaimed BBC miniseries I, Claudius (1976). His subsequent work remained high quality through the '70s. He gave one of his strongest early performances playing Richard Rich in Fred Zinnemann's A Man for All Seasons (1966). Though he frequently appeared on-stage, Hurt, unlike his many colleagues, was primarily a film and television actor. He made his theatrical and film debuts in 1962 ( The Wild and the Willing). Martin's School of the Arts when he became enamored with acting and enrolled in London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art instead. The son of a clergyman, Hurt was training to be a painter at St. A small man with a slightly sinister countenance and a tenor voice that never completed the transition between early adolescence and manhood, Hurt was generally cast in supporting or leading roles as eccentric characters in offbeat films. Featuring desaturated cinematography from Academy Award nominee Roger Deakins (The Shawshank Redemption) and songs by Eurythmics, 1984 is a gripping exploration of a future world where in the words of author George Orwell, "It's not so much staying alive, it's staying human that's important.Considered one of Great Britain's most consistently brilliant players, John Hurt was at his best when playing victims forced to suffer mental, physical, or spiritual anguish. Sent to the 'Ministry of Love', he is placed at the mercy of O'Brien (Academy Award nominee Richard Burton, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?), an imperious leader determined to not only control his thoughts but crush his soul. Disillusioned by the state of affairs and ill with the burden of lies, his life takes a horrifying turn when he begins a forbidden love affair and commits the crime of independent thought.
Winston Smith (Academy Award nominee John Hurt, The Elephant Man) endures an abject existence in totalitarian Oceania, employed to rewrite the history books for the Ministry of Truth in order to support the current party line and perpetuate a false legacy. Adapted by Academy Award nominee Michael Radford (Il Postino: The Postman) in 1984, it tells the story of one man's struggle under the constant surveillance of Big Brother.
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