Actors - Alan Cumming

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	Actors - Alan Cumming

Alan Cumming (born 27 January 1965 in Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland), is a Scottish actor of stage and screen, possibly best known for his performance in the film X2
as Nightcrawler and his stage performance as the Emcee in Cabaret.

Biography

A descendant of Utah governor Alfred Cumming, after graduating from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1985, Cumming appeared in a six part series on British television called Shadow of the Stone with Shirley Henderson in 1986. In 1991, he played the lead in a BBC Christmas special, Bernard and the Genie opposite Lenny Henry, and in 1993 appeared as a villain in the BBV video The Airzone Solution. The following year, he starred as airline steward Sebastian Flight in the Scottish sitcom, The High Life, which he wrote (along with the theme tune) with co-star Forbes Masson.

Cumming has often been utilised as a character actor — he was the hedonistic Lord Rochester in Plunkett and Macleane (1997) as well as the evil scientist Fegan Floop in Spy Kids
and its sequels, directed by Robert Rodriguez. He was one half of Victor and Barry with Forbes Masson, a comedy act revolving around two members of a Glasgow amateur theatre group.

Perhaps one of Cumming's most acclaimed performances was as the charismatic Emcee in the 1998 Broadway revival of the popular stage musical Cabaret, for which he won a Tony as well as other awards that year. Cumming had previously played the role to great acclaim in a production at London's famed Donmar Warehouse theatre, for which he had been nominated for an Olivier Award. Both the Broadway and Donmar Warehouse productions were directed by Sam Mendes.

His other stage roles have included Otto in the 2001 Broadway production of Design for Living by Noel Coward, the title role in the 1993 English Touring Theatre production of William Shakespeare's Hamlet, and "The Madman" in the 1990 Royal National Theatre production of Accidental Death of an Anarchist by Dario Fo.

In 2002, Cumming played the Pope in the first English-language production of Jean Genet's play Elle, which he had adapted himself from a literal translation, at the Zipper Theater in New York City.

In 2001 Cumming co-wrote and co-directed the ensemble film The Anniversary Party
with friend and former Cabaret co-star, Jennifer Jason Leigh. The two starred in the movie as a Hollywood couple.

In 2005, Cumming played a priest named Father Chris in director Richard Bell's provocative feature film Eighteen, which was narrated by Ian McKellen. The two met when Cumming was in Vancouver in 2000 shooting Josie and the Pussycats.

His first novel Tommy's Tale (ISBN 0141003766) was published in 2002.

He lives in New York City and London with his dog, Honey.

Cumming has dated both men and women, and described himself as "a frolicky bisexual sex symbol for the new millennium." In 1985, he married Hilary Lyon, and remained with her for eight years until a mental breakdown shortly after performing in the play Hamlet led to their divorce in 1993. He then dated around for a bit, having a relationship with Saffron Burrows, herself bisexual, for several years. He currently has a boyfriend named Grant he has been with for over a year.

He is also an activist for gay rights organizations and AIDS charities including Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. He was given the 2005 Humanitarian Award at the San Francisco Human Rights Campaign Awards.

Film and television appearances

Shadow of the Stone (1987)
The Conquest of the South Pole (1988)
Mr. Bean (1989)
Bernard and the Genie
(1991)
Prague (1992)
Micky Love (1993)
Second Best (1994)
Circle of Friends
(1995)
GoldenEye
(1995)
The High Life (1995)
Emma (1996)
Romy and Michele's High School Reunion
(1997)
Titus
(Saturninus) (1999)
Annie
(1999)

Plunkett and Macleane (1999)
Eyes Wide Shut
(1999)
Urbania (2000)
God, the Devil and Bob
(2000)
The Anniversary Party
(2001)
Josie and the Pussycats
(2001)
Spy Kids
(2001)
Spy Kids 2: Island Of Lost Dreams
(2002)
X2
(Nightcrawler/Kurt Wagner) (2003)
Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over
(2003)
Shoebox Zoo (2004)
Son of the Mask
(2005)
Reefer Madness
(2005)
Eighteen (2005)
The Ant Bully
(2006)
The L Word (2006)
Also appeared in an episode of 3rd Rock From the Sun, Where he played a 'Hole/Cave expert'

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