Luke Evans

18Wunders · June 15, 2014

Luke Evans (born 15 April 1979) is a Welsh actor and singer. Evans began his career in stage acting performing in many of London's West End productions such as Rent, Miss Saigon, and Piaf before getting his breakthrough role in Hollywood starring in 2010's Clash of the Titans remake, playing Apollo. Following his debut, Evans was cast in action and thriller films such as Immortals, The Raven and played Aramis in the 2011 revamped adaptation of The Three Musketeers.

Luke Evans was born and raised in Aberbargoed, a small town in the Rhymney Valley, Monmouthshire, Wales, the only child of Yvonne and David Evans. He was raised as one of Jehovah's Witnesses, though he left the religion when he was 16 and left school at the same time. At the age of seventeen, he moved to Cardiff, where he studied under the supervision of Louise Ryan, an established singing coach. In 1997 he won a scholarship to The London Studio Centre in Kings Cross, London. He graduated in 2000.

In a 2002 interview, Evans said, "Everybody knew me as a gay man, and in my life in London I never tried to hide it" and that by being open he would not have "that skeleton in the closet they can rattle out". In 2004, he said his acting career had not suffered by being out. In September 2010, Holly Goodchild, a female marketing expert said she was dating Evans: "Luke's lovely – we're really old friends and it just sort of happened... We are nowhere near engaged but things are really good."

He starred in many of London's West End theatre productions. In 2009, he landed the role of Apollo in Clash of the Titans (2010). Then, he quickly landed roles in Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll (2010), Robin Hood (2010), Tamara Drewe (2010), Blitz (2010), The Three Musketeers (2011), Ashes (2011), Immortals (2011) and The Raven (2012), No One Lives (2012), The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), Fast & Furious 6 (2013), The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013), Dracula Untold (2014).