Timothy Peter Dalton (born 21 March 1944 or 1946) is a British actor of film and
television.
Dalton is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights (1987) and Licence to
Kill (1989), as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett (1994), an original sequel to Gone with the Wind. In addition, he is known for his roles as Philip II of
France in The Lion In Winter; Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights (1970);
Edward Rochester in Jane Eyre (1983); Prince Barin in Flash Gordon (1980); and various roles in Shakespearean films and plays such as Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, Henry V,
Love's Labour's Lost, Henry IV, Part 1 and Henry IV, Part 2. Recently, he had a voice acting part in Toy Story 3 as Mr. Pricklepants. He has also appeared as Skinner in the mystery comedy film Hot Fuzz; portrayed the recurring character of Alexei Volkoff in the US TV series
Chuck; and Rassilon in the Doctor Who two-part episode "The End of Time".
Timothy Dalton's first appearance as
007, The Living Daylights (1987) was critically successful, and grossed more than the previous two Bond films with Moore, as well as contemporary
box-office rivals such as Die
Hard and Lethal
Weapon. However, his second film, Licence to
Kill (1989), although almost as successful as its predecessor in most markets, did not perform as well at the U.S. box office, in large part due to a lacklustre marketing campaign, after the title of the film was abruptly changed from Licence Revoked. The main factor for the lack of success in the U.S. was that it was released at the same time as the hugely successful Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Tim Burton's Batman, and Lethal Weapon 2, during the summer blockbuster season. In the United Kingdom - one of its critical markets, the film was also hampered by receiving a 15 certificate from the
British Board of Film Classification which severely affected its commercial success. Future Bond films, following the resolution of legal and other issues, were all released between 31 October and
mid-December, in order to avoid the risk of a
summer failure, as had happened to Licence To
Kill.
With a worldwide gross of $191 million, The Living Daylights became the fourth most successful Bond film at the time of its release.
Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Dalton
