Actors in Character (3) Trivia Quiz

Answer: Robert de Niro

The three films referenced are "The Godfather Part II" (1974), "Taxi Driver" (1976), and "Raging Bull" (1980), all starring Robert De Niro.

In the 1974 epic crime film, De Niro is founder of the Corleone crime organisation in the US following a move from his native Sicily. The film is both a prequel and sequel to 1972 film "The Godfather", and is based loosely on the 1969 novel of the same name by Mario Puzo. De Niro won an Oscar for his performance.

In the 1976 film, De Niro's role is as ex-Marine veteran Travis Bickle who becomes a New York taxi driver with deteriorating mental health. Finally, the 1980 sports drama saw De Niro earn another Oscar for his performance as boxing champion Jake LaMotta, and was based on the boxer's 1970 memoir.

Answer: Sigourney Weaver

Sigourney Weaver is the connection between the three films "Alien" (1979), "Ghostbusters" (1984), and "Gorillas in the Mist" (1988).

In a role she reprises in the sci-fi horror films "Aliens" (1986) and "Alien 3" (1992), Weaver, as Ripley, is part of a space tug crew which encounters an aggressive alien. She proves to be a survivor, but not so lucky as Dana Barrett in the 1984 supernatural comedy film where she is a cellist who is possessed but survives.

In the 1988 biographical drama, Weaver takes on the role of Dian Fossey, who joins the anthropologist Louis Leakey to study gorillas in the Congo.

Answer: Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks is the link between these films: "A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood" (2019), Forrest Gump (1994), and Cast Away (2000). The most recent film is a biographical drama about the TV presenter Fred Rogers as inspired by the 1998 "Esquire magazine" article, "Can You Say ... Hero?", where a troubled journalist is assigned to interview the presenter.

The 1994 comedy-drama sees the character narrate his personal story to a stranger at a bus stop during various moments in 20th century US history. Hanks won an Oscar for his portrayal.

In the 2000 survival drama, Hanks is a FedEx troubleshooter who crashes into the Pacific. The film records his struggles to survive.

Answer: Emma Thompson

English actress Emma Thompson appears in the three films hinted at here, namely "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (2007), "Sense and Sensibility" (1995) and "Nanny MacPhee" (2005). Appearing in several of the Harry Potter films, she plays the scatty Divination professor at Hogwarts, who occasionally falls into a trance to utter a prophesy including the one which resulted in the death of Harry Potter's parents.

In the 1995 period drama film adaptation of Jane Austen's novel "Sense and Sensibility", Thompson has the role of Elinor Dashwood with Kate Winslet as the younger sister, Marianne. The story follows the sisters who become destitute.

Moving to the Victorian era for the 2005 comedy fantasy film, the character is based on the Nurse Matilda character from the children's books written by crime writer Christianna Brand. In the film, she is the 18th nanny to be employed to look after the seven children under the care of their widower father.

Answer: Anthony Hopkins

The three films are "The Silence of the Lambs" (1991), "The World's Fastest Indian" (2005), and "Shadowlands" (1993), with the Welsh actor Anthony Hopkins being the link. Hannibal Lecter is the character described as the serial killer in the 1991 horror film and, whilst jailed, his help is sought by a young FBI agent in tracking down another serial killer.

In the 2005 biopic, his character is Burt Munro. With his highly-modified 1920 Indian Scout motorcycle he is seeking to break world records on a shoe-string. His personality helps him succeed.

In another biographic, the 1993 film explores the relationship between the British writer C.S. Lewis and the American poet Joy Davidman, who dies of cancer. Lewis's own reflections published as "A Grief Observed" (1960) form a loose framework for the film.

Answer: Kate Winslet

Kate Winslet is the actress, and the films are "Titanic" (1997), Hamlet (1996), and "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" (2004). In the 1997 disaster film, whilst based on the story of the sinking of the Titanic passenger liner in 1912, there are a mixture of fictional and historical characters portrayed. Kate Winslet's is fictional as is her romantic partner Jack Dawson (played by Leonardo DiCaprio).

Ophelia is another fictional character, albeit a historical one, who is a Danish noblewoman driven mad by the events in this 1996 adaptation of the Shakespearean play. She becomes unhinged following the death of her father, who was killed by Hamlet, who she loves.

In the 2004 sci-fi drama film, her character solves the mental distress issue by having her mind wiped following the breakdown of the relationship. Her ex Joel Barish (played by Jim Carrey) then has this done, but their paths cross again.

Answer: Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington is the actor and his appearances in clue order are in "Malcolm X" (1992), "Cry Freedom" (1987), and "The Tragedy of Macbeth" (2021). His character dies in all of them. The 1987 film is a biographical drama on Steve Biko, a prominent dissident leader, and his journalist friend, Donald Woods, (played by Kevin Kline) set in 1970s apartheid-era South Africa. The film is based on two books written by Woods.

Washington acted in another biographical drama when he performed the lead role in the 1992 film about the African-American activist Malcolm X. The screenplay was based mostly on Alex Haley's 1965 book, "The Autobiography of Malcolm X".

In the 2021 historical drama, made as a black-and-white film, Washington plays King Macbeth in a screenplay based on the Shakespearean play. Various murders are prompted by the prophecies of a trio of witches (all played by the same actress, who also plays an old man in the film).

Answer: Cate Blanchett

The first film is "Blue Jasmine" (2013). Cate Blanchette plays a Manhattan socialite in the 2013 comedy drama directed by Woody Allen, is broke and forced to move in with her working-class sister in San Francisco. Flashbacks show what happened and domestic clashes follow. Blanchette earned an Oscar for her performance.

Blanchette plays the Queen Elizbeth I role twice, once in the biographical historical drama "Elizabeth" (1998) and then in the 2007 sequel "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" with Oscar nominations both times. The 1998 film covers her ascension to the English throne and the plots against her. The 2007 film covers the second half of her reign and sees more plots culminating in an attempted invasion by the Spanish Armada.

"Tár" (2022) is a psychological drama where the world of Blanchette's character as a world-renown conductor falls apart after an accusation of misconduct. Her abuse of her position comes back to haunt her.

Answer: Morgan Freeman

The hints refer to the films "The Shawshank Redemption" (1994), "Driving Miss Daisy" (1989), and "Invictus" (2009), with Morgan Freeman playing a supporting role in each of them. The 1994 prison drama sees Freeman's character making friends with a newly-arrived prisoner, a banker. The banker's financial acumen is put to use by the prison warden, who is reluctant to lose this asset.

In the 1989 comedy drama, Freeman reprises the role he played in the original play, namely as a chauffeur for a wealthy widow who can no longer drive. After a difficult start, they grow fond of each other.

Then, in sports drama "Invictus", Freeman is the South African president Nelson Mandela who is keen to use the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which South Africa is hosting, as a way to unite the country.

Answer: Glenn Close

Glenn Close is the actress and the films are "Fatal Attraction" (1987), "Dangerous Liaisons" (1988), and "101 Dalmatians" (2001). In the 1987 psychological thriller, her character Alex Forrest is unhappy with the end of an affair and stalks the attorney concerned, performed by Michael Douglas. Things escalate and include the killing of a pet rabbit.

In the 1988 period drama "Dangerous Liaisons", the relationship break-up leads to plotting a more indirect revenge through seduction. The film is based ultimately on a 1782 French novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos.

Based on the 1956 novel by Dodie Smith, the 1996 adventure comedy film stars Glenn Close as Cruella de Vil, who arranges the kidnapping of the Dalmatian pups with a view to making a fur coat.