Historical Figures Codexery

Christopher Lambert

American actor known for Tarzan, Highlander, and Mortal Kombat.

He is best known for playing Connor MacLeod in the Highlander franchise and Raiden in Mortal Kombat (1995).[1] His portrayal of Tarzan in the 1984 film Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes brought him global recognition, and he earned the César Award for Best Actor for his work in the 1985 movie Subway.[2][1]

Quick Facts

Birth name
Christophe Guy Denis Lambert
Born
29 March 1957
Birthplace
Manhasset, New York, U.S.
Occupation
  • Actor
  • producer
  • writer
Years active
1979–present
Children
1

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Lambert was born in Great Neck, New York, to a French diplomat father and moved to Switzerland at age two, attending school in Geneva before settling in Paris.[3] Director Hugh Hudson chose Lambert to play Tarzan partly because his myopia made him seem to look into the distance without glasses.[4] The film became a cult hit and was the second highest grossing film of the year in France, helped by Lambert's César award for Subway.[5][6] He later appeared in sequels Highlander II: The Quickening (1991), Highlander III: The Sorcerer (1994), and Highlander: Endgame (2000).[7][8][9]

At twelve years old, Lambert first performed on stage in a production at his school.[3] The role of immortal warrior Connor MacLeod in the 1986 film Highlander went to Lambert after Kurt Russell withdrew from the project and director Russell Mulcahy discovered Lambert's photograph in a periodical.[10] Although his English was very limited, Lambert dedicated several weeks to studying the language with a dialect coach prior to the start of Highlander's production.[5] In 1995, Lambert took on the part of the thunder deity Raiden in the film Mortal Kombat, which was directed by Paul W. S. Anderson.[11]

Two novels have been authored by Lambert: La fille porte-bonheur, released in 2011, and Le juge, which came out in 2015.[12]

What the cited sources add

The Empire article notes that Lambert's casting in Highlander occurred after Mulcahy saw his Tarzan photo in a magazine, and that Lambert could barely speak English when signed.[6] A language coach was constantly on set, and six weeks of post-production were spent looping every line of Lambert's dialogue.[6] The same source states Lambert was born in the US, raised in Geneva, and moved to Paris as a rebellious adolescent.[13] According to the Gayot interview, Lambert, together with Eric Beaumard, produces Côtes du Rhône wines at a vineyard situated in Sainte-Cécile-les-Vignes.[14][15]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Christopher Lambert - Box Office", The Numbers (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Lambert, Christopher 1957–", Encyclopedia.com, 1957-03-29 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Christophe Lambert", tv.apple.com; "Association of Former International Civil Servants - Geneva AFICS Bulletin Vol.62, No.5, December 2003", 1 December 2003; Brown, "Highlander icon Christopher Lambert looks back on Scottish cult classic 32 years on", Daily Record, 17 December 2018; "Christophe Lambert", tv.apple.com; "Echo 21 (Fall 2017) by International School of Geneva - Issuu", issuu.com, 2017-12-20; "Christophe Lambert", tv.apple.com; Davies, "How Christophe Lambert went from action flops to arthouse acclaim", The Guardian, 17 en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The Charlotte News, 29 March 1984", The Charlotte News, 1984-03-29, p. 41; "The Secrets Behind That Other Tarzan Movie — The One That Earned a Dog a Screenwriting Oscar Nomination", The Hollywood Reporter; "The Secrets Behind That Other Tarzan Movie — The One That Earned a Dog a Screenwriting Oscar Nomination", The Hollywood Reporter (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Davies, "How Christophe Lambert went from action flops to arthouse acclaim", The Guardian, 17 June 2010; Bartkowiak, "Sounds of the Future: Essays on Music in Science Fiction Films", McFarland & Co., 2010, p. 19; "Christopher Lambert", tvguide.com (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire. facts only, no text reused. empireonline.com
  7. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "AFI Catelog of Feature Films 1893–1993 - Highlander II: The Quickening", catalog.afi.com; Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire; Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire; Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Christopher Lambert Filmography", dfi.dk; Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire; Williams, "Highlander: a history", Empire; "Christopher Lambert Filmography", dfi.dk (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "AFI Catelog of Feature Films 1893–1993 - Highlander (1986) 7 March 1986", catalog.afi.com (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Yin-Poole, "Mortal Kombat 11's Klassic movie skin pack gives us the Christopher Lambert Raiden we remember", eurogamer.net, 2020-11-25; Yin-Poole, "Mortal Kombat 11's Klassic movie skin pack gives us the Christopher Lambert Raiden we remember", eurogamer.net, 2020-11-25; Yin-Poole, "Mortal Kombat 11's Klassic movie skin pack gives us the Christopher Lambert Raiden we remember", eurogamer.net, 2020-11-25; Yin-Poole, "Mortal Kombat 11's Klassic movie skin pack gives us the Christopher Lambert Raiden we remember", eurogamer.net, 2020-1 en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: LAMBERT, "La fille porte-bonheur", Plon, 2011-02-24; Lambert, "Le juge", Plon, 2015-08-17 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  13. Davies, "How Christophe Lambert went from action flops to arthouse acclaim", The Guardian, 17 June 2010. facts only, no text reused. theguardian.com
  14. "Christophe Lambert & Eric Beaumard Interview - Les Garrigues Gayot", www.gayot.com. facts only, no text reused. gayot.com
  15. Wikipedia, "Christopher Lambert" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Christophe Lambert & Eric Beaumard Interview - Les Garrigues Gayot", www.gayot.com (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Christopher Lambert (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

More in Writers & Journalists

Yves MontandRudolph ValentinoSergei Bodrov Jr.Michael CaineSean ConneryAlbert FinneyAnthony HopkinsChristopher LeeIan McKellenVictor McLaglenDavid NivenAlan Rickman

Elsewhere in Historical Figures

Edgar Degas · Artists & ComposersAriovistus · Rulers & LeadersJacques-Louis David · Notable FiguresJan Hus · Notable FiguresGalen · Notable FiguresFrancis Parkman · Scientists & Inventors

Spotted an error? Know more?

Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced

Comments

Loading…
Open in the interactive codex →