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Carice van Houten

Actor

Carice van Houten

Born September 5, 1976 in Leiderdorp, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands38 films

Carice Anouk van Houten, born on September 5, 1976, is a Dutch stage and film actress. One of Europe's most celebrated actresses, Carice van Houten is perhaps best known as 'Melisandre' in the iconic TV show Game of Thrones, a performance for which she has been recognized with an Emmy Award nomination in 2019. Other projects include Paul Verhoeven's award-winning Black Book and Bryan Singer's Valkyrie opposite Tom Cruise and as Melisandre on Game of Thrones. Recent projects include Instinct and Temple, a TV show for Sky opposite Mark Strong, which has been picked up for a second season.

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Her Dutch-language feature Love Life, gained her further critical acclaim and broke box office records in her native Holland. Her next film Happy Housewive won her a record breaking 5th Golden Calf at The Netherlands Film Festival and was voted 'Best Dutch Actress of All Time' by the Dutch audience. Other awards include Best Actress for Black Butterflies at the Tribeca Film Festival and the Best Performance award for Instinct at the Les Arcs Film Festival 2019.

Her credits include Juan Carlos Fresnadillo's Intruders and Bill Condon's The Fifth Estate, the Jesse Owens biopic, Race, with Jason Sudekis and Jeremy Irons and voiced a character in The Simpsons. She can also be seen in Brian de Palma's Domino and in Brimstone, opposite Dakota Fanning, Guy Pearce and Kit Harrington, and The Glass Room, with Claes Bang. She played a leading role in Halina Reijn's directorial feature debut Instinct, opposite Marwan Kenzari (Aladdin), which won the Variety Piazza Grande Award in Locarno Film Festival 2019. Instinct is the first outing for the Carice and Halina's production banner, Man Up.

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The best way into Carice van Houten's work
Black Book posterFirst watchBlack Book20067.4as Rachel Stein / Ellis de VriesIsrael, 1956: Jewish teacher Rachel Stein rather unexpectedly meets an old friend at the kibbutz. It brings back memories of her experiences in the Netherlands during the war, memories of…View film

Essential films

Ranked by acclaim and reach
Valkyrie poster7.0Valkyrie2008Race poster7.3Race2016Brimstone poster7.1Brimstone2016Repo Men poster6.3Repo Men2010The Fifth Estate poster6.0The Fifth Estate2013Black Death poster6.1Black Death2010Intruders poster5.5Intruders2011Incarnate poster5.4Incarnate2016

Filmography

38 films as actor
  1. 2026A FamilyMaria
  2. 2025Miss MoxyPink (voice)
  3. 2024Grandpa Cor
  4. 2024Quota(voice)
  5. 2020Lost Girls & Love HotelsInes
  6. 2019InstinctNicoline
  7. 2019DominoAlex Boe
  8. 2019The Glass RoomHana
  9. 2016IncarnateLindsey
  10. 2016BrimstoneAnna
  11. 2016RaceLeni Riefenstahl
  12. 2015Game of Thrones The IMAX ExperienceMelisandre
  13. 2013The Fifth EstateBirgitta Jonsdottir
  14. 2012Family WayWinnie de Roover
  15. 2012JackieSofie
  16. 2011IntrudersSusanna
  17. 2011Black ButterfliesIngrid Jonker
  18. 2010Kleinste Kortste FilmWoman
  19. 2010Black DeathLangiva
  20. 2010The Happy HousewifeLea Meijer
  21. 2010Repo MenCarol
  22. 2009Gewoon HansCarice van Houten
  23. 2009StrickenCarmen
  24. 2009From Time to TimeMaria Oldknow
  25. 2008ValkyrieNina Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg
  26. 2008Dorothy MillsJane Van Dopp
  27. 2007Love Is AllKiki Jollema
  28. 2006Black BookRachel Stein / Ellis de Vries
  29. 2006A Thousand KissesSamarinde
  30. 2005Black SwansMarleen
  31. 2005SpoonJuffrouw Broer
  32. 2005BonkersLis
  33. 2003Father's AffairMonika
  34. 2001Miss MinoesMinoes
  35. 2001AmnesiASandra
  36. 2001Storm in mijn hoofdTitania
  37. 1999Suzy QSuzy
  38. 1998Ivoren wachters