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5[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/benkingsley.png]]
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7->''"When I choose a role it's either because I recognise the man, or that I'm very curious to know him. If I neither recognise nor know him, then it is better that I don't play him."''
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9Sir Ben Kingsley is a British actor, born Krishna Pandit Bhanji to an Indian father and a British mother on 31 December 1943 in Snainton, England.
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11He is best known for his roles as the title character in ''Film/{{Gandhi}}'', Itzhak Stern in ''Film/SchindlersList'', and Creator/GeorgesMelies in Creator/MartinScorsese's ''Film/{{Hugo}}''. One of the truly great dramatic actors of cinema, he will also take on more lowbrow roles [[AwesomeDearBoy if he thinks he'll get to have fun]].
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13His son, Creator/{{Ferdinand|Kingsley}}, is also an actor.
14----
15!!Notable Roles for Sir Ben Kingsley:
16
17* ''Film/{{Gandhi}}'', where he plays the man himself, UsefulNotes/MahatmaGandhi. His first major role, directed by Richard Attenborough.
18* The title character of a movie adaptation of ''Literature/SilasMarner''.
19* Bruce Pandolfini in ''Film/SearchingForBobbyFischer''.
20* Itzhak Stern in ''Film/SchindlersList''. Interestingly, when Gandhi won the Best Picture Oscar, Attenborough wanted Creator/StevenSpielberg to win for ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial'', and Spielberg would later direct Kingsley in this film.
21* The Caterpillar in ''Film/AliceInWonderland1999''
22* [[BigBad Lord Kagan]] in the first ''Film/BloodRayne'' film. [[AwesomeDearBoy He always wanted to play a Vampire Lord.]]
23* Don Logan in ''Film/SexyBeast'', for which he was nominated for 16 awards, and won 11.
24* The Hood in the live-action ''Film/{{Thunderbirds}}'' movie, commonly cited as one of the better parts; per [[WordOfGod Jonathan Frakes]], he took the role as it was less emotionally taxing compared to most of his work, and [[SoMyKidsCanWatch his kids urged him to take the part.]]
25* Dr. Miranda, a doctor with a very dark past in ''Film/DeathAndTheMaiden''
26* Nizam in the ''Film/PrinceOfPersiaTheSandsOfTime'' movie.
27* Massoud Amir Behrani in ''Literature/HouseOfSandAndFog''.
28* Creator/GeorgesMelies in ''Film/{{Hugo}}''.
29* Robert in the film of ''Theatre/{{Betrayal}}''.
30* [[TragicHero O'Ryan]], an FBI Agent turned psychic vigilante SerialKillerKiller in ''Film/SuspectZero''.
31* Mysterious Grinko in ''Film/{{Transsiberian}}''.
32* The sinister psychologist Dr. Cawley in ''Film/ShutterIsland''.
33* TreacherousAdvisor Tamir in the Creator/SachaBaronCohen comedy ''Film/TheDictator'' (not only did Cohen star in ''Hugo'', but the role of Tamir is very similar to Nizam in ''Prince of Persia'').
34* [[RetiredBadass Mazer Rackham]] in ''Film/EndersGame''.
35* Trevor Slattery in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse.
36** ''Film/IronMan3''
37** ''Film/AllHailTheKing''
38** ''Film/ShangChiAndTheLegendOfTheTenRings''
39** ''Series/WonderMan''
40* Dr. Watson, but not TheWatson, in ''Film/WithoutAClue''.
41* The villainous Archibald Snatcher in ''WesternAnimation/TheBoxtrolls''.
42* Otto Frank in ''Series/AnneFrankTheWholeStory''.
43* AsHimself in ''Series/TheSopranos'', where Christopher Moltisanti tries to pitch him his idea for a gangster-horror movie.
44* Billionaire industrialist Damian Hale in ''Film/{{Selfless}}''.
45* Bagheera in the [[Film/TheJungleBook2016 2016 live-action adaptation]] of ''Literature/TheJungleBook''.
46* Charlie in ''Film/Security2017''
47* Adolf Eichmann in ''Film/OperationFinale'' (2018)
48* ''WesternAnimation/WatershipDown2018'': General Woundwort
49* Rapist-hunting vigilante Cooper in ''Film/{{Night Hunter|2019}}''.
50* ''Film/TheSchoolForGoodAndEvil2022''
51* ''DalĂ­land'' as Creator/SalvadorDali (older)
52* ''Film/TheWonderfulStoryOfHenrySugar'' as Imdad Khan / the casino dealer
53* ''Film/Poison2023'' as Dr. Ganderbai
54
55!!Tropes:
56* {{Brownface}}: Kingsley darkened his skin for the title role in ''Film/{{Gandhi}}''; despite being half-Indian with parentage from the same region and ethnicity as the man, he's fair-skinned in real life.
57* FakeNationality: Sir Ben's played everything from [[FakeAmerican Fake Americans]], to Fake Arabs, to Fake Persians, to Fake Frenchmen, to a Fake Maori, a Fake German, and several Fake Jews. [[WesternAnimation/FreddieAsFRO7 and a Fake French frog spy]].
58* PlaysGreatEthnics: Because of his mixed Indian and British ancestry, Kingsley is often tapped to play various ethnic groups. Lampshaded with his role in ''Film/IronMan3'', in which he plays an alleged Asian terrorist who is actually a British actor hired to be a front man for the real villain.

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