Emily Blunt arrives at the 24th annual Critics' Choice Awards on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019, at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Actress Emily Blunt turns 37 on Feb. 23, marking another year of success in show business after getting her big break in 2007.
The actress is known both for her incredible and award-winning acting as well as being half of a Hollywood power couple with husband John Krasinski. She’s been in the business since the early 2000s and quickly made a name for herself over the years, appearing in fan-beloved films such as “Dan in Real Life,” “Looper,” “The Adjustment Bureau,” “Edge of Tomorrow” and many more.
As with any meteoric rise to fame, there’s a lot to be said about Blunt’s career. To help commemorate her 37th birthday, now is a great time to take a look back at some of the top roles that shaped her as the A-list star people know and love today.
“The Devil Wears Prada”
Emily Blunt broke onto the mainstream American movie scene with her role in 'The Devil Wears Prada.' (20th Century Fox)
For Blunt, 2007 was a big year. After doing a handful of movies outside of Hollywood, she got her big break in the film “The Devil Wears Prada.” Her breakout role in her first major American film earned her a Golden Globe nomination for best supporting actress in a motion picture that year. Although she didn’t win in the movie category, she did double duty that year and took home a Golden Globe for best supporting actress in a series, miniseries or motion picture made for TV for her part in “Gideon's Daughter.”
However, “Devil Wears Prada” marks one of her most memorable roles as it not only thrust her into the public consciousness, but it kept her in that spot thanks to the movie’s enduring appeal.
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“I never had any idea that my lines would get quoted to me every single week of my life since the movie has come out,” she previously told Variety.
Even Blunt admits that her career got a boost from the hit comedy, even more so than her co-stars.
“It was a night and day change,” she told the outlet in 2016.
“Into the Woods”
Blunt proved adept at musical adaptations with her starring role in 'Into the Woods.' (Disney)
Thanks to the success of “The Devil Wears Prada,” Blunt’s career took off and she worked steadily for years. However, her next most memorable role wouldn’t come until 2014 with the release of the film adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s famous play, “Into the Woods.”
Blunt plays the Baker’s wife, who wants nothing more than to have a child. However, the family has been cursed by a witch and the movie sees her and her husband venture into the woods to collect a series of magical items that they hope will break the curse.
The reason this role is so memorable for Blunt fans is that, in an ironic twist to her character, the actress realized that she was pregnant just after accepting the role.
"It was a surreal, bizarre, lovely, profound, and slightly ironic situation to be in, and to be playing this barren woman, and to be with child myself,” she told Vulture at the time.
She explained that she feared director Rob Marshall would be forced to ax her from the film. She waited “a good 10 weeks” before finally breaking the news to the director. Fortunately, he was willing to do whatever creative tricks were necessary to make her work in the role.
“I’m just glad Rob Marshall let me do it and hid me behind lots of objects. Lots of trees! And I did a lot of stuff where I was sort of creeping behind James [Corden, who plays the Baker], and he would put his arms out as if he was trying to protect me from what was in front of us, but really, it was just to cover my stomach,” she told the outlet.
Despite being pregnant and playing a woman that can’t conceive a child, Blunt earned her fourth Golden Globe nomination for her part as the Baker’s wife.
It would not be the last time she was nominated for reviving a beloved musical.
“Sicario”
Emily Blunt showed off her action skills as an idealistic FBI agent in 'Sicario.' (Lionsgate)
Although she proved herself adept at both drama and musicals, Blunt solidified herself as a bonafide action star with “Sicario.” One year prior, she showed audiences that she had some serious action movie chops in the science fiction film “Edge of Tomorrow.” However, her more grounded performance as idealistic FBI agent Kate Macer drew widespread acclaim.
In fact, her role was so vital to the first movie that, when a sequel was announced without her, all fans could talk about was how she wouldn’t return to the film. In fact, director Stefano Sollima noted to Business Insider that the film was lacking the moral compass she brought to the project in the first movie. However, he also explained that the lack of morals helped up the stakes for the sequel.
Fans weren’t as pleased, though. The Hollywood Reporter noted her absence made the second film come off as “obnoxiously macho,” which is really a testament to how well she performed in the first movie.
“A Quiet Place”
Emily Blunt worked with her husband, John Krasinski, for the first time on the hit horror movie 'A Quiet Place.' (Paramount Pictures)
Despite being together for several years, Blunt and her husband, John Krasinski, were very protective of working with each other. As a result, when he broke away from his usual comedy and action roles to both write and direct a horror with “A Quiet Place,” she told Deadline she initially didn’t want to touch it with a 10-foot-pole.
“I think I probably felt even more protective of not being in this one initially, because I knew it was such a big swing for him. I also knew it could potentially reveal everything that I know about him, and the measure of his talent. I just didn’t want the idea of playing his wife in the movie and being his wife in real life to overwhelm the narrative of what I wanted this moment to be for him,” she explained.
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Blunt says she agreed to play her husband’s on-screen wife once she read the script and realized how much she would enjoy being a part of the movie. Fortunately for the power couple, “A Quiet Place” ended up being one of the most successful films of the year and even spawned a highly anticipated sequel in which she’ll play the star.
“Mary Poppins Returns”
Emily Blunt was tasked with being the next actress to star as Mary Poppins in a movie since Julie Andrews. (Disney via AP)
Blunt reconnected with her “Into the Woods” director in 2018 for her most ambitious role yet, “Mary Poppins Returns.” The actress took on the iconic role made famous by legendary actress Julie Andrews in the 1964 adaptation of author P.L. Travers’ acclaimed book series.
After scoring a Golden Globe nomination for “Into the Woods,” Blunt seemed like a safe choice to bring Mary Poppins back to the big screen. However, countless actresses have played the Baker’s wife. Following in the direct footsteps of Andrews was a whole other ballgame.
Fortunately, Blunt came prepared with a simple strategy on how to top her predecessor — don’t.
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The actress explained to IndieWire that Andrews’ performance had a very bright and positive element to the character that was slightly different than the Poppins appeared in the books. As a result, she saw an avenue to still stay true to the character without drawing a direct comparison to Andrews.
“For sure, the vanity and humor is there, but she’s not very sunny. She’s odd,” the star told the outlet.
She also joked: “I am not Julie Andrews, I’m not a soprano.”
By and large, reviews for Blunt’s portrayal of Poppins were positive. She even earned herself another Golden Globe nomination for the role.
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