12 Surprising On-Screen Roles You’d Totally Forgotten Rosamund Pike Once Played

Throughout her two decades in the spotlight, Rosamund Pike has appeared in Hollywood blockbusters such as Gone Girl, Jack Reacher and the James Bond movie Die Another Day, and can currently be seen in action in Amazon’s adaptation of The Wheel Of Time.

But while she’s become a hugely recognisable face on both the big and small screen, there are still a fair few former Rosamund Pike roles you may be unfamiliar with – or have forgotten completely. 

Join us on a deepdive of the Oscar nominee’s lesser-known on-screen moments… 

A Rather English Marriage (1998)

n her first major on-screen role – while she was still an English literature student at Oxford, having been rejected from every stage school she applied to – Rosamund played Celia in the BBC’s adaptation of Angela Lambert’s novel, A Rather English Marriage.

Joining her in the cast were Tom Courtenay and Joanna Lumley, as well as Albert Finney, who played Rosamund’s on-screen uncle.

The show was a critical hit, earning three Baftas, including a win for Tom Courtenay, as well as additional nominations for Albert and Joanna.

Wives And Daughters (1999)

Shortly after A Rather English Marriage came the four-part period Wives and Daughters, where Rosamund played Lady Harriet Cumnor. 

Adapted from Victorian novel Wives And Daughters: An Everyday Story by Elizabeth Gaskell, the star-studded cast also included Keeley Hawes, Tom Hollander, the late Michael Gambon and a young Sheridan Smith.

Trial & Retribution (2000)

Plenty of Hollywood A-listers begin their careers with bit parts in long-running British dramas. Ask Orlando Bloom, who appeared in an episode of Midsomer Murders, or Kate Winslet, who popped up in Casualty in her late teens.

Rosamund is no exception, playing a small part in the fourth series of the ITV police drama Trial & Retribution, which was written by crime author Lynda La Plante.

Promised Land (2004)

A much grittier venture for Rosamund came in 2004, when she landed a leading role in the French-Israeli film, Promised Land, playing Rose, an English woman who helps Eastern-European victims of trafficking. 

The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival, where it won the CinemAvvenire Award, Cinema for Peace Award. 

Pride & Prejudice (2005)

While Keira Knightley stole the show with her role of Elizabeth Bennet, the 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice also starred Rosamund, who played her older sister, Jane Bennet.

Also in the all-star cast were Carey Mulligan, Tom Hollander and Dame Judi Dench – as well as Succession star Matthew Macfadyen, who was still yet to have his international breakthrough moment before taking on the iconic role of Mr Darcy.

Doom (2005)

In a massive departure from the Regency-era roles she’d become synonymous with at that stage of her career, Rosamund starred in the cinematic adaptation of the computer game series Doom the same year as Pride & Prejudice.

She played scientist Dr. Samantha Grimm, the twin sister of marine John “Reaper” Grimm, or Doomguy (portrayed by Karl Urban) who is sent on a rescue mission to a facility on Mars and encounters demonic-like creatures.

Dwayne Johnson, still credited in the movie as “The Rock” also features as squad leader Sarge.

Fracture (2007)

Psychological crime thriller Fracture came next, in which Rosamund co-starred alongside Sir Anthony Hopkins and current man of the moment, Ryan Gosling. 

Fracture is often credited as being the role that brought Ryan into the mainstream, with Rosamund playing his boss and love interest, lawyer Nikki Gardner. Lucky her, frankly.

An Education (2009)

Reuniting with her Pride & Prejudice co-star Carey Mulligan once again, Rosamund portrayed the role of Helen in An Education. 

The film was nominated for three Oscars in 2010 – including the Best Actress gong for Carey – but Rosamund still shone as Danny’s (Dominic Cooper’s) girlfriend, the partner-in-crime of the dastardly David Goldman (Peter Sarsgaard).

Barney’s Version (2010)

In the same year that saw her nominated for a BIFA Best Supporting Actress award for her role in Made In Dagenham, Rosamund also had a part in comedy-drama, Barney’s Version. 

She played Miriam Grant-Panofsky, the third wife of Barney (Paul Giamatti) – who later marries Blair (Bruce Greenwood). 

The World’s End (2013)

Rosamund got to work with her Die Another Day co-star Pierce Brosnan in 2013, when the pair acted in The World’s End.

In the the apocalyptic science fiction comedy, Rosamund played the sister of Martin Freeman’s character, while Pierce played the central trio’s old teacher.

The World’ End is the third and final instalment in the so-called “Cornetto trilogy” written by Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg, after Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Hot Fuzz (2007).

What We Did On Our Holiday(2014)

Overshadowed by her amazing performance as Amy Elliott Dunne in Gone Girl – which saw her bag Best Actress nods at the Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTAs – Rosamund also had another, less commercially successful, film out in 2014. 

What We Did On Our Holiday saw her star as a mother-of-three who reunites with her estranged husband (played by David Tennant) following a tense separation, to travel to the Scottish Highlands to celebrate his father (Billy Connolly) turning 75 birthday. The film was inspired by the popular BBC sitcom Outnumbered.

Thunderbirds Are Go (2015)

We’re ending our list on what’s perhaps Rosamund’s most wonderfully weird role. 

You’d be forgiven for not recognising her in this one, as it’s actually a voice part, taking over the iconic role of Lady Penelope in the rebooted series of Thunderbirds! 

She also played Captain Ridley O’Bannon in the animated show, which she was part of for five years before it came to an end in 2020.