30 Mesmerizing Facts About Hayley Atwell We Bet You Didn't Know Before

6 August 2019, 1:42 pm EDT By Ruby Karnick

Hayley Atwell, world renowned for her portrayal of Peggy Carter in various films and television series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has also been part of several stage productions including the "A View from the Bridge." Here are a few fascinating facts about the British-American actress:

Her first major role was in the Woody Allen's 2007 film "Cassandra's Dream," in which she played the role of a stage actress Angela Stark. She was cast by Allen, just 8 months after she left drama school.
Atwell starred in a three-part BBC adaptation of Andrea Levy's novel "The Long Song, about a slave on a sugar plantation in 19th-century Jamaica, in the year 2019.
During the filming of the first season of the series "Agent Carter," she had to get her picture taken for her driver's license/ID at the Department of Motor Vehicles, and thus now her photo on the card has her in the hairstyle, makeup and outfit of Peggy Carter.
Her first Disney movie role was as Cinderella's mother in the 2015 "Cinderella" movie, in which she was the only American to be cast. The next was as Evelyn Robin in the 2018 "Christopher Robin."
Atwell was so impressed and moved by the first season of "Black Mirror," that she herself approached the directors and requested for a role, which resulted in her playing Martha in "Black Mirror: Be Right Back."
In the "Captain America: The First Avenger" movie, at around thirty-seven minutes, the scene in which her character Carter surprisingly touches Chris Evans' chest, as he emerged from the pod upon turning into Captain America, was reported to be very much improvised.
She claimed in interviews that the surprise on her face is genuine and that she was very taken by Chris' physique and nearly broke character and ruined the take which made it into the film as a result.
Hayley Elizabeth Atwell is the only child born to Grant and Alison on April 5, 1982 in London. Her father is a photographer from Kansas City, Missouri.
She went to Sion-Manning Roman Catholic Girls' School in London, before she took A-levels at the London Oratory School.
She, at the very young age of 8, decided to be a committed vegetarian after seeing Loyd Grossman put a live lobster into boiling water.

A year later, when she was nine years old, she walked over hot coals at a 'Power Into Action workshop, which she attended with her mother.
After a period of two years off to travel with her father and work for a casting director, she got herself enrolled at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama earning a BA degree in Acting.
It is reported that, Atwell quit her university degree course in Philosophy and Theology, and chose to train in theater, deciding her career in acting.
Following the "Captain America: The First Avenger" movie, Jenna Coleman went on to star as Clara Oswald in Doctor Who. With this, Atwell expressed her interest in playing The 13th Doctor when Peter Capaldi announced his departure from the series, but, the part went to Jodie Whittaker.
During the filming of the movie "Cinderella," she had her eyebrows bleached to match the blonde wig she wears in the movie.
However, the same time, she was also performing the stage play "The Pride," for which she would rush from the set to the theater in the evenings and fill in her eyebrows with mascara.
In the time she played the role of Sylvia in the play "The Pride," she had to change from a 1950's house wife to a modern day career woman in a 6-second costume change that involved 3 dressers hiding in the wings.
For her role as Peggy Carter in the "Ant-Man" movie, it was reported that aging VFX were combined with the wig and make-up to make the 33-year old Atwell to appear older.
She is famously known for pranking her co-stars and one such incident is said to have left her co-star's dressing room filled with around hundreds of plastic balls.
During one of her performance in the stage at the RSC, she happened to notice that her gym bra had accidentally attached itself to her costume.

She reportedly unhooked the bra promptly and used it as a handkerchief for the duration of scene, without anybody noticing it.
Atwell reportedly based her performance as Carter in the "Captain America: The First Avenger," on Ginger Rogers, stating that her character Carter "can do everything Captain America can do, but backwards, and in high heels."
In preparation for the role, she reportedly underwent a vigorous training routine. It was said that she trained for six days a week for months together.
Her role as Julia Flyte in the 2008 movie "Brideshead Revisited," required her to lose a considerable amount of weight.
However, after a period of time, her co-star Emma Thompson, who played the role of Lady Marchmain, started threatening to quit the movie, if the producers pushed Atwell to lose more weight.
She was featured as Bess Foster in the 2008 movie "The Duchess," which earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the British Independent Film Awards.
For her appearance as an elderly Peggy Carter in the "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," her face and muscle structure were changed using computer graphics imagery, making her look very old.
Till date, she has a total of nine nominations including the nomination for Golden Globe Awards - Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film, and two Laurence Olivier Award nominations.
She was honored with an Ian Charleson Commendation, for her performance in the Nicholas Hytner production of "Major Barbara," at the Royal National Theatre.
Being an actress with dual - British and American citizenship, she admits the toughest word to pronounce with an American accent is "murderer," as in the British accent the letter 'R' is softened as in 'muh-d'ruh.