Keira Knightley first appeared in the Episode: "Royal Celebration" of the British television anthology drama series ‘Screen One’ in 1993. She made her silver screen debut in the 1995 Patrick Dewolf-directed thriller film ‘Innocent Lives.’ In 1999, she portrayed Sabé in the American epic space opera film ‘Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace’ directed by George Lucas. While the film received a sort-of mixed response from critics, it grossed over $1.027 billion on a budget of $115 million, becoming one of the highest-grossing films of all time. She was next seen in films like ‘Deflation’ (2001), ‘The Hole’ (2001), ‘Princess of Thieves’ (2001), ‘Thunderpants’ (2002), ‘Pure’ (2002), ‘Bend It Like Beckham’ (2002), and ‘New Year's Eve’ (2002). The year 2003 saw the release of the American fantasy swashbuckler film ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl’ where Knightley was seen playing the role of ‘Elizabeth Swann.’ The film garnered positive reviews from critics and was a major financial success. The film received mixed to positive reviews and performed well at the box office. She portrayed Guinevere in the 2004 historical adventure film ‘King Arthur’ directed by Antoine Fuqua. The film received a lukewarm response but managed to gross over $203.6 million on a budget of $120 million.Â
In 2005, she received the ‘Academy Award’ nomination for portraying Elizabeth Bennet in the romantic drama film ‘Pride & Prejudice’ directed by Joe Wright. The film opened to a positive reception and was a major commercial success. She continued to star in films like ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest’ (2006), ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End’ (2007), ‘Atonement’ (2007), ‘Silk’ (2007), ‘The Duchess’ (2008), ‘Never Let Me Go’ (2010), ‘Last Night’ (2010), ‘A Dangerous Method’ (2011), ‘Seeking a Friend for the End of the World’ (2012), ‘Anna Karenina’ (2012), and ‘Begin Again’ (2013). In 2014, she played the role of ‘Joan Clarke’ in the American historical drama film ‘The Imitation Game’ directed by Morten Tyldum. The film saw positive reviews upon release and was a major box office hit, grossing over $233.6 million on a $14 million budget. Knightley also received her second ‘Academy Award’ nomination for her performance in the film. That same year, she was also seen in the American action thriller film ‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit’ which received a mixed response from critics.Â
She continued to star in films like ‘Everest’ (2015), ‘Collateral Beauty’ (2016), ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales’ (2017), ‘Colette’ (2018), ‘The Nutcracker and the Four Realms’ (2018), ‘Official Secrets’ (2019), ‘Berlin, I Love You’ (2019), ‘Misbehaviour’ (2020), and ‘Charlotte’ (2021). She was last seen in the 2021 British black comedy apocalyptic Christmas film ‘Silent Night’ directed by Camille Griffin. The film received mixed to positive reviews from critics.