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'Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl' (2003) -

The British actress appeared in four out of five films in the series about 18th-century swashbucklers. The first film was directed by Gore Verbinski and was a box-office hit.

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'Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl' (2003) -

Knightley played the role of Elizabeth, damsel in distress turned noble pirate. In the first film she was rescued from the curse of the Black Pearl by Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom.

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'Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl' (2003) -

Elizabeth returned with major roles in both 'Dead Man's Chest' and 'At World's End.' She also had a cameo appearance in the fifth and final film, 'Dead Men Tell No Tales.'

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'King Arthur' (2004) -

Knightley featured in the ensemble cast of Antoine Fuqua's historical adventure film about the Roman Empire. She starred alongside Clive Owen and Ioan Gruffudd.

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'King Arthur' (2004) -

Her character was Guinevere, the Pict woman rescued from imprisonment by the noble King Arthur (Clive Owen), whom she eventually marries.

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'King Arthur' (2004) -

The film was unfortunately not a great success and has a Rotten Tomatoes rating of just 31%.

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'Pride & Prejudice' (2005) -

Knightley starred in Joe Wright's film adaptation of the 1813 Jane Austen novel. The story centers around the love lives of five sisters in 18th-century England.

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'Pride & Prejudice' (2005) -

Knightley's character was protagonist Elizabeth Bennett. She starred alongside Matthew Macfadyen, who played her love interest, Mr. Darcy.

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'Pride & Prejudice' (2005) -

Grossing roughly US$121 million worldwide, the film was considered a commercial success. Knightley's performance landed her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.

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'Atonement' (2007) -

Joe Wright's adaptation of Ian McEwan's 2001 romantic war novel brought the actress into the turbulent years either side of the Second World War.

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'Atonement' (2007) -

She played Cecilia Tallis, older sister to Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) and romantic interest to Robbie Turner (James McAvoy).

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'Atonement' (2007) -

In the year it was released, 'Atonement' was nominated for seven Oscars, although it only took home Best Original Score. 

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'Silk' (2007) -

The actress had a major role in the film adaptation of Alessandro Barrico's novel of the same name. She starred alongside Michael Pitt in the film directed by François Girard. 

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'Silk' (2007) -

Knightley plays Hélène Joncour, wife of a silkworm merchant who travels to Japan for trade, where he becomes obsessed with the concubine of a local baron.

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'Silk' (2007) -

Described by the New York Times as a "casualty," the film was widely considered a box-office flop and has a Rotten Tomatoes rating of just 7%. 

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'The Edge of Love' (2008) -

The actress starred alongside Sienna Miller, Cillian Murphy, and Matthew Rhys in John Maybury's biographical romantic drama movie.

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'The Edge of Love' (2008) -

Knightley plays Vera, a rebellious nightclub singer and wife of British Army officer William Killick.

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'The Edge of Love' (2008) -

The film was not a box-office success, although Rotten Tomatoes attributes that to the lack of coherent narrative rather than Knightley or Miller's performance.

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'The Duchess' (2008) -

Knightley played the protagonist in Saul Dibb's film based on Amanda Foreman's biography of 18th-century English aristocrat Georgiana Cavendish. 

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'The Duchess' (2008) -

Knightley's character Georgiana has an arranged marriage to William Cavendish (Ralph Fiennes) and the film tells the tale of their less than happy marriage.

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'The Duchess' (2008) -

The movie received generally positive reviews and the performances of Knightley and Fiennes were on the whole well received.

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'Anna Karenina' (2012) -

In her third collaboration with director Joe Knight, Knightley played the protagonist in the film adaptation of Tolstoy's 1877 novel. 

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'Anna Karenina' (2012) -

The story follows 19th-century Russian aristocrat Anna Karenina (Keira Knightley) as she enters into a love affair with Count Alexei Vronsky (Aaron Taylor-Johnson).

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'Anna Karenina' (2012) -

The film enjoyed a generally positive reception, with critics often praising the cast. It received four Academy Award nominations. 

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'The Nutcracker and the Four Realms' (2018) -

Knightley starred in the screen adaptation of E.T.A Hoffmann's short story 'The Nutcracker and the Mouse King.'

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'The Nutcracker and the Four Realms' (2018) -

The story is set in Victorian London and Knightley's face was heavily made up for her role as the Sugar Plum Fairy, the regent of the Land of Sweets.

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'The Nutcracker and the Four Realms' (2018) -

The film was considered a box-office bomb and received harsh reviews from critics, who labeled it "soulless" and "incoherent" among other things.

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'Colette' (2018) -

Knightley starred in the Wash Westmoreland biopic about the French novelist Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette.

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'Colette' (2018) -

The film tells the story of a talented female author (Knightley) forced to write novels under the name of her husband (Dominic West).

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'Colette' (2018) -

The film was positively received and enjoys an approval rating of 87%. The work has been described as "an overdue testament to Keira Knightley's underrated gifts."

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'The Aftermath' (2019) -

Knightley starred opposite Alexander Skarsgård in this drama set in Hamburg, Germany, in the immediate aftermath of World War II. It was poorly reviewed by critics, but nonetheless was still deemed a tasteful period drama for those who appreciate the genre. 

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'Misbehaviour' (2020) -

In 2020, Knightley starred in this film about a historical moment in the Women's Liberation Movement. It recounts the occasion when they sabotaged the 1970 Miss World beauty pageant in London by invading the stage to protest its objectification of women. 

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'Boston Strangler' (2023) -

In 2023, Knightley starred as reporter Loretta McLaughlin, the real-life journalist who broke the story on the infamous Boston Strangler serial killer in the 1960s. 

See also: The best British period dramas

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