The stars of the 2005 Pride & Prejudice film: Then and now

Have you ever wondered what happened to the amiable cast of the 2005 movie adaptation of Pride & Prejudice?

From Mr Darcy to Elizabeth Bennet, find out where the A-listers behind the characters are today – and the wild co-worker romance that blossomed on set.

Read on to see the careers of the cast.

For a daily dose of 9Honey, subscribe to our newsletter here.

Keira Knightley is known for her various roles in period pieces, but Elizabeth Bennet is undoubtedly one of her most famous characters.

The actress had already established herself in Bend It Like Beckham, the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and Love Actually, growing her reputation in Hollywood. 

She almost missed out on the role as Elizabeth because Wright thought she may be 'too attractive', Knightley revealed on The Graham Norton Show.

"And then, he met me and he went 'no, no you're fine'. Thanks," she added.

While filming Pride & Prejudice, the actress was also preparing for her role in Domino, which meant she had to cut her hair. 

Towards the end of the 2005 film, you may notice Knightley is wearing a wig and long sleeves to hide the muscles required for her other film.  

Knightley's portrayal of the intelligent and good-natured Elizabeth earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. 

Having gained worldwide recognition, she would go on to work in the wartime drama The Edge of Love, period pieces including Atonement and The Duchess, and another career-defining role in The Imitation Game. 

In 2013, she tied the knot with musician James Righton; the pair share two children and Knightley continues to act.

Rosamund Pike almost missed out on the role of Jane Bennet, despite being director Joe Wright's first choice. 

She ended up turning down the role of Rita Skeeter in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire instead.

Pike was previously in a relationship with Simon Woods, who starred as Mr. Bingley – and who Wright says he tried to avoid casting. 

"I tried very hard not to cast Simon, but I knew he was perfect. Finally, I rang Ros and asked if she'd mind, and she said, 'Absolutely not'," he revealed in an interview.

"They hadn't seen each other for two years, but the next day they were dancing together. It was lovely."

Pike and Wright ended up dating and got engaged after meeting on set.

However, their wedding was reportedly called off after the actress sent out invitations the director hadn't approved.

Following her breakout role in the film, Pike has enjoyed an incredibly successful career.

She has since starred in more critically acclaimed films such as An Education, Barney's Version and Jack Reacher.

Her role in Gone Girl saw Pike's career reach new heights.

She has most recently starred in Saltburn. 

The famous Mr Darcy was portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen, who had only been in five films when he was cast. 

As Darcy, his simple hand flex managed to deliver a range of emotions, showing his affection for Elizabeth Bennet. 

The heartwarming gesture has since been recognised in other films and most recently in Barbie. 

Macfadyen has poor eyesight, which meant when filming scenes in the misty morning haze, director Wright had to wave a red flag behind the camera so he would know where to walk. 

Pride and Prejudice put him on the map and saw him nominated for Best Newcomer at the London Critics Circle Film Awards. 

Macadyen went on to act in the television series Criminal Justice and Ripper Street as well as films including Death at a Funeral, Robin Hood, Anna Karenina and The Assistant. 

Most recently, he starred in Succession as Tom Wambsgans, which won him a Golden Globe Award, an Emmy and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

Tom Hollander played the role of Mr Collins, cousin to the Bennet family and inheritor of their home, Longbourn.

The actor had had some success on Broadway, working as a voice acto,r and had landed a role in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as Lord Cutler Beckett, alongside co-star Keira Knightley.

Hollander earned critical acclaim from Pride & Prejudice, going on to star in director Joe Wright's 2011 film, Hanna. 

He maintains a successful acting career, performing most recently in the FX limited series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans.

In 2023, he welcomed his first child with interior designer Fran Hickman.

The second non-English actor in the film, Donald Sutherland was convinced by Wright to join the cast as the father to five daughters, Mr Bennet.

"We ended up having a long e-mail correspondence about everything from eighteenth-century agriculture to my relationship with my father," the director revealed in an interview.

"I cast Donald a) because he's a god, and b) because you needed someone of that strength to handle those six women."

Sutherland already had a long and established acting career to his name, having starred in M*A*S*H, Kelly's Heroes and Klute.

After Pride & Prejudice, he went on to play the career-defining role of President Snow in The Hunger Games franchise. 

He recently starred in Moonfall, Mr Harigan's Phone and Miranda's Victim. 

Dame Judi Dench is widely accepted as one of Britain's greatest actresses of all time, making her a perfect fit for the classic book's movie adaptation. She played the role of the affluent Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

Wright managed to cast her by writing a letter that read, "I love it when you play a bitch, Please come and be a bitch for me," which somehow worked.

Due to tight scheduling constraints, Dench filmed all of her scenes in a week.

Dench would go on to work on another career-defining role as M in the James Bond series.

She continues to act, since starring in the West End stage's production of Hay Fever, drama Notes on Scandal and many more projects. 

Nearly 90, Dench shows no sign of slowing down: "I don't really want to retire. I intend to go on working as long as I can because I still have a huge amount of energy."

Pride & Prejudice was Carey Mulligan's first role and the first film she'd auditioned for.

Her portrayal of Kitty Bennet established her as a dedicated actor. 

According to the director's commentary, she thought of her mother's funeral to produce the raw emotion we witness in her crying scene. 

While her performance in Pride and Prejudice was undeniably impressive, Mulligan's breakout role wouldn't come until 2009, when she starred in An Education, scoring her an Academy Award nomination. 

She also went on to work with her co-star Keira Knightley in the 2010 film Never Let Me Go, which saw her winning a British Independent Award.

Mulligan has since grown an impressive career, acting in The Great Gatsby, Mudbound and as the main character in the black comedy thriller Promising Young Woman.  

In 2012, she married Grammy Award-winning singer, Marcus Mumford, whom she shares three children with. 

Most recently she has starred in Saltburn, Maestro – earning another Oscar nod – and Spaceman.

Before Kelly Reilly stole the show in Yellowstone, she played the role of the affluent Miss Bingley. 

Though she didn't have much screen time, she played her part perfectly, memorably delivering the line, "I can't help feeling that someone is going to produce a piglet and make us chase it." 

At the time, her character and Mr Darcy were dancing to a song called The Tythe Pig. 

In the same year as Pride & Prejudice, Reilly won the best newcomer award at the Cannes Film Festival for her acting as Wendy in Russian Dolls. 

She went on to earn the lead role in the 2008 horror film Eden Lake, before starring in Sherlock Holmes, Triage and Me and Orson Welles.

She also had a memorable role in the True Detective TV series.

The only American in the film, Jenna Malone played the role of Lydia Bennet, who ran away with the shady George Whickham, causing quite the scandal.

Before this role, the actress had starred in a few local theatre productions and films including Stepmom and Donnie Darko. 

Malone went on to star in The Ruins and Sucker Punch, before landing one of her biggest roles. 

She was cast in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, reprising the role of Johanna Mason in the following two sequels. 

Before starring as Mary Bennet, Talulah Riley had starred in a few television series and made her stage debut in The Philadelphia Story.

During filming, she joined the other actresses portraying the Bennet sisters in a game of Sardines to familiarise themselves with the large house.