Editing Geoffrey Rush (section)

=== 1996–2002: Breakthrough and acclaim ===
[[File:Sir Francis Walsingham by John De Critz the Elder.jpg|thumb|right|190px|Rush portrayed [[Sir Francis Walsingham]] in ''[[Elizabeth (film)|Elizabeth]]'' (1998)]]
Rush made his film breakthrough with his performance in 1996 with ''[[Shine (film)|Shine]]'', for which he won the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]]. Rush had once learned piano up until aged fourteen and retook piano lessons again thirty years later for the role, choosing to perform most of the piano playing himself rather than using a [[Body double|hand double]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1285/is_n12_v26/ai_19121799/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090429131032/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1285/is_n12_v26/ai_19121799/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 April 2009 |title=Playing for their lives – interview with actors Noah Taylor and Geoffrey Rush – Interview |date=29 April 2009 |access-date=27 October 2011 }}</ref> That same year, [[James L. Brooks]] flew him to Los Angeles to audition for the part of Simon Bishop in ''[[As Good as It Gets]]'' and offered him the role, but Rush declined it (it went to [[Greg Kinnear]]).<ref>{{cite news|first=Douglas|last=Aiton|title=10 Things You Didn't Know About Geoffrey Rush|newspaper=Weekend Australian Magazine|date=4–5 September 2004|page=12}}</ref> In September 1998, Rush played the title role in the [[Pierre Beaumarchais|Beaumarchais]] play ''[[The Marriage of Figaro (play)|The Marriage of Figaro]]'' for the QTC. This was the opening production of the Optus Playhouse at the [[Queensland Performing Arts Centre]] at [[South Bank, Queensland|South Bank]] in [[Brisbane]]. A [[pun]] on Rush's name (and the circumstances) was used in the opening prologue of the play with the comment that the "Optus Playhouse was opening with a Rush". 

In 1998, he appeared in three major costume dramas. He played [[Javert]] opposite [[Liam Neeson]] as [[Jean Valjean]] in ''[[Les Misérables (1998 film)|Les Misérables]]''. The film directed by [[Bille August]] was an adaptation of the [[Victor Hugo]] [[Les Misérables|novel of the same name]]. [[Uma Thurman]] and [[Claire Danes]] also acted in the film. He also portrayed [[Sir Francis Walsingham]] alongside fellow Australian [[Cate Blanchett]] as [[Queen Elizabeth I]] in the historical drama ''[[Elizabeth (film)|Elizabeth]]''. He received a [[BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role]] nomination for his performance. Finally Rush portrayed [[Philip Henslowe]] in the romantic comedy-drama ''[[Shakespeare in Love]]'' acting opposite [[Joseph Fiennes]], [[Gwyneth Paltrow]], [[Colin Firth]], [[Tom Wilkinson]], and [[Judi Dench]]. For his performance he received nominations for Best Supporting Actor from the [[Academy Awards]], [[British Academy Film Awards]], [[Golden Globe Awards]], and [[Screen Actors Guild Awards]]. In 1999, Rush took the lead role as Steven Price in the horror film ''[[House on Haunted Hill (1999 film)|House on Haunted Hill]]'', and played the villain in the superhero comedy film ''[[Mystery Men]]''.

In 2000, Rush starred in [[Philip Kaufman]]'s ''[[Quills (film)|Quills]]'' where he played the [[Marquis de Sade]] alongside [[Kate Winslet]], [[Joaquin Phoenix]] and [[Michael Caine]]. The film was written by [[Tony Award]] winning playwright [[Doug Wright]] who adapted the film's screenplay from his play. Rush received widespread critical acclaim for his performance with ''[[Rolling Stone (magazine)|Rolling Stone]]'' critic [[Peter Travers]]' describing his performance as "volcanic", and "scandalously good".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-reviews/quills-247978/|title= Quills – Film Review|website= [[Rolling Stone (magazine)|Rolling Stone]]|date= 15 December 2000|access-date= June 10, 2020}}</ref> For his performance in the film he received his third [[Academy Award|Oscar]] nomination this time for [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]. Rush's career continued at a fast pace, with nine films released from 2001 to 2003. In 2002, Rush played [[Leon Trotsky]] to [[Salma Hayek]]'s [[Frida Kahlo]] in [[Julie Taymor]]'s ''[[Frida (2002 film)|Frida]]''. In the reaction to the [[MeToo|#MeToo Movement]], Hayek wrote an opinion piece in ''[[The New York Times]]'' detailing the harassment [[Harvey Weinstein]] perpetrated against her. In the article she wrote about her determination to make the movie and praised Rush as a collaborator and for agreeing to act in the film.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/13/opinion/contributors/salma-hayek-harvey-weinstein.html|title= Harvey Weinstein Is My Monster Too|website= [[The New York Times]]|date= 13 December 2017|access-date= June 9, 2020|last1= Hayek|first1= Salma}}</ref>