Editing Judi Dench (section)

=== 2000s: Continued acclaim ===
[[File:Judi Dench figure at Madame Tussauds London (10109347476).jpg|thumb|upright|Wax statue of Dench as [[M (James Bond)|M]] at [[Madame Tussauds]], London]]
In January 2001, Dench's husband [[Michael Williams (actor)|Michael Williams]] died of lung cancer. Dench went to [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] in Canada almost immediately after his funeral to begin production on [[Lasse Hallström]]'s drama film ''[[The Shipping News (film)|The Shipping News]]'', a therapy she later credited as her rescue: "People, friends, kept saying, 'You are not facing up to it; you need to face up to it', and maybe they were right, but I felt I was – in the acting. Grief supplies you with an enormous amount of energy. I needed to use that up."<ref name="ireex">{{cite web|title=Dench: Acting 'rescued' me following husband's death |date=15 October 2012 |url=http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/entertainment/dench-acting-resuced-me-following-husbands-death-570574.html|work=[[Irish Examiner]]|access-date=15 November 2012}}</ref> In between, Dench finished work on [[Richard Eyre]]'s film ''[[Iris (2001 film)|Iris]]'' (2001), in which she portrayed novelist [[Iris Murdoch]]. Dench shared her role with [[Kate Winslet]], both actresses portraying Murdoch at different phases of her life.<ref>{{cite news |last=Howe |first=Desson |title=Iris: Heroic on a Human Scale |date=15 February 2002 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?contentId=A9577-2002Feb14 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Each of them was nominated for an [[Academy Award|Oscar]] the following year, earning Dench her fourth nomination in five years.<ref name="awards" /> In addition, she was awarded both an [[ALFS Award]] and the [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role|Best Leading Actress Award]] at the [[55th British Academy Film Awards]].<ref name="awards" /> After ''Iris'', Dench immediately returned to Canada to finish ''The Shipping News'' alongside [[Kevin Spacey]] and [[Julianne Moore]].<ref name="ireex" /> Based on the [[Pulitzer Prize for Fiction|Pulitzer Prize]]-winning [[The Shipping News|novel]] by [[E. Annie Proulx]], the drama revolves around a quiet and introspective typesetter (Spacey) who, after the death of his daughter's mother, moves to [[Newfoundland and Labrador|Newfoundland]] along with his daughter and his aunt, played by Dench, in hopes of starting his life anew in the small town where she grew up. The film earned mixed reviews from critics,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shipping_news|title=The Shipping News (2001)|work=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> and was financially unsuccessful, taking in just US$24 million worldwide with a budget of US$35 million.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Shipping News|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2001/SNEWS.php|publisher=The Numbers |access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Dench received BAFTA and SAG Award nominations for her performance.<ref name="awards" />

In 2002, Dench was cast opposite [[Rupert Everett]], [[Colin Firth]], and [[Reese Witherspoon]] in [[Oliver Parker]]'s ''[[The Importance of Being Earnest (2002 film)|The Importance of Being Earnest]]'', a comedy about mistaken identity set in English high society during the [[Victorian Era]]. Based on [[Oscar Wilde]]'s classic [[comedy of manners]] [[The Importance of Being Earnest|of the same name]], she portrayed Lady Bracknell, a role she had repeatedly played before, including a stint at the [[Royal National Theatre]] in 1982.<ref>{{cite news|first=Scott|last=Matthewman|title=Turn off the TV: Radio choices October 10–16|url=http://blogs.thestage.co.uk/tvtoday/2009/10/turn-off-the-tv-radio-choices-october-10-16/|newspaper=The Stage|date=9 October 2009|access-date=13 November 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128182431/http://blogs.thestage.co.uk/tvtoday/2009/10/turn-off-the-tv-radio-choices-october-10-16/|archive-date=28 January 2013}}</ref> The film was released to lukewarm reactions by critics - who called it "breezy entertainment, helped by an impressive cast", but felt that it also suffered "from some peculiar directorial choices" - and earned just US$17.3 million during its limited release.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Importance of Being Earnest|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=importanceofbeingearnest.htm|website=Box Office Mojo|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Dench's other film of 2002 was ''[[Die Another Day]]'', the twentieth installment in the [[James Bond in film|James Bond series]]. The spy film, directed by [[Lee Tamahori]], marked her fourth appearance as [[MI6]] head M and the franchise's last performance by [[Pierce Brosnan]] as Bond. ''Die Another Day'' received mixed reviews.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/die_another_day/ |title=Die Another Day (2002)|website= Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Moore |first=Roger |title=Bye bye to Ian Fleming's James Bond? |newspaper=[[The Times]] |date=4 October 2008 |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/london_film_festival/article4866756.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615113213/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/london_film_festival/article4866756.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 June 2011 |access-date=5 October 2008|location=London}}</ref> Regardless, it became the highest-grossing James Bond film up to that time.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/tv_film/newsid_2505000/2505093.stm |title=Die Another Day explodes at the box office |publisher=BBC News |access-date=21 September 2007| date= 22 November 2002}}</ref> In the 2002 animated children's series ''[[Angelina Ballerina (TV series)|Angelina Ballerina]]'', Dench lent her voice to Miss Lilly, Angelina's ballet teacher, and her daughter, [[Finty Williams]], provided the voice of Angelina herself.{{citation needed|date=February 2020}}

In 2004, Dench appeared as Aereon, an ambassador of the [[Riddick (character)|Elemental race]] who helps uncover the mysterious past of [[Richard B. Riddick]], played by [[Vin Diesel]], in [[David Twohy]]'s science fiction sequel ''[[The Chronicles of Riddick]]''. Selected by Diesel, who prompted writers to re-create the character to fit a female persona because he wanted to work with the actress,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blackfilm.com/20041112/features/vindiesel.shtml|title=The Chronicles of Riddick: An Interview with Vin Diesel|work=Backfilm.com|access-date=13 November 2012| date=1 November 2004}}</ref> she called filming "tremendous fun", although she "had absolutely no idea what was going on in the plot".<ref>{{cite news|first=Donald|last=Clarke|url=https://www.irishtimes.com|title=Dame's Treat|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|access-date=13 November 2012|date=24 November 2005}}</ref> The film was a critical and box office failure.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/chronicles_of_riddick/|title=The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)|work=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> In his review of the film, [[James Berardinelli]] from ''[[James Berardinelli|ReelViews]]'' remarked that he felt that Dench's character served no more "useful purpose than to give [her] an opportunity to appear in a science-fiction movie".<ref>{{cite web|first=James |last=Berardinelli|url=http://preview.reelviews.net/movies/c/chronicles_riddick.html|title=Chronicles of Riddick, The|work=[[ReelViews]]|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref>

She followed ''Riddick'' with a more traditional role in [[Charles Dance]]'s English drama ''[[Ladies in Lavender]]'', also starring friend [[Maggie Smith]]. In the film, Dench plays one half of a sister duo and takes it upon herself to nurse a washed up stranger to health, eventually finding herself falling for a man many decades younger than she. The specialty release garnered positive reviews from critics, with [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' calling it "perfectly sweet and civilized [and] a pleasure to watch Smith and Dench together; their acting is so natural it could be breathing".<ref>{{cite web|first=Roger|last=Ebert|url=http://www.reelviews.net/movies/c/chronicles_riddick.html|title=Ladies in Lavender (2004)|work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]]|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref> Also in 2004, Dench provided her voice for several smaller projects. In [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney]]'s ''[[Home on the Range (2004 film)|Home on the Range]]'', she, along with [[Roseanne Barr]] and [[Jennifer Tilly]], voiced a mismatched trio of [[dairy cow]]s who must capture an infamous cattle rustler, for his [[Bounty (reward)|bounty]], in order to save their idyllic farm from foreclosure. The film was mildly successful for Disney.<ref>{{cite web|title=Home on the Range|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=importanceofbeingearnest.htm|website=Box Office Mojo|access-date=13 November 2012}}</ref>

A major hit for Dench came with [[Joe Wright]]'s ''[[Pride & Prejudice (2005 film)|Pride & Prejudice]]'', a 2005 adaptation of [[Pride and Prejudice|the novel]] by [[Jane Austen]], starring [[Keira Knightley]] and [[Donald Sutherland]].<ref>{{cite web|first=Liz|last=Hoggard|title=Meet the puppet master|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2005/sep/11/features.review|work=The Guardian|date=11 September 2005 |access-date=10 February 2015}}</ref> Wright persuaded Dench to join the cast as [[Lady Catherine de Bourgh]] by writing her a letter that read: "I love it when you play a bitch. Please come and be a bitch for me."<ref>{{cite journal|last=Dole|first=Carol M.|date=Summer 2007|title=Jane Austen and Mud: ''Pride & Prejudice'' (2005), British Realism, and the Heritage Film|url=http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/on-line/vol27no2/dole.htm|journal=[[Persuasions]]|volume=27|issue=2}}</ref> Dench had only one week available to shoot her scenes, forcing Wright to make them his first days of filming.<ref>{{cite news |title=Unlikely Director Brought New Approach to ''Pride & Prejudice'' |last=Hewitt |first=Chris |date=9 November 2005 |newspaper=[[Ottawa Citizen]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite video |first=Joe |last=Wright |author-link=Joe Wright |year=2005 |title=[[Audio commentary]] for ''Pride & Prejudice'' | medium=DVD |publisher=[[Universal Pictures|Universal Studios]] |department=Bonus Features |time=1:00:05–1:00:15}}</ref> With both a worldwide gross of over US$121 million and several Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations, the film became a critical and commercial success.<ref name="nine">{{cite web|title=Pride & Prejudice (2005)|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/people/BBLET.php|work=The Numbers|access-date=10 February 2009}}</ref>

Dench, in her role as M, was the only cast member carried through from the [[Pierce Brosnan|Brosnan films]] to appear in ''[[Casino Royale (2006 film)|Casino Royale]]'' (2006), Martin Campbell's [[reboot (fiction)|reboot]] of the James Bond film series, starring [[Daniel Craig]] in his debut performance as the fictional MI6 agent. The thriller received largely positive critical response, with reviewers highlighting Craig's performance and the reinvention of the character of Bond.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/casino_royale/?critic=columns&sortby=rotten&name_order=asc&view=#contentReviews |title=Casino Royale (2006)|work=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=12 November 2012}}</ref> It earned over US$594 million worldwide, ranking it among the highest-grossing James Bond films ever released. Also in April 2006, Dench returned to the West End stage in ''[[Hay Fever (play)|Hay Fever]]'' alongside [[Peter Bowles]], [[Kim Medcalf]] and [[Belinda Lang]]. She finished off 2006 with the role of Mistress Quickly in the RSC's new musical ''The Merry Wives'', a version of ''[[The Merry Wives of Windsor]]''.<ref name=merryw>{{cite web |title=Merry Wives – The Musical |url=http://www.rsc.org.uk/WhatsOn/3537.aspx |publisher=Royal Shakespeare Company |access-date=29 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070114014308/http://www.rsc.org.uk/WhatsOn/3537.aspx |archive-date=14 January 2007 }}</ref>

[[File:Flickr - Siebbi - A rose for Dame Judi Dench (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright|Dench attending the premiere of ''[[Notes on a Scandal (film)|Notes on a Scandal]]'' at the [[57th Berlin International Film Festival|2007 Berlin International Film Festival]]]]

Dench appeared opposite [[Cate Blanchett]] as a London teacher with a dedicated fondness for vulnerable women in [[Richard Eyre]]'s 2006 drama film ''[[Notes on a Scandal (film)|Notes on a Scandal]]'', an adaption from the 2003 [[Notes on a Scandal|novel of the same name]] by [[Zoë Heller]]. A fan of Heller's book, Dench "was thrilled to be asked to...play that woman, to try to find a humanity in that dreadful person".<ref name="observer" /> The specialty film opened to generally positive reviews and commercial success, grossing US$50 million worldwide,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=notesonascandal.htm |title=NOTES ON A SCANDAL (2007) |access-date=7 June 2009| work=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> exceeding its £15 million budget.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3662746/How-to-make-a-scandalously-good-movie.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3662746/How-to-make-a-scandalously-good-movie.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=How to make a scandalously good movie |date=26 January 2007 |access-date=22 August 2009 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |last=Gritten |first=David |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In his review for ''Chicago Sun-Times'', Roger Ebert declared the main actresses "perhaps the most impressive acting duo in any film of 2006. Dench and Blanchett are magnificent."<ref>{{cite web |title=Notes on a Scandal (2006)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/notes_on_a_scandal/|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=12 November 2012}}</ref> The following year, Dench earned her sixth [[Academy Award for Best Actress|Academy]] nomination and went on to win a [[BIFA for Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film|British Independent Film Award]] and an [[Evening Standard Award]].<ref name="awards" /> Dench, as Miss Matty Jenkyns, co-starred with [[Eileen Atkins]], [[Michael Gambon]], [[Imelda Staunton]], and [[Francesca Annis]] in the [[BBC One]] five-part series ''[[Cranford (TV series)|Cranford]]''. The first season of the series began transmission in November 2007. In the same year Dench narrated ''Go Inside to Greet the Light'', a film about the [[Spiritualism (beliefs)|spiritual]] experience of [[Quaker]] meetings for worship in [[James Turrell]]'s Deershelter Skyspace.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Mead |first=Helen |title=Judi Dench narrates new Quaker film |url=https://thefriend.co.uk/articledisplay.asp?articleid=2895 |url-access=registration |magazine=[[The Friend (Quaker magazine)|The Friend]] |date=21 September 2007 |access-date=7 September 2022}}</ref>

Dench became the voice for the narration for the updated [[Walt Disney World]] [[Epcot]] attraction [[Spaceship Earth (Epcot)|Spaceship Earth]] in February 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefloridanewsjournal.com/2012/10/01/disneys-theme-park-epcot-turns-30-today-and-celebreates|title=Disney's Theme Park EPCOT Turns 30 Today And Celebreates|date=10 November 2012|work=The Floria News Journal|access-date=10 November 2012|archive-date=14 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140814031312/http://www.thefloridanewsjournal.com/2012/10/01/disneys-theme-park-epcot-turns-30-today-and-celebreates|url-status=usurped}}</ref> The same month, she was named as the first official patron of the York Youth Mysteries 2008, a project to allow young people to explore the York Mystery Plays through dance, film-making and circus.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.york.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/february/266423|title=Dame Judi Dench gives her support to York Youth Mysteries|date=20 February 2008|publisher=City of York Council|access-date=10 November 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121030215022/http%3A//www.york.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/february/266423|archive-date=30 October 2012}}</ref> Her only film of 2008 was [[Marc Forster]]'s ''[[Quantum of Solace]]'', the twenty-second [[Eon Productions|Eon]]-produced [[James Bond in film|James Bond film]], in which she reprised her role as M along with Daniel Craig. A direct sequel to the 2006 film ''Casino Royale'', Forster felt Dench was underused in the previous films, and wanted to make her part bigger, having her interact with Bond more.<ref>{{cite news|title=Fostering change|work=[[The Star (Malaysia)|The Star]]|date=11 October 2008|url=http://www.star-ecentral.com/news/story.asp?file=/2008/10/11/movies/2202154&sec=movies|access-date=13 October 2008}}</ref> The project received mixed reviews from critics, who mainly felt that ''Quantum of Solace'' was not as impressive as the predecessor ''Casino Royale'',<ref>{{cite web|title=Quantum of Solace (2008)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/quantum_of_solace|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=10 November 2012}}</ref> but became another hit for the franchise with a worldwide gross of US$591&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web |title=Quantum of Solace|url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2008/JB22.php|publisher=The Numbers |access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref> For her performance, Dench was nominated for a [[Saturn Award]] the following year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.saturnawards.org/nominations.html |title=Nominations for the 35th Annual Saturn Awards |publisher=[[Saturn Award|Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films]] |access-date=17 March 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120221234527/http://www.saturnawards.org/nominations.html |archive-date=21 February 2012}}</ref>

Dench returned to the West End in mid-2009, playing Madame de Montreuil in [[Yukio Mishima]]'s play ''[[Madame de Sade]]'', directed by [[Michael Grandage]] as part of the Donmar season at [[Wyndham's Theatre]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Mark|last=Espiner |title=What to say about ... Judi Dench in Madame de Sade|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2009/mar/19/judi-dench-madame-de-sade|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=19 March 2009|access-date=10 November 2012 |location=London}}</ref> The same year, she appeared in [[Sally Potter]]'s experimental film ''[[Rage (2009 American film)|Rage]]'', a project that featured 14 actors playing fictional figures in and around the fashion world, giving monologues before a plain backdrop.<ref name="guardian 20120909">{{cite news|first=Kira|last=Cochrane|title=Judi Dench: 'Does nobody ever believe anything I do?'|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/sep/12/judi-dench-interview|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=12 September 2009|access-date=10 November 2012|location=London}}</ref> Attracted to the fact that it was unlike anything she had done before, Dench welcomed the opportunity to work with Potter.<ref name="guardian 20120909" /> "I like to do something that's not expected, or predictable. I had to learn to smoke a joint, and I set my trousers alight", she said about filming.<ref name="guardian 20120909" /> Her next film was [[Rob Marshall]]'s musical film ''[[Nine (2009 live-action film)|Nine]]'', based on [[Arthur Kopit]]'s [[libretto|book]] for the 1982 [[Nine (musical)|musical of the same name]], itself suggested by [[Federico Fellini]]'s semi-autobiographical film ''[[8½]]''.<ref>{{cite news|first=Ernio|last=Hernandez|title=Work Resumes on Script for Rob Marshall's ''Nine'' Film|url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114520.html|work=Playbill News|publisher=[[Playbill]]|date=23 January 2008|access-date=7 August 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081219221433/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/114520.html|archive-date=19 December 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> Also starring [[Daniel Day-Lewis]], [[Marion Cotillard]], [[Penélope Cruz]], and [[Sophia Loren]], she played Lilli La Fleur, an eccentric but motherly French costume designer, who performs the song "[[Folies Bergères]]" in the film. ''Nine'' was nominated for four [[Academy Awards]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Nine (2009)|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/nine_2009/|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=10 November 2012}}</ref> and awarded both the [[Satellite Award for Best Film]] and [[Satellite Award for Best Cast&nbsp;– Motion Picture|Best Cast]].<ref name="awards" /> Also in 2009, Dench reprised the role of Matilda Jenkyns in ''[[Return to Cranford]]'', the two-part second season of a [[Simon Curtis (filmmaker)|Simon Curtis]] television series. Critically acclaimed, Dench was nominated for a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Satellite Award.<ref name="awards" />