Bettany was born in Harlesden, London, the son of Thane Bettany, an actor and drama teacher, and Anne Kettle, a stage singer and latterly school secretary. He has an older sister, Sarah, and a younger brother, Matthew. While Thane taught at the all-girls boarding school Queenswood School in Hertfordshire, the family had residence on the campus.

Matthew died after a fall at Queenswood when Read more...

When Bettany was nineteen, he decided to be an actor, and he pursued that career with determination, studying at the London Drama Centre in Chalk Farm. He made his stage debut in Stephen Daldry's acclaimed West End revival of An Inspector Calls at the Aldwych Theatre, playing the part of Eric Birling. He also appeared in the Royal Shakespeare Company's productions of Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, Read more...

On New Year's Day of 2003, Bettany married Jennifer Connelly in a ceremony attended by a small circle of friends and family. He moved to Brooklyn with Jennifer and her son Kai. The couple's own son, Stellan (named for Stellan Skarsgård[citation needed]), was born on August 5, 2003.