2003

Kate Winslet

May 24

Winslet Marries Mendes

Winslet, 27, secretly weds Mendes, 37, in a private ceremony while on vacation in the West Indies. That December, the newlyweds welcome their son Joe (right) to the family.

2004

Kate Winslet

March 19

Colors of 'Sunshine'

Winslet costars with Jim Carrey (left) in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. For her memory-erasing performance as Clementine, she receives Golden Globe, SAG and Oscar nominations for Best Actress. "I did not want her to be obvious," she tells the New York Times of her character. "And I loved her hair colors. She went from blue to orange to pink and back. I had so much fun with those wigs.''

Kate Winslet

November 24

Fighting for 'Neverland'

Winslet campaigns for the role of a widow and mother of four in Finding Neverland opposite Johnny Depp (right). Although the studio wants a big name, like Nicole Kidman or Gwyneth Paltrow, director Marc Forster was convinced that Winslet was the right mix of beauty and maternal instinct for the role.

2006

Kate Winslet

November 03

Little Children

After being named one of PEOPLE's 50 Most Beautiful, Winslet plays a bored, unsatisfied suburban housewife in Todd Field's Little Children with Patrick Wilson (right). Her costar tells In Style that Winslet "doesn't know just how good she is." The talented beauty receives Golden Globe, SAG and Oscar nominations for Best Actress.

2007

Kate Winslet

January

Beautiful Territory

Winslet radiantly appears on the cover of fashion magazine Harper's Bazaar beside her The Holiday costar Cameron Diaz. Months later, the stunning actress becomes the new face of Lancome's Trésor fragrance. "Trésor is a beautiful fragrance, it's subtle and romantic like a whisper," Winslet tells Women's Wear Daily. "It's really a celebration of love."

2008

Kate Winslet

December

Road to Oscar

In nothing but a long white coat and gold heels, Winslet covers Vanity Fair's December issue. The actress, who opens up to the magazine about her weight issues, stars in two highly-anticipated films, The Reader and Revolutionary Road–a collaboration with Mendes and DiCaprio. In the New Year, The Reader earns her another Best Actress nomination.

2009

Kate Winslet

January 11

Double Winner

Winslet wins two Golden Globes for best leading actress in Revolutionary Road and best supporting for The Reader. During her acceptance speech, a tearful and shocked Winslet apologizes to fellow nominees Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway, Kristin Scott Thomas & Angelina Jolie, whose name she temporarily forgets. Praising her Road costar DiCaprio, Winslet says, "I am so happy I can stand here and tell you I love you, and have for 13 years."

Kate Winslet

February 22

Kate Finally Wins an Oscar

Winslet finally becomes an Oscar winner for her lead role as a troubled woman with a Nazi past in The Reader. During her acceptance speech, the 33-year-old actress confides that she first pretended to win an Oscar when she was 8, holding a shampoo bottle. "Well," she says, "it's not a shampoo bottle now."

Photo Credits

BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): Splash News Online; Focus Features; Everett Collection; Everett Collection; Courtesy of Harpers Bazaar; Mark J. Terrill/AP; Michael Yada/EPA

Edited by Janet Mock