Academy Award winner Sir Anthony Hopkins has composed a beautiful new piece of music on piano - and released it as a way to thank fans and his "NFT collectors". Sir Anthony, who hails from Margam, posted on Twitter to acknowledge the "support and engagement" of those who have purchased his NFT and thank them for continuing to "inspire" him.
Back in October, Sir Anthony released a collection of NFT (nonfungible tokens) called 'The Eternal Collection,' in partnership with NFT agency Orange Comet Inc. The tokens took the form of 1,000 "original cinematic art pieces inspired by different performances from the actor's long career" - and they sold out in less than 10 minutes, as reported by digital media agency Coin Telegraph. The images also came with randomly-selected gifts, including autographed art books featuring the actor's paintings and drawings and the chance to have a Zoom-call with Sir Anthony himself.
According to Orange Comet, the body of work featured "an interpretation of the vast character archetypes Sir Anthony Hopkins has portrayed over his illustrious film career drawing its potent energy from his stimulating body of art" and included visuals named things like 'The Jester,' 'The Lover,' 'The Ruler' and 'The Rebel'. At the time, OrangeComet said the eternal collection was the fastest body of works to sell-out in the history of OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace. To get the latest WalesOnline newsletters emailed to you directly for free click here.
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Now, Sir Anthony is sharing new music on social media in a bid to thank those who purchased his NFT. Alongside a video of him playing his new piano piece, he wrote: "Over the last few years, I've been composing this piano piece… Today I am titling it “Eternal” in gratitude to all The Eternal NFT collectors. Your support and engagement continue to inspire me. Hope you enjoy it."
The video, which has been watched almost 600,000 times in less than 24 hours, has been praised by hundreds of fans already. One fan, Naaz Dalvi wrote on Twitter: "This is melodious," whilst fellow fan Silvia240907 commented: "How come some people are so talented!!!" and smphilipto wrote: "Thankyou, Sir Anthony, it is beautiful. Keep composing." "I can't get enough of this wonderful human. I just can't," added Twitter user sevenruntwo.
Sir Anthony's career spans more than 60 years - and the actor, director, producer and composer is not giving up just yet. Over the years, Sir Anthony has won countless awards including two Academy Awards, four BAFTA awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards and an Olivier Award and he was knighted by the late Queen Elizabeth II in 1993 for his services to drama. He's starred and featured in dozens of films, most notably The silence of The Lambs and The Remains of The Day, both released in the 1990s, and his recent release of NFT has seen him further expand his fanbase and catapult his online presence.
Sir Anthony's new music comes six weeks after he took to social media to share a New Years message, reflecting on 47 years of sobriety and sending out support to those struggling with addiction.
The Oscar-winner said: "I just want to wish you a happy new year, and also to say I'm celebrating 47 years today of sobriety I am a recovering alcoholic, and to you out there, know that there are people struggling... Be kind to yourself, be proud of your life."
"This is a message that's not meant to be heavy but I hope helpful," he added. "I am a recovering alcoholic and to you out there, in this day and age of cancel and hatred and non-compromise and children being bullied, be kind to yourself.
"Stay out of the circle of toxicity with people if they offend you. Live your life. 47 years ago I was in a desperate situation of despair."
Hopkins previously said he had a wake-up call after almost drinking himself to death, saying: "45 years ago today, I had a wake up call. I was heading for disaster, drinking myself to death. I'm not preachy, but I got a message, a little thought that said: 'Do you want to live or die'? And I said I wanted to live." You can read more about his New Years message in a previous article here.
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