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From her first film, Luc Besson's "The Professional" (1994), the slim,
dark, olive-skinned and somewhat exotic looking Natalie Portman was
tagged with star quality, and as she matured the actress proved her
potential both as an Oscar-nominated dramatic actress and as a pop
movie icon with her role as the regal Padme Amidala in the "Star Wars"
prequels.
She played an orphan apprenticed to a "cleaner" or hit man (Jean Reno)
who serves as her mentor, and she as his savior. "The Professional"
proved an auspicious debut, winning Portman attention and positive
notices, her performance particularly applauded, even by those who
found the movie itself shocking. The young actress followed with a turn
as Al Pacino's stepdaughter, suffering the rejection of her real
father, in Michael Mann's "Heat" (1995). A smaller, less expository
role than her previous effort, "Heat" showcased Portman's natural
ability, the actress capably evincing her character's desperate
dysfunction with very little dialogue or screen time. Next she had a
scene-stealing turn as a wise-beyond-her-years young girl who
establishes a tender and honest friendship with Timothy Hutton's
conflicted pianist in Ted Demme's "Beautiful Girls" (1996). Again
Portman received rave reviews which in turn led to increased
opportunities. She had two memorable but less pivotal roles that same
year, appearing in Woody Allen's odd musical "Everyone Says I Love You"
and as the bright and collected daughter of the besieged United States
president (Jack Nicholson) in Tim Burton's wacky "Mars Attacks!" While
the type of roles the actress has taken on (generally tough but
sensitive old souls) reflected her own grounded maturity, perhaps even
more telling are the parts she has declined. At age 14, Portman was
approached for the starring role in Adrian Lyne's controversial remake
"Lolita", but reluctant to agree to the required nudity and heeding her
father's advice to avoid doing things on screen she had not yet
experienced in real life, opted to pass on the role. Later she
reportedly dropped out of Robert Redford's "The Horse Whisperer"
(1998), a film in which she was to play a 13-year-old, because she
could no longer relate to the young character. Instead she headed to
Broadway to star in the revised version of "The Diary of Anne Frank",
lending a refreshing humanism to the historical legend, portraying her
as a somewhat disagreeable, silly and vain young girl, a much more
interesting characterization than her saintly reputation. Portman
received positive notices for her Broadway debut, critics noting her
grace as well as her unfettered talent and youthful exuberance. Next
up for the actress was the role that would make her an international
star, that of Queen Amidala in the much-hyped prequel "Star Wars:
Episode I - The Phantom Menace" (1999). Portman joined the legendary
saga as this wise and responsible teenaged leader, the future mother of
Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. She was also signed to reprise the
role in the two subsequent prequels set for release in 2002 ("Star
Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones") and 2005, a weighty decision
for any young girl, especially considering Portman's focus on education
and her admission that acting may not be where her future lies. Also in
1999, she starred opposite Susan Sarandon in the Wayne Wang adaptation
of Mona Simpson's novel "Anywhere But Here", a culture shock tale
tracing the ups and downs of a mother and daughter who move from small
town Michigan to Beverly Hills, California. Although the
provocative nature of some of her earlier roles (including the
questionable relationships her character has with much older men in
both "The Professional" and "Beautiful Girls") has caused some to ask
what kind of parents this actress has, the reality is that the
well-spoken and charming Portman and her family have apparently made
every effort to keep her from being exploited on screen and off.
"Portman" is a stage name; the real family name has been shielded from
the press. Wayne Wang reportedly cut some of her character's more
explicitly sexual scenes from the script of "Anywhere But Here" at the
request of the family. In an attempt to keep her childhood and
education as normal as possible, Portman commuted to her Long Island
high school to Broadway while performing in "The Diary of Anne Frank".
After filming her newly mature and romantic turn as Amidala--paired
opposite future Darth Vader Hayden Christensen in a surprisingly
chemistry-impaired match-up—in the second "Star Wars" prequel, she took
a lengthy break before returning to screen again in director Anthony
Minghella's "Cold Mountain" (2003) in a haunting supporting turn as a
young Civil War widow with an infant child encountered by Jude Law who
bears her own deep psychological scars from her loss in the conflict. She
delivered her most charming adult performance yet as the open-hearted,
free-spirited Sam, the love interest in writer/director/star Zach
Braff's winning indie "Garden State" (2004)—indeed, approached as
Braff's first choice to play the character, it was Portman's interest
in the project that earned it funding. Playing a darker variation on
the "Garden State" character, Portman continued her move in more mature
roles in Mike Nichols' oft-brutal battle-of-the-sexes "Closer" (2004),
playing a stripper who become involved in a messy, flip-flopping
quadrangle involving two couples (Portman, Jude Law, Julia Roberts and
Clive Owen). In a much-buzzed-about incident, Portman allowed Nichols
to film a brief nude scene with her character, but after finding the
nudity distracting, Nichols replaced the scene with a more discreetly
filmed version at her request. The actress' compelling performance
earned her a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a
Supporting Role in a Motion Picture. Hot off her Golden Globe win,
Portman earned a spot at the Academy Awards with a nomination for Best
Supporting Actress. Returning to the familiar galaxy far, far
away for "Star Wars: Episode III - The Revenge of the Sith" (2005)
Portman provided tragic closure for the prequel trilogy even though she
and her character were not particularly well-served by George Lucas'
script.
- Also Credited As:
Natalie Hershlag, Natalie Hershlag - Born:
Natalie Hershlag on June 9, 1981 in Jerusalem, Israel -
Job Titles:
Actor, Model
Family
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Father: Avner Hershlag.
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Mother: Shelley Hershlag.
Significant Others
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Companion: Devendra Banhart. Reportedly began dating after she appeared
in his Carmensita video in March 2008; split in September 2008
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Companion: Gael Garcia Bernal. Dated from 2003 to 2004
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Companion: Jake Gyllenhaal. Rumored to have briefly dated in 2006
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Companion: Nathan Bogle. Co-founder of Rag and Bone denim; spotted
together at the U.S. Open in September 2007; no longer dating
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Companion: Lukas Haas. met in 1996 while working on Everyone Says I Love You ; reportedly dating in 2001
Education
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Syosset High School, Syosset, NY, 1999
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Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, psychology, BA, 2003
Milestones
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1988 Moved with family first to Washington, DC, then to Connecticut (date approximate)
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1991 Was discovered by a modeling scout in a Long Island, New York pizza parlor
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1993 Stage debut as an understudy in the off-broadway musical Ruthless; Britney Spears was also in this play (date approximate)
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1994 Made impressive film debut in Luc Besson s The Professional
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1995 Played Al Pacino s troubled stepdaughter in Heat
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1996 Co-starred in Beautiful Girls ; also appeared in Woody Allen s Everyone Says I Love You and Tim Burton s Mars Attacks!
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1997 Made Broadway debut as the title character in The Diary of Anne Frank
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1999 Played the young Queen in George Lucas Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
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1999 Starred opposite Susan Sarandon in Anywhere But Here
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2000 Starred as a pregnant 17-year-old who is abandoned by her boyfriend at a Wal-Mart in Where the Heart Is
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2001 Returned to the stage as co-star of the New York Shakespeare
Festival s production of The Seagull ; directed by Mike Nichols
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2002 Reprised role of Queen Amidala in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
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2003 Starred with Nicole Kidman and Jude law in Cold Mountain
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2004 Cast in Zach Braff s directorial debut Garden State
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2004 Joined an ensemble cast in Mike Nichols adaptation of the Patrick
Marber play Closer ; earned an Oscar nomination for Supporting Actress
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2005 Reprised role of Queen Amidala in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
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2006 Co-starred as one of two woman brought together by circumstance in Amos Gitai s Free Zone
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2006 Starred in the Wachowski brothers V for Vendetta based on the acclaimed graphic novel by author Alan Moore
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2007 Played a woman who inherits a magical toyshop in Mr. Magorium s Wonder Emporium, co-starred opposite Dustin Hoffman
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2007 Portrayed Goya s muse, who is falsely accused of heresy in Milos Forman s Goya s Ghosts
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2008 Formed own production company, HandsomeCharlie Films
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2008 Made directorial debut with the short film Eve starring Lauren
Bacall and Ben Gazzara; premiered at the Venice Film Festival
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2008 Portrayed Anne Boleyn, opposite Scarlett Johansson as Mary Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl
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Began acting with the Usdan Theatre Arts Camp
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Born in Israel
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Family settled on New York s Long Island
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Will join Rachel Weisz and Jude Law to star in director Wong Kar-Wai s My Blueberry Nights
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