Natalie Portman

Natalie Portman is an Israeli-born American actor, filmmaker and producer whose screen career began in adolescence and developed into one of the most widely recognized acting bodies of work of her generation. Born Natalie Hershlag in Jerusalem in 1981 and raised largely in the United States, she became known early for balancing film work with a high-profile academic life, eventually graduating from Harvard University with a psychology degree. Her public image has often combined the precision and poise of a major studio star with the discipline of an actor willing to move between independent drama, science fiction, historical biography and psychological thriller.

Portman made her feature-film breakthrough as Mathilda, the young girl taken in by a hitman in Luc Besson's Léon: The Professional. The role immediately established her as a serious screen presence, and she followed it with parts in films such as Heat, Beautiful Girls, Mars Attacks! and Anywhere but Here. Her international profile expanded dramatically when George Lucas cast her as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, beginning with Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. Those films made her recognizable to a global audience while she continued to take roles in smaller and more adult-oriented projects.

In the 2000s Portman built a career that was not defined by one franchise. She earned major awards attention for Mike Nichols's Closer, played Evey Hammond in the political dystopian drama V for Vendetta, appeared in the ensemble Paris, je t'aime, and worked in films such as The Other Boleyn Girl and Brothers. Her performance as Nina Sayers, a dancer descending into obsession in Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan, became a career-defining role. The film brought her the Academy Award for Best Actress, as well as major recognition from the Golden Globes, BAFTA and other awards bodies.