Natalie Portman: the granddaughter of a British spy who chose “to be smart rather than a movie star”

Hollywood has stories that go from one end to the other, covering the entire spectrum of colors. There are dark stories, others lighter, and endless grays. Over the years, life experiences that could have been transformed into successful films were known. Natalie Portman could star in one of them.

The actress was born on June 9, 1981 in Jerusalem, Israel. His real name is Natalie HershlagBut when she started to become known, she adopted her grandmother’s maiden name. His father, Avner Hershlag, is a recognized medical specialist in assisted fertilization. Her work offered her the possibility for the whole family to settle in the United States and there they went, when Natalie was very young.

One of his grandmothers, of Romanian origin, worked as a spy for Britain’s Intelligence Service during World War II. And his maternal grandfather was a professor of economics: the premise of the family was always to pursue a university degree, a premise that Portman adopted as a way of life.

Although she began to act as a girl, when she finished her school stage, she began her university stage at Harvard: she graduated as a psychologist in 2003. By then she already had 11 films under her belt; there could have been more, but he dismissed several projects for prioritizing the study. Never, not even the lights of fame that usually dazzle so many, did she run from that path.

“I don’t care if college ruins my career, because I’d rather be smart than a movie star“, He commented shortly after receiving himself in an interview with New York Post. During that period he wrote several essays, in which the analysis of the war conflict between Israel and Palestine stands out.

Not satisfied with what she had done, in 2004 she went for more and did a postgraduate degree at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. But it is not all if we refer to their academic level. When it comes to expressing himself, he has practically no problems anywhere in the world. In addition to English, he speaks French, German, Hebrew, Japanese, and Arabic. On some occasion, he commented that his goal was also to master Spanish and study Medicine, for tomorrow to work with his father.

Along with the study, she was building a rich career as an actress. Art was in his veins forever. At the age of four, she began taking dance classes and soon did the same with dramatic art. At 10, her parents were offered a contract from a modeling agency, but Natalie refused, and her parents accepted the decision. “Being a model was going to be stupid and boring,” she would explain later.

At the age of 17 he was already part of the industry, and despite his prominent role in The perfect assassin, had not yet been consecrated. However, he was allowed to choose which projects to do and which not to do. I wanted to be an actress, but not at any price. Refused to star Lolita for the amount of sexual scenes that the plot demanded. Before long she made the same decision when she was called in to have a prominent role in The ice storm. In that case, his character was too sinister.

In 2002 he joined the saga Star wars and got great recognition. Its takeoff was in 2004 with Something in common, an independent film that earned him widespread recognition because he had to use his own weapons. About the end of that year he starred Closer and it was the confirmation of a purebred actress. He was termed at the Golden Globes. He did not win, but it was an indication of his growth, already rubbing shoulders with great personalities.

Finally -and according to his own words- The black swan catapulted her to stardom. “I think college prepared me for tough jobs. To accept challenges and strive to overcome them. Black Swan it was that, although I had a hard time accepting because I did not know if I was going to be up to the task. As it turned out, all the richness of nuances in my character and in the film allowed me to grow as a person, redefine myself as a woman and be a better actress, “she commented in an interview with the Spanish media. Frame.

Already immersed in her character, knowing that she would be the glory or a brake on her ascending career because all eyes would be on her, she began a rigorous training. He had practiced dance until he was 13 years old, but he resumed, and for months he dedicated 16 hours a day to the discipline. She did not accept that they put an official dancer on her as a stuntman for complex scenes, but instead she put her body on the most demanding shots.

“The film meant a change in my career because it has given me the possibility to change my register, to graduate as an actress. From now on I am a compulsive seeker of risks, of professional dangers. I do not want more flat, blunt or silly papers, I want to continue exploring the heights, discovering new facets of my profession, “said Natalie, who already has an Oscar, a BAFTA, a Golden Globe and another award from the Actors Guild on her shelf. .

During the filming of The black swan met the dancer Benjamin Millepied. They fell in love, got married and had two children, Amalia and Aleph. Natalie says that her husband is her ground wire every time the job gets over her.

As for the works that marked it, here is the Broadway adaptation of Ana Frank’s diary, in 1997. His grandparents lost almost all of their relatives in the Holocaust, in a concentration camp. One of them even died there, in Auschwitz. Acting in that play was not easy for him; not even the rehearsals were easy. In the first few days Natalie had to interrupt them because she started crying uncontrollably, and could not continue.

At just 40 years old, Natalie Portman seems to have lived many lives in one. An outstanding actress, she managed to position herself against the mandates imposed by the industry, following her own rules and instead of the impositions of the market. In this way, what remains on the table is his talent as a trademark.

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