Charlize Theron was born on August 7, 1975, in Benoni, Transvaal, South Africa. She is of Afrikaner descent. Theron grew up on a farm near Johannesburg and attended the National School of the Arts in Johannesburg. She moved to Milan, Italy, at age 16 to pursue a modeling career and later relocated to New York City to study ballet. An injury ended her ballet aspirations, leading her to pursue acting.
Theron’s acting career began in the mid-1990s. After an uncredited role in “Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest” (1995), she landed more significant roles in films like “2 Days in the Valley” (1996) and “Trial and Error” (1997).
Theron’s breakthrough role came in 1997 with “The Devil’s Advocate,” followed by notable performances in “Mighty Joe Young” (1998) and “The Cider House Rules” (1999). Her career reached a new height with her portrayal of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in “Monster” (2003), for which she gained significant weight and underwent a physical transformation. This performance earned her widespread critical acclaim and numerous awards.
For her role in “Monster”, Theron won the Academy Award for Best Actress, becoming the first South African to win an Oscar in a major acting category. Following her Oscar win, Theron starred in a variety of films, showcasing her versatility. Notable roles include “North Country” (2005), for which she received another Academy Award nomination, “Hancock” (2008), “Snow White and the Huntsman” (2012), and “Prometheus” (2012).
In recent years, Theron has become known for her action and science fiction roles. She received critical acclaim for her performance as Imperator Furiosa in “Mad Max: Fury Road” (2015). She also starred in “Atomic Blonde” (2017), “The Fate of