Natalie Portman, born Natalie Hershlag on June 9, 1981, in Jerusalem, is an acclaimed actress, producer, and director with dual Israeli-American citizenship, having won an Academy Award, a BAFTA, and two Golden Globes throughout her career. She began acting at age twelve in Léon: The Professional (1994), gained global fame as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel trilogy (1999–2005), and made her Broadway debut in The Diary of Anne Frank (1997) while earning a psychology degree from Harvard University (1999–2003). Her career peaked with Black Swan (2010), for which she won the Best Actress Oscar, following a Golden Globe win for Closer (2004) and a later nomination for Jackie (2016). She became a major figure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Jane Foster in the Thor films (2011, 2013, 2022), establishing her as one of the world's highest-paid actresses, while also directing A Tale of Love and Darkness (2015) and producing through her company MountainA. Beyond acting, Portman is a passionate advocate for women's rights, environmental causes, and animal welfare, and her family's history—including a grandmother who spied for the British in WWII and relatives lost in the Holocaust—deeply shaped her serious, dedicated approach to her craft.