In 2004, Charlize Theron walked onto the stage at the Academy Awards and thanked South Africa. She was the first South African to win an Oscar for acting.
Theron was born in 1975 and grew up on a farm near Benoni, east of Johannesburg. Her first language is Afrikaans. When she was 15, her father, an alcoholic, fired a gun at her and her mother during a drunken rage; her mother shot and killed him in self-defence. No charges were brought. Theron has spoken about the event as a way to reduce the stigma around domestic violence.
Dance to acting
Theron trained as a ballet dancer and moved to New York, but a knee injury ended her dance career. She moved to Los Angeles to try acting. According to a story she has told many times, a talent agent noticed her arguing with a bank teller who would not cash her cheque, and gave her his card.
Monster
After supporting roles in films such as The Devil’s Advocate and The Cider House Rules, Theron transformed herself to play Aileen Wuornos, a real serial killer, in Monster. She gained weight and wore prosthetics. Her performance won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2004.
Action star
Theron later became one of Hollywood’s leading action stars. Her role as Imperator Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road in 2015 became iconic. She also starred in Atomic Blonde, The Old Guard and the Fast and Furious franchise.
Producer
Through her production company, Denver and Delilah, she has produced films and television, including Monster and Netflix’s Mindhunter.
Africa Outreach Project
In 2007, Theron founded the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, which supports young people in southern Africa to prevent HIV. She has been a United Nations Messenger of Peace and has spoken about HIV, gender violence and inequality in South Africa.
Family
Theron adopted two children, both Black, and has spoken about raising them and about racism in the United States and South Africa.
Legacy
She is one of the most successful African-born actors in Hollywood history, and she has used her fame to focus attention on HIV and violence in South Africa.
She left South Africa as a teenager with a ballet dream. She came back with an Oscar, and with a project to protect the country’s young people from HIV.
