Scarlett Johansson was born on November 22, 1984 in New York City. She began acting as a kid, and at the age of 13, she received critical recognition for her performance in the film The Horse Whisperer. Lost in Translation, Girl with a Pearl Earring, The Nanny Diaries, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Hitchcock, and the mega-hit The Avengers were among her future hits.
Johansson began exploring other artistic options by releasing her first album in 2008 and making her Broadway debut the following year. Johansson received Oscar nods for her roles in Marriage Story and Jojo Rabbit, following her contributions to Ghost in the Shell, Rough Night, Isle of Dogs, and Avengers: Endgame.
Early Life
Scarlett Johansson, who was born in New York City on November 22, 1984, comes from a long line of creative artists. Her Danish grandpa was a filmmaker and screenwriter, while her mother was a producer.
Johansson’s interest in acting began at a young age. She appeared in an off-Broadway production of Sophistry with Ethan Hawke when she was eight years old. Johansson continued to look for parts and opted to attend Manhattan’s PCS, a private educational institution whose graduates include Carrie Fisher, Rita Moreno, and Sarah Michelle Gellar. Johansson’s passion was musical theater, which she pursued at PCS. “I used to be one of those jazz-hands kids,” she admitted to Vogue.
Early Movies
‘North,’ ‘Manny & Lo’
Throughout her high school years, Johansson scored a few acting jobs, including her feature film debut in North starring Elijah Wood in 1994. Manny & Lo, an independent tragic comedy, gave her her first leading role two years later. Johansson portrayed the younger sister of a pregnant adolescent who were both in foster care. Hunter, her twin brother, also appeared in the film.
Breakout Role in ‘The Horse Whisperer’
Johansson gained great acclaim for her performance in The Horse Whisperer, a 1998 film co-starring Robert Redford and Kristin Scott Thomas. Her portrayal of a young amputee garnered her many fans, including the star and director of the film. Redford remarked on Johansson’s maturity, stating she was “13 going on 30.” Despite the film’s lackluster box office success, the actress garnered even more favourable recognition from critics for her supporting appearance in Ghost World in 2001.
‘Lost in Translation,’ ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’
Johansson rose to prominence as one of Hollywood’s top up-and-coming actors after graduating from Professional Children’s School (PCS) in 2002. In 2003, she had two starring parts, both of which earned her critical acclaim. In the film Lost in Translation, she portrayed a woman visiting Tokyo who has an unexpected romance with a much older guy (Bill Murray). In Girl with a Pearl Earring, Johansson also produced an excellent performance as a servant girl painted by legendary artist Johannes Vermeer (played by Colin Firth).
‘The Black Dahlia,’ ‘The Nanny Diaries,’ Allen Collaborations
Following his early triumphs, Johansson worked on a number of projects. She collaborated with director Brian De Palma in the crime drama The Black Dahlia in 2006, and she tried her hand at humor with The Nanny Diaries in 2007. Johansson is a longtime collaborator with filmmaker Woody Allen, having acted in numerous of his films, including 2008’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona, in which she co-starred with Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz.
Music & Theatre
Johansson ventured into uncharted ground at this period when she collaborated with Pete Yorn on a duets album, which was released in 2007. The pair’s collaborative efforts were finally released in 2009 with the album Break Up, for which Johansson wrote numerous tracks. “I’ve been singing my entire life. I wanted to go on Broadway when I was a kid “According to New York magazine. Johansson published her debut album, Anywhere I Lay My Head, in 2008, which included cover versions of Tom Waits songs. The recording was both a critical and commercial failure.
Johansson quickly accepted a new professional challenge. In 2009, she made her Broadway debut with Liev Schrieber in a revival of Arthur Miller’s classic A View from the Bridge. Johansson received good feedback for her compelling performance as Catherine, a teen raised by her aunt and uncle. Johansson earned a Tony Award for her efforts on the show.
More Movies
Playing Marvel’s Black Widow
In Iron Man 2 (2010), Johansson portrays the super agent Black Widow with Robert Downey, Jr. and Mickey Rourke. The action film became one of the summer’s biggest blockbusters, paving the way for her future contributions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Johansson next starred in the box office sensation The Avengers as Black Widow (2012). Downey played Iron Man, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, and Chris Evans as Captain America in the picture.
Johansson maintained her high-profile role in a run of Marvel movies, including Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), Avengers: The Age of Ultron (2015), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2018). (2019). Her presence in the franchise was extremely profitable, propelling her to the top of Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid actresses in the summer of 2018.
Johansson then prepared to fly solo with the debut of Black Widow in April 2020.
‘We Bought a Zoo,’ ‘Hitchcock,’ ‘Her’
Outside of her Marvel responsibilities, Johansson kept herself busy on the big screen. She co-starred with Matt Damon in Cameron Crowe’s tragic comedy We Bought a Zoo in 2011, and the following year she played real-life film star Janet Leigh in Hitchcock, which chronicles filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock’s life during the filming of the horror classic Psycho.
In 2013, Johansson offered her inimitable voice to the film Her, playing an intelligent operating system who captivates Joaquin Phoenix’s lonely character. She later appeared as a supporting actress in Jon Favreau’s emotional comedy Chef (2014) and as the title character in Luc Besson’s sci-fi thriller Lucy (2014). In 2016, she reunited with Favreau to play Kaa in The Jungle Book.
‘Ghost in the Shell,’ ‘Rough Night,’ ‘Isle of Dogs’
Johansson appeared in a Ghost in the Shell adaption in 2017. Because Johansson’s role in the original anime was Japanese, the production was chastised for its whitewashed cast. She returned to comedy the following year as part of the ensemble cast for Rough Night, and in 2018 she voiced one of the dogs in Wes Anderson’s stop-motion film Isle of Dogs.
In July 2018, Johansson became embroiled in yet another casting controversy when she was cast as transgender massage parlor owner Dante “Tex” Gill in Rub & Tug, directed by Rupert Sanders of Ghost in the Shell. After first dismissing the complaints through a publicist, Johannson apologized for her “insensitive” remark and announced her departure from the film.
Oscar Nominations for ‘Marriage Story,’ ‘Jojo Rabbit’
The actress then co-starred in the well-received drama Marriage Story (2019), alongside Adam Driver. She then played the mother of a 10-year-old boy in Nazi Germany who views a goofy Adolf Hitler to be his imaginary best friend in Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit (2019). Johansson received an Oscar nomination for best actress for the former part and a nomination for supporting actress for the latter, making her the 12th actor (male or female) to receive both nominations in the same year.
Husbands and Children
Johansson married Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds in an intimate wedding in British Columbia, Canada, in September 2008. The pair bought a house in Los Angeles together but divorced two years later, in December 2010.
Johansson was romantically associated to actor Sean Penn for a period after her divorce from Reynolds. In March 2011, the couple traveled to Mexico together to attend actress Reese Witherspoon’s wedding. During that year, Johansson became embroiled in a scandal after hackers revealed nude images stolen on her cell phone online. The FBI launched an inquiry to identify those responsible for the leak.
In September 2013, a spokesman for Johansson revealed that she was engaged to journalist Romain Dauriac. Johansson and Dauriac announced the birth of their daughter, Rose, on September 4, 2014. The couple married on October 1, 2014, in Philipsburg, Montana, but the public didn’t find out until December. Johansson divorced Dauriac in September 2017 after more than two years of marriage.
After two years of dating, Johansson and SNL writer and “Weekend Update” anchor Colin Jost became engaged in May 2019. The couple will marry in October 2020. In August 2021, the couple will have their first child.
