Charlize Theron: Her Career In Pictures So Far

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Charlize Theron

South-African beauty Charlize Theron was born August 7, 1975. While training to become a dancer her entire childhood, Charlize would get her big break at the age of 16 when she was offered a modeling contract in Milan, Italy. After a year in Europe, Charlize and her mother would move to NYC to further pursue Charlize's dancing career with the Joffrey Ballet School. Unfortunately, Charlize's dance dreams would be cut short when she injured her kneecap in the early 1990s. Charlize's mother would encourage her to get back on her feet and she made the decision to move to LA and try her hand at acting.

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'The Devil's Advocate'

At first struggling to stay afloat in Hollywood, Charlize's fate would take a turn when she met talent agent John Crosby. Putting her into acting school and getting Charlize her first non-speaking role in 1995 horror film Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest, it wouldn't take Charlize long to begin to climb the ladder, and by 1997 she landed her first big role in horror drama The Devil's Advocate.

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'Mighty Joe Young'

Charlize's success would only go uphill from The Devil's Advocate. Her next big role would come in 1998's Disney adventure film Mighty Joe Young as friend to a giant gorilla. While the film was a box office flop, the film was received warmer than the other monster remake of the year, Godzilla, and has since become a Disney classic!

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'The Cider House Rules'

Charlize Theron's next big role would not only be a box-office hit, but also land her on the cover of the January 1999 issue of Vanity Fair. Starring in World-War II era drama The Cider House Rules would lead Charlize to more fame than she could have ever imagined.

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'Monster'

In 2004, Charlize Theron would become the first South African to win the Oscar Award for Best Actress with her performance in 2003's Monster. While taking on the ugly role of serial killer "Aileen Wuornos", the film would be received warmly by critics and even land her as number one on AskMen's list of most desirable women!

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'North Country'

Charlize would continue to garner award nominations with her performance in 2004's The Life and Death of Peter Sellers and in 2005's North Country. Continuously exceeding all expectations, critics were more than impressed with the talented actress, and she would be awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame that same year!

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'The Burning Plain'

Charlize Theron showed no signs of slowing down and in 2008 would star in two more hit productions, superhero film Hancock and drama The Burning Plain. Receiving critical acclaim for both performances, in 2008, Charlize would become the Hasty Pudding Theatricals Woman of the Year as well as the UN Messenger of Peace!

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'Snow White and the Huntsman'

Having had a busy start to her career, Charlize would take a 2 year hiatus from the big screen between 2009 and 2011, but would come back full force in 2012 as the villain in both Snow White and the Huntsman and Prometheus. Both films would be box-office hits, and while Snow White wasn't received warmly by critics, Prometheus would earn Charlize praise from critics abound!

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'Mad Max: Fury Road'

One of Charlize Theron's biggest roles of her career came in 2015 as "Imperator Furiosa" in Mad Max: Fury Road. Critics loved Theron, crediting her with the success of the film and Mad Max would go onto gross more than $350 million!

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'The Atomic Blonde'

Charlize Theron has officially become a force to be reckoned with in the action genre. Taking on not just one but two successful action films in 2017, spy film The Atomic Blonde and Fast and Furious film, The Fate of the Furious, which become Charlize's most widely seen film!