OK! Magazine UK has a weird interview with Natalie Portman where she’s talking a lot about her family. Natalie rarely talks about her family and OK only identifies the interview they’re pulling quotes from as “a German magazine”. Which sounds fishy to me, but whatever – other sites are picking them up, so maybe they’re from a press conference for Brothers. Anyway, Natalie talks about how grateful she is for being an only child, and how it meant her parents could focus only on her and her career as a child actor. She also says, in regards to Hollywood, “One day you are celebrated, the next day they just bully you. That’s quite exhausting for the psyche!” Um, what?
NATALIE Portman says her family and friends keep her grounded in the mad world of Hollywood.
Brothers actress Natalie Portman has revealed she couldn’t have become a Hollywood actress if she hadn’t had the support of her family.
The notoriously private star – who landed her first major screen role in thriller Leon aged 13 – said it helped being an only child as her parents could devote their time to taking her to auditions.
The 28-year-old revealed: “I had the sole attention of my parents. And you know what? If I had had brothers or sisters I would have never become an actress.
“My mother has accompanied me to every audition and every acting class. With more children that would have never been possible. They would have been jealous of me.”
Natalie insists the unwavering support of her mother Shelley and father Avner meant she wouldn’t go off the rails when she achieved Hollywood success.
She added to a German magazine: “Family and friends have always been there for me – this is very important because in Hollywood it goes up and down.
“One day you are celebrated, the next day they just bully you. That’s quite exhausting for the psyche!”
Natalie also believes her time at Harvard College has helped her become a better actress.
The ‘Brothers’ star – who studied at the prestigious university while she was shooting the ‘Star Wars’ prequels – said: “It simply was the best acting school!
“I learned to observe people, assess situations – since I’ve been there I can do it a lot better. You learn excellent skills to put yourself in a film character.”
[From OK! Magazine UK]
Don’t get me wrong, I understand how Hollywood chews up and spits out young women (and men) every day, but it’s weird for Natalie to act like she’s been a victim of it too, right? I mean, she’s always been a golden girl in Hollywood, ever since her role in The Professional (which is identified as Leon in the article). She went from critical acclaim to box office success to blockbusters to awards. Just when has she been bullied? When she compared eating meat to rape? Or maybe when she signed the Free Polanski petition?
Natalie Portman and Vincent Cassel (yummy) on the set of ‘Black Swan’ on December 7, 2009. Credit: WENN.
She took a lot of flack for the Stars Wars movies. A lot of died hard fans felt like she and Hayden ruined the series and that their acting was terrible. She mentioned that in an interview I read a few months back. Maybe that is what she is referring to?
She is constantly complaining and trying to act like a hipster.
she may speak about “star wars” periode because every actor in the movie is awful(not only her)
I really don’t like when people who are so fortunate to be working Hollywood actresses make comments like that. They should be so grateful that they are getting paid exorbitant amounts of money in her case for marginal talents, and marginal looks.
That does seem a little weird since she has one of the calmest and most respected careers of actors her age, but maybe she’s speaking in general terms, not about herself specifically?
She does seem like a bit of a whiner lately though.
I think the Baldwin Brothers said the same thing about being only children! Oh wait! I wouldn’t trade my brother or sister for anything. We fought like any siblings and are all best friends now. I used to really like Natalie, but the more I read my feelings are being intelligently designed. (evolving) heh hehe
“They would have been jealous of me.” What a snotty thing to say.
Pedobear sympathizer.
And I hate her stupid crying face.
And people bitch about Angelina Jolie (who hardly discusses her early life, who seldom makes arrogant comments like Portman).
At some point, celebrities need to wake up and realise that they’re job is to act in films or whatever else (theater, commercials, etc) and keep the personal views to a minimum. Sure, interview for film promotions are the norm but when they start trying to ‘act’ normality in interviews, their stupidity seems to leak out and when that happens, I just can’t view them in the same way again. I’ll be watching a film thinking, ‘in reality, they are a moron,’ and the fantasy is gone. This is why the classical years of Hollywood were the best. Actors maintained their mystique. Now however, even heiresses are showing us their Brazilian waxes and actresses like Portman, who have earned enough money for twenty lifetimes bitch and moan.
Natalie? STFU!
Lately she can’t seem to open her mouth without sounding like such a self absorbed, pretentious snob.
Pole, I couldn’t have put it better myself.
I don’t think her only child comments are that bad. How could she possibly relate to having brothers & sisters? I was raised as an only child. I have younger siblings & step-siblings, but I never lived with them, only saw them on vacations, a week or so a year. It’s not that I don’t care for them, but it’s not the same kind of close relationship that I imagine other people have who grew up with sibilings in the same house. Plus, what she said rings true. Even if her parents could afford all the lessons, there would have been time constraints.
@Bete:
AJ, who “hardly discusses her early life”?!! How early are we talking here, because most of the World knows all about her Mom & Pops break-up, her drug use, her sexual preferences, her self-harming, her brother, the struggle when an absent parent holds the purse strings…
(And your off-topic too)
Natalie Portman FTW!
So long as she thinks Polanski is just a victim and should be freed, her name is mud in my book. STFU Natalie, indeed.
I’d take it with a grain of salt. It’s an interview that was likely conducted in US English, then translated into German, then back to UK English. I’m sure the terminology has been compromised quite a bit in the rendering.
Plus, as Kaiser pointed out, Portman rarely talks about her private life, so the whole thing could well be bunk.
You hit the nail on the head, Pole.
I’ve never liked her on screen as an actress, but every time she opens her mouth, I just want her to go away completely.
Pole that is exactly what I was thinking. I used to like her. Maybe they start bullying you Natalie because they get tired of your self-righteous attitude.
I’ve always wondered what other students must think when someone rich, famous and well-established in Hollywood comes into one of their university acting classes. I mean, it must chap your ass just a little bit to know that when you graduate from even one of the most prestigious programs in the country, your chances of “making it” as a successful actor are still pretty small; and yet you have to share your learning time with someone who — really — just doesn’t need to be there! I’m not saying actors shouldn’t pursue an education or that they shouldn’t always try and perfect their “craft,” but it seems so snotty to me that they feel like they need to prove they can do it at an ivy-league school, with people who are in all likelihood going to end up working as caterers to make a living while they struggle to find acting jobs.
I’m going to defend Nat here. She’s not my favorite actress, but I do think she possess some iota of decorum and intelligence.
If someone was quoting everything I said, I’d probably sound like a pretentious idiot too. Now, allow that person the right to cut and paste sentences and put them in whatever context they like, AND add their own voice, and I could be made to sound like a downright bitch. I mean, half of this article isn’t even quotes…it’s an implied quote:
“The notoriously private star – who landed her first major screen role in thriller Leon aged 13 – said it helped being an only child as her parents could devote their time to taking her to auditions.” She said it, but we didn’t bother to quote it.
Just sayin’. Seems like people have it out for Nat a bit these days, and the mags seem to play up her pretentious quotes. We all say stuff that may make sense in the moment, but sounds awful taken out of context a week later.
Ok natalie, because there’s no successful actors with brothers or sisters?? She always sounds really arrogant and high on herself. I’m one of those who believe her horrible acting completely ruined star wars – at least for me – even more then hayden christiansen’s did. And I used to like her before. Everyone else in the movie was fine. So for that I don’t know where she comes from sounding so arrogant and having no sense of humility in her interviews.
Pretty soon she can revel in the fact that she is a bitchy snob. She obviously gets off on that now because she can’t seem to keep her mouth shut without spewing some pretentious babble.
@Bete. It’s two way street. I’m sure actors of Hollywood circa 40-50’s did the same dirt most celebs of today are doing. The difference that the press weren’t as vulturous and the public in general didn’t care.
I really hope this is a case of misinterpretation twice warmed over…because otherwise she is cleary clueless and not in touch with the real world….I do not want to think she is a twit! dayum.
I can’t stand this overly privileged twart..hollywood has never ever bullied her..She places such importance on her family but is glad she doesn’t have brothers and sisters..what a narcissistic weirdo. I’m surprised she has any range as an actress(I haven’t seen any evidence of it)considering she doesn’t know rejection or hardship..She should shut up and not bite the “bully” that feeds her skinny a$$
They build you up and then tear you down even faster….what she says is true.
OK, I don’t like Portman and have pretty much thought of her as a pretentious airbag since she felt a need to make some really stupid comment to prove she was a brilliant ivy-leaguer and then had to eat crow (I don’t even remember what she said, I just remember she irked pretty much everyone). It’s quite possible that she thinks that any criticism of her/her views is “bullying” but it’s also possible that the word bully was a poor translation from the original German in the source article?
I don`t have a problem with her saying that if she`d had siblings they would have been jealous of her. Some families are like that.
its a bully no matter where you are
@Jenny
Its a bully no matter who you are. I’m sure many people here feel like Hollywood as a force has put a lot of unfair standards on the rest of society.
What a narcissist!
I don’t understand why you all dislike her so much (maybe I’m out of the loop a bit?). She hasn’t said anything untrue. She simply reflects on the fact that, as an only child, her parents were able to support her acting goals. You know, if her parents were normal civilians, it would be an incredible feat by any standard. Acting lessons are extremely expensive, especially the further you get into it. It’s a costly/risky venture. She’s probably just grateful that it worked out in a way where she could do what she’s passionate about. And secondly, I think what she says about Hollywood is true. They all keep a smokescreen up, and they want us to believe that they’re sooo happy and sooo above everybody else. But I’m sure it’s hard living in a fish bowl and having everybody criticize every word you say. The divorce and suicide rates are high in hollywood, even with all of their money. Wonder why? I can honestly say I’m happy to not have their lives.
shut-up natalie! yes i know its not a particulary intelligent thing to say but i just had to say it!
i never like her acting n i think she’s one of the most overated actress in hollywood.she’s just lucky she could work with many acclaimed directors that could brought up her name.she shud be grateful for that..
What is with her? It’s not like she can’t walk away from it. She could easily take her millions, invest them in trusts that will generate an income for her and she can live in her bungalow stoned on a daily basis philosophizing on how “straws are for people who are too afraid to get their faces dirty and how she is so ‘brave’ for willing to eschew straws and get her face dirty.”
She was so stupid for going to Harvard in the first place (I thought it was psychology she studied) and didn’t really use her degree. All these stupid starlets clogging up the education system and not bothering to use their degrees they took up the spot for. Why does she talk down an industry that enables her to make millions and for doing so little?
It’s not like she’s a stage actress, where the real talent is.
Natalie Portman is clearly narcissistic. I am getting tired of her complaining about everything. I use to admire her but man, she is getting annoying. She gets paid an exorbitant amounts of money in her case for marginal talents, and marginal looks. Recently, she is coming off to me as self absorbed, pretentious snob. To be honest, I am tired of your self-righteous attitude, Natalie.
She’s always been a snob who pretends to be down to earth and humble, yet she loathes her fans ( and if you, Miss NoseJob, keep getting roles to play is because there’s people who PAY TO WATCH YOU, otherwise you’d be nothing) and the acting profession. On top of that, she’s such a weak actress. The only reason why she keeps getting work is because she’s beautiful to look at, no more.
Stuff your mouth with tofu, look pretty, smile to the camera and SHUT THE FUCK UP.
I honestly don’t see anything wrong with what she said in the article.