Rooney Mara
Rooney Mara | |
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Mara at the Paris premiere of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in January 2012
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Born | Patricia Rooney Mara April 17, 1985 [1] Bedford, New York, U.S. |
Other names | Patricia Mara Tricia Mara |
Alma mater | New York University |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 2005–present |
Relatives |
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Patricia Rooney Mara /ˈmɛərə/ MAIR-ə[2] (born April 17, 1985)[1] is an American actress. She made her acting debut in 2005, and went on to star in films such as Tanner Hall, the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Social Network and Trash.
In 2011, she portrayed Lisbeth Salander, the title character in David Fincher's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, based on Stieg Larsson's Millennium book series. She received critical acclaim for her performance and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama. In 2013, she starred in the thriller Side Effects, the independent drama Ain't Them Bodies Saints and the acclaimed sci-fi romantic drama, Her. In 2015, she won the Best Actress Award at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival for her role in the film Carol.
Mara is also known for her charity work and oversees the charity Uweza Foundation, which supports empowerment programs for children and families in the Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya, one of the largest slums in Africa.
Contents
Early life
Mara was born and raised in Bedford, New York, a town in Westchester County.[3] Mara's mother's family founded the Pittsburgh Steelers and her father's family founded the New York Giants.[4] Her father, Timothy Christopher Mara, is the vice president of player evaluation for the New York Giants, and her mother, Kathleen McNulty (née Rooney), a part-time real estate agent.[5] She is the third of four children: she has an older brother, Daniel, an older sister who is also an actress, Kate, and a younger brother, Conor.[6]
Mara's father has Irish, German, and French-Canadian ancestry, and her mother is of Irish and Italian descent.[7][8] Her "Rooney" ancestors originated in Newry, County Down.[9] Her paternal grandparents were Wellington Mara and Ann Mara. Wellington was the long-time co-owner of the Giants, who was succeeded in that position by her uncle, John Mara. Her maternal grandfather, Timothy James "Tim" Rooney, has run Yonkers Raceway in Yonkers, New York since 1972.[10][11] Mara is the great-granddaughter of both New York Giants founder Tim Mara and Pittsburgh Steelers founder Art Rooney, Sr., as well as of Kathleen McNulty Rooney.[12] Her great-uncle, Dan Rooney, is chairman of the Steelers, the former United States Ambassador to Ireland, and the co-founder of The Ireland Funds charitable organization. U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney from Florida is her first cousin, once removed.[13]
After graduating from Fox Lane High School in 2003,[14] she went to Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia in South America for four months as part of the Traveling School, an open learning environment. She attended George Washington University for a year and then transferred to New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where she studied psychology, international social policy and nonprofits,[6][15] graduating in 2010.[16]
Mara was inspired to act by seeing musical theatre and classic movies, like Gone with the Wind (1939), Rebecca (1940), and Bringing Up Baby (1938), with her mother.[17] She also wanted to be like her sister, Kate Mara, a professional actress. Patricia resisted pursuing acting as a child, stating to The Journal News that "it never seemed that honorable to me, and I guess I was always afraid that I might fail."[3] Her first and only role in high school was Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, which she got after being signed up to audition by a friend.[18] Mara acted in a few student films while at NYU, and then began her career in acting,[3] first auditioning at the age of nineteen.[6]
Acting career
2005–09: Career beginnings
Mara first appeared as an extra in films which starred her sister, including a bit-part in the 2005 direct-to-video horror film Urban Legends: Bloody Mary. She found work in television, making her professional debut in a 2006 episode of the drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as a girl who bullies overweight children.[19] She guest-starred on the legal drama Women's Murder Club in 2007 and played a drug addict in an episode of The Cleaner in 2008.[20] Mara made her feature film debut Dream Boy in 2008 and guest-starred as Megan for two episodes of NBC's ER in 2009.
In a coming-of-age film Tanner Hall, Mara landed her first lead role, as Fernanda who has an affair with a married family friend (Tom Everett Scott).[21] The film was the directorial debut of Tatiana von Fürstenberg and Francesca Gregorini,[22] it debuted at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival and had a limited theatrical release in September 2011.[23] Mara dropped her first name, Patricia to be known professionally by her middle name after working on the project. "I never really liked my first name," Mara stated to Paper magazine. "I never felt like a Tricia. And Rooney is more memorable".[24] Her father and younger brother also go by their middle names.[25]
In Miguel Arteta's 2009 comedy-drama film Youth in Revolt, Mara played Taggarty who tries to sleep with 50 men before she goes to college. The film was based on C.D. Payne's 1993 cult novel of the same name.[26][27] Mara had auditioned for the starring role, but was offered the smaller part when the lead went to Portia Doubleday.[28]
Mara played Courtney in the 2009 independent film, Dare[29] and in The Winning Season as Wendy, a high school basketball player who has an affair with a middle-aged shoe salesman (Kevin Breznahan) with a similar story to The Bad News Bears.[30][31] Both films were premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and Mara was included on Filmmaker magazine's list of "25 New Faces of Independent Film" that year.[17]
Mara starred in a remake of the 1984 horror film A Nightmare on Elm Street,[32] as the protagonist Nancy Holbrook, a high school student victimized by Freddy Krueger (Jackie Earle Haley).[33] Mara began shooting the film in Chicago on May 5, 2009, directed by Samuel Bayer.[34] Mara told Filmmaker that she felt that her Nancy was "completely different from the original" and "the loneliest girl in the world".[17] Mara had signed on to continue her role if a sequel was made.[35] She stated to Vogue that she disliked the experience of making the film so much, that it made her question if she wanted to be an actress.[6] Mara appeared at the Hamptons International Film Festival in October 2009 as part of its Breakthrough Performers Program, where she was tutored by Sharon Stone.[36]
2010–present: Breakthrough and critical success and Native American criticism
In David Fincher's biopic drama film The Social Network, she played Erica Albright who breaks up with Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook who created the social networking website.[24][37]
In August 2010, Mara was cast as the lead in the American remake of the Millennium book trilogy by Stieg Larsson. She played Lisbeth Salander, a damaged punk computer hacker who helps journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig) attempt to solve a series of murders.[38] Mara won the role over several other actresses after two and a half months of auditions and screen tests.[39][40] David Fincher directed the first film, based on the novel The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, with Scott Rudin producing. The other books, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest, are being considered for American remakes in the future.[41][42] Fincher initially did not picture her as the character but changed his mind when she auditioned.[43] He convinced executives at Columbia Pictures to cast her for the part.[44]
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo began shooting in Sweden in September 2010.[45] Mara did not consider the film to be a remake, but another interpretation of the novel. "I plan on giving my interpretation of the character," she stated to Variety.[46] Mara's long brown hair was cut short and dyed black, in a style reminiscent of 1970s punk and 1980s goth fashions. She also had each of her ears pierced four times, and had her brow and right nipple pierced for the role. Her nose and lip piercings were fake. She kept the nipple piercing so that it would not need to be re-pierced for a sequel.[1] Mara's eyebrows were bleached, and she wore a temporary dragon tattoo.[40][47] She began preparing for the role by starting to skateboard and kickbox, and underwent dialect and computer training. She also visited Stockholm, the setting of the novel.[48] The film was released on December 20, 2011.[49] Mara received universal critical acclaim and was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama for her performance.[50] On January 24, 2012, Mara received her first Academy Award nomination in the category of Best Actress for this role.[51]
In late 2011, it was revealed that Mara had joined the cast of Terrence Malick's Weightless, with Ryan Gosling, Christian Bale, Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett and Val Kilmer.[52] Listed as a musical drama that is scheduled to be released in 2016, the plot line of the movie has largely been kept under wraps thus far. An official logline released by FilmNation in February 2012[53] described Malick's picture as a story of "two intersecting love triangles" and, "sexual obsession and betrayal set against the music scene in Austin, Texas."
In early 2012, Mara dropped out of Kathryn Bigelow's action film Zero Dark Thirty due to scheduling conflicts and was replaced by Jessica Chastain.[54] Mara replaced Carey Mulligan in Spike Jonze's film, Her (2013). Variety reported that Mulligan had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts, and Mara was selected to fill in alongside Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams and Scarlett Johansson.[55][56]
Mara starred in Steven Soderbergh's 2013 crime/thriller film Side Effects, with Jude Law, Channing Tatum, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Vinessa Shaw. She played Emily Taylor, "a woman who turns to prescription medication as a way of handling her anxiety concerning her husband's upcoming release from prison."[57]
She starred in David Lowery's 2013 independent film Ain't Them Bodies Saints which is described as a modern-day Bonnie and Clyde story, alongside Casey Affleck and Ben Foster.[56] The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2013 and the rights for U.S. distribution were bought by IFC Films.[58] In May 2013, she became the new face of Calvin Klein new fragrance Down Town.[59]
In 2015, Mara played Tiger Lily in the Joe Wright-directed fantasy film Pan, a role for which she received a great deal of criticism for taking. She and the director, Joe Wright faced accusations of "whitewashing" a role originally written for a Native American and of "Redface". [60] To express their concerns, Native American activists created a hashtag #NotYourTigerlily to protest Mara's casting and thousands of Native Americans participated in a "Twitterstorm" to share memes addressing their concerns about the portrayal of Native women in film. [61]
In June 2014, she signed on to serve as co-producer for a screen adaptation of the memoir A House in the Sky, and to play the lead role of Amanda Lindhout in the film.[62]
At the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, she won the award for Best Actress for her role in the film Carol. She was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award, a British Academy Film Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance in the romantic drama.
Charity work
Mara founded the charity Faces of Kibera, which aimed to provide housing, food, and medical care for orphans in Kibera, a Nairobi, Kenya slum. The charity's goal was to build an orphanage in the region, for which 6 acres of land have been purchased.[3] The charity auctioned memorabilia from the Steelers and Giants, as well as training camp events on eBay to raise money.[12] She visited the area as a volunteer in 2006 and was moved to help the orphans, many whose parents have died from AIDS and HIV-related illnesses. She began the charity due to her frustration with the growing number of nonprofits that are just business opportunities. "The people who need help aren’t really getting it. So I started my own", she told Interview magazine in 2009.[26] Mara was not really working yet when she started the charity, so later found it challenging to balance her charity work and acting career. "I need to do both; I can't just do acting," she stated to The Journal News.[3] In January 2011, Faces of Kibera merged with Uweza Foundation which runs community-based empowerment programs in Kibera, including soccer leagues and after-school tutoring. Uweza is a Swahili word meaning opportunity, ability, and power.[63] Mara serves as the president of the board of directors for the foundation.[64]
Personal life
Mara moved to Los Angeles in early 2007 and lived with her sister temporarily.[65][66] Although they do not live together anymore, Mara felt that the experience brought them closer together, and they still regularly discuss the film business and movie scripts.[3] As of January 2012, Mara lived in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles.[1] She includes Gena Rowlands among the actors who inspire her, especially her performances in A Woman Under the Influence (1974) and Opening Night (1977).[17] She is a vegan.[67][68] Since 2010, she has been dating American director Charlie McDowell.[69]
NFL ties
Mara's mother's family founded the Pittsburgh Steelers, and her father's family founded the New York Giants. The families have maintained at least partial ownership of both teams since their foundings. Mara's father and paternal uncles have high ranking positions within the Giants organization; her uncle John Mara is the president and CEO of the team. Mara has described football as "the glue that holds our family together."[70]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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2005 | Urban Legends: Bloody Mary | Classroom girl #1 | Direct-to-video |
2008 | Dream Boy | Evelyn | Credited as Tricia Mara |
2009 | Dare | Courtney | |
2009 | The Winning Season | Wendy | |
2009 | Friends (With Benefits) | Tara | |
2009 | Youth in Revolt | Taggarty | |
2009 | Tanner Hall | Fernanda | |
2010 | A Nightmare on Elm Street | Nancy Holbrook | |
2010 | The Social Network | Erica Albright | |
2011 | The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo | Lisbeth Salander | |
2013 | Ain't Them Bodies Saints | Ruth Guthrie | |
2013 | Side Effects | Emily Taylor | |
2013 | Her | Catherine | |
2014 | Trash | Olivia | |
2015 | Carol | Therese Belivet | |
2015 | Pan | Tiger Lily | |
2016 | The Secret Scripture | Young Roseanne McNulty | Post-production |
2016 | Untitled Terrence Malick film | Post-production | |
2016 | Kubo and the Two Strings | Filming; voice | |
2016 | Lion | Lucy | Post-production |
2016 | Una | Una | Post-production |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Jessica DeLay | Episode: "Fat" |
2007 | Women's Murder Club | Alexis Sherman | Episode: "Blind Dates and Bleeding Hearts" |
2008 | The Cleaner | Rebecca Smith | Episode: "Rebecca" |
2009 | ER | Megan | 2 episodes |
Awards and nominations
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Mead, Rebecca (January 2012). "Into the Deep". Allure. pp. 103–106.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Serico, Chris (August 16, 2010). "Meet Rooney Mara, she's not just following in her sister's footsteps". The Journal News. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.[dead link]
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Drew, April (August 18, 2010). "Rooney Mara, the girl with the shamrock tattoo". Irish Central. Retrieved on August 18, 2010.
- ↑ Staple, Arthur (January 30, 2009). "Rooney Mara links NFL's two royal families". Newsday. Retrieved on January 31, 2009.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Steelers, Giants memorabilia auctioned to help Kenyan orphans". December 11, 2008. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved on December 11, 2008.
- ↑ Semnani, Heda (January 9, 2012). "Heard on the Hill: Six Degrees of Tom Rooney". Roll Call. Retrieved on February 16, 2013.
- ↑ "Bedford’s Mara To Star In ‘The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’". CBS New York. August 17, 2010. Retrieved on August 19, 2010.
- ↑ Dexter, Nancy (December 5, 2008). "Auction will benefit orphanage in Kenya". Bedford/Pound Ridge Record Review.
- ↑ Pearlman, Cindy (December 15, 2011). "Rooney Mara: The girl who chased the ‘Dragon’". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved December 15, 2011.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 "Summer 2009: 25 NEW FACES". Summer 2009. Filmmaker. Retrieved on July 15, 2008.
- ↑ "Rooney Mara: Her Style Timeline". Allure. Retrieved December 15, 2011.
- ↑ Zakarin, Jordan (December 19, 2011). "Rooney Mara: 'Law & Order: SVU' Quote Out Of Context". The Huffington Post. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ↑ Patches, Matt (April 27, 2010). "The New Girl: Nightmare on Elm Street's Rooney Mara". UGO. Retrieved April 27, 2010.
- ↑ Barnard, Linda (September 19, 2009). "Today's TIFF mini reviews". Toronto Star. Retrieved on September 21, 2008.
- ↑ Blackerby, Jeffries (September 21, 2009). "Now Previewing | ‘Tanner Hall’". T Magazine. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.
- ↑ Webster, Andy (September 8, 2011). "‘Tanner Hall’ Starring Rooney Mara — Review". The New York Times. Retrieved on September 14, 2011.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Davis, Peter (January 4, 2010). "Rooney Mara". Paper. Retrieved on January 10, 2010.
- ↑ Cheney, Alexandra (December 20, 2011). "Why ‘The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo’ Stays Off Twitter". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved on December 22, 2011.
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Martin, Michael. "Rooney Mara". Interview. Retrieved on June 25, 2009.
- ↑ Goldstein, Gregg (June 23, 2008). "'Youth in Revolt' gathers troops". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved on June 25, 2008.
- ↑ Ram, Archana (August 17, 2010). "'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' star Rooney Mara is 'exceptionally gifted,' says her 'Youth in Revolt' director". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.
- ↑ Fleming, Michael (June 3, 2008). "Emmy Rossum takes indie 'Dare'". Variety. Retrieved on June 4, 2008.
- ↑ Kernan, Kevin (December 14, 2008). "Rooney Mara's crusade for Kenyan orphans". New York Post. Retrieved on December 14, 2008.
- ↑ Malkin, Marc (August 17, 2010). "Dragon Tattoo Girl Hooks Up With Pervy Shoe Salesman". E! Online. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.
- ↑ Set Report: A Nightmare in Elm Street 2010. Dreadcentral.com (2010-02-22). Retrieved on 2013-04-05.
- ↑ Vary, Adam B. (April 23, 2009). "'Nightmare on Elm Street' producers in final talks with new Nancy". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on April 23, 2009.
- ↑ Kit, Borys (April 23, 2009). "'Nightmare' beginning for trio of actors". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved on April 23, 2009.
- ↑ "Rooney Mara Signed on For 'Elm Street' Sequel". June 24, 2009. Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved on June 25, 2009.
- ↑ Guzman, Rafer (September 6, 2009). "Sharon Stone to be honored at Hamptons film festival". Newsday. Retrieved on September 21, 2008.
- ↑ Fischer, Russ (October 20, 2009). "Casting Notes: Selena Gomez in Teen Rom Com; The Social Network Gets New Kids; The Whistleblower Gets Proven Talent". /Film. Retrieved on October 20, 2009.
- ↑ Li, David K. (August 17, 2010). "This is 'The girl with the dragon tattoo'". New York Post. Retrieved on August 17, 2010.
- ↑ Kellogg, Carolyn (August 16, 2010). "Rooney Mara will be the girl with the dragon tattoo". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.
- ↑ 40.0 40.1 Hirschberg, Lynn (February 2011). "David Fincher Gets The Girl". W. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
- ↑ Snead, Elizabeth (December 19, 2011). "Why Rooney Mara Is Still Rocking Her 'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' Look". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
- ↑ Nicholson, Max (August 22, 2012). "Dragon Tattoo Sequel Delayed". IGN.com. Retrieved September 2, 2012.
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- ↑ Siegel, Tatiana (August 16, 2010). "'Dragon Tattoo' casting raises questions". Variety. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
- ↑ Sperling, Nicole (August 16, 2010). "'Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' finds its Lisbeth Salander: Rooney Mara". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on August 16, 2010.[dead link]
- ↑ Heisler, Steve (October 15, 2010). "Rooney Mara: Clicks in 'Social Network'". Variety. Retrieved on October 20, 2010.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Garron, Barry (December 5, 2011). "Mara finds comfort in being the 'Dragon' lady". Variety. Retrieved on December 11, 2011.
- ↑ Weinstein, Joshua L. (December 13, 2011). "'Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' to Open a Day Early, to Beat the Yule Crush". Reuters. Retrieved on December 15, 2011.
- ↑ "Nominees for the 69th Golden Globe Awards". Today. Associated Press. December 15, 2011. Retrieved on December 15, 2011.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lodderhose, Diana (November 1, 2011). "Bale, Blanchett to star in two Terrence Malick pics". Variety. Retrieved on November 5, 2011.
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- ↑ 56.0 56.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 'Sweet' Rooney Mara Enjoys Vegan Fare at Sundance – Park City, Sundance Film Festival, Caught in the Act, Rooney Mara, Restaurant. People.com (2013-01-24). Retrieved on 2013-04-05.
- ↑ King, Susan (March 22, 2007). "She knows she tackled the right career". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on December 15, 2011.
- ↑ Rooney Mara – Page. Interview Magazine. Retrieved on 2013-04-05.
- ↑ Blanco, Liane. (2013-01-24) Actress Rooney Mara Is a Vegan, Enjoys Veg Food at Sundance. Ecorazzi. Retrieved on 2013-04-05.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Tucker, Reed (January 8, 2009). "Kate and Rooney Mara Are Pigskin Princesses". New York Post. Retrieved on April 23, 2009.
- ↑ 71.0 71.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 74.0 74.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rooney Mara. |
- Articles with dead external links from October 2011
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- 1985 births
- 21st-century American actresses
- Actresses from New York
- American film actresses
- American people of Irish descent
- American people of Italian descent
- American people of French-Canadian descent
- American television actresses
- Living people
- Mara family
- New York University alumni
- People from Bedford, New York
- Rooney family
- American people of German descent
- George Washington University alumni
- Actresses of Italian descent