Charlize Theron Was Discovered While Yelling at a Bank Teller
Renowned actor Charlize Theron starred in several hit movies. She is enjoying her success and earns millions of dollars every year. The star once negotiated her salary so that she would take home a $10 million paycheck.
Theron managed to gain enough fame to be influential. She may have even helped shape the first John Wick film. Yet, she wouldn’t have been around to inspire the franchise if she did not go to the bank when she did.
Charlize Theron grew up in South Africa
Theron is successful now, but she had her share of struggles growing up. The actress was born in South Africa on August 7, 1975. She came from an Afrikaner family, and her ancestry consists of Dutch, French, and German origins. Theron is fluent in both English and Afrikaans.
For many years, Theron lived in a broken home, and her father died due to an act of self-defense on her mother’s part. As a child, she experienced the reality of race relations in South Africa. She witnessed Apartheid, which led to her developing trauma. It would not be until the early 90s when Theron moved to the United States.
Today, Theron is a mother of two adopted children. She has had multiple relationships over the years but has no plans on marrying anyone. There were engagement rumors between her and actor Sean Penn. However, Theron denied the claims, and the couple broke up in 2015.
Charlize Theron is an award-winning actress
When Theron was 16 years old, she worked as a model for a year throughout Europe. She and her mother moved to the United States, and Theron trained as a ballet dancer. She flew to California in the hopes of becoming an actress. Her first role was in the film Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest in 1995.
In the following years, Theron continued to find steady work in the industry, like Trial and Error and Mighty Joe Young. Her biggest roles include The Devil’s Advocate, Mad Max: Fury Road, and Atomic Blonde. Theron earned acclaim for her performances and won multiple awards.
Some of Theron’s roles were challenging, and the actress received various injuries while on set. She fell on her neck while filming Aeon Flux in 2005. The injury almost led to her becoming paralyzed. Later, Theron tore a thumb ligament on the set of The Old Guard.
In the past couple of years, Theron worked on Home Movie: The Princess Bride and F9. She has plans to star in the upcoming adaptation of The School for Good and Evil.
Charlize Theron was noticed while at the bank
Some stars have interesting stories about how they got discovered. According to Oprah.com, Theron told Oprah Winfrey that she arrived in Hollywood with a single suitcase and $400. She worked as a waitress to pay rent. Eventually, the aspiring actress landed a small part in Children of the Corn III.
Theron would not get noticed until a fateful day at the bank. In the interview, she told Winfrey, “I was trying to cash my last check from a modeling job in New York, but because it was an out-of-state check, the bank wouldn’t accept it—and I really needed the money. So I began pleading with this teller to help me.”
While Theron described her actions as pleading, others have said that it was more of a tantrum. A man came over to help her and gave her his card afterward. The man was John Crosby, who represented actors John Hurt and Rene Russo. Theron found herself with a manager and a promising career.
