Few actors have ever demonstrated the talent, the charisma, and the mind-blowing range of Charlize Theron. The South African and American actor, who began her career as a model but swiftly emerged as one of the most exciting new acting talents of the 1990s, and gradually became one of the most respected actors of her generation… and one of the most dynamic action stars of the 21st century.
Some actors only get a couple of opportunities to shine, but Charlize Theron has been turning heads for over two decades now. Today, on the actor’s 42nd birthday, we celebrate the impressive career of an actor who has repeatedly been the best part of her movies, and – when the rest of the cast and crew was up to the challenge – helped to make some of the best motion pictures of the last two decades.
14 Movies That Made Us Love Charlize Theron:
Top Photo: Focus Features
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on Canceled Too Soon and watch him on the weekly YouTube series What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
14 Movies That Made Us Love Charlize Theron
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2 Days in the Valley (1996)
Charlize Theron's second film role (after a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance in Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest) is in this slick and sexy crime caper. Theron steals the whole film as a woman who gets in an epic cat fight with Teri Hatcher, and discovers the uglier side of her hitman boyfriend, James Spader. Charlize Theron was dynamic from frame one.
Photo: MGM
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The Devil's Advocate (1997)
Keanu Reeves plays a lawyer led into temptation by the devil himself, played by Al Pacino, and although Charlize Theron mostly has to play the victim in Taylor Hackford's broad horror drama, her performances helps elevate this potentially schlocky material into a well-regarded, minor horror classic.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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Trial and Error (1997)
A clever and witty comedy by director Jonathan Lynn (My Cousin Vinny), Trial and Error stars Michael Richards as an actor who has to pretend to be a real lawyer in a court case. Jeff Daniels plays the real lawyer, and Charlize Theron plays the local waitress who's so unbelievably interesting and likable that Daniels questions all of his life choices. And Theron is so damned good that you buy it.
Photo: New Line Cinema
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The Cider House Rules (1999)
Lasse Hallstrom's Oscar-winning adaptation of John Irving's celebrated novel is handsome, sensitive, and not very well remembered. But Charlize Theron - still overachieving in "girlfriend" roles at this phase of her career - shines as the woman who tempts a young abortion doctor, played by Tobey Maguire, to abandon his calling.
Photo: Miramax Films
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The Italian Job (2003)
F. Gary Gray assembled an impressive cast for his remake of the caper classic The Italian Job, including Charlize Theron, Mark Wahlberg, Edward Norton, Jason Statham, Seth Green and Donald Sutherland. The movie doesn't give them much to talk about, and it pales in comparison to the original, but the great ensemble and spry direction make it a very entertaining flick.
Photo: Paramount Pictures
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Monster (2003)
Charlize Theron won an Oscar for her transformative performance in Monster, playing real-life serial killer Eileen Wuornos in Patty Jenkins' celebrated, insightful, horrifying drama. Charlize Theron didn't just give one of the best performances of the year, she gave one of the best PERFORMANCES, end of sentence.
Photo: New Market Films
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North Country (2005)
Charlize Theron earned another Academy Award nomination for her impressive performance in Niki Caro's North Country, about the first class-action sexual harassment lawsuit. Great acting more than compensates for some straightforward storytelling, making North Country one of Theron's better movies.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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Hancock (2008)
Charlize Theron seems stuck in the "girlfriend" role yet again, this time as the third lead in an atypical superhero movie, but the (unbelievably coincidental) machinations of the plot eventually give her a meaty role to play, and the chance to kick serious butt.
Photo: Columbia Pictures
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Young Adult (2011)
The story of Young Adult, about a YA author who returns home to drop off her old emotional baggage, has some ugly social connotations that may be off-putting to some audiences. But Charlize Theron gives an undeniably fascinating performance as a woman who is constantly struggling to earn her inflated ego, and Patton Oswalt shines as the old acquaintance who gets under her skin.
Photo: Paramount Pictures
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Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)
Let's be honest: Snow White and the Huntsman is a pretty bad movie, but every single scene that Charlize Theron is in is fantastic. Theron plays the dangerously unbalanced sorceress who wants Snow White dead, and she ladles delicious cheese over every line of dialogue she's got.
Photo: Universal Pictures
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Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
George Miller's absolutely stunning post-apocalyptic car chase thriller depends almost entirely on Charlize Theron's performance, as a warrior who betrays a despot to save the lives of the women he's enslaved. Charlize Theron becomes one of the greatest action heroes in history in Mad Max: Fury Road, and helps make this film one of the greatest action movies ever made.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)
Stop-motion animation had been used in family entertainment for years, but in Kubo and the Two Strings, it becomes a medium for fantastic fantasy action. Charlize Theron plays a magical monkey who helps a one-eyed boy on his journey to adulthood, as they both defend themselves against an evil wizard and his dangerous family.
Photo: Focus Features
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The Fate of the Furious (2017)
Charlize Theron reteamed with F. Gary Gray for The Fate of the Furious, another entertaining car chase thriller, but this time with a role worthy of her charisma - as one of the franchise's very best villains - and with action that dwarfs anything The Italian Job had to offer.
Photo: Universal Pictures
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Atomic Blonde (2017)
Charlize Theron plays a spy on a mission to uncover a mole and end the Cold War in Atomic Blonde, an unnecessarily complicated, emotionally distant thriller that also has some of the best fight scenes in many, many years. The sexy style and hard-hitting action more than make up for the film's obvious flaws.
Photo: Focus Features
