Naomi Watts

Naomi Ellen Watts (born 28 September 1968) is a British actress. After her family relocated to Australia, she debuted in film with the drama For Love Alone (1986) and subsequently appeared in three television series: Hey Dad..! (1990), Brides of Christ (1991), and Home and Away (1991), as well as the film Flirting (1991). Upon moving to the United States, Watts faced initial challenges as an actress, featuring in smaller-scale productions until her breakthrough role in David Lynch's psychological thriller Mulholland Drive (2001) as an aspiring actress, catapulting her to international acclaim.


Watts portrayed a troubled journalist in the horror remake The Ring (2002) and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her portrayal of a grieving mother in Alejandro González Iñárritu's 21 Grams (2003). Her career ascended with leading roles in films such as I Heart Huckabees (2004), King Kong (2005), Eastern Promises (2007), and The International (2009).


Her portrayal of Maria Bennett in the disaster film The Impossible (2012) garnered another Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Throughout the 2010s, Watts starred in notable films including Birdman (2014), St. Vincent (2014), While We're Young (2015), The Glass Castle (2017), and Luce (2019). She also appeared in the Divergent franchise (2015–2016) and ventured into television with roles in the Showtime mystery series Twin Peaks (2017) and the biographical miniseries The Loudest Voice (2019). In 2022, she began headlining the Netflix thriller series The Watcher, and in 2024, she portrayed Babe Paley in the anthology series Feud: Capote vs. The Swans.


Watts is recognized for her contributions to remakes and independent productions featuring dark or tragic themes, often portraying characters enduring loss or suffering. She has been listed among the world's most beautiful women by magazines such as People and Maxim. Additionally, Watts has served as an ambassador for the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS and Pantene's Beautiful Lengths. Despite her significant media presence, she maintains privacy regarding her personal life. From 2005 to 2016, she was in a relationship with American actor Liev Schreiber, with whom she shares two sons. In June 2023, she married American actor Billy Crudup.


Naomi Ellen Watts was born on 28 September 1968 in Shoreham, Kent, England. She is the daughter of Myfanwy (Miv) Edwards (née Roberts), an antiques dealer and costume/set designer, and Peter Watts, a road manager and audio engineer who collaborated with Pink Floyd. Watts's maternal grandfather hailed from Wales.


When Watts was four years old, her parents divorced, and she and her older brother Ben Watts relocated several times across South East England with their mother. Tragically, Watts's father passed away in August 1976 from an apparent heroin overdose. Following his death, Watts's mother moved the family to Llanfawr Farm in Llangefni and Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, towns on the island of Anglesey in North Wales, where they resided with Watts's maternal grandparents for three years. During this period, Watts attended a Welsh medium school.
In 1978, her mother remarried, and Watts and her brother moved to Suffolk. She attended Thomas Mills High School, where her passion for acting burgeoned after witnessing her mother's performances on stage and viewing the film Fame in 1980.


At the age of 14, Watts relocated to Sydney, Australia, with her family. Her mother pursued a career in the film industry, working in various roles. Watts attended Mosman High School and North Sydney Girls High School but did not complete her education. Instead, she worked various jobs, including as a papergirl and in a Delicacies store.
Initially aspiring to become a model, Watts ventured to Japan but returned to Sydney after facing numerous rejections. She worked in advertising before an invitation to a drama workshop ignited her passion for acting.
Despite spending a significant part of her life in Australia, Watts identifies as British rather than Australian, cherishing her memories of England and Wales.


Watts embarked on her career in television, initially making brief appearances in commercials. Her film debut came in 1986 with For Love Alone, set in the 1930s and based on Christina Stead's novel of the same name. Following a hiatus, Watts appeared in two episodes of the fourth season of the Australian sitcom Hey Dad..! in 1990. Director John Duigan offered her a supporting role in his 1991 indie film Flirting after meeting her at the premiere of her friend Nicole Kidman's film Dead Calm in 1989. The film garnered critical acclaim and featured on Roger Ebert's list of the top 10 films of 1992.


In the same year, Watts portrayed Frances Heffernan in the award-winning mini-series Brides of Christ and had a recurring role in the soap opera Home and Away as Julie Gibson. Despite being offered a role in the drama series A Country Practice, Watts declined, expressing reluctance to commit to a long-term soap opera role.


After taking a year off to travel and visiting Los Angeles, where she was introduced to agents through Kidman, Watts decided to relocate to America to pursue her career further. In 1993, she had a small role in the John Goodman film Matinee and returned temporarily to Australia to star in three Australian films: Wide Sargasso Sea, The Custodian, and Gross Misconduct, where she had her first leading role. However, her transition to America was challenging, as she struggled to find agents, producers, and directors willing to hire her. Financial difficulties, including being unable to pay rent and losing medical insurance, compounded her frustration. Despite the setbacks, Watts persevered with Kidman's encouragement and support.

References

1.  Pringle, Gill (30 March 2015). "Naomi Watts on 'While We're Young', her roots and being a mum". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2015. The truth is that I've spent more time in America out of all three countries. I spent the first 14 years in England, just under 10 in Australia and then the rest in America. I've still got only one passport and that's British and my mum still lives between there and Australia. I feel very much a part of both countries.
2. ^ Lamont, Tom (15 July 2017). "Naomi Watts: 'My soul was being destroyed'". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
3. ^ "Naomi Watts and Billy Crudup Are Married: 'Hitched'". Yahoo! Entertainment. 10 June 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
4. Contemporary Theatre, Film and Television: A Biographical Guide Featuring Performers, Directors, Writers, Producers, Designers, Managers, Choreographers, Technicians, Composers, Executives, Dancers. Gale/Cengage Learning. 2005. p. 340. ISBN 978-0-7876-9037-3.
5. ^ Johnston, Sheila (15 March 2008). "Naomi Watts on Funny Games". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2013.
6. ^ Sams, Christine (23 February 2004). "How Naomi told her mum about Oscar". The Sun-Herald. Retrieved 15 December 2008.
7. Stated on Inside the Actors Studio, 2003.
8. ^ "How Naomi told her mum about Oscar – SpecialsEntFilmOscars2004". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 February 2004. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
9. ^ "Naomi Watts on 'While We're Young', her roots and being a mum". themorningbulletin.com.au. Archived from the original on 30 May 2015.
10. ^ Heller, Scott (23 November 2003). "A role filled with rage and anguish reveals the fearless side of an actress who respects the power of emotion". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
11. Brockes, Emma (19 October 2007). "Work begets work: that is my motto". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
12. "Naomi Watts Biography". TalkTalk. Tiscali UK Limited trading. Archived from the original on 16 May 2011. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
13. ^ Blake, Mark (2008). Comfortably Numb - The Inside Story of Pink Floyd. Di Capo Press. p. 213. ISBN 978-0-306-81752-6.
14. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Naomi Watts' Unpronounceable Town Name". 6 March 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015 – via YouTube.