November 22nd, 2007 - Happy Birthday Scarlett Johansson!

She rose to fame with her role in 1998’s The Horse Whisperer and subsequently gained critical acclaim for her roles in Ghost World, Lost in Translation and Girl with a Pearl Earring, the latter two earning her Golden Globe Award nominations in 2003.

Johansson was born in New York City. Her father, Karsten Johansson, is a Danish-born architect, and her paternal grandfather, Ejner Johansson, was a screenwriter and director. Her mother, Melanie Sloan, a producer, comes from a Jewish American family from the Bronx. Johansson’s parents met in Denmark, where her mother lived with Johansson’s maternal grandmother, Dorothy, a former bookkeeper and schoolteacher. Johansson has an older sister, Vanessa, who is also an actress; an older brother, Adrian; a twin brother, Hunter, also an actor; and a half-brother, Christian, from her father’s re-marriage.

Johansson grew up in a household with “little money” with a mother who was a “film buff”. Johansson began her theater training by attending and graduating from Professional Children’s School in Manhattan in 2002.

Johansson began acting during childhood, after her mother began taking her to auditions. She made her film debut in 1994’s North. After appearing in several films during the late 1990s, Johansson garnered praise and widespread attention for her performance in 1998’s The Horse Whisperer and 2001’s Ghost World.

Johansson is a Democrat and campaigned for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. She was later quoted as saying, of George W. Bush’s re-election, that “[she was] disappointed. I think it was a disappointment for a large percentage of the population.” Johansson has also taken part in the anti-poverty campaign ONE which was organised by U2 lead singer Bono.

Johansson has previously stated that she has a connection to older men, and could not see herself dating anyone under the age of 30. She has also noted that she does not discuss her personal life with the press, specifying that she feels “it’s nice to have everybody not know your business.” However, this has not stopped Johansson from sharing “select” opinions and personal details. Johansson’s ex-boyfriend (and member of the band Steel Train), Jack Antonoff, has included lyrics that refer to Johansson in his band’s song “Better Love.” Antonoff also references Johansson in the song “2 O’clock.” She has been linked to many famous men, including Derek Jeter, Benicio del Toro, Jared Leto, Justin Timberlake and most notably her Black Dahlia co-star Josh Hartnett. The pair dated for around two years until the end of 2006, with Hartnett citing their busy professional lives as the reason for the split. She is currently dating Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds. In October 2007, it was revealed she had given boyfriend Ryan Reynolds her wisdom tooth as a birthday present. Scarlett took the tooth and dipped it in gold before stringing it onto a necklace to give to him.

Johansson has repeatedly said that she does not believe in monogamy, and that it is not human nature to be with just one person. She has also said that “contrary to popular belief… [she is] not promiscuous” and she works “really hard” when she is in a relationship “to make it work in a monogamous way.” She gets tested for HIV twice a year, and has specified that she feels “it’s part of being a decent human” and that she finds it “disgusting” and “irresponsible” when people do not do so.

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