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Eliza Dushku Biography

Posted by Vogt
at May 9, 2008

Eliza Dushku.jpg

A talented, soulful child actress who segued into teen and adult roles beginning in the late 1990s, dark-haired, brown-eyed siren in the making Eliza Dushku displayed a refreshing edginess as a young performer that transcended the typical girl-next-door sweetness and moved on to her sultry and downright scary portrayal of the villainous Faith on The WB’s “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer” (from 1998 to 2000). Raised in Massachusetts, Dushku appeared at the Watertown Children’s Theater beginning in the first grade, performing in productions and also serving as a sign-language interpreter for hearing-impaired audience members. In 1991, Dushku was discovered in a casting search for the small coming-of-age romance “That Night” and tapped to co-star as the young, awestruck neighbor of a troubled sixteen-year-old (Juliette Lewis), who helps the older girl navigate her forbidden romance with bad boy Rick (C Thomas Howell). Dushku made an impressive screen debut, evincing all of the dreamy idealism of her character’s youth without resorting to unrealistic sentimentality. The film was released in 1993, the same year that she was featured in her follow-up role as the daughter of Robert De Niro’s sadistic character in the critically acclaimed biopic “This Boy’s Life”. 1994 saw her call Jamie Lee Curtis and Arnold Schwarzenegger Mom and Dad in James Cameron’s humorous actioner “True Lies”.

Dushku made her TV debut at age 14 in the CBS “Hallmark Hall of Fame” presentation “Journey” (1995). After this, she returned to the big screen with featured turns as rebellious teens in the divorce-themed comedy-drama “Bye Bye, Love” (1995) and the Hawaii-set teen film “Race the Sun” (1996). Television beckoned again in the late 1990s, and Dushku made an auspicious comeback with a recurring role on The WB supernatural series “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer”, playing the eponymous heroine’s nemesis Faith, a fellow slayer with nefarious motives. Dushku’s portrayal of the striking, black leather-clad villain was appropriately chilling, and won the actress legions of fans while paving the way for a post-adolescent career. A surprise guest turn on a 2000 two-episode arc of the spin-off series “Angel” (The WB) reprised the role of Faith, and Dushku lightened up some that same year with a featured role in the sharp cheerleading comedy “Bring it On”. In “Soul Survivors” (2001), she was alongside other young Hollywood favorites like Casey Affleck and Wes Bentley. 2002, though, proved a banner year in the actress’ career, proving her ability and rising star status in two high profile features, “The New Guy”, which marked her return to teen comedy, and the crime drama “City By the Sea”, in which the spunky ingenue was reteamed with Robert De Niro. The following year, Dushku joined a series of young up-and-coming actors for the Rob Schmidt indie project “Wrong Turn” (2003).

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Kirsten Dunst Biography

Posted by Vogt
at May 9, 2008

Kirsten Dunst Cheryl Shuman.jpg

A pretty, precocious blonde, Kirsten Dunst began working in commercials at age three (eventually racking up over 70 such credits) and made her feature debut as Mia Farrow’s daughter in “Oedipus Wrecks”, Woody Allen’s segment of “New York Stories” (1989). Modest roles in other features followed, though several of the films (e.g. “The Bonfire of the Vanities” 1990) saw little exposure at the box office. Dunst also appeared in a recurring role on the NBC drama “Sisters” and guest starred in an episode of the syndicated “Star Trek: The Next Generation”.

Dunst was catapulted into the limelight with her stunning work in Neil Jordan’s “Interview With the Vampire” (1994). Only eleven at the time of filming, she essayed what was debatably the female lead opposite Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Her Claudia, a little girl made into a vampire and unable to age through the years, looked like a child one moment and appeared–and acted–like a grown woman the next. Although the film received mixed notices, Dunst’s remarkably mature performance earned nearly universal raves, earning her a few critics awards and a Golden Globe nomination. Although there was talk of an Oscar nomination, it failed to materialize. Nevertheless, the young actress continued to turn in impressive work. She portrayed the younger version of the spoiled, artistic Amy in “Little Women” (1994), appearing alongside Winona Ryder and Susan Sarandon (although Samantha Mathis essayed the adult character).

Dunst solidified her rising status co-starring with Robin Williams in the hit “Jumanji” (1995). Poised to make the transition to adult roles, she alternated TV appearances with her high profile films. During the 1996-97 season, Dunst had the recurring role of a tough-talking runaway who crosses paths with Dr. Doug Ross (George Clooney) in the hit NBC drama “ER”. After providing the speaking voice of the young version of the title character in Fox’s animated “Anastasia”, she earned notice as a teenager hired to play an Albanian refugee in a mock war in the political satire “Wag the Dog” (both 1997). Dunst was “Fifteen and Pregnant” in the based-on-fact Lifetime drama before returning to the big screen in the highly touted “Small Soldiers” and alongside other rising female stars (e.g., Heather Matarazzo, Monica Keena) in the ensemble of “Strike/The Hairy Bird” (both 1998).

Dunst began to emerge from the back of Hollywood starlets to become a recognizable actress and box office draw, beginning with her adroit comedic turns in the beauty pageant comedy “Drop Dead Gorgeous” (1999) and the off-the-wall teen girls-meet- Richard Nixon riot “Dick” (1999) in which she and Michelle Williams were prefectly cast as clueless teenager of the Watergate era. As she matured, Dunst also became something of a sex symbol for the younger set with roles in teen romantic comedies. She played the plucky captain of an ambitious cheerleading squad in the surprisingly infectious “Bring It On” (2000), in which she displayed her ability to carry a film on her perky, girl-next-door charm, and she also scored in the less brilliant teen romance “Get Over It” (2001). Dunst proved she also had formidable dramatic chops when she appeared as Lux, the eldest and most rebellious of the doomed Lisbon sisters, in Sofia Coppola’s acclaimed directorial debut “The Virgin Suicides” (1999)’ and was particularly riveting in 2001’s “crazy/beautiful” as the emotionally troubled daughter of a wealthy congressman who threatens to derail the rise of her less-privileged Latin boyfriend (Jay Hernandez).

It would be Dunst’s sunny, sexy and endearing portrayal of Mary Jane Watson, the love interest of nerdy Peter Parker, in the big screen adaptation of the comic book superhero “Spider-Man” (2002) that would thrust her into full-fledged superstardom. Dunst’s utter likeability and strong chemistry with leading man Tobey Maguire turned “Spider-Man” into an action blockbuster with a romantic soul, and the see-sawing nature of the characters’ relationship made it the first super-hero date movie. The same year, Dunst had a wonderful turn in director Peter Bogdonavitch’s early Hollywood scandal film “The Cat’s Meow” in which, despite being far too young to play early screen star Marion Davies, she turned in a convincing performance centered around the character’s surprisingly believeable romance with media tycon William Randolph Hearst (Edward Herrmann). She next appeared with an all-star cast in writer-director Ed Solomon’s “Levity” (2003), playing a self-destructive young woman who becomes dependent on an ex-con (Billy Bob Thornton).

Dunst joined fellow up-and-comers Julia Stiles and Maggie Gyllenhaal as students of progressive and liberal-minded teacher Julia Roberts in “Mona Lisa Smile” (2003). Dunst showed her harsher edges as the vicious, overprivileged senior Betty Warren who, committed to a life of houswifery to a louse, shows the most opposition to Roberts’ ideals, using the student newspaper to attack her stance that Wellesley women of the 1950s should aspire to more from life than a role as a perfect housewife to a CEO. Next for Dunst was a pivotal and well-acted supporting turn in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” (2004) as Mary, the young receptionist in the memory-erasing facility where heartbroken Jim Carrey goes to have his ex-girlfriend eliminated from his thoughts. Then it was on to reprise her role as Mary Jane Watson, now a successful, engaged actress but still pining for Peter Parker in the highly anticipated sequel “Spider-Man 2″ (2004), followed by the U.S. release of France’s first 3-D CGI animated film “Kaena: The Prophecy” (2004), in which she provided the voice of the rebellious teen heroine in the sci-fi fantasy.

Hot off the success of the “Spider-Man” films, Dunst landed her first full-fledged adult leading role in the lukewarm romantic comedy “Wimbledon” (2004), winningly playing up-and-coming tennis sensation Lizzie Bradbury, an easily distracted “bad girl of tennis” whose romance with a faded ex-star of the game (Paul Bettany) reignites his passion and send him to tennis’ most prestigious tournament.

Taking on one of most mature leading roles to date, Dunst was winsome and appealing in her turn as the relentlessly upbeat flight attendant Claire Colburn, who helps a failed golden boy (Orlando Bloom) mourning his father reawaken to the joys of life and romance in writer-director Cameron Crowe’s engaging, if uneven, film “Elizabethtown” (2005).

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Shannen Doherty Biography

Posted by Vogt
at May 9, 2008

Shannen Doherty.JPG

A former child actress, gained attention during her four-year stint as one of the teen leads in the popular high school serial “Beverly Hills, 90210″ (Fox, 1990-94). Pouting and pixyish, with long, dark hair and wide eyes, she had kept busy on primetime TV for most of the 1980s, primarily in family-oriented fare, with featured roles in two NBC series, “Little House: A New Beginning” (1982-83) and “Our House” (1986-88). While on “90210″, Doherty unfortunately attracted much attention from both tabloids and mainstream media for what was perceived as temperamental behavior. In recent years, she has attempted to make the transition to adult roles with such diverse fare as “Blindfold: Acts of Obsession” (USA, 1994), as a woman trying to save her marriage, “Burning Passion: The Margaret Mitchell Story” (NBC, 1994), as the feisty author of “Gone With the Wind”, and “Gone in the Night” (CBS, 1996), as a young mother unjustly accused of murdering her daughter. From 1998-2001 Doherty starred in the supernatural-themed TV series “Charmed” (The WB) and in 2002, she hosted the sci-fi game show “Scare Tactics.”

Doherty made her feature acting debut in Ron Howard’s “Night Shift” (1982) and that same year provided a character voice for “The Secret of NIMH”. Her occasional feature films have generally been less notable, though she did have her moments as one of the several snooty, same-named princesses on whom Winona Ryder and Christian Slater take revenge in the black comedy, “Heathers” (1989). Doherty returned to films in 1995 with Kevin Smith’s “Mallrats”.

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