Berry established herself as one of the highest-paid actresses inHollywood during the 2000s. For her performance of a struggling widow in the romantic dramaMonster's Ball (2001), Berry became the only African-American woman to win theAcademy Award for Best Actress, and the firstwoman of color. Berry took on high-profile roles such asStorm in four installments of theX-Men film series (2000–2014), the henchwoman of a robber in the thrillerSwordfish (2001),Bond girlJinx inDie Another Day (2002), and the title role in the much-deridedCatwoman (2004).
A varying critical and commercial reception followed in subsequent years, withPerfect Stranger (2007),Cloud Atlas (2012) andThe Call (2013) being among her notable film releases in that period. Berry launched a production company,606 Films, in 2014 and has been involved in the production of a number of projects in which she performed, such as theCBS science fiction seriesExtant (2014–2015). She appeared in the action filmsKingsman: The Golden Circle (2017) andJohn Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum (2019) and made her directorial debut with theNetflix dramaBruised (2020).
Berry has been aRevlon spokesmodel since 1996. She was formerly married to baseball playerDavid Justice, singer-songwriterEric Benét, and actorOlivier Martinez. Berry has two children. She shares her first child with her former partnerGabriel Aubry, a model, and she shares her second child with Martinez.
Early life
Berry was born Maria Halle Berry inCleveland, Ohio,[1] on August 14, 1966,[2] to Judith Ann (née Hawkins), a first generation American whose mother, Nelle Hawkins (née Dicken), came fromLiverpool,[3] and Jerome Jesse Berry, an African-American man.[1] Her name was legally changed to Halle Maria Berry at the age of five.[4] Her parents selected her middle name fromHalle's Department Store, then a local landmark in Cleveland.[1] Berry's mother worked as a psychiatric nurse, and her father worked in the same hospital as an attendant in the psychiatric ward. He later became a bus driver.[1] They divorced when Berry was four years old, and she and her older sister Heidi Berry-Henderson[5] were raised exclusively by their mother.[1]
She has been estranged from her father since childhood,[1][6] noting in 1992 that she did not even know if he was still alive.[5] Her father was abusive to her mother; Berry has recalled witnessing her mother being beaten daily, kicked down stairs, and hit in the head with a wine bottle.[7] Berry has also said that she was bullied as a child and, as a result, learned how to fight and protect herself.[8]
Berry grew up inOakwood, Ohio,[9] and graduated fromBedford High School, where she was a cheerleader, honor student, editor of the school newspaper, andprom queen.[10] She worked in the children's department ofHigbee's department store. She continued her studies atCuyahoga Community College. In the 1980s, she entered several beauty contests, winning Miss Teen All American 1985 andMiss Ohio USA 1986.[11] She was the 1986Miss USA first runner-up, withChristy Fichtner of Texas taking home the crown.[11] In the Miss USA 1986 pageant interview competition, Berry said she hoped to become an entertainer or do some kind of work in media. Her interview was awarded the highest score by the judges.[12] In 1986, Berry became the first African-American to represent the United States at theMiss World beauty pageant. She placed sixth, withTrinidad and Tobago'sGiselle Laronde being crowned Miss World.[13]
Career
Early work and breakthrough (1989–1999)
In 1989, Berry moved to New York City to pursue her acting ambitions.[14] During her early time there, she ran out of money and briefly lived in a homeless shelter and aYMCA.[15] After turning down numerous roles that required nudity, she said she decided to makeSwordfish because her then-husband, Eric Benét, supported her and encouraged her to take risks.[16]
Berry appeared as Leticia Musgrove, the troubled wife of an executed murderer (Sean Combs), in the 2001 feature filmMonster's Ball. Her performance was awarded theNational Board of Review and theScreen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress. She became the first African-American woman to win theAcademy Award for Best Actress.[17] TheNAACP issued the statement: "Congratulations to Halle Berry and Denzel Washington for giving us hope and making us proud. If this is a sign that Hollywood is finally ready to give opportunity and judge performance based on skill and not on skin color then it is a good thing."[18]
This role generated controversy. Her graphic nude love scene with a racist character played by co-starBilly Bob Thornton was the subject of much media chatter and discussion among African Americans. Many in the African-American community were critical of Berry for taking the part.[16] Berry responded: "I don't really see a reason to ever go that far again. That was a unique movie. That scene was special and pivotal and needed to be there, and it would be a really special script that would require something like that again."[16]
Berry asked for a higher fee for Revlon advertisements after winning the Oscar.Ron Perelman, the cosmetics firm's chief, congratulated her, saying how happy he was that she modeled for his company. She replied, "Of course, you'll have to pay me more." Perelman stalked off in a rage.[19] In accepting her award, she gave an acceptance speech honoring previous black actresses who had never had the opportunity. She said, "This moment is so much bigger than me. This is for every nameless, faceless woman of color who now has a chance tonight because this door has been opened."[20]
AsBond girlGiacinta 'Jinx' Johnson in the 2002Die Another Day, Berry filmed an homage toDr. No, emerging from the surf to be greeted byJames Bond asUrsula Andress had 40 years earlier.[21] Lindy Hemming, costume designer onDie Another Day, had insisted that Berry wear a bikini and knife as a homage.[22] Berry has said of the scene: "It's splashy," "exciting," "sexy," "provocative" and "it will keep me still out there after winning an Oscar."[16][23] According to an ITV news poll, Jinx was voted the fourth toughest girl on screen of all time.[24] Berry was hurt during filming when debris from a smoke grenade flew into her eye. It was removed in a 30-minute operation.[25] After Berry won the Academy Award, rewrites were commissioned to give her more screentime forX2.[26]
She starred in the psychological thrillerGothika oppositeRobert Downey, Jr. in November 2003. She had broken her arm while filming a scene with Downey, who twisted her arm too hard. Production was halted for eight weeks while she healed.[27] It was a moderate hit at the United States box office, taking in $60 million; it earned another $80 million abroad.[28] Berry appeared in thenu metal bandLimp Bizkit's music video for "Behind Blue Eyes" for the motion picture soundtrack for the film. The same year, she was named No. 1 inFHM's100 Sexiest Women in the World poll.[29]
Berry starred as the title role in the filmCatwoman,[28] for which she received US$12.5 million.[30] It is widely regarded by critics asone of the worst films ever made.[31] She was awarded the Worst ActressRazzie Award for her performance; she appeared at the ceremony to accept the award in person (while holding her Oscar fromMonster's Ball)[32] with a sense of humor, considering it an experience of the "rock bottom" in order to be "at the top."[33] Holding the Academy Award in one hand and the Razzie in the other she said, "I never in my life thought that I would be up here, winning a Razzie! It's not like I ever aspired to be here, but thank you. When I was a kid, my mother told me that if you could not be a good loser, then there's no way you could be a good winner."[34]
Established actress and career fluctuations (2005–2013)
Her next role was in theOprah Winfrey-producedABC television filmTheir Eyes Were Watching God (2005), an adaptation ofZora Neale Hurston's novel of the same name. Berry portrayed a free-spirited woman whose unconventional sexual mores upset her 1920s contemporaries in a small community. She received her secondPrimetime Emmy Award nomination for her role. Also in 2005, she served as an executive producer inLackawanna Blues. She was the voice for the character ofCappy, one of the many mechanical beings in the animated featureRobots.[35]
In the thrillerPerfect Stranger (2007), Berry starred withBruce Willis, playing a reporter who goes undercover to uncover the killer of her childhood friend. The film grossed a modest US$73 million worldwide, and received lukewarm reviews from critics, who felt that despite the presence of Berry and Willis, it is "too convoluted to work, and features a twist ending that's irritating and superfluous."[36] Her next 2007 film release was the dramaThings We Lost in the Fire, co-starringBenicio del Toro. She played a recently widowed woman who befriended the troubled friend of her late husband. The film was the first time in which she worked with a female director, DanishSusanne Bier, giving her a new feeling of "thinking the same way," which she appreciated.[37] While the film made US$8.6 million in its global theatrical run,[38] it garnered positive reviews. 'The Austin Chronicle found the film to be "an impeccably constructed and perfectly paced drama of domestic and internal volatility" and felt that "Berry is brilliant here, as good as she's ever been."[39]
In April 2007, Berry was awarded astar on theHollywood Walk of Fame in front of theKodak Theatre at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard for her contributions to the film industry.[40] By the end of the decade, she established herself as one of the highest-paid actresses in Hollywood, earning an estimated $10 million per film.[41]
In 2012, Berry starred as an expert diver tutor alongside then-husbandOlivier Martinez in the little-seen thrillerDark Tide.[46] She led an ensemble cast oppositeTom Hanks andJim Broadbent inThe Wachowskis'epic science fiction filmCloud Atlas (2012), with each of the actors playing six different characters across a period of five centuries.[47] Budgeted at US$128.8 million,Cloud Atlas made US$130.4 million worldwide.[48] It garnered polarized reactions from both critics and audiences.[49]
Berry appeared in a segment of the independent anthology comedyMovie 43 (2013), which theChicago Sun-Times called "theCitizen Kane of awful."[50][51] Berry found greater success with her next performance, as a9-1-1 operator receiving a call from a girl kidnapped by a serial killer, in the crime thrillerThe Call (2013). Berry was drawn to "the idea of being a part of a movie that was so empowering for women. We don't often get to play roles like this, where ordinary people become heroic and do something extraordinary."[52]Manohla Dargis ofThe New York Times found the film to be "an effectively creepy thriller,"[53] while reviewer Dwight Brown felt that "the script gives Berry a blue-collar character she can make accessible, vulnerable and gutsy[...]."[54]The Call was asleeper hit, grossing US$68.6 million around the globe.[55]
Continued film and television work (2014–present)
In 2014, Berry signed on to star and serve as a co-executive producer inCBS drama seriesExtant,[56] where she took on the role ofMolly Woods, an astronaut who struggles to reconnect with her husband and android son after spending 13 months in space. The show ran for two seasons until 2015, receiving largely positive reviews from critics.[57][58][59]USA Today remarked: "She [Halle Berry] brings a dignity and gravity to Molly, a projected intelligence that allows you to buy her as an astronaut and to see what has happened to her as frightening rather than ridiculous. Berry's all in, and you float along."[60] Also in 2014, Berry launched a new production company,606 Films, with producing partner Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas. It is named after the Anti-Paparazzi Bill, SB 606, that the actress pushed for and which was signed into law by California GovernorJerry Brown in the fall of 2013. The new company emerged as part of a deal for Berry to work inExtant.[61]
In the stand-up comedyconcert filmKevin Hart: What Now? (2016), Berry appeared as herself, oppositeKevin Hart, attending a poker game event that goes horribly wrong.[62] She provided uncredited vocals to the song "Calling All My Lovelies" byBruno Mars from his third studio album,24K Magic (2016).[63]Kidnap, an abduction thriller Berry filmed in 2014, was released in 2017.[64] In the film, she starred as a diner waitress tailing a vehicle when her son is kidnapped by its occupants.Kidnap grossed US$34 million and garnered mixed reviews from writers, who felt that it "strays into poorly scripted exploitation too often to take advantage of its pulpy premise — or the still-impressive talents of [Berry]."[65] She next played an agent employed by a secret American spy organisation in the action comedy sequelKingsman: The Golden Circle (2017), as part of an ensemble cast, consisting ofColin Firth,Taron Egerton,Mark Strong,Julianne Moore, andElton John. While critical response towards the film was mixed, it made US$414 million worldwide.[66]
AlongsideDaniel Craig, Berry starred as a working-class mother during the1992 Los Angeles riots inDeniz Gamze Ergüven's dramaKings (2017). The film found a limited theatrical release following its initial screening at theToronto International Film Festival,[67] and as part of an overall lukewarm reception,[68]Variety noted: "It should be said that Berry has given some of the best and worst performances of the past quarter-century, but this is perhaps the only one that swings to both extremes in the same movie."[69] Berry competed againstJames Corden in the first rap battle on the first episode of TBS'sDrop the Mic, originally aired on October 24, 2017.[70]
She played Sofia, an assassin, in the filmJohn Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, which was released on May 17, 2019, byLionsgate.[71] She is, as of February 2019, executive producer of theBET television seriesBoomerang, based on the film in which she starred. The series premiered February 12, 2019.[72]
Berry made her directorial debut with the featureBruised in which she plays a disgraced MMA fighter named Jackie Justice, who reconnects with her estranged son. The film premiered at theToronto International Film Festival in September 2020[73] and was released onNetflix in November 2021.[74] Berry received a positive review fromDeadline for her performance.[75]
In January 2023, Berry signed with Range Media Partners as a producer and director.[76]
In April 2025, Berry was announced as a member of the jury for Main Competition section of the2025 Cannes Film Festival.[77]
Media image
Berry in 2025
Berry was ranked No. 1 onPeople's "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" list in 2003 after making the top ten seven times and appeared No. 1 onFHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World" the same year.[78][79] She was namedEsquire magazine's "Sexiest Woman Alive" in October 2008, about which she stated: "I don't know exactly what it means, but being 42 and having just had a baby, I think I'll take it."[80][81]Men's Health ranked her at No. 35 on their "100 Hottest Women of All-Time" list.[82] In 2009, she was voted #23 onEmpire's 100 Sexiest Film Stars.[83] The same year, rapperHurricane Chris released a song titled "Halle Berry (She's Fine)" extolling Berry's beauty and sex appeal.[84] At the age of 42 (in 2008), she was named the "Sexiest Black Woman" by Access Hollywood's "TV One Access" survey.[85][86][87][88] Born to an African-American father and a white mother, Berry has stated that her biracial background was "painful and confusing" when she was a young woman, and she made the decision early on to identify as a black woman because she knew that was how she would be perceived.[14]
Personal life
Berry dated Chicago dentist John Ronan from March 1989 to October 1991.[89] In November 1993, Ronan sued Berry for $80,000 in what he claimed were unpaid loans to help launch her career.[90] Berry contended that the money was a gift, and a judge dismissed the case because Ronan did not list Berry as a debtor when he filed forbankruptcy in 1992.[10]
According to Berry, a beating from a former abusive boyfriend during the filming ofThe Last Boy Scout in 1991 punctured her eardrum and caused her to lose 80% of her hearing in her left ear.[10] She has never named the abuser, but she said that he was someone "well known in Hollywood". In 2004, her former boyfriendChristopher Williams accusedWesley Snipes of being responsible for the incident, saying, "I'm so tired of people thinking I'm the guy [who did it]. Wesley Snipes busted her eardrum, not me."[91]
Berry first saw baseball playerDavid Justice on TV playing in anMTV celebrity baseball game in February 1992. When a reporter from Justice's hometown ofCincinnati told her that Justice was a fan, Berry gave her phone number to the reporter to give to Justice.[10] Berry married Justice shortly after midnight on January 1, 1993.[92] Following their separation in February 1996, Berry stated publicly that she was so depressed that she had considered taking her own life.[93][94] Berry and Justice were divorced on June 20, 1997.[95]
In May 2000, Berry pleaded no contest to a charge of leaving the scene of a car accident; she was sentenced to three years' probation, fined $13,500, and ordered to perform 200 hours of community service.[96]
Berry married her second husband, singer-songwriterEric Benét, on January 24, 2001, following a two-year courtship.[16][97] Benét underwent treatment for sex addiction in 2002.[98] By early October 2003, they had separated,[97] and their divorce was finalized on January 3, 2005.[99][100]
In November 2005, Berry began dating French-Canadian modelGabriel Aubry, whom she had met at aVersace photoshoot.[101] Berry gave birth to their daughter in March 2008.[102] On April 30, 2010, Berry and Aubry announced that their relationship had ended some months earlier.[103] In January 2011, Berry and Aubry became involved in a highly publicized custody battle,[104][105][106] centered primarily on Berry's desire to move with their daughter from Los Angeles, where Berry and Aubry resided, to France, the home of French actorOlivier Martinez, whom Berry had started dating in 2010, having met him while filmingDark Tide in South Africa.[107] Aubry objected to the move on the ground that it would interfere with their joint custody arrangement.[108] In November 2012, a judge denied Berry's request to move the couple's daughter to France.[109] Less than two weeks later, on November 22, 2012, Aubry and Martinez were both treated at a hospital for injuries after engaging in a physical altercation at Berry's residence. Martinez performed acitizen's arrest on Aubry and, because it was considered adomestic violence incident, was granted a temporary emergency protective order preventing Aubry from coming within 100 yards of Berry, Martinez, and the child with whom he shares custody with Berry, until November 29, 2012.[110] In turn, Aubry obtained a temporary restraining order against Martinez on November 26, 2012, asserting that the fight had begun when Martinez had threatened to kill Aubry if he did not allow the couple to move to France.[111] Leaked court documents included photos showing significant injuries to Aubry's face, which were widely displayed in the media.[112] On November 29, 2012, Berry's lawyer announced that Berry and Aubry had reached an amicable custody agreement in court.[113] In June 2014, aSuperior Court ruling called for Berry to pay Aubry $16,000 a month in child support as well as a retroactive payment of $115,000 and $300,000 for Aubry's attorney fees.[114]
Berry and Martinez confirmed their engagement in March 2012,[115][116] and married in France on July 13, 2013.[117] In October 2013, Berry gave birth to their son.[118] In 2015, after two years of marriage, the couple announced they were divorcing.[119] The divorce was finalized in December 2016.[120] In August 2023, issues dealing with custody and child support were settled.[121]
Berry started dating American musicianVan Hunt in 2020, which was revealed through her Instagram.[122][123]
Activism
Berry with House Minority WhipKatherine Clark in December 2023
Along withPierce Brosnan,Cindy Crawford,Jane Seymour,Dick Van Dyke,Téa Leoni, andDaryl Hannah, Berry successfully fought in 2006 against theCabrillo Port Liquefied Natural Gas facility that was proposed off the coast of Malibu.[124] Berry said, "I care about the air we breathe, I care about the marine life and the ecosystem of the ocean."[125] In May 2007, GovernorArnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the facility.[126]Hasty Pudding Theatricals gave her its 2006Woman of The Year award.[127] Berry took part in a nearly 2,000-house cellphone-bank campaign forBarack Obama in February 2008.[128] In April 2013, she appeared in a video clip forGucci's "Chime for Change" campaign that aims to raise funds and awareness of women's issues in terms of education, health, and justice.[129] In August 2013, Berry testified alongsideJennifer Garner before the California State Assembly's Judiciary Committee in support of a bill that would protect celebrities' children from harassment by photographers.[130] The bill passed in September.[131]
In May 2024, Berry advocated for more research and education onmenopause by supporting a bill introduced bySenators Patty Murray andLisa Murkowski. Berry said, "I'm in menopause, OK?... The shame has to be taken out of menopause. We have to talk about this very normal part of our life that happens. Our doctors can't even say the word to us, let alone walk us through the journey."[132]
^"FHM Readers Name Scarlett Johansson World's Sexiest Woman; Actress Tops Voting in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in the World 2006 Readers' Poll" (March 27, 2006),Business Wire; accessed January 1, 2008.
^Ehrich Dowd, Kathy; Mikelbank, Peter (July 13, 2013)."Halle Berry Is Married: Photos".People.Archived from the original on March 1, 2019. RetrievedFebruary 28, 2019.
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