Hilary Swank
- Actress
- Producer
- Soundtrack
Hilary was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, to Judith Kay (Clough), a
secretary, and Stephen Michael Swank, who served in the National Guard
and was also a traveling salesman. Her maternal grandmother, Frances
Martha Dominguez, was of Mexican descent, and her other roots include
German, English, and Scottish. During her early childhood, her family
moved to Spokane, Washington, and when she was six, to Bellingham,
Washington.
Hilary was discovered as a child by producer
Suzy Sachs, who coached her in acting. When
she was nine years old, she starred in her first play as "Mowgli" in
"The Jungle Book". She began to appear regularly in local theater and
school plays. She went to school in Bellingham, where she lived with
her family, until she was 16. She competed in the Junior Olympics and
Washington State championships in swimming; she ranked 5th in the state
in all-around gymnastics (which would come in handy for starring in
The Next Karate Kid (1994)
years later). In 1990, Hilary and her mother moved to Los Angeles,
where she enrolled in South Pasadena High School, and started acting
professionally. She appeared in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)
but
The Next Karate Kid (1994),
where she got the part competing against hundreds of other actresses,
was her breakout role. Ever since then, she has been much in demand and
has worked non-stop in movies. She won the Best Actress Oscar for
playing "Brandon Teena" in
Boys Don't Cry (1999). In addition
to the Oscar, Hilary won the Golden Globe Award for "Best Actress in a
Drama" and "Best Actress" prizes from The New York Film Critics, The
Los Angeles Film Critics, The Chicago Film Critics and The Broadcast
Film Critics Association. She also won the "Breakthrough Performance"
prize from The National Board of Review.
Hilary then appeared in supporting roles opposite
Cate Blanchett and
Keanu Reeves in
Sam Raimi's
The Gift (2000) and opposite
Al Pacino and
Robin Williams in
Christopher Nolan's
Insomnia (2002). Hilary then starred as
"Alice Paul" in HBO's
Iron Jawed Angels (2004),
which told the story of the women's suffragist movement and she was
honored with both SAG and Golden Globe nominations for her performance
in this film. In 2004, Hilary starred opposite
Clint Eastwood and
Morgan Freeman as the title
character in Eastwood's
Million Dollar Baby (2004);
the story of a young woman's quest to realize her dream of becoming a
professional boxer. For this performance, she was honored with her
second Academy Award for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading
Role" and has garnered "Best Actress" prizes from the National Society
of Film Critics, the Screen Actors Guild, The Broadcast Film Critics,
and a Golden Globe for "Best Lead Actress in a Drama".
Hilary Swank is the third youngest woman in history to win two Academy
Awards for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role".
She subsequently had a supporting role opposite
Scarlett Johansson and
Josh Hartnett in
Brian De Palma's
The Black Dahlia (2006), starred
in Freedom Writers (2007), the
true story of Long Beach schoolteacher,
Erin Gruwell,
The Reaping (2007) for Warner
Brothers, and reunited with her
Freedom Writers (2007)
writer/director,
Richard LaGravenese, starring in the
film adaptation of Cecelia Ahern's novel,
P.S. I Love You (2007).
An aficionado for anything that involves the outdoors, she enjoys: sky
diving, river rafting and skiing.
secretary, and Stephen Michael Swank, who served in the National Guard
and was also a traveling salesman. Her maternal grandmother, Frances
Martha Dominguez, was of Mexican descent, and her other roots include
German, English, and Scottish. During her early childhood, her family
moved to Spokane, Washington, and when she was six, to Bellingham,
Washington.
Hilary was discovered as a child by producer
Suzy Sachs, who coached her in acting. When
she was nine years old, she starred in her first play as "Mowgli" in
"The Jungle Book". She began to appear regularly in local theater and
school plays. She went to school in Bellingham, where she lived with
her family, until she was 16. She competed in the Junior Olympics and
Washington State championships in swimming; she ranked 5th in the state
in all-around gymnastics (which would come in handy for starring in
The Next Karate Kid (1994)
years later). In 1990, Hilary and her mother moved to Los Angeles,
where she enrolled in South Pasadena High School, and started acting
professionally. She appeared in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)
but
The Next Karate Kid (1994),
where she got the part competing against hundreds of other actresses,
was her breakout role. Ever since then, she has been much in demand and
has worked non-stop in movies. She won the Best Actress Oscar for
playing "Brandon Teena" in
Boys Don't Cry (1999). In addition
to the Oscar, Hilary won the Golden Globe Award for "Best Actress in a
Drama" and "Best Actress" prizes from The New York Film Critics, The
Los Angeles Film Critics, The Chicago Film Critics and The Broadcast
Film Critics Association. She also won the "Breakthrough Performance"
prize from The National Board of Review.
Hilary then appeared in supporting roles opposite
Cate Blanchett and
Keanu Reeves in
Sam Raimi's
The Gift (2000) and opposite
Al Pacino and
Robin Williams in
Christopher Nolan's
Insomnia (2002). Hilary then starred as
"Alice Paul" in HBO's
Iron Jawed Angels (2004),
which told the story of the women's suffragist movement and she was
honored with both SAG and Golden Globe nominations for her performance
in this film. In 2004, Hilary starred opposite
Clint Eastwood and
Morgan Freeman as the title
character in Eastwood's
Million Dollar Baby (2004);
the story of a young woman's quest to realize her dream of becoming a
professional boxer. For this performance, she was honored with her
second Academy Award for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading
Role" and has garnered "Best Actress" prizes from the National Society
of Film Critics, the Screen Actors Guild, The Broadcast Film Critics,
and a Golden Globe for "Best Lead Actress in a Drama".
Hilary Swank is the third youngest woman in history to win two Academy
Awards for "Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role".
She subsequently had a supporting role opposite
Scarlett Johansson and
Josh Hartnett in
Brian De Palma's
The Black Dahlia (2006), starred
in Freedom Writers (2007), the
true story of Long Beach schoolteacher,
Erin Gruwell,
The Reaping (2007) for Warner
Brothers, and reunited with her
Freedom Writers (2007)
writer/director,
Richard LaGravenese, starring in the
film adaptation of Cecelia Ahern's novel,
P.S. I Love You (2007).
An aficionado for anything that involves the outdoors, she enjoys: sky
diving, river rafting and skiing.