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| Birth Name(s) : Renee Kathleen Zellweiger |
Date of Birth: April 25, 1969 |
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| Profession:
Actor |
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Full Renee Zellweger Biography
Renee Kathleen Zellweger was born on April 25, 1969, in Katy, Texas, USA to parents Emil Zellweiger, a Swiss-born engineer who married Renee's mother Kjellfrid Zellweiger, a Norwegian-born former nurse and midwife in 1963. Renee also has a brother named Drew Zellweiger, a marketing executive born on February 15, 1967. Renee got interested in acting in high school while working on the drama club. She also took an acting class at the University of Texas, where she began looking towards acting as a career. After graduation, she wanted to continue acting, but Hollywood is a tough town to break into.
So Renee decided to stay in Texas, and auditioned for roles around Houston where she managed to grab roles in such films as Reality Bites (1994) and Empire Records (1995). She then took a role in the sequel to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, where she met Matthew McConaughey, another Hollywood up-and-comer. He was working on a project at the time that Renee was interested in, auditioned for and won the role in the film Love and a .45 (1994), which earned her enough critical praise that she decided to move to Los Angeles.
Another role in Whole Wide World, The (1996) followed which led to her big break. Cameron Crowe was busy casting his next film, Jerry Maguire (1996), starring Tom Cruise. Crowe was considering such actresses as Cameron Diaz, Bridget Fonda, Winona Ryder, and Marisa Tomei, when he heard of Zellweger's performance in Whole Wide World, The (1996). He auditioned Zellweger and was sure he'd found his Dorothy Boyd. Renee followed her huge success with a few small independent films and after receiving further critical praise, she felt confident enough to reenter the world of big-budget Hollywood films. She starred opposite Meryl Streep in the tear-jerker One True Thing (1998). She also took a role in Me, Myself & Irene (2000), opposite Jim Carrey. And soon after began dating Carrey. The two denied their relationship at first, but finally gave in and admitted their love; but today they are no longer together. Also in 2000 she starred in the title role in Nurse Betty (2000), where she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical. In 2001, she received even more critical and commercial success in the yet again title role in Bridget Jones's Diary (2001). |
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Additional Renee Zellweger Biography
Renée Kathleen Zellweger (born April 25, 1969) is an Academy Award-winning American film actress. One of Hollywood's highest paid actresses, she commands between $12-$15 million per film.
In 2001, Zellweger gained the prized lead role in the film Bridget Jones's Diary, amid much controversy since she was neither British nor overweight. During casting Zellweger was told she was too skinny to play the chubby Bridget, so she very quickly embarked on gaining the required weight. Her dramatically personal yo-yoing weight has been the subject of much media interest. As well as receiving voice coaching to fine-tune her English accent, part of Zellweger's preparations involved spending three weeks working undercover in a "job experience placement" for British publishing firm Picador in Victoria, London. As a result of her considerable efforts to effect author Helen Fielding's character, Zellweger caught the attention of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and received her first Best Actress Academy Award nomination.
Zellweger and Marc Forster, took part in the 2005 HIV prevention campaign of the Swiss federal health department. Zellweger was the subject of an Israeli pop song Renée by Ariel Horowitz, where Horowitz describes his love to Zellweger, and says that he would like to marry her and bring her back to Israel with him.
Zellweger dated Sims Ellison while studying at the University of Texas, but the couple broke up after graduation. She also dated Josh Pate, whom she began seeing in November 1996 after the filming of "Deceiver". She also was rumoured to have dated George Clooney. Her first high-profile romance was with actor/comedian Jim Carrey. The relationship ended in a broken engagement in December 2000. Zellweger notably poked fun at the prior relationship when she ended her opening monologue on Saturday Night Live by reading an entry from her own "diary", marked "Dear Diary, I can't believe I am dating Jim Carrey".
For two years, Zellweger dated The White Stripes singer Jack White, who is six years her junior. However, it was felt that White didn't want to settle down, and they broke up.
On May 9, 2005, Zellweger married singer Kenny Chesney in a ceremony at the island of St. John. They had met in January at a tsunami relief benefit concert. Zellweger missed out on the engagement ring since the wedding was planned over a short span of time. On September 15, 2005, after only four months of marriage, they announced their plans for an annulment. Zellweger cited fraud as the reason in the related papers. After media scrutiny of her use of the word "fraud", she released the following statement: "(The term is) simply legal language and not a reflection of Kenny's character. I would personally be very grateful for your support in refraining from drawing derogatory, hurtful, sensationalized or untrue conclusions. We hope to experience this transition as privately as possible." The annulment was finalized in late December 2005. When interviewed on Late Show with David Letterman in December 2006, she was still reluctant to answer questions over the relationship. Since her marriage annulment, she has been linked to various personalities, including actor Luke Perry of Beverly Hills, 90210 fame.
Zellweger sold her home in the Hollywood Hills, and after renting for a while she now again owns a home in Bel Air. She admits that she gets scared at home alone, and has considered buying a gun for reasons of personal security.
Golden Globe Awards:
- Best Performance by an Actress-Comedy/Musical Nurse Betty (2001)
- Best Performance by an Actress-Comedy/Musical Chicago (2003)
- Best Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Cold Mountain (2004)
Screen Actors Guild:
- Best Performance by a Motion Picture Cast Chicago (2003)
- Best Performance by a Female Actor in Leading Role Chicago (2003)
- Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role Cold Mountain (2004)
Academy Awards
- Best Actress in a Leading Role Bridget Jones's Diary (2002)
- Best Actress in a Leading Role Chicago (2003)
BAFTA
- Best Actress in a Leading Role Bridget Jones's Diary (2002)
- Best Actress in a Leading Role Chicago (2003)
Golden Globe Awards:
- Best Performance by an Actress-Comedy/Musical Bridget Jones's Diary (2002)
- Best Performance by an Actress-Comedy/Musical Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2005)
- Best Performance by an Actress-Comedy/Musical Miss Potter (2006) |
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Renee Zellweger Quote(s)
| It opens your eyes in this town, it's amazing. It's taught me who I don't want to be. |
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