ACTOR · BORN 1975
Charlize Theron
- Born
- 7 August 1975, Benoni, Gauteng, South Africa
- Known for
- Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), Æon Flux (2005), Tully (2018), The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)
137 archived facts 6 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
Charlize Theron (born 7 August 1975) is an actor best known for Mad Max: Fury Road, Æon Flux and Tully.
137 Interesting Facts About Charlize Theron
Interesting Facts (44)
- #001
Charlize Theron has obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) to the extent that if she rents a house or hotel room during a film shoot, she cannot relax until she has explored every closet, cupboard and drawer in the place.
- #002
On Sunday Morning Shootout (2003), it emerged that Charlize Theron's manager discovered her after witnessing her shouting at a bank clerk at a Hollywood bank because the clerk refused to cash her check.
- #003
As a teenager in her native South Africa, Charlize Theron learned English by watching American television.
- #004
(3 May 2019) It emerged that Charlize Theron was hospitalized for five days after watching Borat (2006). She went to see the film while she had a pre-existing injury in her neck (a herniated disc in her neck). She laughed so much that her neck locked up. An ambulance had to take her to the hospital. Although the film was released nearly 15 years earlier, Theron said she never had a chance to pick up where she left off.
- #005
One of the first films Charlize Theron went to see in a theater was Splash (1984). After watching the film, she admitted that she was jealous of Daryl Hannah and had fallen in love with Tom Hanks. She even told herself she could have played the role of Madison better than Hannah.
- #006
Charlize Theron has her own charity, the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, aimed at reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS and sexual violence among young Africans.
- #007
Both of Charlize Theron's parents were born and raised in South Africa. Her ancestors are Afrikaner: largely Dutch, as well as French Huguenot (the origin of her surname) and German.
- #008
Charlize Theron used hypnotherapy to help her quit smoking.
- #009
Charlize Theron earns $2 million a year from Dior's "J'Adore" fragrance and $2.5 million a year from the Swiss watchmaker Raymond Weil.
- #010
Charlize Theron's native language is Afrikaans (South African Dutch), and in her youth she could not speak English fluently until she came to the United States. As a result, her natural accent when speaking English is American.
- #011
On 12 March 2008, on Late Show with David Letterman (1993), Charlize Theron announced that she was now a US citizen.
- #012
Charlize Theron is a United Nations Messenger of Peace.
- #013
Charlize Theron became a model at the age of 14.
- #014
Charlize Theron is the only child of Charles and Gerda Theron, whom she is named after. They worked in road construction.
- #015
Charlize Theron sued photographer Guido Argentini for breach of contract and invasion of privacy, alleging that he sold intimate photographs he had taken of her in 1994 to Playboy. She won the case.
- #016
In 2004, while filming Æon Flux (2005), Charlize Theron injured her neck. The injury was fortunately not serious enough to hospitalize her, but it delayed production by several weeks.
- #017
Charlize Theron's first modeling job was for the Afrikaans-language monthly women's magazine "Rooi Rose" (Red Rose) when she won "New Model Today" in 1991.
- #018
Charlize Theron is good friends with her North Country (2005) co-star Jeremy Renner.
- #019
Legendary film critic Roger Ebert was a great admirer of Theron's talent. In reviews of her films, he described her as "one of the best actors now working" and as an actress who "has the beauty of a model but has found resources within herself for these powerful roles about unglamorous women in the world of men."
- #020
With $14 million, Charlize Theron was the seventh highest-paid actress of 2017.
- #021
Nude photographs of Charlize Theron taken in 1994 were published in the May 1999 issue of Playboy magazine.
- #022
In the early 2000s, Charlize Theron founded the film company "Denver and Delilah Productions."
- #023
Charlize Theron supports animal rights and appeared in a PETA ad for its anti-fur campaign.
- #024
Charlize Theron ranked fifth on Forbes magazine's "Hollywood's Top-Earning Actresses in 2012" list. Her earnings between May 2011 and May 2012 were estimated at $18 million.
- #025
Charlize Theron was named "Sexiest Actress" on Victoria's Secret's "What Is Sexy" list.
- #026
Charlize Theron has been involved with women's rights organizations and has marched at pro-choice rallies.
- #027
On April 24, 2012, Charlize Theron received the National Association of Theatre Owners' Distinguished Decade of Achievement in Film Award at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.
- #028
A friend introduced Charlize Theron to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), and she became obsessed with it.
- #029
Charlize Theron placed first in the Beautiful People Internet poll, narrowly beating Cameron Diaz in second and Kate Beckinsale in third. The photo featured on the site was the famous "Diving Board" photograph.
- #030
Charlize Theron replaced Angelina Jolie in the role of Dagny Taggart in Atlas Shrugged: Part I (2011), and was herself replaced by Taylor Schilling.
- #031
Charlize Theron appeared in three films with Eddie Marsan: Hancock (2008), Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) and Atomic Blonde (2017).
- #032
Charlize Theron is frequently fan-cast as Elara Merandus from Victoria Aveyard's "The Red Queen" book series.
- #033
Charlize Theron studied acting with Ivana Chubbuck.
- #034
Charlize Theron draws inspiration from actresses Susan Sarandon and Ellen Barkin.
- #035
Her surname Theron is correctly pronounced as a single syllable.
- #036
She was named one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in the World.
- #037
She was earning $5 a day when she had a hissy fit in a bank, and a man asked her whether she was an actress; she said she was going to be one. He was a talent manager and gave her his card.
- #038
She was chosen by Femme Fatales magazine as one of the "50 sexiest women on the planet."
- #039
She was one of the "most desirable" women on AskMen's 2013 list of the top 99 "most desirable" women of the year.
- #040
She appeared in two different post-apocalyptic dystopian films whose titles contain the word "road": The Road (2009) and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
- #041
She gives birth in two of her films: The Road (2009) and Tully (2018).
- #042
She received the "Decade of Hotness" award from Spike TV (Guy's Choice).
- #043
She was included in FHM UK's '100 Sexiest Women' list in 1999 (#54), 2001 (#8), 2004 (#4) and 2005 (#15); FHM Australia's 2011 '100 Sexiest Women' (20th place); FHM Taiwan's 2001 '100 Sexiest Women' (4th place); Maxim magazine's Hot 100 Women in 2004 (#43), 2005 (#15), 2006 (#26), 2008 (#11), 2009 (#38), 2012 (#16), 2013 (#31) and 2014 (#24); AskMen's Top 99 Women in 2003 (1st place), 2005 (3rd), 2006 (6th) and 2007 (24th place); and in 2007 she was named Esquire magazine's 'Sexiest Woman Alive.'.
- #044
At the 2005 Golden Globe Awards she was sporting a new dark hair color. She is among the celebrities who have dyed their hair from blonde to brown or black. These include: Mary-Kate Olsen; Nicky Rothschild; Mandy Moore; Renée Zellweger; Christina Aguilera, Melinda Messenger and Ashlee Simpson.
Production Story (1)
- #045
Charlize Theron was originally cast as Gerda Wegener in The Danish Girl (2015), but left the project when production was delayed; Gwyneth Paltrow was brought in to replace her, and Alicia Vikander replaced Paltrow in turn.
Behind the Scenes (68)
- #046
When she was 15, her father attacked her mother, and her mother shot and killed him. The shooting was ruled legally justifiable self-defense, and her mother was not charged in connection with the incident.
- #047
After winning the Oscar, she returned to big celebrations in her native South Africa and even met former South African President Nelson Mandela. When he praised her for putting her country on the map and hugged her, Theron burst into tears (on 11 March 2004 she was the guest of honor of the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg).
- #048
She always speaks Afrikaans with her mother, who lives two minutes away from her in Los Angeles. They have matching fish tattoos.
- #049
If she rents a house or hotel room during a film shoot, she is so obsessive-compulsive (OCD) that she cannot relax until she has explored every closet, cupboard and drawer in the place.
- #050
At 16 she went to Milan, Italy, and won a modeling competition to work on the runways, and at 18 she won a scholarship to study ballet at the Joffrey School in New York. The only reason she turned to acting was that she injured both knees, dashing all her hopes for a ballet career.
- #051
On Sunday Morning Shootout (2003), it emerged that her manager discovered her after witnessing her shouting at a bank clerk at a Hollywood bank because he refused to cash her check.
- #052
As a teenager in her native South Africa, she learned English by watching American television.
- #053
(3 May 2019) It emerged that she was hospitalized for five days after watching Borat (2006). She went to see the film while she had a pre-existing injury in her neck (a herniated disc in her neck). She laughed so hard that her neck locked up. An ambulance had to take her to the hospital. Although the film was released nearly 15 years earlier, Theron said she never had a chance to pick up where she left off.
- #054
One of the first films she went to see in a theater was Splash (1984). After watching it, she admitted that she was jealous of Daryl Hannah and had fallen in love with Tom Hanks. She even told herself she could have played the role of Madison better than Hannah.
- #055
She has her own charity, the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, aimed at reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS and sexual violence among young Africans.
- #056
She turned down the female lead in Pearl Harbor (2001) in order to star alongside Keanu Reeves in Sweet November (2001).
- #057
Both of her parents were born and raised in South Africa. Her ancestors are Afrikaner: largely Dutch, as well as French Huguenot (the origin of her surname) and German.
- #058
She used hypnotherapy as an aid to quit smoking.
- #059
She earns $2 million a year from Dior's "J'Adore" fragrance and $2.5 million a year from Swiss watchmaker Raymond Weil.
- #060
She has two adopted children: a son, Jackson Theron (b. November 2011, adopted in March 2012), and a daughter, August Theron (adopted in July 2015).
- #061
Her native language is Afrikaans (South African Dutch), and in her youth she could not speak English fluently until she came to the United States. As a result, her natural accent when speaking English is American.
- #062
She gained 30 kilos to play Aileen Wuornos in Monster (2003). She was awarded the Best Actress Oscar for the role on 29 February 2004, Aileen's 48th birthday.
- #063
The correct pronunciation of her name: Sharleese Ti-ron. The "Ti" is pronounced as in cash register. Her surname is a well-known Afrikaans surname of French origin, brought to South Africa through the migration of French Huguenots.
- #064
On 12 March 2008, on Late Show with David Letterman (1993), she announced that she was now a US citizen.
- #065
She is the second South African-born person to win an Academy Award; the first was Ted Moore. Basil Rathbone was the first South African-born actor to be nominated, followed by Cecil Kellaway. Theron was the first South African-born woman to win an Oscar.
- #066
On 29 September 2005, she was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
- #067
United Nations Messenger of Peace.
- #068
She became a model at 14.
- #069
She trained as a ballet dancer at the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City and performed in both "Swan Lake" and "The Nutcracker." Her dance career ended after a knee injury.
- #070
She has said her favorite actor is Tom Hanks.
- #071
She has no middle name. However, her mother has 13 children.
- #072
She is the only child of Charles and Gerda Theron, whom she is named after. They worked in road construction.
- #073
She sued photographer Guido Argentini for breach of contract and invasion of privacy, alleging that he sold intimate photos he took of her in 1994 to Playboy. She won the case.
- #074
She shaved her head for the role of Imperator Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
- #075
In 2004, while shooting Æon Flux (2005), she injured her neck. Fortunately, the injury was not serious enough to hospitalize her, but it caused production to be delayed by several weeks.
- #076
Her first modeling job was for the Afrikaans-language monthly women's magazine "Rooi Rose" (Red Rose) when she won "New Model Today" in 1991.
- #077
She is good friends with her North Country (2005) co-star Jeremy Renner.
- #078
Legendary film critic Roger Ebert was a great admirer of Theron's talent. In reviews of her films, he described her as "one of the best actors now working" and "an actress who has the beauty of a model but has found resources within herself for these powerful roles about unglamorous women in the world of men."
- #079
With $14 million, she was the seventh highest-paid actor of 2017.
- #080
Nude photographs taken in 1994 were published in the May 1999 issue of Playboy magazine.
- #081
In the early 2000s she founded the film company "Denver and Delilah Productions".
- #082
"Entertainment Weekly" predicted the Oscar triumph of Monster (2003) 11 months before she won it.
- #083
She was considered for the role of Satine in Moulin Rouge! (2001), but Nicole Kidman, who earned a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, was cast in her place.
- #084
She is a supporter of animal rights and appeared in a PETA advertisement for its anti-fur campaign.
- #085
She ranked 5th on Forbes magazine's "Hollywood's Top-Earning Actresses in 2012" list. Her income between May 2011 and May 2012 was estimated at 18 million dollars.
- #086
She was named "Sexiest Actress" on Victoria's Secret's What Is Sexy list.
- #087
She took part in women's rights organizations and marched at pro-choice rallies.
- #088
On April 24, 2012, she received the National Association of Theatre Owners' Distinguished Decade of Achievement in Film Award at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.
- #089
She was listed as a potential nominee in the voting for the 2006 Razzie Awards. She was put forward as a suggestion in the Worst Actress category for her performance in Æon Flux (2005). However, she was not nominated (had she been nominated, she would have been the first person nominated for both an Oscar, for Best Actress for North Country (2005), and a Razzie).
- #090
She was introduced to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) by a friend and became obsessed with it.
- #091
Four months after adopting her son Jackson, she returned to work to begin shooting Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
- #092
In April 2019, Theron announced that her son Jackson identifies as a girl. "I'm raising two beautiful, proud Black African girls, and I want them to find themselves and not have my ancestry imposed on them," she said.
- #093
She placed 1st in the Beautiful People Internet Poll, narrowly beating Cameron Diaz in 2nd and Kate Beckinsale in 3rd. The photo on the site was the famous 'Diving Board' photograph.
- #094
She replaced Angelina Jolie in the role of Dagny Taggart in Atlas Shrugged: Part I (2011), and was herself replaced by Taylor Schilling.
- #095
She was nominated for the 2019 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy for the role of Marlo in Tully (2018), but lost to Olivia Colman for The Favourite (2018).
- #096
She dyed her hair black for the lead role in Æon Flux (2005).
- #097
Charlize completely transformed her appearance to play Aileen Wuornos in her Oscar-winning performance, gaining about 30 lbs and wearing prosthetic teeth.
- #098
She was initially cast in the role of Gerda Wegener in The Danish Girl (2015), but after the production was delayed she left the project; Gwyneth Paltrow was brought in to replace her, and Alicia Vikander replaced Paltrow in turn.
- #099
She shares the same background as Daniel Bonjour, who also left South Africa as a young actor and traveled to Europe and then to the United States. Both of her parents are of European origin. Both actors also found it easier to use an American accent in their work.
- #100
She became the 125th actor to win an Oscar; on February 29, 2004, at the 76th Annual Academy Awards (2004), she won the Best Actress Oscar for Monster (2003).
- #101
She appeared in three films with Eddie Marsan: Hancock (2008), Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) and Atomic Blonde (2017).
- #102
She was considered for the role of Helen Gandy in J. Edgar (2011), but Naomi Watts was chosen instead.
- #103
She is frequently praised for the role of Elara Merandus from Victoria Aveyard's "The Red Queen" book series.
- #104
In 2005, she became the first person to present at the 77th Academy Awards.
- #105
She studied acting with Ivana Chubbuck.
- #106
She draws inspiration from actresses Susan Sarandon and Ellen Barkin.
- #107
She is Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year.
- #108
She was earning 5 dollars a day and had a hissy fit in a bank, and a man asked her whether she was an actress, and she said she was going to be one. He was a talent manager and gave her his card.
- #109
She was chosen by Femme Fatales magazine as one of the "50 sexiest women on the planet".
- #110
She appeared in two different post-apocalyptic dystopian films with the word "road" in the title: The Road (2009) and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
- #111
She was included on FHM UK's '100 Sexiest Women' list in 1999 (#54), 2001 (#8), 2004 (#4) and 2005 (#15); FHM Australia's '100 Sexiest Women' in 2011 (20th); FHM Taiwan's '100 Sexiest Women' in 2001 (4th); Maxim magazine's Hot 100 Women in 2004 (#43), 2005 (#15), 2006 (#26), 2008 (#11), 2009 (#38), 2012 (#16), 2013 (#31) and 2014 (#24); AskMen's Top 99 Women in 2003 (1st), 2005 (3rd), 2006 (6th) and 2007 (24th); and in 2007 she was named Esquire magazine's 'Sexiest Woman Alive'.
- #112
She was voted the 12th Sexiest Female Movie Star in Australian Empire magazine.
- #113
At the 2005 Golden Globe Awards, she was sporting a new dark hair color. She is among the celebrities who have dyed their hair from blonde to brown or black. These include: Mary-Kate Olsen; Nicky Rothschild; Mandy Moore; Renée Zellweger; Christina Aguilera, Melinda Messenger and Ashlee Simpson.
Characters & Cast (3)
- #114
Charlize Theron turned down the female lead in Pearl Harbor (2001) to star alongside Keanu Reeves in Sweet November (2001).
- #115
Charlize Theron shaved her head for the role of Imperator Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
- #116
Charlize Theron dyed her hair black for the lead role in Æon Flux (2005).
Career & Awards (11)
- #117
After winning the Oscar, Charlize Theron returned to massive celebrations in her native South Africa and even met former South African President Nelson Mandela. When he praised her for putting her country on the map and hugged her, Theron burst into tears (she was the guest of honor of the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Johannesburg on 11 March 2004).
- #118
At 16, Charlize Theron won a modeling contest and went to Milan, Italy, to work on the runways, and at 18 she won a scholarship to study ballet at the Joffrey School in New York. The only reason she turned to acting was that she injured both of her knees, dashing all her hopes for a ballet career.
- #119
Charlize Theron gained 30 kilos to play Aileen Wuornos in Monster (2003). She was awarded the Best Actress Oscar for the role on 29 February 2004, Aileen's 48th birthday.
- #120
On September 29, 2005, Charlize Theron was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
- #121
"Entertainment Weekly" predicted Charlize Theron's Oscar win for Monster (2003) 11 months before she achieved it.
- #122
Charlize Theron was considered for the role of Satine in Moulin Rouge! (2001), but Nicole Kidman, who earned a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, was cast instead.
- #123
Charlize Theron was listed as a potential nominee in the voting for the 2006 Razzie Awards, suggested in the Worst Actress category for her performance in Æon Flux (2005), but she did not receive a nomination. Had she been nominated, she would have been the first person nominated for both an Oscar and a Razzie for Best Actress in the same year, for North Country (2005).
- #124
Charlize Theron was nominated for the 2019 Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for her role as Marlo in Tully (2018), but lost to Olivia Colman for The Favourite (2018).
- #125
Charlize Theron completely transformed her appearance to play Aileen Wuornos in her Oscar-winning performance, gaining about 30 lbs and wearing prosthetic teeth.
- #126
Charlize Theron became the 125th actor to win an Oscar, taking the Best Actress award for Monster (2003) at the 76th Annual Academy Awards on February 29, 2004.
- #127
She was voted the 12th Sexiest Female Movie Star by Australian Empire magazine.
Life & Family (10)
- #128
When Charlize Theron was 15, her father attacked her mother, who shot and killed him. The shooting was ruled legally justifiable self-defense, and her mother was not charged in the incident.
- #129
Charlize Theron always speaks Afrikaans with her mother, who lives two minutes away from her in Los Angeles. The two have matching fish tattoos.
- #130
Charlize Theron has two adopted children: a son, Jackson Theron (b. November 2011, adopted in March 2012), and a daughter, August Theron (adopted in July 2015).
- #131
The correct pronunciation of her name is Sharleese Ti-ron. "Ti" is pronounced as in the word "tie". Her surname is a well-known Afrikaans surname of French origin, brought to South Africa through the migration of French Huguenots.
- #132
Charlize Theron has said that her favorite actor is Tom Hanks.
- #133
Charlize Theron has no middle name, but her mother has 13 children.
- #134
Four months after adopting her son Jackson, Charlize Theron returned to work to begin filming Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
- #135
In April 2019, Charlize Theron revealed that her son Jackson identifies as a girl. "I'm raising two beautiful, proud Black African girls, and I want them to find themselves and not have my ancestry imposed on them," she said.
- #136
Charlize Theron shares a similar background with Daniel Bonjour, who also left South Africa as a young actor and traveled to Europe and then the United States. Both of her parents are of European origin. Both actors also found it easier to use an American accent in their work.
- #137
She was named Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year.
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