Anna Helene Paquin (born July 24, 1982) is an Academy Award-winning, Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated, Canadian-New Zealander actress. Her breakthrough performance was in The Piano, which earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting actress and made her the second youngest winner in history at the age of 11. She is also the first Canadian-born actress to win Best Supporting Actress.

Biography

Early life

Paquin was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, the daughter of Mary (née Brophy), an English teacher and native of Wellington, New Zealand, and Brian Paquin, a high school physical education teacher. Paquin moved to New Zealand when she was four. She attended the Raphael House Rudolf Steiner School until she was eight or nine. Her musical childhood hobbies in New Zealand included playing the viola, cello and piano. She also did gymnastics, ballet, swimming and downhill skiing, but she didn’t have hobbies related to acting.

While in New Zealand, Paquin attended Hutt Intermediate School from 1994-1995, where she completed Form 1 and 2. Having begun her secondary education in Wellington, New Zealand, she completed her high school diploma at Windward School in Los Angeles, where she moved with her mother following her parents’ divorce. She graduated from Windward School in June 2000 and completed the school’s community service requirement by working in an LA soup kitchen and at a special education center. She studied at Columbia University for one year, but has since been on a leave of absence to continue her acting career.

Acclaim as a child actress

Paquin’s big-screen debut happened when she attended the open audition for Flora for The Piano along with her sister. The director was impressed by nine-year-old Paquin’s performance of the monologue about Flora’s father, and she was chosen from among the 5000 candidates.

When The Piano was released in 1993 it was lauded by critics, won prizes at a number of film festivals, and eventually became a popular movie among a wide audience. Paquin’s debut performance in the film earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at the age of eleven, making her the second-youngest Oscar winner in history after Tatum O’Neal.

Paquin as Flora, telling the story about her father in The Piano

The Piano was made as a small independent movie and wasn’t intended to be widely known, and Paquin and her family didn’t plan to continue in the acting circles. However, she was invited to the prestigious William Morris Agency, and she kept receiving offers for new roles. She systematically refused them, but she did appear in three commercials for the phone company MCI (now Verizon). She also appeared as a voice in an audio book entitled The Magnificent Nose in 1994.

In 1996, she appeared in two movies. The first role was as young Jane in Jane Eyre. The other was a lead part in Fly Away Home playing a young girl who, after her mother dies, moves in with her father and finds solace in taking care of orphaned goslings.

As a teenager, she had roles in several small films, such as A Walk on the Moon, The Member of the Wedding, Amistad, Hurlyburly and She’s All That.

New fame in X-Men

Paquin returned to worldwide prominence with her role as Rogue in the blockbuster X-Men movie in 2000, its sequel X2: X-Men United in 2003, and its third installment X-Men: The Last Stand in 2006.

In the summer of 2006, she completed filming Blue State which she also executive-produced, after she and her older brother, producer Andrew Paquin, formed the production company Paquin Films. In November 2006, she completed Margaret. This film is now scheduled for release in 2009, according to imdb.com.

In 2007, Paquin received an Emmy Award nomination for Supporting Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie for her role as Elaine Goodale in the HBO’s made-for-TV movie Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, based on Dee Brown’s bestseller. She also received Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations in similar categories.

In 2008, Paquin is appearing as Sookie Stackhouse in the HBO series True Blood, her first role in a TV series. The show is based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries series of novels by Charlaine Harris.

Theater career

Paquin is also a critically acclaimed stage actress, having made her stage debut in 2001 in a production of The Glory of Living at the MCC Theater. She was nominated for a Drama Desk Award, and won a Theater World Award for her performance. Paquin appeared on the West End stage in a production of This is Our Youth in 2002. Paquin has since appeared in a number of plays and says that, although “very hard work”, she loves doing theater.

Personal life

In 2001, Paquin became a citizen of New Zealand, meaning she has dual Canada/New Zealand citizenship.

Paquin lives in California, in the Venice area of Los Angeles. Her family are spread as far afield as San Francisco, Cannes, her birthplace Canada and New Zealand.

Paquin’s previous relationships include a DJ who lived in New Zealand and fellow actor Logan Marshall-Green, whom she dated for a year before their break-up in 2005. She is believed to be currently dating actor Kieran Culkin, who she has been close friends with for many years, having worked with him on a few previous occasions in both film and theater. Neither Paquin nor Culkin have publicly acknowledged their relationship, but they have shown public displays of affection whilst out and about in New York in recent years, which has brought their relationship to public attention.

Paquin’s hobbies include dancing, boxing, skateboarding and surfing. She is also now into cycling, having just learned how to ride a bicycle recently. She says her parents never taught her how to when she was young, they just assumed she knew.

Filmography and awards

Theater credits

• The Glory of Living; MCC Theater, New York, 2001 – Lisa (Won Theatre World Award (Outstanding Actress) in 2002 for the role)

• This is Our Youth; Garrick Theatre, London, 2002 – Jessica Goldman (Nominated for Drama Desk Award (Outstanding Actress) for the role)

• Manuscript (Reading); Falmouth Academy, New York, 2003 – Elizabeth Hawkins

• Drug Buddy (Reading); Manhattan Theater Club, 2003 – Wendy

• Roulette; Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York, 2004 – Jenny

• The Distance From Here; MCC Theater, New York, 2004 – Shari (Won Drama Desk Award (Outstanding Cast Ensemble) in 2004)

• The 24 Hour Plays, South Of The Border; MCC Theater, 2004 – Maylene

• After Ashley; Vineyard Theatre, New York, 2005 – Julie Bell

• Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead; (Reading); Westside Theatre, New York, 2005 – Marcy

• The 24 Hour Plays, The Blizzard; MCC Theater, 2006 – Jenny

Awards

• 1993 – LAFCA Award – Best Supporting Actress for The Piano
• 1994 – Academy Awards – Best Supporting Actress for The Piano
• 2001 – Online Film Critics Society Awards – Best Ensemble Cast Performance for Almost Famous
• 2005 – Gotham Awards – Best Ensemble Cast for The Squid and the Whale

Nominations

• 1994 – Golden Globe Award – Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for The Piano
• 1997 – YoungStar Awards – Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Drama Film for Fly Away Home
• 1997 – Young Artist Awards – Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actress for Fly Away Home
• 1998 – Young Artist Awards – Best Performance in a TV Movie/Pilot/Mini-Series – Leading Young Actress for The Member of the Wedding
• 1999 – YoungStar Awards – Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Drama Film for A Walk On The Moon
• 2000 – Young Artist Awards – Best Performance in a Feature Film – Supporting Young Actress for A Walk On The Moon
• 2001 – Screen Actors Guild Awards – Outstanding Performance by the Cast of a Theatrical Motion Picture for Almost Famous
• 2001 – Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films – Best Performance by a Younger Actor for X-Men
• 2001 – Saturn Award – Best Performance by a Younger Actor for X-Men
• 2001 – Blockbuster Entertainment Award – Favorite Actress – Science Fiction for X-Men
• 2003 – Teen Choice Awards – Choice Movie Chemistry for X2: X-Men United
• 2004 – MTV Movie Awards 2 nominations:

• 2007 – Emmy Award – Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie for Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee
• 2008 – Golden Globe Award – Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee
• 2008 – Screen Actors Guild Award – Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries for Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Crisell, Luke (2007-05-21). “Rogue Star”, New York Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-05-21. 
2. ^ “X Appeal”, Guardian Unlimited (2000-08-06). Retrieved on 2007-05-21. 
3. ^ “Anna Paquin Biography (1982-)”. filmreference.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-31.
4. ^ “X Patriate Anna Paquin”, NZHerald.co.nz (May 2003). Retrieved on 2007-12-31. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Verhaeghe, Melanie (Summer 1994), “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”, Homemakers magazine .
6. ^ ^{a b c} Dutka, Elaine (1994-01-11). “A Young Star is Born in the Piano”, Los Angeles Times. 
7. ^ Hobson, Louis B. (1996-09-02). “Real-Life Acting Difficult for Paquin”, Calgary Sun. 
8. ^ “Verizon and MCI Close Merger, Creating a Stronger Competitor for Advanced Communications Services” (2006-01-06). 
9. ^ Lambert, Pam (1996-04-16). “Paquicking it in”. 
10. ^ ifilmalliance.com
11. ^ “Paquin Bites Into True Blood“, scifi.com (26 February 2007).