When Natalie Portman made her debut in acting on the silver screen as Matilda in Leon the Professional (1995), her parents were not only concerned about the exigencies of the role, but they made their own demands of director Luc Besson.
In an interview, Portman said that the cigarettes in the movie were fake, and even then, she was only allowed to carry 5 in total during the entire shooting. She correctly points out that viewers won’t see her blowing out any smoke in the movie. Her parents also encouraged including the arc of Matilda quitting her addiction at some point during the film. And, of course, for the Besson’s movie to scale down its “sexual overtones.”
After the movie’s production, and during the promotion phase, a 13-year-old Portman went on David Letterman’s talk show and revealed that her parents also weren’t keen on allowing her to stay up till too late at night.
It’s fair to assume that her mom and dad were very concerned about their daughter’s well-being and comfort in the new professional environment – something a parent should always be when their kid is entering the movie-making machine, instead of fixating on profits, vainglory, or prestige.
Introducing Natalie Portman’s dedicated parents
Natalie Portman is the only child from a Jewish family with Polish, Austrian, Russian, and American roots. She was born Natalie Hershlag on Tuesday, June 9, 1981, in Jerusalem, Israel – the same day as her mother’s, Shelley Stevens, birthday. She’s a full-time homemaker – Shelley dislikes the term “housewife” – who also works as her daughter’s agent.
Her father, Avner Hershlag, is an Israeli-born gynecologist and infertility specialist. His occupation once gave rise to a funny occasion when Natalie said at school that her father’s job was “helping women get pregnant,” via Letterman.
The family of three moved to the U.S. when Natalie was just three years old, due to a residency her father was selected to do in Maryland. They would later move around the country – Connecticut, New York – thanks to her father’s career. Natalie has always made it clear that, although she was unable to build lasting roots at first, she had a very stable support system at home.
Much more recently, Natalie told Drew Barrymore about how her experience getting into acting as a child was quite unproblematic, considering the industry’s standard. I think by now we know who is to thank for her happier-than-average child actor journey.