Scarlett Johansson Biography and Pictures Gallery 2011

Scarlett Johansson Biography and Pictures Gallery 2011

 Scarlett Johansson (born November 22, 1984) is an American actress and singer. Johansson made her film debut in the 1994 film North and was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in 1996's Manny & Lo. Johansson rose to fame with her roles in 1998's The Horse Whisperer and 2001's Ghost World.
She transitioned to adult roles with her performances in Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation, for which she won a BAFTA Award, and Girl with a Pearl Earring, both of which earned her Golden Globe Award nominations in 2003. A role in A Love Song for Bobby Long earned her a third Golden Globe for Best Actress nomination. Following an appearance in The Island, Johansson garnered a fourth Golden Globe nomination, for Best Supporting Actress, for her role in Woody Allen's Match Point. She also starred in other Allen movies such as Scoop, with Hugh Jackman and Allen himself, and Vicky Cristina Barcelona, alongside Javier Bardem, Penélope Cruz and Rebecca Hall. Scarlett Johansson also appeared in other films such as Christopher Nolan's The Prestige and the Summer blockbuster Iron Man 2. A role in the 2010's Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's A View From the Bridge gave her some of the career's best reviews for her acting work and she received a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play.

On May 20, 2008, Johansson debuted as a vocalist on her first album, Anywhere I Lay My Head, which included cover versions of Tom Waits songs. Her second album, Break Up, with Pete Yorn, was released in September 2009.

 Early life

Johansson was born in New York City on November 22, 1984. Her father, Karsten Johansson, is a Danish-born architect, and her paternal grandfather, Ejner Johansson, was a screenwriter and director. Her mother, Melanie Sloan, a producer, comes from an Ashkenazi Jewish family from the Bronx. Johansson has an older sister, Vanessa, who is an actress; an older brother, Adrian; a twin brother, Hunter (who appeared in the film Manny & Lo with Scarlett); and an older half-brother, Christian, from her father's first marriage.

Johansson grew up in a household with "little money," and with a mother who was a "film buff." She and her brother, Hunter, attended P.S. 41 in Greenwich Village in elementary school. Johansson began her theatrical training by attending and graduating from Professional Children's School in Manhattan in 2002