Scarlett Johansson Biography, Career, Net Worth, And Other Interesting Facts

Scarlett Johansson is an American Actress, Model, and Singer born on November 22, 1984. She was the highest-paid actress in 2018 and 2019 and often appears on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list. In 2021, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Her movies have made over $15.4 billion globally, making her the top-earning female star at the box office ever. Scarlett has won many awards, including a British Academy Film Award and a Tony Award. She’s also been nominated for two Academy Awards and five Golden Globe Awards.

Scarlett’s acting journey started young when she appeared in an off-Broadway play. She made her film debut in North (1994) and gained early fame with roles in Manny & Lo (1996), The Horse Whisperer (1998), and Ghost World (2001). Her big break into adult roles came with Lost in Translation (2003), which won her a BAFTA Award for Best Actress.

She impressed audiences with her performances in Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003), A Love Song for Bobby Long (2004), and Match Point (2005), the first of several collaborations with director Woody Allen. During this time, she also starred in The Prestige (2006) and released music albums Anywhere I Lay My Head (2008) and Break Up (2009), both of which made it onto the Billboard 200.

In 2010, Scarlett Johansson made her Broadway debut in a revival of A View from the Bridge, winning a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play. She also began her iconic role as Black Widow in Iron Man 2, appearing in a total of eight Marvel movies, including her solo film Black Widow (2021). This role catapulted her to international fame. Scarlett also starred in sci-fi hits like Her (2013), Under the Skin (2013), and Lucy (2014). In 2019, she achieved a rare feat with two simultaneous Academy Award nominations: Best Actress for Marriage Story and Best Supporting Actress for Jojo Rabbit.

Often called a sex symbol, Scarlett Johansson is considered one of the world’s most attractive women by various media. She endorses many brands and supports several charities. She was previously married to actor Ryan Reynolds and businessman Romain Dauriac. Since 2020, she has been married to comedian Colin Jost. She has two children, one with Dauriac and another with Jost.

Scarlett Johansson’s Early Life and Education

Scarlett Johansson was born on November 22, 1984, in Manhattan, New York City. Her father Karsten Olaf Johansson is an architect from Copenhagen, Denmark. Her mother Melanie Sloan is a producer from New York. Scarlett’s grandfather Ejner Johansson was a Swedish art historian, screenwriter, and film director. Melanie’s family is Ashkenazi Jewish originally from Poland and Russia with the last name Schlamberg. Scarlett identifies as Jewish and has an older sister, Vanessa, who is also an actress, an older brother, Adrian, and a twin brother, Hunter. She also has an older half-brother, Christian, from her father’s first marriage. Scarlett holds both American and Danish citizenship.

On a 2017 episode of PBS’s Finding Your Roots, Scarlett learned that her maternal great-grandfather’s brother and extended family died during the Holocaust in the Warsaw Ghetto.

Scarlett went to PS 41, an elementary school in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. Her parents divorced when she was thirteen. She was very close to her maternal grandmother Dorothy Sloan who was a bookkeeper and schoolteacher. They spent a lot of time together, and Scarlett considered her grandmother her best friend. From a young age, Scarlett loved performing and often did song-and-dance routines for her family. She especially loved musical theater and jazz hands, taking tap dance lessons with her parents’ support. She has described her childhood as very normal.

As a child, Scarlett Johansson would practice acting by staring in the mirror until she cried, inspired by Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis. When she was seven, she was upset when a talent agent signed one of her brothers instead of her, but she still pursued acting. After joining the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute and auditioning for commercials, she lost interest saying she didn’t want to promote Wonder Bread. Scarlett then focused on film and theater, making her first stage appearance with two lines in the off-Broadway play Sophistry with Ethan Hawke. Around this time, she started studying at the Professional Children’s School, a private school for aspiring child actors in Manhattan.

Acting career

1994–2002: Early work and breakthrough

When Scarlett Johansson was nine years old, she started acting in movies. Her first film was a comedy called North in 1994, where she played John Ritter’s daughter. She immediately felt comfortable on set, knowing what to do without being told.

After that, she took on small roles in movies like Just Cause in 1995 and If Lucy Fell in 1996. But it was her role in Manny & Lo that got people talking. She played Amanda, the younger sister of a pregnant teenager who runs away from home. Critics praised her performance, saying she had a special charm and a peaceful presence that could make her a big actress in the future.

Her big break came with The Horse Whisperer in 1998, where she acted alongside Robert Redford. The movie was based on a book and told the story of a horse trainer helping an injured teenager, played by Johansson. Even though she was young, Redford said she had a maturity beyond her years. Critics also praised her saying she captured the pain and awkwardness of her character perfectly. This role got her nominated for an award and made her realize how acting could manipulate emotions.

As she got older, she took on different roles, like in Ghost World in 2001, where she played a cynical outcast. Critics loved her performance, saying she showed talent beyond her age. She even won an award for it.

2003–2004: Transition to adult roles

Scarlett Johansson switched from being a teen actor to taking on more grown-up roles in 2003. She starred in two important movies: Lost in Translation and Girl with a Pearl Earring.

In Lost in Translation, directed by Sofia Coppola she plays Charlotte a young wife who feels lost and lonely. The director noticed Johansson’s talent from a previous movie and compared her to a famous actress from the past. The story of Lost in Translation was inspired by a real-life Hollywood couple. Even though the movie was made with a small budget it became a huge success earning a lot of money and great reviews. Critics praised Johansson’s performance, especially because she was playing a character older than herself.

In Girl with a Pearl Earring, Scarlett Johansson played Griet, a servant in the household of a famous painter. The director chose her after considering many other actors. Johansson didn’t read the book the movie was based on because she wanted to approach the character with fresh eyes. The movie received positive reviews, with critics highlighting Johansson’s talent for expressing emotions without words.

These two movies made Johansson stand out as a versatile actress. She received nominations for prestigious awards for both roles. After that, she appeared in several other films in 2004, some of which didn’t do well, but her performances were always praised by critics. She even voiced a character in a successful animated movie because she loves cartoons. Overall, critics admire Johansson’s ability to capture audiences with her subtle yet captivating acting.

She continued acting in movies like Eight-Legged Freaks in 2002. After finishing high school, she tried to go to New York University but got rejected. So, she decided to focus on her acting career instead.

2005–2009: Collaborations with Woody Allen

Scarlett Johansson starred in several movies between 2005 and 2009. In Match Point (2005), she played Nola, who has a thing with a married guy. The character was originally British, but they changed it to American when she got the role instead of Kate Winslet. Scarlett was nervous at first but did a great job, and so did Jonathan Rhys Meyers. The movie did well and got Scarlett nominated for some awards.

She was also in The Island (2005), where she played two roles and had a tough time with long days of shooting. The movie got mixed reviews but made good money.

In 2006, she did two movies about magicians with Hugh Jackman. In Scoop, she played a journalism student. Critics didn’t all agree on whether it was good or not, but they liked Scarlett. In The Black Dahlia, she was in a film noir, but some people thought she wasn’t the best fit for the part.

Scarlett was also in a short film in 2006 called When the Deal Goes Down, which was based on a Bob Dylan song. Then she played a magician’s assistant in The Prestige (2006), where the director Christopher Nolan thought she was mysterious. The movie did well, but some critics weren’t sold on Scarlett’s performance.

In 2007, she was in The Nanny Diaries, a comedy-drama that didn’t impress critics much. Some thought she did a good job, others weren’t so sure. In 2008, she was in The Other Boleyn Girl with Natalie Portman and Eric Bana, which had mixed reviews. But critics liked Scarlett and Natalie’s acting.

Scarlett Johansson’s third movie with Woody Allen, Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008), was a hit. It was shot in Spain and got good reviews. She also played Silken Floss in The Spirit, which didn’t go down well with critics.

Her only movie in 2009 was He’s Just Not That Into You, where she played a yoga instructor. It wasn’t loved by critics, but it did well at the box office.

2010–2013: Marvel Cinematic Universe and worldwide recognition

Scarlett Johansson always dreamed of being on Broadway. She got her start in a play called A View from the Bridge in 2010. It’s about a guy named Eddie who has feelings for his wife’s niece, Catherine, played by Johansson. Even though she wasn’t sure about playing a teenager, she did it anyway and got praised for her performance. She even won a Tony Award for it!

After that, she got the role of Black Widow in Iron Man 2. She worked hard for the part, even dyeing her hair red to look the part. The movie did well at the box office, but some critics thought her character wasn’t written well.

In 2011, Scarlett Johansson was in a movie called We Bought a Zoo, playing a zookeeper. Critics liked the movie, and they thought she did a good job, too.

For her role in The Avengers in 2012, she learned some Russian. The movie did well and she got nominated for a few awards because of it.

In Hitchcock, she played actress Janet Leigh. Some critics didn’t think she looked much like Leigh, but they liked her performance anyway.

In 2013, she was in a play called Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Reviews were mixed, but some critics thought she did a good job.

She also starred in a movie called Don Jon that year. Critics liked the movie, and they especially liked her performance.

In the movie Her, she voiced a character called Samantha. Critics loved her performance, and she won some awards for it.

Another movie she was in that year was Under the Skin, where she played an alien. Critics praised her performance, saying it showed off her acting skills.

2014–2020: Blockbuster films and critical acclaim

Scarlett Johansson continued her role as Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe by appearing in Captain America: The Winter Soldier in 2014. In this movie, she teams up with Captain America and Falcon to uncover a secret plot within S.H.I.E.L.D. while dealing with a mysterious assassin called the Winter Soldier. Johansson and Chris Evans even wrote some of their lines for scenes they shared.

She was drawn to her character’s intelligence and resourcefulness, rather than just her looks. The movie did well both with critics and at the box office, earning over $714 million worldwide. Critics praised Johansson’s performance, and she was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress.

She also had a supporting role in the film Chef alongside Robert Downey Jr., Sofía Vergara, directed by Jon Favreau. Critics liked it, saying it was funny and had interesting characters. Another movie she starred in that year was Lucy, where she played a character who gains superpowers after taking a special drug. While some critics didn’t like the plot they praised Johansson’s acting and the movie’s visuals. It made a lot of money, grossing $458 million worldwide.

Johansson continued playing Black Widow in the MCU with Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War in 2015 and 2016, respectively. She even worked on Hail, Caesar! a comedy by the Coen brothers, where she played an actress dealing with a pregnancy during filming. She also did voice work for The Jungle Book and Sing in 2016.

In 2017, Scarlett Johansson starred in the film adaptation of Ghost in the Shell. While it was praised for its visuals and her performance, it faced criticism for casting her as a character meant to be Japanese. She defended her role saying she wouldn’t take a non-white character but was excited to lead a female-driven movie. The film made $169.8 million worldwide. She also hosted Saturday Night Live for the fifth time that year.

The following year, Scarlett Johansson starred in Rough Night, a comedy about a bachelorette party gone wrong. It didn’t do great with critics, but it made decent money. She also voiced a character in Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs and reprised her role as Black Widow in Avengers: Infinity War.

Johansson faced controversy in 2018 when she was cast as a transgender man in the film Rub & Tug. After backlash, she left the project. In 2019, she returned as Black Widow in Avengers: Endgame, which became the highest-grossing film of all time. She also starred in Marriage Story and Jojo Rabbit, earning her two Academy Award nominations. This made her the twelfth performer ever to be nominated for two Oscars in the same year. She also received nominations from BAFTA and the Golden Globes for these performances.

2021–Present: Black Widow and lawsuit

After taking a year off from the big screen, Scarlett Johansson came back as Black Widow in her movie in 2021. She also helped produce the film. It’s a prequel, meaning it happens before the other movies, and it shows what Black Widow was up to after Captain America: Civil War. In the movie, she’s on the run and has to deal with her past. Scarlett felt like she had finished her work playing this character. She saw it as a chance to show that Black Widow can stand on her own and make her own choices, even when things are tough. Critics liked the movie, especially Scarlett and Florence Pugh’s acting.

In July 2021, Scarlett Johansson sued Disney because they released Black Widow on their streaming service at the same time as in theaters. She said this broke her contract because the contract said the movie would only come out in theaters first. Scarlett claimed she missed out on bonus money because of this. Disney said Scarlett already got $20 million and would get more from the streaming release. They also said Scarlett was being insensitive to the pandemic. People thought Disney’s response was too aggressive.

In September, Scarlett and Disney settled their dispute but they didn’t say how. Later, it was reported Scarlett got over $40 million from the settlement and she’ll keep working with Disney.

Scarlett Johansson came back to movies with Wes Anderson’s comedy, Asteroid City, in 2023. She played a big part in it. This was her second movie to show at the Cannes Film Festival. She took less money to work on this movie. Scarlett liked working with Wes Anderson because he’s very specific about what he wants, which she finds freeing. Critics liked her acting in the movie. She also acted in North Star, directed by Kristin Scott Thomas, where she played one of three sisters. Critics didn’t like the movie or Scarlett’s British accent.

Next, Scarlett will star in a romantic comedy called Fly Me to the Moon, with Channing Tatum. She’ll also voice a character in Transformers One, a movie that comes before the other Transformers movies.

Music career

In 2006, Scarlett Johansson sang a song called Summertime for a special album made by famous actors to support a charity. Then, she joined a band called the Jesus and Mary Chain for a show at a music festival called Coachella in California. A year later, she starred in a music video with Justin Timberlake for his song “What Goes Around… Comes Around“, which got nominated for a big award.

In May 2008, Johansson released her first album called Anywhere I Lay My Head. It had one original song and ten songs originally by Tom Waits, with some famous musicians like David Bowie helping out. People had mixed opinions about the album. Some didn’t like her singing much, but others thought it was unique and interesting. A magazine called Spin wasn’t very impressed, but others thought it was great. It got listed as the 23rd-best album of the year by one magazine and did okay on the charts.

Then, in September 2009, she made another album with a musician named Pete Yorn. This album was inspired by famous duets by Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot. It did pretty well in the US charts. In 2010, she sang a song for a tribute album by a band called Steel Train. She also sang for a movie soundtrack in 2011 and another one in 2012.

In February 2015, Scarlett Johansson started a band called The Singles with some other musicians. Their first song was called “Candy“. But then they got into trouble because another band already had the name The Singles. In 2016, she sang for soundtracks of movies like The Jungle Book and Sing. Then in 2018, she worked with Pete Yorn again on a small album called Apart.

Public image

Scarlett Johansson, also known as “ScarJo” by some, doesn’t like that nickname. She thinks it’s too simple and disrespectful. She’s not into social media because she doesn’t feel the need to share everything about her life all the time.

The media often portrays Scarlett Johansson as a symbol of sexiness. They say she’s what many guys dream of. Even famous director Woody Allen couldn’t help but comment on how attractive she was during the making of Match Point. But Johansson doesn’t like it when people focus too much on her looks. She believes that being fixated on how attractive you are isn’t important in the long run. She once missed out on a role in a movie because the director thought she was too sexy for it.

Despite her feelings about being objectified, Johansson often makes it to the top of the list of the most beautiful women. Magazines like Maxim and Esquire have named her as one of the sexiest women alive multiple times. She’s also been featured in similar lists by Playboy, Men’s Health, and FHM. In 2010, GQ even named her “Babe of the Year.” She’s so well-known that there’s even a wax statue of her in a museum in New York.

Scarlett Johansson’s success isn’t just about her looks, though. She’s been recognized for her acting talent too. She’s been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and has appeared on Forbes’ list of the highest-paid actresses multiple times. She even got her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2021, she was named one of Time’s 100 most influential people.

She’s been in ads for big brands like Calvin Klein, Dolce & Gabbana, and L’Oréal. She’s also represented companies like Mango and Moët & Chandon. But not all her endorsements have been without controversy. When she worked with SodaStream, there was some backlash because the company operated in a disputed area.

Personal life

During her time at the Professional Children’s School, Scarlett Johansson dated a classmate named Jack Antonoff from 2001 to 2002. She then dated her co-star Josh Hartnett from the movie Black Dahlia for about two years until the end of 2006. According to Hartnett, they broke up because they were too busy to spend time together.

In 2007, Johansson started dating Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds. They got engaged in May 2008 and tied the knot in September 2008 on Vancouver Island, but they split up in December 2010 and got divorced in July 2011.

In November 2012, Scarlett Johansson began dating a Frenchman named Romain Dauriac, who owns an advertising agency. They got engaged the following September and split their time between New York City and Paris. They had a daughter together in 2014 and got married in October 2014 in Philipsburg, Montana. However, they separated in mid-2016 and officially divorced in September 2017.

Johansson then started dating Colin Jost, who is a writer for Saturday Night Live, in May 2017. They got engaged in May 2019 and tied the knot in October 2020 at their home in New York. They welcomed their son in August 2021. Johansson splits her time between New York and Los Angeles.

In September 2011, nude photos of Johansson were leaked online, which were hacked from her cell phone. She mentioned that these photos were sent to her then-husband, Ryan Reynolds, three years before the incident.

In 2014, Scarlett Johansson won a lawsuit against a French publisher named JC Lattès over false statements about her relationships in a novel called The First Thing We Look At by Grégoire Delacourt. She was awarded $3,400.

Johansson has criticized the media for promoting unrealistic body images that lead to unhealthy diets and eating disorders among women. In an essay she wrote for The Huffington Post, she encouraged people to maintain a healthy body. She also posed nude for the March 2006 cover of Vanity Fair alongside actress Keira Knightley and fashion designer Tom Ford, which sparked controversy as some people felt it highlighted the pressure on women to display their sexuality more than men.

Philanthropy

Scarlett Johansson has helped out many charities like Aid Still Required, Cancer Research UK, Stand Up To Cancer, Too Many Women (which fights breast cancer), and USA Harvest, which gives food to people who need it. In 2005, she became a big supporter of the group Oxfam, which helps people in poor countries. She also joined a campaign against poverty called ONE, with Bono from U2.

In 2008, someone paid £20,000 in an auction to go on a special date with her, and the money went to Oxfam. But in 2014, Johansson left Oxfam because people didn’t like that she was promoting a company called SodaStream, which makes drinks. After all, one of its main factories was in a place called Mishor Adumim, which is in a part of Israel that some people don’t think should belong to Israel. Oxfam said they still appreciated her help.

Scarlett Johansson and her friends from the Avengers movies raised $500,000 for people hurt by Hurricane Maria. In 2018, she worked with 300 other women in Hollywood to start something called the Time’s Up initiative, which helps women deal with harassment and unfair treatment.

She joined the Women’s March in Los Angeles in 2018, where she talked about powerful people doing bad things and shared her own experiences. Some people got upset with her for criticizing another actor, James Franco, for how he treated women because, in the past, she had defended working with a director named Woody Allen, who was accused of hurting his daughter.

Johansson also supports a group called Operation Warrior Wellness, which helps veterans learn a type of meditation called Transcendental Meditation. Her great-uncle was a pilot who died in World War II, and she wanted to honor him by helping veterans.

Political views

Scarlett Johansson has been involved in politics for a while now. She started by supporting Democratic candidate John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. When George W. Bush won, she was disappointed. Then, in 2008, she campaigned for Barack Obama, doing things like speaking at colleges and appearing in a music video inspired by Obama’s speeches.

She didn’t stop there. In 2012, she helped raise money for Obama’s re-election by hosting a fashion event. At the Democratic National Convention, she talked about why she thought Obama should be re-elected and criticized Mitt Romney’s views on Planned Parenthood.

Johansson has also supported local politicians, like Scott Stringer for New York City Comptroller. During the 2016 election, she appeared in a commercial with other celebrities to encourage people to vote for Hillary Clinton.

She hasn’t just focused on national politics either. In 2017, Scarlett Johansson spoke at the Women’s March on Washington, where she shared her concerns about Donald Trump’s presidency and his policies on women’s rights.

During the 2020 Democratic primaries, she endorsed Elizabeth Warren, saying she liked Warren’s approach to politics. And she’s even used her platform to advocate for human rights, like when she spoke out about the imprisonment of activists in Egypt.

Net Worth

Scarlett Johansson’s Net Worth is estimated to be $165 Million as of 2024, according to Celebrity Net Worth.