isattached to it.AndI think thatobviously that’dbe
dangerous foranyone.”
Insteadofbecoming tabloid fodder,Pagestudied
hardandworkedhard, takingpartsas theycame.Be-
fore long, shewasaname inCanadian televisionand
film.Herrise to fame in theUnitedStates,meanwhile,
wasmore fitful.
I
N2005,
Pagestarred in
HardCandy
, apsycholog-
ical thrillerabouta14-year-oldvigilantewho tor-
turesasuspectedsexualpredator.TheroleputPage
onashort listofbreakthroughactors inHollywood,
but itwas2007’s
Juno
, another indie flick thatdefied
the limitationsof itsgenre, thatmadePage intoastar.
“Foranyone, going frombeingprettymuchacom-
pletelyanonymousperson to [becomingacelebrity]
isasignificant transition,”Pagesays.But, again, she
demonstrateda levelofmaturity thatbeliedherage.
“It’samazing,”shesays, “becauseyou thenhavean
incredibleamountofopportunityand this incredible
amountofcontroloverwhatyouwant todo.”
While filming
Juno
, therewasn’tnecessarily the
sense thatbox-officegoldwas in themaking. “Acome-
dyabouta teenagerwho’spregnantwhohassomesort
ofstrangerelationshipwithanolderman?”shesays,
laughing. “Youdonot think that’sgoing tomakeover
$100milliondomestically, so itwasa total surprise.”
Partof thepowerofPage’shard-edged, smart-
mouthed, softheartedJunoMacGuff lies in theextent
towhichaudienceswereable to identifywith the
character, and theextent towhichPagemade
thecharacterherown.
“IamJuno toa lotofpeople,”shesays.
Inparticular,Junoresonatedwithwomenwhohad
experienced teenpregnancy.Beyond that,peoplewere
drawn toPagepersonallybecause, likeheron-screen
persona, there’sasense thatshepossesses insatiable
curiosity,boundlessenergyandaslywit, allofwhich
arewhollyengaging.
So the
Juno
experience forPagewas“interesting,”
but itssuccessalsoopened thedoor toother interest-
ingroles, including thebookworm-ystudent in the
futuristic
Inception
; a femme fatale inWoodyAllen’s
ToRomewithLove
; andsuperheroKittyPryde in two
of theX-Men films. Ifnothingelse,Page’spost-
Juno
career, including three filmsshehasdueout in2016
(
WindowHorses
,
Tallulah
and
Robodog
), reveals that
shehasrange.
P
AGE’SLATEST IS
FREEHELD
,
basedona
2007Oscar-winningdocumentaryof thesame
name,whichpremieredat theTorontoFilm
Festival inSeptemberand inU.S. theatersa
month later.
The film isbasedon thestoryofNewJerseypolice
lieutenantLaurelHester (JulianneMoore)andher
domesticpartner,StacieAndree (Page),who in2005
becameunintentionalgay-rightsactivistswhena
loophole in the lawallowedNewJerseyFreeholders to
deny the terminally illHester theright to transferher
64
DECEMBER2015
AMERICANWAY
PHOTOS
BUENA VI STA /PHOTOFEST; WARNER BROS . /PHOTOFEST; LUCASF I LM LTD/KE ITH HAMSHERE/PHOTOFEST;
AMER ICAN INTERNATIONAL P ICTURES/PHOTOFEST; WARNER BROS . /PHOTOFEST
MISCHA BARTON
MischaBarton is largelyknown for playing
ill-fated richgirlMarissaCooper on
TheO.C.
, but it’sher role ina 1999Best
Picturenominee that gaveher her first big
Hollywoodbreak. Remember the funeral
thatBruceWillis andHaleyJoelOsment
attend in
TheSixthSense
?Thirteen-year-
oldBartonwas theyounggirl under thebed
struggling to let themknowhow shedied.
JOHNNYGALECKI
Beforehis roleasLeonardon
TheBigBang
Theory
sent his career intoorbit, Johnny
Galecki wasoneofmanyyoungactors
to takeon the roleofRustyGriswold in
National Lampoon’sVacation series.At 14
yearsold, heplayedClark’s son in 1989’s
National Lampoon’sChristmasVacation
.
Soonafter, hewas cast asDarlene’sboy-
friend,David, on
Roseanne
, a roleheplayed
for sixof the show’snine seasons.
KEIRAKNIGHTLEY
Years before she joinedJackSparrow’s
swashbuckling crew in 2003’s
Pirates of the
Caribbean
, a 14-year-oldKeiraKnightley
madeher blockbuster debut in
StarWars
Episode I: ThePhantomMenace
as Sabé,
thebodydoubleofQueenAmidala (or
Padmé), the future love interest ofAnakin
Skywalker andmother toLuke andLeia.
LAURENCE FISHBURNE
Over twodecades beforedonning the
signatureblack trenchcoat andglasses as
Morpheus in
TheMatrix
, Fishburne starred
in the 1975drama
Cornbread, Earl andMe
at age 13. Two years later, hewas pickedup
for Francis FordCoppola’sVietnamWar
epic
ApocalypseNow
, acting alongside
big-screenheavyhittersMartinSheen and
MarlonBrando.
CHRISTIAN BALE
The futureBatmangot his big-screen
start whenhewas 13 years old, playing a
youngJimGraham inStevenSpielberg’s
war drama
Empireof theSun
. It wouldbe
13 years beforeBalewould takeon the role
of PatrickBateman in
AmericanPsycho
and another fivebeforehewouldbecome
Gotham’sDarkKnight.
ActingTheirAges
EllenPage first appearedon-screen at the ageof 10— adecadebefore
her role as JunoMacGuff put her on a track toglobal stardom. Surprised?
She’s not theonly celebritywhoseearly fame youmayhave forgotten.
—
TRAVISKINSEYANDABBYKINSINGER
