Name: Claire Danes

Birth Name: Claire Catherine Danes

Birthdate: April 12, 1979

Birthplace: New York, NY

America has watched her grow from an awkward teenager on TV in My So-Called Life to an accomplished actress in movies like William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996), which paired her with then-superhot Leonardo DiCaprio. Many of her films are ambitiously anti-mainstream (Polish Wedding, Igby Goes Down, Stardust), and although many of them have not done well at the box office, several have developed cult status, and Danes is consistently recognized as a wise-beyond-her-years talent to watch.


1. She was banned from the Philippines in Sept. 1998 for making derogatory remarks about the country. The President of the Philippines condemned her publicly.
2. She attended the Professional Performing Arts High School, whose alumni include Britney Spears.
3. She has dated Billy Crudup, Matt Damon, singer Ben Lee and Stephen Dorff's brother, Andrew.
4. She enrolled at Yale University in 1998.
5. She worshiped Molly Ringwald when she was young.


"People still think of My So-Called Life whenever they think of me. What can I say? Your first impression is a powerful one. It's true, I wasn't exactly a Hilary Duff. Don't get me wrong. I think Hilary Duff is great. But I'd make a pretty lame Hilary Duff."
— Variety, April 4, 2005


Father and mother: Chris, photographer, Carla, painter
Brother: Asa, seven years older

1995: Golden Globe, Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series — Drama, My So-Called Life

 

FILMS

Stardust - (2007) - Actor
Evening - (2007) - Actor
Shopgirl - (2005) - Actor
The Family Stone - (2005) - Actor
Stage Beauty - (2004) - Actor
It's All About Love - (2004) - Actor
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines - (2003) - Actor
Igby Goes Down - (2002) - Actor
The Hours - (2002) - Actor
The Mod Squad - (1999) - Actor
Les Miserables - (1998) - Actor
Polish Wedding - (1998) - Actor
Brokedown Palace - (1998) - Actor
U Turn - (1997) - Actor
The Rainmaker - (1997) - Actor
Princess Mononoke - (1997) - Voice
I Love You, I Love You Not - (1996) - Actor
To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday - (1996) - Actor
William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet - (1996) - Actor
Home for the Holidays - (1995) - Actor
How to Make an American Quilt - (1995) - Actor
Little Women - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - Boxed Set 1 - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - Dancing in the Dark/Guns and Gossip - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - Father Figure/The Zit - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - Pilot/ Dancing In The Dark/Guns and Gossip - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - The Complete Series - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - The Substitute/Why Jordan Can't Read - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - Strangers in the House/Other People's Mothers - (1994) - Actor
My So Called Life - Boxed Set 2 - (1994) - Actor
The Flock - () - Actor