Verified biography · current role

Scarlett Johansson Biography

Scarlett Johansson is an American actor, director, producer and singer. Raised in Manhattan, she attended P.S. 41 and Professional Children’s School. Her mother encouraged her interest in musicals and film, supporting auditions after an early agency rejection. She took acting, singing and tap classes, and trained at the Lee Strasberg Institute. She began stage work as a child in Sophistry and moved into films including Manny & Lo and The Horse Whisperer. She later credited Robert Redford’s patient direction on The Horse Whisperer with helping her understand how to shape a performance. Ghost World preceded her adult breakthrough in Lost in Translation. Her screen work spans period drama, comedy, action and voice roles, including The Prestige, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Under the Skin and Her. She played Natasha Romanoff in the Marvel films and won a Tony for A View from the Bridge. Marriage Story and Jojo Rabbit earned acting Oscar nominations. Watching Sofia Coppola make Lost in Translation also encouraged her interest in directing. Her music career includes the Tom Waits interpretations on Anywhere I Lay My Head, the duet album Break Up and the EP Apart with Pete Yorn. She founded These Pictures with Keenan Flynn and Jonathan Lia. Eleanor the Great was her first directed feature. Recent work includes Jurassic World Rebirth and Paper Tiger, which opened the New York Film Festival in September 2026. Ray Gunn is forthcoming, with Netflix’s theatrical and streaming dates in December 2026; The Exorcist: Martyrs and The Batman Part II remain future projects.