Bryce Dallas Howard
Bryce Dallas Howard (born March 2, 1981) is an American actress and television director. Howard is the first daughter of filmmaker Ron Howard and writer Cheryl Howard. She attended the New York University Tisch School of the Arts, left in 2002 to take roles on Broadway but graduated in 2020. While portraying Rosalind in a 2003 production of As You Like It, Howard caught the attention of director M. Night Shyamalan, who cast her as a blind girl in the thriller The Village (2004). She later secured the starring role of a naiad in Shyamalan's fantasy film Lady in the Water (2006).
Bryce Dallas Howard
March 2, 1981
- Actress
- television director
2003–present
2
- Ron Howard (father)
- Cheryl Alley (mother)
- Paige Howard (sister)
- Clint Howard (uncle)
- Rance Howard (grandfather)
- Jean Speegle Howard (grandmother)
Howard's performance in Kenneth Branagh's As You Like It (2006) earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination and she subsequently appeared as Gwen Stacy in Sam Raimi's superhero film Spider-Man 3 (2007). She went on to appear as Kate Connor in the action film Terminator Salvation (2009) and as Victoria in the fantasy film The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010). These along with her roles as a "fair-weather" girlfriend in the comedy-drama 50/50 (2011) and as a racist socialite in the period-drama The Help (2011) brought her increased recognition.
Howard emerged a star with her role as Claire Dearing in the top-grossing Jurassic World trilogy (2015–2022). She also portrayed a forest ranger in the adventure film Pete's Dragon (2016); Sheila Dwight, Elton John's mother, in the biopic Rocketman (2019); and voiced Yaddle in an episode of Tales of the Jedi (2022).
Howard directed the documentary Dads (2019), and episodes of the Disney+ space western series The Mandalorian (2019–present) and The Book of Boba Fett (2022). She is married to actor Seth Gabel, with whom she has two children.
Early life and education[edit]
Bryce Dallas Howard was born March 2, 1981, in Los Angeles, California,[1] to writer Cheryl Howard (née Alley)[2] and actor-director Ron Howard. She has two younger sisters; twins Jocelyn and Paige, and a younger brother named Reed.[3] Through her father, Bryce is a granddaughter of actors Rance Howard and Jean Speegle Howard, as well as a niece of actor Clint Howard. Her godfather is actor Henry Winkler,[4] who co-starred with her father in the 1970s–1980s American comedy television series Happy Days.[5]
Howard was raised in Westchester County, New York, and on a farm in Greenwich, Connecticut.[6] Howard and her siblings were raised away from the world of show business; their parents did not allow them access to television, and instead encouraged outdoor activities and hobbies. At the age of seven, she was permitted to be an extra in her father's films. In a 2017 appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, she said she and her siblings were babysat by family friend Tom Cruise on several occasions.[7]
Howard began training as an actor at Stagedoor Manor, a performing arts camp in upstate New York, alongside Natalie Portman.[3] She attended Greenwich Country Day School until 1996,[8][9] and graduated from Byram Hills High School in 1999,[10] after which she studied for three years at New York University's (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts, taking classes at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, the Experimental Theatre Wing, and the International Theatre Workshop in Amsterdam.[11] During her schooling, Howard took part in the concept recording of the Broadway-bound musical A Tale of Two Cities.[12] She took a leave of absence from NYU to pursue roles without completing her degree.[13] Almost 20 years later, she returned to NYU and completed her degree in 2020.[14]
Howard is also an alumna of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company's School in Chicago, and of The Actors Center in New York City.[11] During her time in New York, Howard was also a member of Theater Mitu, a company that was in residence at New York Theatre Workshop, which is known for its exploration of theatrical forms.[11][15]
Career[edit]
2002–2006: Early roles and film success[edit]
For several years, Howard appeared in New York City theatrical productions; her repertoire included House & Garden–a 2002 Alan Ayckbourn production held at the Manhattan Theatre Club– and Tartuffe, a theatrical comedy staged at the American Airlines Theatre. In 2003, Howard performed as Rosalind in the William Shakespeare comedy As You Like It at The Public Theater, where she caught the attention of film director M. Night Shyamalan, who two weeks later and without an audition, cast her in his fantasy thriller The Village (2004).[5] Howard portrayed the female lead Ivy, the chief's blind daughter, opposite Ivy's love interest Joaquin Phoenix. The film was a commercial success but met mixed reviews.[16][17] Her performance was lauded by critics and Howard was nominated for several awards.[18] Lars von Trier then cast Howard to replace Nicole Kidman in Manderlay (2005), the sequel to Dogville (2003); she reprised Kidman's role as Grace Mulligan, an idealistic woman who stays at a plantation in rural Alabama and later attempts to assist a revolt against slave owners.[19] The film garnered mixed reviews.[20]
Howard reunited with Shyamalan for Lady in the Water (2006), a fantasy drama in which she plays Story, a naiad-like being from a bedtime story, opposite Paul Giamatti, a Philadelphia building superintendent who discovers Story in a pool. The film under-performed at the box office, failed to recoup its budget, and was largely panned by critics.[21][22] Howard again portrayed Rosalind in Kenneth Branagh's 2006 film adaptation of Shakespeare's As You Like It, which was released theatrically in Europe before premiering on HBO in the United States.[23] The film was negatively received by British media but American press coverage was positive.[24][25] Howard was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or Television Film at the 65th Golden Globe Awards for her role.[26] That year, she wrote and directed a short film called Orchids as part of Glamour magazine's "Reel Moments" series, which was funded by Cartier and FilmAid International.[27]
Personal life[edit]
During her senior year of high school, Howard learned of existentialism. She said: "I was like, 'This is it! This is my religion.' I had never felt a connection to any sort of spirituality before that. It was very basic–you're responsible for the choices that you make–but it was mind-blowing at the time."[5]
Howard met actor Seth Gabel at New York University;[23] they dated for five years before marrying on June 17, 2006.[28] Howard and Gabel had planned to start a family together in their thirties but a week after their wedding, Howard learned she was pregnant with their first child.[44][124] Howard gave birth to their son in 2007.[125] Howard has talked about experiencing postpartum depression 18 months after her son's birth, and credited her recovery to the help of a physician and a therapist.[124][44] The couple had a second child, a daughter, in 2012.[126][127] The family lives in upstate New York.[128]
Howard is a teetotaler.[129]