I first encountered Naomi Watts at the movies (as I'm sure most people did), when she starred in David Lynch's excellent Mulholland Drive (2001). She was obviously an attractive lady, but I was mostly stuck by her quizzical features and amazing talent – the scene where her character impresses a film director with a blistering display of acting really sent a shiver up my spine.
There was no denying Watts' skill as an actress after that, and she even eclipsed the more conventionally-alluring Laura Harring in the film's lesbian sex scenes. Well, in my opinion! After Lynch's mind-bender, I wondered why Watts hadn't been plucked from Australian obscurity years before, instead only making her "breakthrough" at the age of 33 after small roles in crud like Tank Girl and Children Of The Corn IV. Of course, everyone took notice of Lynch's marvellous find, and Watts hasn't looked back since...
She came to more mainstream attention with The Ring (2002), a role that traded heavily on her slightly frosty, maternal side. The fact she achieved fame in her thirties also means she's sidestepped the modern trap younger attractive actresses find themselves in: having to alternate serious roles with roles that play on their looks, and publicize their work via photoshoots in lad's mags.
A role in Ned Kelly (2003) alongside fellow-Aussie Heath Ledger went under-the-radar, but Watts cemented her credentials that same year with a great turn in 21 Grams, before taking a kooky roll in existential comedy-drama I Heart Huckabees (2004). A lapse in judgment made her star in the woeful Ring sequel (2005), before Watts truly became a household name after starring in Peter Jackson's King Kong remake (2005). The role of Ann Darrow (made famous by Fay Wray) perfectly encapsulated Watts' appeal to me: she's a cute, sexy, plucky, girl-next-door type, but with a touch of Hollywood's Golden Year glamour.
More recently, Watts has starred in little-seen The Painted Veil (2006), was slightly marginalized by director David Cronenberg in Eastern Promises (2007), and was the female lead in black-comedy Funny Games (2007) – coming soon to UK cinemas.
After marrying actor Live Schreiber (lucky dog) and giving birth to a baby boy in July '07 (congratulations), Watts certainly has a full slate of work ahead of her. She's the female lead in thriller The International with Clive Owen, will co-star with Tom Hanks in Da Vinci Code prequel Angels & Demons, and is scheduled to star in a remake of Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds...
Indeed, Watts is often cited by film historians as one of very few modern actresses who have the qualities of a "Hitchcock blonde". If Hitch were alive today, Naomi Watts would be his muse. She's eagerly sought by top-name directors a mere 7 years after her "discovery" by Lynch, and I really hold Naomi Watts up as the perfect example of an actress with depths beneath her good looks. I look forward to seeing her sparkle on the big-screen for years to come.
It's just a shame Lynch didn't find her 10 years earlier.
Name: Naomi Ellen WattsBorn: 28 September 1968
Birthplace: Shoreham, Kent, England
