Jessica Chastain facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jessica Chastain
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Chastain in 2025
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| Born |
Jessica Michelle Chastain
March 24, 1977 Sacramento, California, U.S.
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| Education | American Academy of Dramatic Arts Juilliard School (BFA) |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1998–present |
| Organization | Freckle Films |
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Works
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Full list |
| Spouse(s) |
Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo
(m. 2017) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Full list |
Jessica Michelle Chastain (born March 24, 1977) is an American actress and producer. She is known for starring in movies with strong female characters and feminist themes. She has won many awards, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. In 2012, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Chastain became interested in acting when she was young. She made her first professional stage appearance in 1998 as Juliet in a play by Shakespeare. After studying acting at the famous Juilliard School, she began her career in television and theater. Her first movie was Jolene (2008).
In 2011, she became very famous after appearing in six movies. These included the dramas Take Shelter and The Tree of Life. She was nominated for an Academy Award for her role in The Help (2011). She received another nomination for playing a CIA analyst in Zero Dark Thirty (2012).
Chastain also starred in big box-office hits like the science fiction movies Interstellar (2014) and The Martian (2015). She is also known for playing determined women in dramas like A Most Violent Year (2014), Miss Sloane (2016), and Molly's Game (2017).
She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for playing Tammy Faye Bakker in the movie The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021). On Broadway, she has starred in plays like The Heiress and A Doll's House. She also started a production company called Freckle Films to support diversity in movies.
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Early Life and Schooling
Jessica Michelle Chastain was born on March 24, 1977, in Sacramento, California. Her parents, Jerri Hastey and Michael Monasterio, were teenagers when she was born. Chastain prefers not to talk much about her family background. She was raised by her mother and her stepfather, Michael Hastey, who was a firefighter. She has said her stepfather was the first person who made her feel safe.
Chastain became interested in acting at age seven after seeing the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. In high school, she was a bit of a loner and found her passion in performing arts. She loved reading the plays of Shakespeare.
In 1998, Chastain made her professional stage debut as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. This performance helped her get an audition for the Juilliard School in New York City. She was accepted and received a scholarship funded by the actor Robin Williams. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2003.
Career Journey
2004–2010: Early Roles
After graduating, Chastain moved to Los Angeles to start her acting career. She first appeared in a TV pilot for a show called Dark Shadows, but the series was never made. She then had guest roles in shows like ER, Veronica Mars, and Law & Order: Trial by Jury.
In 2004, she acted in a play called The Cherry Orchard with Michelle Williams. Later, the famous actor Al Pacino chose her to star in his play Salome. This role helped her get noticed by casting directors.
Her first movie role was in the 2008 drama Jolene. She won a Best Actress award at the Seattle International Film Festival for her performance. In 2010, she starred in the thriller The Debt as a young agent hunting a former Nazi doctor.
2011–2013: A Breakthrough Year
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The year 2011 was huge for Chastain. She appeared in six movies and gained widespread fame. She played a loving mother opposite Brad Pitt in The Tree of Life. The film won the top prize, the Palme d'Or, at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival.
Her biggest hit that year was The Help, where she played Celia Foote, a kind woman in 1960s Mississippi. The movie was a box office success, and Chastain was nominated for an Academy Award.
In 2012, she voiced Gia the Jaguar in the animated movie Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. The movie made over $747 million worldwide. Her final film of 2012 was the thriller Zero Dark Thirty. She played Maya Harris, a CIA analyst who helps track down Osama bin Laden. For this role, she won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress.
2014–2020: Continued Success
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In 2014, Chastain starred in the science fiction film Interstellar with Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway. The movie was a huge success, earning over $701 million. She also starred in the crime drama A Most Violent Year, which earned her another Golden Globe nomination.
The next year, she played a space commander in The Martian alongside Matt Damon. This was another major hit. In 2016, she played a powerful lobbyist in the political thriller Miss Sloane, which earned her praise and a Golden Globe nomination.
In 2017, Chastain starred in The Zookeeper's Wife, a true story about a couple who saved people and animals during World War II. She also played the lead role in Molly's Game, the true story of a woman who ran a high-stakes poker game. This role brought her another Golden Globe nomination.
2021–Present: Award-Winning Roles
Chastain starred as the televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker in the 2021 movie The Eyes of Tammy Faye. To look like Bakker, she wore heavy makeup that took hours to apply. Her amazing performance won her the Academy Award for Best Actress.
In 2021, she also starred in the HBO miniseries Scenes from a Marriage with Oscar Isaac. In 2022, she played country singer Tammy Wynette in the miniseries George & Tammy. This role earned her a Screen Actors Guild Award and her first Emmy Award nomination.
In 2023, Chastain returned to Broadway in a new version of the play A Doll's House. Her performance was a huge success and earned her a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.
Advocacy and Charity Work
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Chastain calls herself a feminist and often speaks about the need for equality for women and minorities in Hollywood. She supports equal pay and has helped create the Time's Up movement to protect women from harassment.
She is also an activist for LGBT rights. When she won her Academy Award in 2022, she used her speech to show support for the community.
Chastain supports charities focused on mental health. She has also spoken out against bullying. In 2022, she visited Kyiv, Ukraine, during the Russian invasion to show her support. She met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and visited a children's hospital.
Personal Life
Chastain is a private person and does not often appear at public events with her family. She has said she is a shy person who enjoys simple things like walking her dog and playing the ukulele.
She is an animal lover and has a rescue dog. She was raised by a vegan chef and is now a vegan herself. She is also an investor in Beyond Meat, a company that makes plant-based meat substitutes.
In 2017, Chastain married Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo, a fashion executive from Italy. They have two children, a daughter and a son, and live in New York City.
Acting Credits and Awards
Some of Chastain's most famous and successful films include The Help (2011), Zero Dark Thirty (2012), Interstellar (2014), The Martian (2015), Molly's Game (2017), and The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021).
She has won one Academy Award from three nominations. She has also won a Golden Globe Award and has been nominated eight times. For her work in theater, she was nominated for a Tony Award. She has also been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for her television work.
See also
In Spanish: Jessica Chastain para niños
