Noomi Rapace facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Noomi Rapace
Rapace in 2019
Born	Noomi Norén (1979-12-28) 28 December 1979 (age 45) Hudiksvall, Gävleborg, Sweden
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1988–present
Spouse(s)	Ola Rapace ​ ​ (m. 2001; div. 2011)​
Children	1
Signature

Noomi Rapace (born December 28, 1979) is a famous Swedish actress. She became known around the world for playing the character Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish movies based on the Millennium book series in 2009. These movies include The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest.

For her role as Lisbeth Salander, Noomi Rapace won several awards, like the Guldbagge Award (Sweden's top film award). She was also nominated for a BAFTA Award. After the success of the Millennium series, Rapace started acting in many American movies. Some of her other well-known roles are Elizabeth Shaw in Prometheus (2012) and Alien: Covenant (2017), and the seven lead roles in What Happened to Monday (2017). She also starred in Bright (2017) and Lamb (2021).

Early Life and First Roles

Rapace in Los Angeles, 2015

Noomi Rapace was born in Hudiksvall, Sweden. Her mother, Nina Norén, is a Swedish actress. Her father, Rogelio Durán, was a Spanish flamenco singer.

When Noomi was five years old, she moved to Flúðir in Iceland with her mother and stepfather. Two years later, at age seven, she got her first small acting role in an Icelandic film called In the Shadow of the Raven. This experience made her want to become an actress.

Noomi left home at 15 to study at a theatre school in Stockholm. She can speak several languages fluently, including Icelandic, Danish, Norwegian, and English, besides her native Swedish.

Acting Career Highlights

Starting Out in Acting

Noomi's first film role was a non-speaking part in the Icelandic film In the Shadow of the Raven when she was seven. This experience inspired her to pursue acting.

In 1996, she appeared on television for the first time in the long-running soap opera Tre kronor. She continued to study acting and perform in various theaters in Stockholm.

In 2007, she received praise for her role as a struggling young mother in the Danish film Daisy Diamond. She won two major film awards in Denmark, the Bodil and Robert prize, for Best Actress for this role.

Becoming Lisbeth Salander

In 2009, Noomi Rapace took on the role of Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish film versions of Stieg Larsson's popular book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Her performance was highly praised. She won the Guldbagge Award and was nominated for a BAFTA Award.

She played Lisbeth Salander again in the sequels, The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets' Nest. These three movies were later made into a six-part TV miniseries called Millennium. The films earned a lot of money worldwide.

International Success

Rapace at the 2018 César Awards

After the Millennium series, Noomi Rapace began her international career. Her first role in an English-speaking film was Madame Simza Heron in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows in 2011.

Her growing fame led to major roles in big Hollywood movies. She was chosen by director Ridley Scott to play the main character, scientist Elizabeth Shaw, in the science fiction movie Prometheus (2012). She also had a cameo in the sequel, Alien: Covenant (2017).

In 2012, she appeared in a music video for The Rolling Stones' song "Doom and Gloom". She also starred with Colin Farrell in the crime thriller Dead Man Down (2013).

In 2014, she played Nadia in the thriller The Drop alongside Tom Hardy. She also appeared in a music video for the band Kasabian.

In 2015, she starred as Raisa Demidova in Child 44, again with Tom Hardy. She also appeared in the spy thriller Unlocked (2017) and the sci-fi movie What Happened to Monday (2017), where she played seven different sisters!

In 2019, Rapace starred in the action thriller Close and the psychological thriller Angel of Mine. She also joined the TV series Jack Ryan.

In 2021, she played the main role of Maria in the Icelandic horror film Lamb, which was shown at the Cannes Film Festival. Her performance in Lamb earned her the Best Actress award at the 2021 Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival.

More recently, Noomi Rapace has starred in films like The Trip (2021), You Won't Be Alone (2022), and Black Crab (2022). In May 2022, she was a member of the jury at the 75th Cannes Film Festival, which is a very important role in the film world.

Personal Life

Noomi Rapace married Swedish actor Ola Norell in 2001. They decided to use the last name Rapace, which means "bird of prey" in French and Italian. They had a son together in 2003. They divorced in 2011.

Noomi Rapace now lives in London, England, and she says it is her favorite city.

Filmography

Movies

Television Shows

Noomi Rapace at The Drop European premiere in 2014

Music Videos

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Noomi Rapace para niños