Portman's parents portman darjeeling met at a Jewish student center at Ohio State University where her mother was selling tickets. Her father returned to Israel, but the two corresponded and were married when her mother visited Israel a few years later. In 1984, when Portman was three years old, the family moved from Israel to the United States, where her father pursued his medical training. The family first lived in Washington, D.C., where she attended Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School, but relocated to Connecticut in 1988, and then settled permanently in Long Island, New York, in 1990.^[1] Portman has said that although she "really love[s] the States... my heart's in Jerusalem. That's where I feel at home."^[9] She is an only child and very close to her parents,^[1] who are often seen with her at her film premieres.

The 65th Venice International Film Festival organizers have announced that the fest's shorts competition will kick off September 1, 2008, with Portman's directorial debut, Eve.^[4]

In 2001, Portman opened in New York City's Public Theater production of Chekhov's The Seagull, alongside Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, and Philip Seymour Hoffman.^[1] In 2005, Portman received a Golden Globe Award as Best Supporting portman darjeeling Actress in the drama Closer. In May 2008, she served as the youngest member of the 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival jury.^[3]

In 2004, Portman appeared in the independent movies Garden State and Closer.^[1] Garden State was an official selection of the Sundance Film photo nathalie Festival, and won Best First Feature at the Independent Spirit Awards. Her performance as Alice in Closer saw Portman win a Supporting Actress Golden Globe as well as a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination.^[49][50]

In 2006, she filmed Wong Kar-wai's road movie My Blueberry Nights. She won acclaim for her role as gambler Leslie, because "[f]or once she's not playing a waif or a child princess but a mature, full-bodied woman,...but she's not coasting on her looks;...She uses her appeal to simultaneously flirt with and taunt the gambler across the table".^[61] Portman had a small role in the 18th season of The Simpsons as the voice of Bart Simpson's first girlfriend, Darcy.^[62] She also appears in Paul McCartney's music video "Dance Tonight" from his 2007 album Memory Almost Full, directed by Michel Gondry.^[63] natalie portmane snl rap Portman co-starred in the Wes Anderson short film Hotel Chevalier, opposite Jason Schwartzman, in which she performed her first nude scene.^[64] She is scheduled to star opposite Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal in the drama film Brothers, a remake of the 2004 Danish film of the same name.^[65] In May 2008 Portman served as the youngest member of the 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival jury.^[3]

Natalie Portman began her education at a Jewish elementary school, the Solomon Schechter Day School of Glen Cove, New York. She graduated from a public high school, Syosset High School.^[1] In June 2003, Portman graduated from Harvard College with a bachelor's degree in psychology. While attending Harvard, she was a resident of the Lowell House. Portman then pursued graduate studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in the spring of 2004.^[10] At Harvard, Portman was Alan Dershowitz's research assistant (he thanks her in The Case for Israel). She was also a research assistant in a psychology lab, and in March 2006, appeared as a guest lecturer at a Columbia Bilder Jean Reno University course in terrorism and counterterrorism, where she spoke about her film V for Vendetta.^[11] In addition to being bilingual in Hebrew^[12] and English, Portman has studied^[13] French,^[14] Japanese,^[14] German^[15] and Arabic.^[16]

On the concept portmane of the afterlife, she comments "I don't believe in that. I believe this is it, and I believe it's the best way to live."^[9] She has said that she feels more Jewish in the Holy Land and that she would like to raise her children in the Jewish religion: "A priority for me is definitely that I'd like to raise my kids Jewish, but the ultimate thing is to have someone who is a good person and who is a partner... I get much more Jewish in Israel".^[36] Portman supported Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton for President in the 2008 U.S. elections but said that she "likes Obama as well".^[37]