Anna Getty Biography

As an actress, Anna Getty debuted in the 1997 romantic comedy ‘Little City’. Also starring Jon Bon Jovi, Penelope Ann Miller, and Joe Bellan, the film tells the story of a group of people whose romantic lives are intertwined. She then played a waitress in ‘Break Up’, the 1998 thriller about a woman who is looking to leave her abusive husband. Besides Anna, the film stars Kiefer Sutherland, Bridget Fonda, and Hart Bochner.

She guest-starred as Annie Albany in a season three episode of CBS’ drama ‘Promised Land’. In 1999, she appeared in a season two episode of ‘The Long Goodbye’. She shared screen space with the likes of Christian Camargo and Christine Havard in Doug Aitken’s short film ‘Blow Debris’ in 2000. In 2001, she was featured in NBC’s medical drama ‘ER’s season seven episode, ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors’. Her last acting role was in the 2004 romantic comedy ‘Happily Even After’.

Besides being an actress, Anna is a prominent documentary producer. In 2003, she co-produced ‘Confessions of a Burning Man’, a documentary directed by Paul Barnett and Unsu Lee. She has served as an executive producer on the following three projects: ‘Catching the Sun’ (2015), ‘Beautiful Nonsense’ (2016), and ‘Kiss the Ground’ (2017).

Anna is also known for her work on green living. She has authored several books, including ‘Anna Getty's Easy Green Organic’ (2009) and ‘I'm Dreaming of a Green Christmas’ (2009), on the subject.

Anna Getty was born Anna Zacher on October 25, 1972, in Berlin, Germany. Her mother, Gisela Martine Zacher (née Schmidt), is a professional photographer and documentary filmmaker. Her father was the German actor, Rolf Zacher, who was active in the German film industry from the 1960s to the 2010s. Gisela married John Paul Getty III in 1974 and he adopted Anna soon after. She spent a part of her life in Tarzana, California, where her younger half-sibling, Balthazar, was born on January 22, 1975. The family eventually moved to the city of San Francisco. She later attended Sorbonne in Paris, France.

Through her stepfather, she is a part of the prominent Getty family. John Paul Getty III was the grandson of American oil tycoon J. Paul Getty, who was at one time the richest man in the world. In 1973, while John Paul Getty III was living in Rome, Italy, he was kidnapped, and his family was told that he would be released if the family paid the ransom of $17 million. His father, Sir John Paul Getty Jr., asked his own father to pay the ransom but he refused, arguing that if he were to pay ransom for one grandchild, others would soon be the targets of kidnapping as well. He ultimately agreed to pay $2.9 million to the kidnappers, but, by the time of his release, his grandson had developed a severe case of pneumonia and had become allergic to antibiotics. Furthermore, the kidnappers had cut off one of his ears and sent it to the family so it would serve as a proof they had indeed kidnapped him. Even after his release, John Paul Getty III suffered health issues and substance abuse problems. He developed addictions to both alcohol and drugs, and it eventually led to a stroke and partial paralysis. He and Anna’s mother divorced in 1993. After 18 years, John Paul Getty III passed away at the age of 54.

Anna Getty has been married to screenwriter Greg Pruss since 2003. They have two children together. The couple lived in Los Angeles for a time before moving to Tuscany, Italy in the summer of 2010. It is unclear if she ever was a US citizen. However, in 2012, ‘Politico’ reported that she might have renounced her US citizenship for tax reasons. In her blogs and interviews, she has repeatedly spoken about her connection with California but calls herself a “world citizen.” Anna has rarely spoken about her political affiliation. In 2009, she revealed that she considers Al Gore as her hero. However, she has also stated that she identifies herself as a Libertarian.