Greta Gerwig Biography

(Actress and Director Known for Her Films: 'Lady Bird', 'Little Woman' and 'Frances Ha')

Birthday: August 4, 1983 (Leo)

Born In: Sacramento, California, United States

Greta Gerwig is an American actress, director, and writer. She first garnered attention after appearing in numerous mumblecore movies. From 2006 to 2009, she acted in a number of Joe Swanberg’s films, some of which she co-directed and co-wrote. Since 2010, Gerwig has collaborated with her boyfriend Noah Baumbach on numerous films, including ‘Frances Ha,’ ‘Greenberg’ and ‘Mistress America.’ As a solo director, she has contributed to the critically acclaimed fun drama flick ‘Lady Bird’ that earned her a Golden Globe along with two Academy Award nominations. Born in Sacramento, California, Gerwig was raised alongside her two siblings. Her dream was to become a playwright but she later turned to acting and ultimately direction and screenwriting. She is a graduate of Barnard College. Her movies are generally based on her own life experiences. Her works have familiar themes: the personal development of the leading woman, especially on the emotional level, and relationships among friends, significant others, and family members. Her films reflect an unusual interest in female dynamics.
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Quick Facts

Also Known As: Greta Celeste Gerwig

Age: 40 Years, 40 Year Old Females

Family:

father: Gordon Gerwig

mother: Christine Gerwig

Partner: Noah Baumbach (2011–)

Actresses Directors

Height: 5'9" (175 cm), 5'9" Females

Ancestry: German American, British American, Irish American

Notable Alumni: Barnard College

U.S. State: California

City: Sacramento

More Facts

education: Barnard College

Early Career
Gerwig initially wanted to become a playwright. However, she turned to acting after not being admitted to MFA programs in her desired field. While studying at Barnard, she appeared in a minor role in the movies ‘LOL’ and ‘Baghead’. During this time, she also started writing with Joe Swanberg that resulted in the pair’s co-writing the flick ‘Hannah Takes the Stairs.’ The duo also collaborated on the film ‘Nights and Weekends.’ In 2009, Gerwig did the horror movie ‘The House of the Devil’.
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Mainstream Success on the Big Screen
In 2010, Greta Gerwig starred in her boyfriend Noah Baumbach's flick ‘Greenberg’ alongside Rhys Ifans, Ben Stiller, and Jennifer Jason Leigh. The same year, she played Cassandra in the improvisational film ‘Northern Comfort’ in which she also served as a writer. Soon after this, the actress had roles in the movies ‘No Strings Attached’ and ‘Arthur’. She then appeared in Woody Allen’s ‘To Rome with Love’ in 2012. That year, she also got featured in the romantic comedy flick ‘Lola Versus’. Gerwig played the title role in the drama movie ‘Frances Ha’ the same year. She also worked as a co-writer for the flick.
She next appeared as Julia in the French drama movie ‘Eden’ and as Pegeen Mike Stapleford in the comedy-drama ‘The Humbling’ in 2014. After this, in 2015, the American artiste collaborated with Baumbach to produce ‘Mistress America’ and also played the role of Brooke Cardinas in it. That year, Gerwig also had a role in the romantic drama film ‘Maggie's Plan’.
In 2016, she starred in the movies ‘Jackie’, ‘Wiener-Dog’ and ‘20th Century Women’. In 2017, she made her solo directorial debut with the teen comedy flick ‘Lady Bird’ which she also wrote. Gerwig then became a part of the animated movie ‘Isle of Dogs’ and voiced the character of Tracy Walker in it. She will soon be seen in Mia Hansen-Løve's upcoming flick ‘Bergman Island’ alongside John Turturro and Mia Wasikowska. In June 2018, it was reported that Greta Gerwig would direct an adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s novel, ‘Little Women.’
Stage Career
In May 2014, Greta Gerwig made her stage debut when she played Becky in the play ‘The Village Bike’ at New York’s Lucille Lortel Theater. The play ran till June that year and the actress was nominated for the Outer Critics Circle Award in the ‘Best Actress’ category.
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Television Career
Gerwig made her first TV appearance in 2010 when she appeared on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live.’ The following year, she was cast in a lead role in HBO’s pilot ‘The Corrections’. That year, the actress also began voicing Pony Merks in the animated series ‘China, IL’. She was then cast in the unsold pilot of the sitcom ‘How I Met Your Dad.’ In 2015, she appeared in one episode of ‘Portlandia’. The following year, Gerwig got featured in two episodes of ‘The Mindy Project’. She then made a guest appearance in one episode of ‘Saturday Night Live’.
Political Controversy
In July 2017, Greta Gerwig signed an open letter launched by Adalah-NY that asked the Lincoln Center to cancel the staging of Israeli author David Grossman’s play. In September that year, Gerwig apologized and stated that signing the letter was a mistake. She also stated that she was unfamiliar with the complexities of the open letter and didn’t study it well.
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Personal life
Greta Celeste Gerwig was born on August 4, 1983 in Sacramento, California, the USA, to Christine and Gordon Gerwig. Her mother was as an OB-GYN nurse while her father worked for a credit union on business loans. Gerwig has a sister who is a manager at Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and a brother who is a landscape architect. She is of English, German, and Irish descent and was raised as a Unitarian Universalist.
Gerwig was sent to the all-girls Catholic school, St. Francis High School. While attending high School, she participated in a number of shows, such as "The Boy Friend”, "Into the Woods”, "The Apple Tree" and "Pippin" before graduating in 2002. She was interested in dance and intended to earn a degree in musical theatre but ended up attending the Barnard College from where she earned a degree in English and philosophy.
Coming to her love life, the actress cum writer has been in a relationship with fellow writer-director Noah Baumbach since 2011. She is close friends with Adam Driver.
Trivia
Greta Gerwig grew up in a home without television!
One renowned Hollywood stylist described the American actress/director as a "modern Catherine Deneuve" after being impressed by her fashionable look and sensibility.
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