Bryce Dallas Howard Biography

NAME: Bryce Dallas Howard

OCCUPATION: Film Actress

BIRTH DATE: March 02, 1981 (Age: 30)

EDUCATION: Tisch School of Arts at New York University

PLACE OF BIRTH: Los Angeles, California

Actress. Born March 2, 1981, in Los Angeles, California. Bryce Dallas Howard is the oldest of four children born to movie director Ron Howard and his wife, actress Cheryl. Like her three younger siblings, Howard's middle name comes from the city where she was conceived.

From an early age, Howard, who attended the renowned Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts camp in the Catskills region of New York state with close friend Natalie Portman, knew from an early age she wanted to be an actress. Exposure helped, and Howard is no stranger to the showbiz profession. She is the third generation of her family to act. Her grandparents, Rance and Jean Speegle Howard, both took to the stage. So did her father Ron, who was cast in his first movie when he was just 18 months old. Her uncle Clint, Ron Howard's brother, is an actor as well, and she is also the goddaughter of Henry Winkler, who co-starred with her father in the ABC sitcom, Happy Days.

Howard made her acting debut as an uncredited extra in her father's 1989 comedy-drama feature Parenthood. She was also an extra in her father's critically lauded Apollo 13 (1995) and the 2000 holiday live action Universal Studios production How the Grinch Stole Christmas. While on her dad's film sets, she would often socialize with the crew rather than the actors. For the next several years, Howard appeared in New York plays. Among these were House and Garden, a 2002 Alan Ayckbourn production held at the Manhattan Theatre Club, in which she portrayed a disdainful, flirtatious teen.

Determined to make it on her own merit without the benefit of being Oscar-winning director Ron Howard's daughter, actress Bryce Dallas Howard indeed achieved success and respectability based on a number of critically praised performances. Howard first gained attention when director M. Night Shyamalan saw her perform as Rosalind in a stage production of "As You Like It," which led to the young actress being cast in his supernatural thriller, "The Village" (2004). After being handpicked by Lars Von Trier for "Manderlay" (2005), she reunited with Shyamalan for "Lady in the Water" (2006) and followed with a Golden Globe nomination for reprising Rosalind in Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of "As You Like It" (2006). By the time Howard scored substantial supporting roles in blockbusters like "Spider-Man 3" (2007) and "Terminator Salvation" (2009), she had achieved substantial success completely on her own terms.