Julia O'Hara Stiles (born March 28, 1981) is an American stage and
screen actress.
After beginning her career in small parts in a New York City theatre troupe, she has moved on to leading roles in plays by writers as diverse as
William Shakespeare and
David Mamet. Her film career has included both commercial and critical successes, ranging from teen
romantic comedies such as
10 Things I Hate About You (1999) to dark
art house pictures such as
The Business of Strangers (2001).
Early life
Stiles was born in New York City, the daughter of Judith Stiles, a
potter, and John O'Hara, a teacher and businessman who owns and operates a pottery business.
[Julia Stiles Biography (1981-)] Her father is of
Irish descent and her mother is of half
Italian and half
English ancestry.
Stiles, who has two younger siblings, Jane and Johnny,
and an older half sister Bridget,
was raised in
SoHo.
She started acting at age eleven, performing with New York's La MaMa Theatre Company.
