Image via Complex Original
Last week, the Internet was set ablaze by the leaking of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo red band trailer, giving cinephiles and book nerds alike their first good look at director David Fincher's (The Social Network) heavily anticipated adaptation. Although it was quickly taken down and replaced by the censored, though still badass, green band trailer, the blog-o-sphere couldn't stop commenting on the unrecognizable transformation of its star, 26-year-old newcomer Rooney Mara.
Previously seen in The Social Network as the girl who rips Jesse Eisenberg a new one in the opening scene, Mara's new role as the impenetrable and enigmatic Lisbeth Salander of author Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy is unlike anything we've ever seen before. Well, outside of the Swedish film version, of course.
Given some of the hostility from the fans of the original Swedish film towards the new, arguably unnecessary Americanized version, more than just Mara's career rests on her breakout film—quite possibly the dignity of American cinema does, as well. While we have to wait until December 21st to see the film, let's get to know the girl who is poised to enter Hollywood's A-list by year's end.
Her First Starring Role Was In The Indie Film "Tanner Hall"
10. Her first starring role was in the indie film Tanner Hall.
Thanks to the hype currently surrounding Mara, her first starring role in Tanner Hall, a coming-of-age story that follows four girls at a boarding school in a New England town, will finally be seen by more than just the 2009 Toroto Film Fest crowd. Last January, Anchor Bay acquired the rights to distribute the film in the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand later this year to coincide with the release of the David Fincher project.
She Is Football Royalty
9. She is football royalty.
Born and bred in Bedford, New York, Mara is the great-granddaughter of both New York Giants founder Tim Mara and Pittsburgh Steelers founder, Art Rooney, Sr., from whom she got her middle name (her real first name is Patricia), which is now her stage name. In addition, John Mara, the current co-owner of the Giants, is her uncle, and her father, Timothy Christopher Mara, is the vice president of player evaluation for the G-Men.
She Graduated From NYU In 2010
8. She graduated from NYU in 2010.
Before she ever played the Boston University student Erica Albright in The Social Network (pictured above), Rooney attended the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University. Her previous eye-opening experience of touring the globe with The Traveling School, following her high school graduation, was a precursor to her interest in focusing on psychology, international social policy, and nonprofit at NYU.
She Founded The Charity Faces Of Kibera
7. She founded the charity Faces of Kibera.
In the summer of 2007, Mara traveled to Kenya as part of a volunteer program that works in Nairobi. When given the option of which area to volunteer in, Mara chose Kibera, which turned out to be the second largest slum in all of Africa. She soon found herself in the middle of a one square-mile expanse of land surrounded by hundreds of thousands of people deprived of government assistance.
Yet, the program she was committed to was more interested in profit and consequently failed to provide the volunteers with adequate resources to help those in need. Thus, upon returning to New York, Mara made it her mission to provide for the people of Kibera in a more effective and expansive way by founding Faces of Kibera, which creates homes, medical facilities and various other projects that care for and support the village's children. You've got to respect that.
She Starred In The Remake Of "A Nightmare On Elm Street"
6. She starred in the 2010 remake of A Nightmare On Elm Street.
In the Michael Bay-produced, reimagined, and god-awful, version of the 1984 horror classic A Nightmare on Elm Street, Mara played the film's main protagonist, Nancy Holbrook. This was the first time a global audience got to see the actress in a starring role. While her character was based on the original's Nancy (played by scream queen Heather Langenkamp), also a teen aching to leave town after graduation, Mara described her Nancy as a much lonelier and more anti-social girl than the original's heroine. What she understandably neglected to mention was that her character was also in a lazy, unimaginative cash-grab of a reboot, which we're more than happy to point out.
She Was The Focus Of A Photoshoot By A Former Co-Star
5. She was the focus of a photoshoot by former co-star Thomas Dekker.
To Thomas Dekker, Mara is more than just his co-star in A Nightmare On Elm Street—she was also once his photographic muse. As the subject of his ominously focused and mildly erotic art school-esque photoshoot, Mara seems to exude a sense of the intrigue and mystery that will entirely overcome her in the upcoming U.S. film adaption of Stieg Larsson's Dragon Tattoo.
She And Sister Kate Mara Both Appeared In 2011 Best Picture Nominees
4. She and her sister Kate Mara both appeared in "Best Picture" nominees at the 2011 Oscars.
It should come as no surprise that the daughters of football royalty have a bit of a friendly rivalry happening. The sisters both appeared in Best Picture contenders at this year's Academy Awards. Rooney's older sister Kate Mara, 28, traversed boulders in 127 Hours with James Franco, while Rooney trumped Jesse Eisenberg's ever-awkward character's ego in The Social Network, although neither took home any golden statues.
She Is Dating Charlie McDowell
3. She is currently dating writer/director Charlie McDowell.
Before Mara flew to Sweden to begin shooting The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, some paparazzi photos surfaced of her kissing the aggravated Dear Girls Above Me tweeter and budding director, Charlie McDowell, whom she has been dating since last year. While he hasn't truly made a name for himself outside of his list of Twitter followers, film fans will remember his father, Malcolm McDowell, as the star of Stanley Kubrick's classic adaptation of A Clockwork Orange, as well as countless other flicks.
She Underwent A Drastic Transformation For "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo"
2. She underwent a drastic physical transformation for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
To become the haunting and provocative Lisbeth Salander that director David Fincher envisioned, Rooney Mara had to give up the down-to-earth, pleasant image she was slowly beginning to develop in the eyes of the public.
For the role, Mara obviously had to learn more than how to sling a gun and ride a motorcycle; she sliced off her long brown hair for a jagged, black cut, bleached her eyebrows, allowed her skin to turn almost transparently pale, had her thin frame riddled with fake tattoos, and, most starkly yet characteristic of the novel's heroine, had her nipples pierced. The end result is insanely sexy, yet also pretty intimidating.
She Is Predicted To Be The Next Big A-List Movie Star
1. She is predicted to be the next big A-list star.
Landing the sought-after role of titular character in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo came with a load of implications before Mara even nabbed the part. First, whoever scored the role would surely be a contender at next year's Academy Awards. Second, the chosen actress would most likely catapult to the level on which film roles are just handed to her instead of requiring auditions.
Sure, Mara's fellow contenders for the role, including Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson, have already achieved A-list fame, but this film would have, thirdly, given them the possibility of garnering the utmost respect of a global audience.
By securing the role that will surely make her career, Mara's gained the attention of media outlets everywhere (such as yours truly). Not only was she named by Entertainment Weekly as “Tomorrow’s A-list Movie Star Today," but she was also honored in The Hollywood Reporter's 17th annual Next Gen list and in Elle's 2010 "Women In Hollywood: The Power List," as well as given the Gen Art Stargazer award. Not bad for a girl who's big moment hasn't even arrived yet.