Up until this year, there was only one role people remembered 31-year-old Jennifer Connelly for - the stroppy heroine in the Jim Henson fantasy adventure "Labyrinth" (1986). Now nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar, as Russell Crowe's wife in "A Beautiful Mind", the New York born actor is about to become very very popular.
Connelly's first steps into the acting world were a baptism of unusual roles, appearing in an episode of Tales of the Unexpected, followed by a brief role in Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in America", at the tender age of 12. Then came her first lead role as the girl that could tame insects in Dario Argento's super-violent fantasy "Phenomena" (1985), which was followed by "Labyrinth". The girl seemed destined for a bright mainstream future.
Instead, Connelly headed for a forgettable phase of films that did little to flex her acting muscles. She starred with Patrick Dempsey in the offbeat romantic comedy "Some Girls" (1988), before taking a part in the ballet film "Γ‰toile" (1988) so she could spend more time in Italy, a favourite place of hers.
It looked like the talented child actor was tumbling down the well worn path of stars who couldn't cut it in the adult acting world. In 1990 she received an enthusiastic critical reception for the Dennis Hopper-directed movie "The Hot Spot" (1990) but the punters didn't take to it, although the fact that Don Johnson was in it probably didn't help.
Big budget action flick "The Rocketeer" (1991) didn't do much for anyone's career, and Connelly laid low until she was cast as a lesbian student in John Singleton's "Higher Learning" (1995).
Then the arrival of her son Kai in 1997 finally focused Connelly to get the parts she really wanted - "Dark City" (1998), "Waking the Dead" (2000), "Requiem for a Dream" (2000), and as Alicia Nash in "A Beautiful Mind".
So with Oscar glory beckoning, the raven haired star will have scripts piling through the door. But we'll next see her as Betty Ross, love interest for the green monster himself in "The Hulk" (2003). And with Ang "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" Lee at the helm, it's just the type of clever blockbuster a grown-up Jennifer Connelly would pick.
"A Beautiful Mind" opens in UK cinemas on Friday 22nd February 2002.
