Julia Stiles, born on March 28, 1981, in New York City, is a talented actress of Irish, English, and German heritage. She is the eldest of three children born to Judith Newcomb Stiles, a Greenwich Village artist, and John O'Hara, an elementary school teacher.
Stiles' passion for acting began at an early age, and she was encouraged to take modern dance lessons and introduced to Shakespeare and theater. At 11, she made her stage debut with the La MaMa Theatre, and by 12, she was performing professionally and working in commercials. She continued her training at the Professional Children's School and made her cinematic debut in I Love You, I Love You Not (1996).
Stiles' breakout role came in 1997 with the TV mini-movie Before Women Had Wings, which dealt with child abuse. She then appeared in several films, including The Devil's Own (1997),10 Things I Hate About You (1999),and Hamlet (2000).
In addition to her film work, Stiles has also appeared on stage, including a production of Twelfth Night in 2002 and a Broadway production of Oleanna in 2009. She took a break from acting to attend Columbia University, where she earned a degree in English.
Stiles has appeared in several mainstream films, including The Bourne Identity (2002),The Bourne Supremacy (2004),and The Bourne Ultimatum (2007). She has also appeared in indie films and ensemble dramas, such as Mona Lisa Smile (2003) and Carolina (2003).
In 2010, Stiles switched to series television, joining the cast of Dexter for its fifth season. She has since appeared in several TV series, including Blue and Riviera. Her recent work includes prominent roles in The Great Gilly Hopkins (2015),Misconduct (2016),Jason Bourne (2016),Trouble (2017),Hustlers (2019),and The God Committee (2021).
Julia Stiles is married to camera assistant Preston Cook and has one son.
