- Born
- Birth nameMara Elizabeth Wilson
- Height5′ 0½″ (1.54 m)
- Mara Elizabeth Wilson was born on Friday, July 24th, 1987 in Los Angeles, California. She is the oldest daughter of Michael and Suzie Wilson, with three elder brothers - Danny (b. 1979), Jon (b. 1981) and Joel (b. 1983) - and a younger sister Anna (b. 1993). When Mara was 5 years old, her eldest brother Daniel Ben Wilson (Danny) started acting in television commercials and she wanted to follow in his footsteps. Her parents refused to let her act at first. After continuous persistence from Mara Elizabeth, her parents reluctantly agreed to let her give acting a try. She went on to appear in a number of commercials, including those advertising Texaco and the Bank of America. She also appeared in Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), starring Robin Williams and Sally Field, as the divorced parents. In her role, Mara proved herself to be a talented young actress, who was mature for her tender years, and her acting career went from strength-to-strength as she quickly became a favorite among cinema-goers. The following year, Mara played a small girl whose mother had suffered a major stroke in A Time to Heal (1994). But her big break came with the remake of Miracle on 34th Street (1994), as the little, intelligent, cynical girl who learned the magic of Santa Claus. Ironically, Mara was not raised to believe in Santa Claus but this was a bonus in some ways since she was able to empathize with her character's stance that there was no Santa. At the age of nine, Mara was cast in the lead role in the film adaptation of Roald Dahls book, Matilda (1996). Sadly, during filming, Mara lost her beloved mother to breast cancer but she bravely pushed ahead with the film, much to the amazement and admiration of her adult co-stars. Mara starred in three films over the following three years, the last of which was in Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000). Unfortunately, the film did not do well in the theaters of American box office, but it did very well in the UK box office. This signaled an end to Mara's film career, as she wanted to focus on school and to enjoy her teenage years. In June 2005, Mara graduated from Idyllwild School of Music & Arts and went on to attend New York University. In a March 2012 blog post, she revealed she has no desire to return to acting in films. Today, Mara Wilson is a stage actress, a voice actress, a writer, and a playwright. Mara now lives a quiet life in "The Big Apple", a nickname of New York City, New York.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Unanimous
- ChildrenNo Children
- ParentsMichael Wilson
- RelativesDaniel Ben Wilson(Sibling)Jon Wilson(Sibling)Anna Wilson(Sibling)Joel Wilson(Sibling)Ben Shapiro(Cousin)
- Her big hazel eyes.
- Hair Bangs
- During her audition for Mrs Doubtfire, the producers asked all the potential girls how they would react if their dad dressed up as a woman. Mara claims that, in contrast to the subdued reactions of the other girls, she burst out laughing and said "I would be on the floor".
- Her mother, Suzie Wilson, passed away from breast cancer during production of Matilda (1996). The film is dedicated to her.
- While she was acting, her parents had a rule that stated she could only star in family-friendly movies.
- Young Mara Wilson was first seen in Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), where she was spotted by family movie writer/producer John Hughes, who chose her for an important part in his latest production, a remake of the Christmas classic Miracle on 34th Street (1994).
- In her autobiography, she reveals that her mother gave her the 'sex talk' while she was filming Mrs Doubtfire. And the next day she ran around the set, singing "I know about sex!".
- [reflecting back on her film career] Imagine that when you were a child, you liked to finger-paint. It was a fun pastime, but it came easily to you, so you never took much pride in it. Regardless, you got a reputation for your finger-painting. Now imagine that, fifteen to twenty years later, people are coming up to you and telling you that they have your finger-paintings up on their walls and that your finger-paints changed your life. It's flattering, but you haven't finger-painted in years, and it seems like something you did a long, long time ago. You've realized you don't particularly enjoy getting your hands dirty and that there are other outlets for your creative urges. But people are adamant: are you going to finger-paint again? When? Wait, you're not? Why not? That's what it feels like.
- I don't have any plans to pursue film acting. It's not my "thing" anymore, if it ever was. Yes, I do still act sometimes. But when I do, it's with people I know and trust, people who respect me as a person and appreciate what I have to offer. Yes, I love working in theater and have always loved voice-over, but pursuing a full-time live-action film career does not appeal to me. And no, you will not ever see me on "Dancing With The Stars". Sorry.
- Being cute just made me miserable.
- [feeling safe as a child actor] The thing that people assume is that Hollywood is inherently corrupt, and there's something about being on film sets that destroys you. For me, that was not necessarily true. I always felt safe on film sets.
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