Shailene Woodley is widely known for her roles as Hazel Grace in The Fault in Our Stars and Beatrice Prior in The Divergent Series for which she gained widespread recognition. She began her career in 1999 with a role in the television film, Replacing Dad. Woodley has since gone on to make a name for herself in the entertainment industry, gaining nominations for a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy for her roles as Jane in HBO’s Big Little Lies.
Despite her fame, she is known to be pretty laid back and does not share much about her personal life. As such, fans of the actress are curious to learn more about her. Here are seven interesting facts you probably didn’t know about Shailene Woodley.
1. Shailene Woodley’s Name Has An Extraordinary Origin
In a feature with Industria in 2012, Shailene revealed that the story of her unusual name is a peculiar one, “I was named after a license plate. My mum saw the word ‘Shai’ on a plate followed by a load of numbers and she thought it was pretty cool and just added an ending to it.” Not many can likely say that about themselves.
2. She Has Been Interested In Acting Ever Since She Was Five Years Old
Shailene was discovered as early as the age of five years old by an agent, while acting in a local theater play. After that, she was mainly booked for commercials, appearing in over 50 TV ads, which included brands such as Hertz, Leapfrog, and Honda. However, her parents only allowed her to pursue acting in movies and TV shows if she managed to stay grounded. Woodley managed to adhere to her parents’ rules while building her resume. In fact, it was even possible for Shailene Woodley to attend regular high school while working on popular TV shows.
3. Shailene Woodley Was An Excellent Student In High School
An interesting fact about Shailene Woodley is that she was an excellent students at Simi Valley High School. In high school, Woodley achieved a 4.0-grade point average and took AP classes. For four years, the self-proclaimed “choir nerd” sang alto and participated in pep rallies. In the years before she landed her role in The Secret Life of the American Teenager, she had considered studying Interior Design at NYU.
4. Shailene Woodley Considers Jennifer Lawrence, George Clooney, And Anaïs Nin To Be Her Role Models
Woodley told Teen Vogue in 2014 that she got some advice from one of her role models, Jennifer Lawrence, who admonished her: “Don’t make a sex tape, don’t do drugs, don’t do things in public that you wouldn’t want other people judging you for.” She considers her The Descendants Co-Star George Clooney, as a big brother. Shailene Woodley also told New York Magazine in 2014, that the French author Anaïs Nin is one of her biggest inspirations.
5. Shailene Woodley Uses Astrology To Get Into The Psyche Of Her Roles
In terms of her acting techniques, Shailene Woodley told NPR that she tries to actively listen: “For me, it’s about being fully present and actively listening to every single thing that’s going on around me and reacting to it. Because I feel the second I premeditate something, it’s going to feel premeditated.” Moreover, after studying astrology for several years, she now constructs a birth chart for each of her roles to better understand their personalities.
6. Before Her Breakthrough, She Worked At A Paint Store
Before her breakthrough role in The Secret Life of the American Teenager, which aired on ABC in 2008, Shailene had an exciting job. Woodley worked at a paint store in Simi Valley, her hometown. In an interview with Judy Greer for The Lab, she described the job as a fun experience as she “go around and cut cakes for kids and make them do karaoke to Hannah Montana songs.”
7. Shailene Woodley Has An Impressive Number of Awards and Nominations
Throughout her acting career, Shailene Woodley has been nominated for 71 awards and has taken home a significant number of award. Her most notable awards include Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for Big Little Lies at the Emmys 2017. In 2018, Woodley earned a Golden Globes nomination for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for Big Little Lies. She also won many MTV Movie Awards for The Descendants in 2012 and multiple Teen Choice Awards for The Fault in Our Stars and Divergent from 2012-2015. Many critics even speculated she might get an Oscar nomination for her phenomenal acting in The Fault in Our Stars, however, that did not happen. Maybe her upcoming roles will set her up for an Oscar.
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