Highlights
- Natalie Portman's role in Black Swan caused strain in her relationship with her father, who disapproved of the explicit scenes and portrayal in the film.
- Portman had previously turned down controversial roles out of respect for her parents, but felt she couldn't pass on the opportunity to play the ballerina in Black Swan.
- Despite the backlash and strained relationship, Black Swan's success allowed Portman to meet her future husband and start her own family, ultimately reconnecting with her father.
Natalie Portman’s role in Black Swan cemented her as a force to be reckoned with in the acting field and even won her an Oscar, however, it almost ruined her relationship with her family. Portman was born in Jerusalem to a conservative and religious Jewish household. Her father, Avner Hershlag is a well-known fertility doctor, while her mother, Shelley Stevens, is a teacher.
The actress has turned down controversial roles out of respect for her parents, like playing the lead role in Lolita, based on Vladimir Nabokov's novel. However, when Black Swan came along, she felt like this was one role she couldn’t pass on, even if it meant being on the outs with her father because of how the film would portray her.
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Natalie Portman Didn’t Want To Turn Down The Black Swan Role
One of the most notable films the Natalie Portman has turned down because of explicit scenes includes Lolita, a movie about a professor who falls in love with a young girl. When she was 13, Portman was offered the role but opted out because she felt she was too young to be sexualized in that way. In 2011, the 42-year-old starred in Your Highness alongside James Franco, Danny McBride, and Zooey Deschanel. Despite being a huge fan of stoner comedies, Portman refused to film a scene where she would be required to jump into a cake with no clothes on.
Caroline Davis was paid $500 to act as Portman’s body double in the scene, and many fans think it is because her father would disapprove. So audiences were surprised when the Star Wars actress took on the ballerina role. Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan was a commercial success for a film made on a $13 million budget; it grossed $329 million at the box office. Portman starred in the movie alongside Mila Kunis, Winona Ryder, and Barbara Hershey.
She was offered to do the movie in 2000, and by the time it was getting made, Portman was eager to get into more adult roles and break out of the ‘cute and small’ roles she had been boxed into for a while. When Portman was asked about her co-star, she suggested her long-time friend Mila Kunis, not knowing they would have to do an intimate scene together. Later, the V for Vendetta star admitted that filming the sex scene with Kunis made things awkward between them.
“I feel like it would be easier to do it with someone you didn’t know, but it was great to have a friend there who we could laugh and make jokes with and get over it together.” The movie got mixed reviews from critics, while sources close to Portman revealed her and her father’s relationship became strained. “Things are very frosty between them right now.”
Natalie Portman’s Father Didn’t Speak To Her After Black Swan Role
A source told DailyMail that Natalie Portman’s relationship with her father suffered significantly after she agreed to play the lesbian ballerina Nina Sayers. “Natalie is a very private and dignified person and is often influenced by her father’s approval. This, however, was one role she simply didn’t want to turn down even though she knew it could upset her father.”
Before she took on the controversial role in Black Swan, Portman had a great relationship with her father, even turning down films out of respect for him. As a daughter to a doctor and teacher, she has questioned her career path before and often wondered if it was a career that would benefit others. For the 2009 film, however, the actress didn’t let her father’s lack of approval get in her way. Portman and Mila Kunis play Nina and Lisa, respectively, who start off as rivals but eventually become friends.
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The friends act out a scene where they make out and become intimate. The insider claimed Portman’s controversial scene with her friend led to her no longer speaking to her father. They said, “He still sees her as his baby and always will and thinks showing herself like this is degrading.”
Natalie Portman Reconnected With Her Father After Black Swan’s Success
Even though the film caused controversy in her family, it allowed her to meet French dancer Benjamin Millepied. The Thor: Love and Thunder actress announced their engagement shortly after they started dating, and soon after, they welcomed their first child, Aleph. By 2011, Portman and her father’s relationship had returned to what it was now that she was starting her own family.
The fertility doctor revealed his daughter shared the news with him and her mother after asking them to get on a call together. After getting the news, he explained, “We are very elated and excited, very happy for Natalie and Ben and very happy to have a new baby in our family very soon.” Millepied, 46 and Portman got married in 2012 in a private ceremony in California and welcomed their daughter Amalia in 2017.
Portman admitted she was the happiest then, saying in an interview that nothing was more important to her than her personal life. “It’s something which comes first, always makes sense, and compared to the happiness of a successful family life, everything else is practically superficial.”
Natalie Portman And Benjamin Millepied Split After Cheating Allegations
Sadly, Natalie Portman’s fairytale marriage to her French husband might end after cheating allegations came to light. In June 2023, Millepied was exposed for allegedly cheating on his wife of ten years with Camille Etienne. Since the news came to light, Portman has been spotted without her wedding ring. When the affair was first exposed, a source close to the star told Us Weekly she was trying to work on things with the father of her children, because she doesn’t want them to grow up in a broken home.
