It’s certainly been an eventful 2014 – both personally and professionally for actress Jennifer Lawrence.
She has graced the front pages of countless magazines and newspapers because of the nude photo scandal where more than 60 images of her were hacked from a private account and shared to the world. Plus her blossoming relationship with ‘Coldplay’ frontman Chris Martin, after his split from wife Gwyneth Paltrow, has made her regular tabloid fodder.
However, what’s completely refreshing about Lawrence, or J-Law as she has become affectionately known, is her “not giving a sh*t attitude” and her love of speaking her mind. For this she has been aptly nicknamed “America’s Motor-Mouthed Sweetheart.” (See overleaf for the best J-Law quotes for proof of her off-the-cuff honesty.)
When most Hollywood movie stars would be hiding in shame after the world has seen them naked, Lawrence is out in full force in more revealing outfits than ever. She continues too with her unabashed honesty, never shying from the truth or trying to paint her actions in a rosy-coloured hue. She even admitted to having had several alcoholic shots at the Oscars this year to calm her nerves, which resulted in her puking on Madonna’s stairs at the after-show party. Ooops…
Professionally, 2014 has definitely been Lawrence’s year. Hot on the heels of her Oscar win for Best Actress in ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ she picked up a Golden Globe and a Bafta Award for her performance in hit film ‘American Hustle’.
She has also been crowned the ‘Sexiest Woman in the World’ by FHM in its annual poll and has a staggering six films coming out in a short space of time: including the hugely anticipated Hunger Games: ‘Mockingjay Part 1’ this month and her second ‘X- Men’ instalment in early 2015.
She has also made it to the Forbes List of Top American Earners, only second on the list to Sandra Bullock as the highest paid female acting star. It is staggering to think that Lawrence has almost tipped 50-year-old Bullock who has been churning out hit movies for over 25! In comparison, Lawrence is only 24 and has only been making films for only five years.
RISING STAR
Jennifer Lawrence was born in Kentucky to working class parents, her mum Karen worked at a summer camp and her dad Gary was a construction worker. From an early age she wanted to pursue a career in Hollywood, convincing her parents to take her to New York to find a talent agent.
After a few stints on a minor US television series, Lawrence shot to fame in the 2010 film ‘Winter’s Bone’. At only 19 she was the second youngest person ever to receive an Academy Award Nomination for Best Actress.
The film won Best Film at The Sundance Film Festival and Lawrence, who played 17-year-old Ree Dolly, who cares for her mentally ill mother and brother, was cited as the main reason behind it’s success.
“Her performance is more than acting, it’s a gathering storm. Lawrence’s eyes are a roadmap to what’s tearing Ree apart,” Rolling Stone Magazine wrote at the time.
Although she didn’t win the Oscar in 2010, her stock was on the rise and she was offered the lead in the hugely successful franchise of ‘Hunger Games’ films.
Despite being a fan of the books, Lawrence apparently took three days to accept the role because she was intimidated by the size of the movie and how it might affect her career.
The first film was released in March 2012 and took a record breaking $152 million within three days of opening. The success of ‘The Hunger Games’, and Lawrence as its leading lady, Katniss Everdeen, was also the key to breaking up the male-centric nature of action films. Prior to ‘The Hunger Games’, among the Top 200 Worldwide Box Office hits ever, not one had been built around a female action star.
Lawrence had to undergo severe training schedules for the film including taking up stunt training, archery, rock and tree climbing, combat, martial arts, running, pilates and yoga. And she’s admitted she’s not a natural sportswoman so to complete this grueling training regime was no mean feat.
Throughout her career, Lawrence has been praised as being the chameleon of actresses, playing serious roles as well as action roles and even breaking into comedy. Her most critically acclaimed film so far was the small budget but big box office hitter ‘Silver Linings Playbook’. Here Lawrence played the recently widowed, quirky character Tiffany Maxwell alongside the hunky Bradley Cooper.
Critics said of her performance: “She’s rude, dirty, funny, foulmouthed, sloppy, sexy, vibrant, and vulnerable, sometimes all in the same scene, even in the same breath. No list of Best Actress Oscar contenders would be complete without the electrifying Lawrence in the lead. She lights up the screen.”
TABLOID HEADLINES
Lawrence has been one of the most newsworthy stars of 2014, although not always for the right reasons.
In August, she was the first actress to become involved in the nude celebrity photo scandal, now known as the largest hacking scandal in history.
Over 60 images of Lawrence nude or partially nude were hacked from her iCloud account and posted on sites including Reddit, 4 Chan and Twitter. Although the images have since been removed, they were spread far and wide before being taken down.
In a blatant hacking and invasion of privacy case, Lawrence is said to be pursuing legal action against the hacker in a case that could be worth up to $60 million.
She is paving the way for other stars to follow suit. The charges are a highly publicised move that will if nothing else, prove to women that they don’t have to take something like this lying down.
While hundreds of other stars including Kim Kardashian, Hayden Panettiere, Amber Heard and Rihanna have also been targeted, no other stars have started pursuing legal action yet.
LOVE LIFE
Until recently Lawrence has managed to keep her love life relatively low key. She dated her ‘X-Men’ co-star Nicholas Hoult for almost 3 years. (He was also the lead child actor in ‘About a Boy’ – remember?!.)
Hoult and Lawrence met on the set of their first film together ‘ X-Men: First Class’ in 2011. It’s thought that conflicting work schedules meant that the couple rarely got to see each other. Lawrence worked on ‘The Hunger Games’ in the US while Hoult worked on ‘Kill Your Friends’ in the UK.
The last straw was apparently when Lawrence missed going to the Wireless Festival in London with him earlier this year, choosing to go to a Dior fashion show instead.
“Nicholas was pretty upset she opted out of seeing him as they rarely ever got to hang out,” a friend said.
Maybe it was more than a missed meeting. Lawrence has made no secret of the fact that she is a massive Coldplay fan. In July, around the same time as the aforementioned Wireless Festival, Lawrence attended a Coldplay gig and was reportedly seen singing along to every word and gaining Martin’s attention as she was doing so.
The pair then met up at the Kensington Roof Gardens where they spent the entire evening talking and flirting with one another, according to bystanders.
Fast-forward four months and the couple still appear to be going strong. Although not regularly papped out together like some celeb couples, she has been there to support him at three of his recent gigs and the pair have jetted off to Vegas together for a weekend break. Sources close to the couple claim this could be the real thing, hinting that a wedding could be on the cards.
Well one thing’s for sure if Gwyneth’s macro-biotic, clean living lifestyle was one of the reasons for the couple “unconsciously coupling”, then Martin has definitely met the exact opposite in Lawrence, who drinks, smokes and swears like a trooper. Good luck to them.
22 Of The Best Jennifer Lawrence Quotes Ever
America’s motor-mouthed sweetheart Jennifer Lawrence is one of the most quotable treasures ever given to Hollywood. In an era of media-savvy, overly-censored stars, she has become affectionately known for pretty much saying whatever comes to mind. Her ‘Hunger Games’ co-star Lenny Kravitz said, “She’ll say anything. Anything.” While her other co-star Liam Hemsworth says, “There’s no filter with Jennifer. She says whatever she wants, whenever she wants!”
On what she does in her free time: “If I don’t have anything to do all day, I might not even put my pants on.”
On her talents in life: “I’m the fastest pee-er ever. I’m famous for it.”
On her workout routine: “I hate saying, ‘I like exercising’ – I want to punch people who say that.”
On meeting Woody Harrelson for the first time: “Hi Woody, I’m J – is that a sex swing?” (It was a yoga swing)
On her dancing: “I’m a horrible dancer! I’m like a dad at prom. I look like Gumby getting electrocuted.”
On how she chooses her roles: “I never play characters that are like me because I’m a boring person. I wouldn’t want to see me in a movie.”
On her sense of humour: “As soon as somebody farts around me, I think it’s hilarious. This is something my brothers did, that now the boys at work are obsessed with. You cup it, and then you throw it in someone’s face and say, ‘Take a bite out of that cheeseburger!'”
On the contents of her Oscar’s purse: “Candy, almonds, my phone, a Baby Ruth, Laffy Taffy.”
On how she prepares for the red carpet: “It’s so scary. And then I end up getting so nervous that I get really hyper. So then I go in interviews and I’m like, ‘I’m like a chihuahua! I’m shaking and peeing!’ And then afterwards, I’m like, ‘I just talked about peeing on the red carpet…'”
On her much publicised weight ‘struggles’: “I’d rather look chubby on screen and like a person in real life.”
On partying at the Oscars: “I stopped at Harvey Weinstein’s party for a little bit, got my parents drunk, and then I left and went home.”
On her flying routine: “I always feel like an idiot every time I fly first class because I’m a kid. And I just sit there, and everyone’s got their newspapers and they’re on the computer, and I’m like, ‘Can I get a colouring book, please? Can I get some crayons?’”
On her boobs: “I think people are fascinated with breasts that bounce. They are so used to seeing fake ones. People are confused that mine bounce! My breasts have a life of their own.”
On having babies: “I think all mothers are a nightmare – I don’t think you can have children and not lose your goddamn mind!”
On setting up dates for ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ co-star Bradley Cooper: “I feel like all I’ve been doing lately is setting him up. I was like, ‘You know what? I’m gonna save time and just get you a booklet with pictures of my friends. You just go through and pick them out, because this is getting exhausting.’”
On sabotaging her own career: “It’s almost like I subconsciously don’t want to work anymore, so I’m trying to ruin my career. I told the New York Times I was pregnant. My publicist called me and was like, ‘This is the New York Times. Be serious!’ And then I found myself talking about orgies within three seconds.”
On likability: “I picked up an issue of Cosmopolitan the other day that had tips for job interviews, because I was like, ‘I need to get better at interviews’. The article was basically about how to get someone not to hate you in 20 minutes. Every single thing they told you not to do, I was like, ‘I do that every day!’”
On being starstruck: “Once I’m obsessed with somebody, I’m terrified of them instantly. I’m not scared of them – I’m scared of me and how I will react. Like, for instance, one time someone was introducing me to Bill Maher, and I saw Meryl Streep walk into the room, and I literally put my hand right in Bill Maher’s face and said, ‘Not now, Bill!’ and I just stared at Meryl Streep. I just creepily stared at her.”
On Victoria’s Secret declaring that she had the sexiest eyes: “Eyes?! What? From Victoria’s Secret? I thought it was going to be like boobs or butt or something. My eyes? I’m mad!”
On what she would tweet, if she had Twitter: “‘What’s anal leakage? Dash, Jen Lawrence!'”
