Liv Tyler
Encyclopedia
Liv Rundgren Tyler is an American actress and model. She is the daughter of Aerosmith
's lead singer, Steven Tyler
, and Bebe Buell
, model and singer. Tyler began a career in modeling at the age of 14, but after less than a year she decided to focus on acting. She made her film debut in the 1994 film Silent Fall
. She then appeared in supporting roles in Empire Records
(1995), Heavy
(1996) and That Thing You Do!
(1996). Tyler later achieved critical recognition in the leading role Stealing Beauty
(1996). She followed this by starring in supporting roles including Inventing the Abbotts
(1997) and Cookie's Fortune
(1999).
Tyler achieved international recognition as a result of her portrayal of Elf maiden Arwen Undómiel
in the Lord of the Rings film trilogy. She has appeared in an eclectic range of films, including the 2004 comedy Jersey Girl
, the indie
film Lonesome Jim
(2005), the drama Reign Over Me (2007) and big-budget studio films such as Armageddon (1998), The Strangers
(2008) and The Incredible Hulk
(2008).
Since 2003, Tyler has served as a United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF) Goodwill Ambassador for the United States, and as a spokesperson for Givenchy
's line of perfume and cosmetics.
in New York. She is the first-born daughter of Bebe Buell
, a model, singer, and former Playboy Playmate (Miss November 1974), and Steven Tyler
, the lead singer of Aerosmith
. Her mother named her after Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann
, after seeing Ullmann on the cover of the March 5, 1977 issue of TV Guide
. She is of Italian
, German
, Polish
, Russian
and English
ancestry on her father's side and also has three half-siblings: Mia Tyler
(born 1978), Chelsea Anna Tallarico (born 1989), and Taj Monroe Tallarico (born 1992). Her maternal grandmother, Dorothea Johnson, founded the Protocol School of Washington.
At birth, Buell claimed that rock star Todd Rundgren
was Tyler's biological father. At age nine, Tyler discovered that she was Steven Tyler's daughter after meeting him and noticing a resemblance she shared with his other daughter, Mia. When she asked her mother about the similarity, the secret was revealed. The truth about Tyler's paternity did not become public until five years later, in 1991, when she changed her name from Rundgren to Tyler, but kept the former as a middle name. Buell's stated reason for the initial decision was that Steven was too heavily addicted to drugs at the time of her birth. Since learning the truth about her paternity, Liv and Steven have developed a close relationship. They have also worked together professionally, once when she appeared in Aerosmith's music video
for "Crazy
" in 1993 and again when Aerosmith performed many of the songs in the film Armageddon (1998), in which Liv Tyler starred.
Tyler attended the Congressional Schools of Virginia, Breakwater School
and Waynflete School
in Portland, Maine
, before returning to New York City with her mother at the age of 12. She went to York Preparatory
in New York City for junior high and high school, after her mother researched the school to accommodate Tyler's ADHD. She graduated in 1995, and left to continue her acting career. When asked about the way she spent her early life, Tyler said: "For me, I didn’t get much of a childhood in my teen years because I’ve been working since I was 14. But that also kept me out of trouble. When everybody was doing acid and partying like crazy, I was at work on a movie in Tuscany ... having my own fun, of course, but it was a different kind of thing. I have no regrets. I love the way my life has gone."
who took photos of her that ended up in Interview magazine
. She later starred in television commercials
. However, she became bored with her modeling career less than a year after it started, and decided to go into acting. She never took acting lessons. Tyler first became known to television audiences when she starred alongside Alicia Silverstone
in the music video for Aerosmith
's 1993 song "Crazy
".
Tyler made her feature film debut in Silent Fall
in 1994, where she played the older sister of an autistic boy. In 1995, she starred in the comedy drama Empire Records
. Tyler has described Empire Records as "one of the best experiences" she has ever had. Soon after, she landed a supporting role in James Mangold
's 1996 drama Heavy
as Callie, a naive young waitress. The film received favorable reviews; critic Janet Maslin
noted: "Ms. Tyler ... gives a charmingly ingenuous performance, betraying no self-consciousness about her lush good looks."
(1996), in which she played Lucy Harmon, an innocent, romantic teenager who travels to Italy intent on losing her virginity. The film received generally mixed reviews, but Tyler's performance was favored by the critics; Variety
wrote: "Tyler is the perfect accomplice. At times sweetly awkward, at others composed and serene, the actress appears to respond effortlessly and intuitively to the camera, creating a rich sense of what Lucy is about that often is not explicit in the dialogue." Empire
noted, "Liv Tyler (here radiantly resembling a ganglier young Ava Gardner
) with a rare opportunity to enamour, a break she capitalises on with composure." The film was directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
, who chose Tyler for the role after meeting with a number of young girls in Los Angeles, including Tyler's music video co-star Alicia Silverstone. Bertolucci claimed "there was something missing in all of them". He later admitted that what he saw in Tyler was a gravitas he described as "a New York aura". During promotion of the film, Tyler admitted she wanted to separate herself from the character during production; "I tried my damnedest not to think of my own situation. But at one point, after a take, I just started to cry and cry. I remembered when I found out about my dad and how we just stared at each other from head to toe taking in every nook and cranny."
She later appeared in That Thing You Do!
(1996), a movie about a fictional one-hit wonder
rock band called The Oneders, following their whirlwind rise to the top of the pop charts, and just as quickly, their plunge back to obscurity. The film was written and directed by Tom Hanks
. It grossed over $25 million worldwide, and was met with favorable reviews. The following year, she appeared in Inventing the Abbotts
in 1997, in which she played the daughter of Will Patton
and Barbara Williams' characters. The movie is based on a short story by Sue Miller
. Entertainment Weekly
declared Tyler's performance as "lovely and pliant". That same year, Tyler was chosen by People
magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People.
Tyler next appeared in Armageddon (1998), where she played the daughter of Bruce Willis
' character and love interest of Ben Affleck
's character. The film generated mixed reviews, but was a box office success earning $553 million worldwide. The movie included the songs "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing
" and "What Kind of Love Are You On
" by Aerosmith. In a 2001 interview with The Guardian
, she admitted that she turned down the role in Armageddon; "I really didn't want to do it at first and I turned it down a couple of times, but the biggest reason I changed my mind was because I was scared of it. I wanted to try it for that very reason. I mean, I'm not really in this to do amazing things in my career - I just want it to be special when I make a movie."
She was then cast in the drama Onegin
(1999), a film based on the 19th century Russian novel of the same name
by Alexander Pushkin, in which she portrayed Tatyana Larina and co-starred with Ralph Fiennes
. Tyler was required to master an English accent, though Stephen Holden
of the New York Times felt that her approximation of an English accent was "inert". The film was critically and financially unsuccessful. That same year, she appeared in the historical comedy film Plunkett & Macleane
.
She later appeared in two films directed by Robert Altman
, Cookie's Fortune
(1999) and Dr. T & the Women
(2000). In Cookie's Fortune, she was part of an ensemble cast that included Glenn Close
, Julianne Moore
, Chris O'Donnell
, and Patricia Neal
. Her performance well received among critics; Salon.com
wrote: "This is the first time in which Tyler's acting is a match for her beauty (she's always been a bit forlorn). Altman helps her find some snap, but a relaxed, silly snap, as in the cartoon sound she makes when she takes a midday swig of bourbon
. The lazy geniality of the movie is summed up by the way Emma [Tyler's character] saunters off to take a swim with her cowboy hat and pint of Wild Turkey
." Entertainment Weekly also noted that Tyler is "sweetly gruff as the tomboy troublemaker". In the romantic comedy, Dr. T & the Women, she played Marilyn, a gynecological patient of Richard Gere
's character, who is the lesbian
lover of his daughter, played by Kate Hudson
.
, John Goodman
and Paul Reiser
) in the black comedy One Night at McCool's
. In discussion of the role, she said: "This was definitely the first part where I had to be so physically aware and have people so aware of me physically. Maybe it's not hard for anybody else, but it is a bit for me. I mean I love my body and I feel very comfortable in my skin, but this was tough." Peter Travers
of Rolling Stone
wrote: "Tyler, a true beauty, gives the role a valiant try, but her range is too limited to play this amalgam of female perfection."
In 2001, she starred in the feature film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, directed by Peter Jackson
. She played the Elf
maiden Arwen Undómiel
. The film is based on the first volume
of J. R. R. Tolkien
's The Lord of the Rings
. The filmmakers approached Tyler after seeing her performance in Plunkett & Macleane. She learned to speak the fictitious Elvish language that was created by Tolkien. Mick LaSalle
of the San Francisco Chronicle
noted that Tyler's performance was "lovely and earnest".
A year later, Tyler again starred as Arwen in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, the second installment of the series. The film received favorable reviews. Tyler spent months before filming learning swordfighting, to be used during the concluding battle scenes in The Two Towers, though her scenes from the battle were removed after the script was changed. The film was an enormous box office success, earning over $926 million worldwide, out grossing its predecessor, which earned over $871 million. In 2003, Tyler featured in the third and last installment of the series, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
.
Following the success of The Lord of the Rings, she appeared opposite her Armageddon co-star Ben Affleck in writer-director Kevin Smith
's romantic comedy Jersey Girl
(2004), playing a woman who re-opens a widowed father's heart to love, played by Affleck. In an interview with MTV News
, Tyler confessed that she felt "scared and vulnerable" while filming Jersey Girl, adding "I was so used to those other elements of the character [Arwen]. On The Lord of the Rings, a lot of things were done in post-production, whereas this was really just about me and Ben sitting there, just shooting off dialogue." However, she reiterated that doing Jersey Girl was what she wanted to do.
In 2005, she appeared in Steve Buscemi
's independent drama Lonesome Jim
, where she was cast alongside Casey Affleck
, as a single mother and nurse who reconnects with an old fling who has returned to their small town of Indiana
after a failed run as a novelist in New York. The film was screened at a special presentation at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival
where it was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. Tyler's next appearance in film was in a supporting role as an insightful therapist who tries to help a once-successful dentist (Adam Sandler
) cope with the loss of his family during the events of the September 11th attacks in Reign Over Me (2007).
In 2008, she starred in the horror-thriller The Strangers
with Scott Speedman
, a film about a young couple who are terrorized one night by three masked assailants in their remote country house. Although the film garnered a mixed reception among critics, it was a box office success. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she noted that The Strangers was the most challenging role of her career. "It was as far as I could push myself in every way: physically, emotionally, mentally."
She appeared in The Incredible Hulk
(2008), in which she played Dr. Betty Ross, the love interest of the title character, played by Edward Norton
. Tyler was attracted to the love story in the script, and was a fan of the television show. She said filming the part was "very physical, which was fun", and compared her performance to "a deer caught in the headlights". The Incredible Hulk was a box office success, earning over $262 million worldwide. The Washington Post
, in review of the film, wrote: "Tyler gives Betty an appropriately angel
ic nimbus of ethereal gentleness as the one Beauty who can tame the Beast ... during their most pivotal encounters."
Tyler is appearing in two films released in 2011: Super and The Ledge
. In April 2011, publishing house Rodale announced that Tyler and her grandmother Dorothea Johnson, a noted etiquette expert, have written a book called "Modern Manners." Rodale plans to release the book in May 2012.
. She and Langdon became engaged in February 2001, and married in Barbados
on March 25, 2003. On December 14, 2004, she gave birth to a son, Milo William Langdon. On May 8, 2008, the couple confirmed through representatives that they would be separating but remain friends. In an interview with the Australian Daily Telegraph
, Tyler revealed that her separation from Langdon led her to move to Los Angeles, explaining that it was hard to be in the New York home that they had shared. In June 2010, Tyler stated she was "far too sensitive" for casual dates, adding "I fall in love once in a blue moon."
Tyler is an active supporter of the charitable United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF). She was appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United States in 2003. In November 2004, she hosted the lighting of the UNICEF Snowflake in New York City. Tyler also served as spokesperson for the 2004 Givenchy
Mother's Day promotion, in support of UNICEF's Maternal & Neonatal Tetanus (MNT) campaign.
Since 2004, she has donated to the Women's Cancer Research Fund to support innovative research, education, and outreach directed at the development of more effective approaches to the early diagnosis, treatment and prevention of all women's cancers. In October 2007, Tyler, along with her mother, Bebe Buell and her grandmother, Dorothea Johnson, helped launch the Emergen-C
Pink energy drink, in which the event was in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month.
She is good friends with designer Stella McCartney
, model Helena Christensen
and actresses Kate Hudson
, Chloe Sevigny
and Gwyneth Paltrow
. Tyler was formerly a vegan, but has since begun to eat meat. In 2003, she became the spokesperson for Givenchy
perfume and cosmetics; in 2005 the brand named a rose after her, which was used in one of its fragrances. In 2009, Tyler signed on for two more years as Givenchy spokesperson.
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
's lead singer, Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the frontman and lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, and occasional piano and percussion. He is known as the "Demon of Screamin'", due to his high screams...
, and Bebe Buell
Bebe Buell
Beverle Lorence "Bebe" Buell is an American fashion model and singer, and Playboy magazine's November 1974 Playmate of the Month. She is also known for dating rock musicians. She is actress Liv Tyler's mother from a brief relationship with Aerosmith vocalist Steven Tyler...
, model and singer. Tyler began a career in modeling at the age of 14, but after less than a year she decided to focus on acting. She made her film debut in the 1994 film Silent Fall
Silent Fall
Silent Fall is a 1994 mystery film about a boy with autism who is the only witness to a savage double murder. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Linda Hamilton, John Lithgow, J. T. Walsh, and Liv Tyler.-Plot:...
. She then appeared in supporting roles in Empire Records
Empire Records
Empire Records is a 1995 coming of age film that follows a group of record store employees over the course of one exceptional day. The employees of this independent music store try to fight off a large chain, all while learning about each other...
(1995), Heavy
Heavy (film)
Heavy is a 1995 independent American drama film written and directed by James Mangold, and starring Liv Tyler, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Shelley Winters, and Deborah Harry...
(1996) and That Thing You Do!
That Thing You Do!
That Thing You Do! is a 1996 comedy-drama musical film written and directed by Tom Hanks. Set in the summer of 1964, the movie tells the story of the quick rise and fall of a one-hit wonder rock band...
(1996). Tyler later achieved critical recognition in the leading role Stealing Beauty
Stealing Beauty
Stealing Beauty is a 1996 drama film directed by Academy Award-winning Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci and written by Bertolucci and Susan Minot. It stars Liv Tyler, D.W. Moffett, Jeremy Irons, and Rachel Weisz...
(1996). She followed this by starring in supporting roles including Inventing the Abbotts
Inventing the Abbotts
Inventing the Abbotts is a 1997 romance film directed by Pat O'Connor, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly, and Michael Keaton. The screenplay by Ken Hixon is based on a short story by Sue Miller. The original music score is composed by Michael Kamen...
(1997) and Cookie's Fortune
Cookie's Fortune
Cookie's Fortune is a 1999 comedy film directed by Robert Altman and starring an ensemble cast, including Patricia Neal, Charles S. Dutton, Julianne Moore, Glenn Close, Liv Tyler and Chris O'Donnell...
(1999).
Tyler achieved international recognition as a result of her portrayal of Elf maiden Arwen Undómiel
Arwen
Arwen Undómiel is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.-Literature:...
in the Lord of the Rings film trilogy. She has appeared in an eclectic range of films, including the 2004 comedy Jersey Girl
Jersey Girl (2004 film)
Jersey Girl is a 2004 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Kevin Smith. It stars Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Raquel Castro, George Carlin, Jason Biggs, Jennifer Lopez and Will Smith...
, the indie
Independent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...
film Lonesome Jim
Lonesome Jim
Lonesome Jim is a 2005 American comedy/drama film directed by Steve Buscemi. Filmed mostly in the city of Goshen, Indiana, the film stars Casey Affleck as a chronically depressed aspiring novelist who moves back into his parents' home after failing to make it in New York City...
(2005), the drama Reign Over Me (2007) and big-budget studio films such as Armageddon (1998), The Strangers
The Strangers
The Strangers is a 2008 American horror film written and directed by Bryan Bertino, and starring Liv Tyler, Scott Speedman, Glenn Howerton, Gemma Ward, Laura Margolis, and Kip Weeks...
(2008) and The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk (film)
The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 superhero action film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk. It is directed by Louis Leterrier and stars Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner. It is the second film to be released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe...
(2008).
Since 2003, Tyler has served as a United Nations Children's Fund
United Nations Children's Fund
United Nations Children's Fund was created by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 1946, to provide emergency food and healthcare to children in countries that had been devastated by World War II...
(UNICEF) Goodwill Ambassador for the United States, and as a spokesperson for Givenchy
Givenchy
Givenchy is a French brand of clothing, accessories, perfumes and cosmetics with Parfums Givenchy.The house of Givenchy was founded in 1952 by designer Hubert de Givenchy and is a member of Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture et du Pret-a-Porter...
's line of perfume and cosmetics.
Early life
Tyler was born Liv Rundgren at Mount Sinai HospitalMount Sinai Hospital, New York
Mount Sinai Hospital, founded in 1852, is one of the oldest and largest teaching hospitals in the United States. In 2011-2012, Mount Sinai Hospital was ranked as one of America's best hospitals by U.S...
in New York. She is the first-born daughter of Bebe Buell
Bebe Buell
Beverle Lorence "Bebe" Buell is an American fashion model and singer, and Playboy magazine's November 1974 Playmate of the Month. She is also known for dating rock musicians. She is actress Liv Tyler's mother from a brief relationship with Aerosmith vocalist Steven Tyler...
, a model, singer, and former Playboy Playmate (Miss November 1974), and Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the frontman and lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, and occasional piano and percussion. He is known as the "Demon of Screamin'", due to his high screams...
, the lead singer of Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
. Her mother named her after Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann
Liv Ullmann
Liv Johanne Ullmann is a Norwegian actress and film director, as well as one of the "muses" of the Swedish director Ingmar Bergman...
, after seeing Ullmann on the cover of the March 5, 1977 issue of TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
. She is of Italian
Italian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
, German
German American
German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...
, Polish
Polish American
A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...
, Russian
Russian American
Russian Americans are primarily Americans who traces their ancestry to Russia. The definition can be applied to recent Russian immigrants to the United States, as well as to settlers of 19th century Russian settlements in northwestern America which includes today's California, Alaska and...
and English
English American
English Americans are citizens or residents of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in England....
ancestry on her father's side and also has three half-siblings: Mia Tyler
Mia Tyler
Mia Abagale Tallarico , better known as Mia Tyler, is an American actress, plus-size model, public speaker and advocate. She is the daughter of Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, and the actress groupie Cyrinda Foxe. She is the paternal half-sister of actress Liv Tyler...
(born 1978), Chelsea Anna Tallarico (born 1989), and Taj Monroe Tallarico (born 1992). Her maternal grandmother, Dorothea Johnson, founded the Protocol School of Washington.
At birth, Buell claimed that rock star Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren
Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...
was Tyler's biological father. At age nine, Tyler discovered that she was Steven Tyler's daughter after meeting him and noticing a resemblance she shared with his other daughter, Mia. When she asked her mother about the similarity, the secret was revealed. The truth about Tyler's paternity did not become public until five years later, in 1991, when she changed her name from Rundgren to Tyler, but kept the former as a middle name. Buell's stated reason for the initial decision was that Steven was too heavily addicted to drugs at the time of her birth. Since learning the truth about her paternity, Liv and Steven have developed a close relationship. They have also worked together professionally, once when she appeared in Aerosmith's music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Crazy
Crazy (Aerosmith song)
"Crazy" is a song performed by American hard rock band Aerosmith and written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Desmond Child. It was the final single from Aerosmith's massively successful 1993 album Get a Grip. It was released as a single in 1994 and peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100, #7 on the...
" in 1993 and again when Aerosmith performed many of the songs in the film Armageddon (1998), in which Liv Tyler starred.
Tyler attended the Congressional Schools of Virginia, Breakwater School
Breakwater School
Breakwater School is an independent, non-denominational, co-educational preschool, elementary school, and middle school in Portland, Maine.The school currently enrolls up to 180 students from preschool through eighth grade. Its 3-year old and 4-year old preschool curriculum is based on the Reggio...
and Waynflete School
Waynflete School
Waynflete School is a private, coeducational, college preparatory day school for early childhood education to twelfth grade, in Portland, Maine. Established in 1898, it is one of three independent private schools in the greater Portland area....
in Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
, before returning to New York City with her mother at the age of 12. She went to York Preparatory
York Preparatory School
York Preparatory School is an independent university-preparatory school in the Lincoln Center area of New York City.The coeducational school provides instruction to approximately 340 students between 6th and 12th grades...
in New York City for junior high and high school, after her mother researched the school to accommodate Tyler's ADHD. She graduated in 1995, and left to continue her acting career. When asked about the way she spent her early life, Tyler said: "For me, I didn’t get much of a childhood in my teen years because I’ve been working since I was 14. But that also kept me out of trouble. When everybody was doing acid and partying like crazy, I was at work on a movie in Tuscany ... having my own fun, of course, but it was a different kind of thing. I have no regrets. I love the way my life has gone."
Early work
At the age of 14, Tyler received her first modeling job with assistance of Paulina PorizkovaPaulina Porizkova
Pavlína Pořízková-Ocasek is a Czech model and actress. At the age of eighteen years, she became the first woman from Central Europe to grace the cover of the Sports Illustrated swim-suit issue. She was the second woman to be featured on the swim-suit issue's front cover consecutive times...
who took photos of her that ended up in Interview magazine
Interview (magazine)
Interview is an American magazine which has the nickname The Crystal Ball Of Pop. It was founded in late 1969 by artist Andy Warhol. The magazine features intimate conversations between some of the world's biggest celebrities, artists, musicians, and creative thinkers...
. She later starred in television commercials
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
. However, she became bored with her modeling career less than a year after it started, and decided to go into acting. She never took acting lessons. Tyler first became known to television audiences when she starred alongside Alicia Silverstone
Alicia Silverstone
Alicia Silverstone is an American actress, author, and former fashion model. She first came to widespread attention in music videos for Aerosmith, and is perhaps best known for her roles in Hollywood films such as Clueless and her portrayal of Batgirl in Batman & Robin .-Early life:Silverstone...
in the music video for Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
's 1993 song "Crazy
Crazy (Aerosmith song)
"Crazy" is a song performed by American hard rock band Aerosmith and written by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Desmond Child. It was the final single from Aerosmith's massively successful 1993 album Get a Grip. It was released as a single in 1994 and peaked at #17 on the Billboard Hot 100, #7 on the...
".
Tyler made her feature film debut in Silent Fall
Silent Fall
Silent Fall is a 1994 mystery film about a boy with autism who is the only witness to a savage double murder. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Linda Hamilton, John Lithgow, J. T. Walsh, and Liv Tyler.-Plot:...
in 1994, where she played the older sister of an autistic boy. In 1995, she starred in the comedy drama Empire Records
Empire Records
Empire Records is a 1995 coming of age film that follows a group of record store employees over the course of one exceptional day. The employees of this independent music store try to fight off a large chain, all while learning about each other...
. Tyler has described Empire Records as "one of the best experiences" she has ever had. Soon after, she landed a supporting role in James Mangold
James Mangold
James Allen Mangold is an American film director and screenwriter. He is perhaps best known for Walk the Line which he co-wrote and directed.-Life and career:...
's 1996 drama Heavy
Heavy (film)
Heavy is a 1995 independent American drama film written and directed by James Mangold, and starring Liv Tyler, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Shelley Winters, and Deborah Harry...
as Callie, a naive young waitress. The film received favorable reviews; critic Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for The New York Times. She served as the Times film critic from 1977–1999.- Biography :...
noted: "Ms. Tyler ... gives a charmingly ingenuous performance, betraying no self-consciousness about her lush good looks."
Popular success
Tyler had her breakthrough role in Stealing BeautyStealing Beauty
Stealing Beauty is a 1996 drama film directed by Academy Award-winning Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci and written by Bertolucci and Susan Minot. It stars Liv Tyler, D.W. Moffett, Jeremy Irons, and Rachel Weisz...
(1996), in which she played Lucy Harmon, an innocent, romantic teenager who travels to Italy intent on losing her virginity. The film received generally mixed reviews, but Tyler's performance was favored by the critics; Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
wrote: "Tyler is the perfect accomplice. At times sweetly awkward, at others composed and serene, the actress appears to respond effortlessly and intuitively to the camera, creating a rich sense of what Lucy is about that often is not explicit in the dialogue." Empire
Empire (magazine)
Empire is a British film magazine published monthly by Bauer Consumer Media. From the first issue in July 1989, the magazine was edited by Barry McIlheney and published by Emap. Bauer purchased Emap Consumer Media in early 2008...
noted, "Liv Tyler (here radiantly resembling a ganglier young Ava Gardner
Ava Gardner
Ava Lavinia Gardner was an American actress.She was signed to a contract by MGM Studios in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew attention with her performance in The Killers . She became one of Hollywood's leading actresses, considered one of the most beautiful women of her day...
) with a rare opportunity to enamour, a break she capitalises on with composure." The film was directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci is an Italian film director and screenwriter, whose films include The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris, 1900, The Last Emperor and The Dreamers...
, who chose Tyler for the role after meeting with a number of young girls in Los Angeles, including Tyler's music video co-star Alicia Silverstone. Bertolucci claimed "there was something missing in all of them". He later admitted that what he saw in Tyler was a gravitas he described as "a New York aura". During promotion of the film, Tyler admitted she wanted to separate herself from the character during production; "I tried my damnedest not to think of my own situation. But at one point, after a take, I just started to cry and cry. I remembered when I found out about my dad and how we just stared at each other from head to toe taking in every nook and cranny."
That Thing You Do!
That Thing You Do! is a 1996 comedy-drama musical film written and directed by Tom Hanks. Set in the summer of 1964, the movie tells the story of the quick rise and fall of a one-hit wonder rock band...
(1996), a movie about a fictional one-hit wonder
One-hit wonder
A one-hit wonder is a person or act known mainly for only a single success. The term is most often used to describe music performers with only one hit single.-Characteristics:...
rock band called The Oneders, following their whirlwind rise to the top of the pop charts, and just as quickly, their plunge back to obscurity. The film was written and directed by Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks
Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
. It grossed over $25 million worldwide, and was met with favorable reviews. The following year, she appeared in Inventing the Abbotts
Inventing the Abbotts
Inventing the Abbotts is a 1997 romance film directed by Pat O'Connor, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly, and Michael Keaton. The screenplay by Ken Hixon is based on a short story by Sue Miller. The original music score is composed by Michael Kamen...
in 1997, in which she played the daughter of Will Patton
Will Patton
William Rankin "Will" Patton is an American actor.-Life and career:Patton was born in Charleston, South Carolina, the eldest of three children. His father is Bill Patton, a playwright and acting/directing instructor who was a Lutheran minister and served as a chaplain at Duke University...
and Barbara Williams' characters. The movie is based on a short story by Sue Miller
Sue Miller
Sue Miller is an American writer who has authored a number of best-selling novels. Her duties as a single mother left her with little time to write for many years, and as a result she did not publish her first novel until 1986, after spending almost a decade in various fellowships and teaching...
. Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
declared Tyler's performance as "lovely and pliant". That same year, Tyler was chosen by People
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People.
Tyler next appeared in Armageddon (1998), where she played the daughter of Bruce Willis
Bruce Willis
Walter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
' character and love interest of Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck
Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt , better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats and Chasing Amy...
's character. The film generated mixed reviews, but was a box office success earning $553 million worldwide. The movie included the songs "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing
I Don't Want to Miss a Thing
"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" is a song performed by American rock band Aerosmith for the 1998 film Armageddon. Written by Diane Warren, the song debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 . The song stayed at number one for four weeks from September 5 to September 26, 1998...
" and "What Kind of Love Are You On
What Kind of Love Are You On
"What Kind of Love Are You On" is a song by American hard rock band Aerosmith. The song, originally a track left off the Nine Lives album, was included on the soundtrack for the 1998 film Armageddon starring lead singer Steven Tyler's daughter Liv Tyler...
" by Aerosmith. In a 2001 interview with The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, she admitted that she turned down the role in Armageddon; "I really didn't want to do it at first and I turned it down a couple of times, but the biggest reason I changed my mind was because I was scared of it. I wanted to try it for that very reason. I mean, I'm not really in this to do amazing things in my career - I just want it to be special when I make a movie."
She was then cast in the drama Onegin
Onegin (film)
Onegin is a 1999 British-American romantic drama film based on Alexander Pushkin's novel in verse Eugene Onegin, co-produced by British and American companies and shot mostly in the United Kingdom...
(1999), a film based on the 19th century Russian novel of the same name
Eugene Onegin
Eugene Onegin is a novel in verse written by Alexander Pushkin.It is a classic of Russian literature, and its eponymous protagonist has served as the model for a number of Russian literary heroes . It was published in serial form between 1825 and 1832...
by Alexander Pushkin, in which she portrayed Tatyana Larina and co-starred with Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes is an English actor and film director. He has appeared in such films as The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, The Duchess and Schindler's List....
. Tyler was required to master an English accent, though Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden is an American writer, music critic, film critic, and poet.Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963...
of the New York Times felt that her approximation of an English accent was "inert". The film was critically and financially unsuccessful. That same year, she appeared in the historical comedy film Plunkett & Macleane
Plunkett & Macleane
Plunkett & Macleane is a 1999 British historical action comedy film directed by Jake Scott, and starring Robert Carlyle, Jonny Lee Miller and Liv Tyler. It follows the story of Captain James Macleane , and Will Plunkett , two men in eighteenth century Britain who are both struggling to survive...
.
She later appeared in two films directed by Robert Altman
Robert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman was an American film director and screenwriter known for making films that are highly naturalistic, but with a stylized perspective. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award.His films MASH , McCabe and...
, Cookie's Fortune
Cookie's Fortune
Cookie's Fortune is a 1999 comedy film directed by Robert Altman and starring an ensemble cast, including Patricia Neal, Charles S. Dutton, Julianne Moore, Glenn Close, Liv Tyler and Chris O'Donnell...
(1999) and Dr. T & the Women
Dr. T & the Women
Dr. T & the Women is a 2000 American romantic comedy film directed by Robert Altman. It stars Richard Gere as wealthy gynecologist Dr. Sullivan Travis and Helen Hunt, Farrah Fawcett, Laura Dern, Shelley Long, Tara Reid, Kate Hudson and Liv Tyler as the various "women" that encompass his everyday...
(2000). In Cookie's Fortune, she was part of an ensemble cast that included Glenn Close
Glenn Close
Glenn Close is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and...
, Julianne Moore
Julianne Moore
Julianne Moore is an American actress and a children's book author. Throughout her career, she has been nominated for four Oscars, six Golden Globes, three BAFTAs and nine Screen Actors Guild Awards....
, Chris O'Donnell
Chris O'Donnell
Christopher Eugene "Chris" O'Donnell is an American actor. He has played Robin in two Batman films, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, Charlie Simms in Scent of a Woman, Finn Dandridge in Grey's Anatomy, Peter Garrett in Vertical Limit, and more recently, Jack McAuliffe in The Company. O'Donnell...
, and Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal
Patricia Neal was an American actress of stage and screen. She was best known for her film roles as World War II widow Helen Benson in The Day the Earth Stood Still , wealthy matron Emily Eustace Failenson in Breakfast at Tiffany's , middle-aged housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud , for which she won...
. Her performance well received among critics; Salon.com
Salon.com
Salon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
wrote: "This is the first time in which Tyler's acting is a match for her beauty (she's always been a bit forlorn). Altman helps her find some snap, but a relaxed, silly snap, as in the cartoon sound she makes when she takes a midday swig of bourbon
Bourbon whiskey
Bourbon is a type of American whiskey – a barrel-aged distilled spirit made primarily from corn. The name of the spirit derives from its historical association with an area known as Old Bourbon, around what is now Bourbon County, Kentucky . It has been produced since the 18th century...
. The lazy geniality of the movie is summed up by the way Emma [Tyler's character] saunters off to take a swim with her cowboy hat and pint of Wild Turkey
Wild Turkey
The Wild Turkey is native to North America and is the heaviest member of the Galliformes. It is the same species as the domestic turkey, which derives from the South Mexican subspecies of wild turkey .Adult wild turkeys have long reddish-yellow to grayish-green...
." Entertainment Weekly also noted that Tyler is "sweetly gruff as the tomboy troublemaker". In the romantic comedy, Dr. T & the Women, she played Marilyn, a gynecological patient of Richard Gere
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...
's character, who is the lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
lover of his daughter, played by Kate Hudson
Kate Hudson
Kate Garry Hudson is an American actress. She came to prominence in 2001 after winning a Golden Globe and receiving several nominations, including a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, for her role in Almost Famous. She then starred in the hit film How to Lose a Guy in 10...
.
From 2001
In 2001, Tyler played the object of infatuation for three men (Matt DillonMatt Dillon
Matthew Raymond "Matt" Dillon is an American actor and film director. He began acting in the late 1970s, gaining fame as a teenage idol during the 1980s.- Early life :...
, John Goodman
John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman is an American film, television, and stage actor. He is best known for his role as Dan Conner on the television series Roseanne for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award in 1993, and for appearances in the films of the Coen brothers, with prominent roles in Raising...
and Paul Reiser
Paul Reiser
Paul Reiser is an American stand-up comedian, actor, television personality, author, screenwriter and musician. He is most widely known for his role on the long-running television sitcom Mad About You.-Early life:...
) in the black comedy One Night at McCool's
One Night at McCool's
One Night at McCool's is a 2001 American dark comedy/neo-noir film, directed by Harald Zwart and starring Liv Tyler, Matt Dillon, Michael Douglas, John Goodman, Paul Reiser, Reba McEntire and Andrew Dice Clay.-Plot:...
. In discussion of the role, she said: "This was definitely the first part where I had to be so physically aware and have people so aware of me physically. Maybe it's not hard for anybody else, but it is a bit for me. I mean I love my body and I feel very comfortable in my skin, but this was tough." Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Peter Travers is an American film critic, who has written for, in turn, People and Rolling Stone. Travers also hosts a celebrity interview show called Popcorn on ABC News Now and ABCNews.com.-Career:...
of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
wrote: "Tyler, a true beauty, gives the role a valiant try, but her range is too limited to play this amalgam of female perfection."
In 2001, she starred in the feature film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, directed by Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
. She played the Elf
Elf (Middle-earth)
In J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, Elves are one of the races that inhabit a fictional Earth, often called Middle-earth, and set in the remote past. They appear in The Hobbit and in The Lord of the Rings, but their complex history is described more fully in The Silmarillion...
maiden Arwen Undómiel
Arwen
Arwen Undómiel is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.-Literature:...
. The film is based on the first volume
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Fellowship of the Ring is the first of three volumes of the epic novel The Lord of the Rings by the English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It takes place in the fictional universe Middle-earth. It was originally published on July 29, 1954 in the United Kingdom...
of J. R. R. Tolkien
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
's The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
. The filmmakers approached Tyler after seeing her performance in Plunkett & Macleane. She learned to speak the fictitious Elvish language that was created by Tolkien. Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle is an American Mick LaSalle is an [[United States|American]] Mick LaSalle is an [[United States|American]] [[film reviewer] and the author of two books on pre-[[Motion Picture Production Code|Hays Code]] Hollywood...
of the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
noted that Tyler's performance was "lovely and earnest".
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a 2003 epic fantasy-drama film directed by Peter Jackson that is based on the second and third volumes of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings...
.
Following the success of The Lord of the Rings, she appeared opposite her Armageddon co-star Ben Affleck in writer-director Kevin Smith
Kevin Smith
Kevin Patrick Smith is an American screenwriter, actor, film producer, and director, as well as a popular comic book writer, author, comedian/raconteur, and internet radio personality best recognized by viewers as Silent Bob...
's romantic comedy Jersey Girl
Jersey Girl (2004 film)
Jersey Girl is a 2004 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Kevin Smith. It stars Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Raquel Castro, George Carlin, Jason Biggs, Jennifer Lopez and Will Smith...
(2004), playing a woman who re-opens a widowed father's heart to love, played by Affleck. In an interview with MTV News
MTV News
MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...
, Tyler confessed that she felt "scared and vulnerable" while filming Jersey Girl, adding "I was so used to those other elements of the character [Arwen]. On The Lord of the Rings, a lot of things were done in post-production, whereas this was really just about me and Ben sitting there, just shooting off dialogue." However, she reiterated that doing Jersey Girl was what she wanted to do.
In 2005, she appeared in Steve Buscemi
Steve Buscemi
Steven Vincent "Steve" Buscemi is an American actor, writer and film director. An associate member of the renowned experimental theater company The Wooster Group, Buscemi has starred and supported in successful Hollywood and indie films including New York Stories, Mystery Train, Reservoir Dogs,...
's independent drama Lonesome Jim
Lonesome Jim
Lonesome Jim is a 2005 American comedy/drama film directed by Steve Buscemi. Filmed mostly in the city of Goshen, Indiana, the film stars Casey Affleck as a chronically depressed aspiring novelist who moves back into his parents' home after failing to make it in New York City...
, where she was cast alongside Casey Affleck
Casey Affleck
Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt , better known as Casey Affleck, is an American actor and film director. Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, he played supporting roles in mainstream hits like Good Will Hunting and Ocean's Eleven as well as in critically acclaimed independent films such as...
, as a single mother and nurse who reconnects with an old fling who has returned to their small town of Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
after a failed run as a novelist in New York. The film was screened at a special presentation at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
where it was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. Tyler's next appearance in film was in a supporting role as an insightful therapist who tries to help a once-successful dentist (Adam Sandler
Adam Sandler
Adam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, musician, and film producer.After becoming a Saturday Night Live cast member, Sandler went on to star in several Hollywood feature films that grossed over $100 million at the box office...
) cope with the loss of his family during the events of the September 11th attacks in Reign Over Me (2007).
In 2008, she starred in the horror-thriller The Strangers
The Strangers
The Strangers is a 2008 American horror film written and directed by Bryan Bertino, and starring Liv Tyler, Scott Speedman, Glenn Howerton, Gemma Ward, Laura Margolis, and Kip Weeks...
with Scott Speedman
Scott Speedman
Scott Speedman is a British-born Canadian film and television actor. He is best known for playing Ben Covington in the coming-of-age drama television series Felicity and Lycan-Vampire hybrid Michael Corvin in the gothic horror/action Underworld films.-Early life:Speedman was born Robert Scott...
, a film about a young couple who are terrorized one night by three masked assailants in their remote country house. Although the film garnered a mixed reception among critics, it was a box office success. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she noted that The Strangers was the most challenging role of her career. "It was as far as I could push myself in every way: physically, emotionally, mentally."
She appeared in The Incredible Hulk
The Incredible Hulk (film)
The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 superhero action film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk. It is directed by Louis Leterrier and stars Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner. It is the second film to be released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe...
(2008), in which she played Dr. Betty Ross, the love interest of the title character, played by Edward Norton
Edward Norton
Edward Harrison Norton is an American actor, screenwriter, film director and producer. In 1996, his supporting role in the courtroom drama Primal Fear garnered him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor...
. Tyler was attracted to the love story in the script, and was a fan of the television show. She said filming the part was "very physical, which was fun", and compared her performance to "a deer caught in the headlights". The Incredible Hulk was a box office success, earning over $262 million worldwide. The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, in review of the film, wrote: "Tyler gives Betty an appropriately angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
ic nimbus of ethereal gentleness as the one Beauty who can tame the Beast ... during their most pivotal encounters."
Tyler is appearing in two films released in 2011: Super and The Ledge
The Ledge (film)
The Ledge is a 2011 thriller film written and directed by Matthew Chapman, starring Charlie Hunnam, Terrence Howard, Liv Tyler and Patrick Wilson. The film premiered in the U.S...
. In April 2011, publishing house Rodale announced that Tyler and her grandmother Dorothea Johnson, a noted etiquette expert, have written a book called "Modern Manners." Rodale plans to release the book in May 2012.
Personal life
In 1998, Tyler began dating British musician Royston Langdon of the band SpacehogSpacehog
Spacehog is an English rock band formed in 1994. Their music is heavily influenced by David Bowie, Queen, and T.Rex.-Members:* Royston Langdon a.k.a. "Ray Sprinkles" – bass and vocals...
. She and Langdon became engaged in February 2001, and married in Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
on March 25, 2003. On December 14, 2004, she gave birth to a son, Milo William Langdon. On May 8, 2008, the couple confirmed through representatives that they would be separating but remain friends. In an interview with the Australian Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
, Tyler revealed that her separation from Langdon led her to move to Los Angeles, explaining that it was hard to be in the New York home that they had shared. In June 2010, Tyler stated she was "far too sensitive" for casual dates, adding "I fall in love once in a blue moon."
Tyler is an active supporter of the charitable United Nations Children's Fund
United Nations Children's Fund
United Nations Children's Fund was created by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 1946, to provide emergency food and healthcare to children in countries that had been devastated by World War II...
(UNICEF). She was appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United States in 2003. In November 2004, she hosted the lighting of the UNICEF Snowflake in New York City. Tyler also served as spokesperson for the 2004 Givenchy
Givenchy
Givenchy is a French brand of clothing, accessories, perfumes and cosmetics with Parfums Givenchy.The house of Givenchy was founded in 1952 by designer Hubert de Givenchy and is a member of Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture et du Pret-a-Porter...
Mother's Day promotion, in support of UNICEF's Maternal & Neonatal Tetanus (MNT) campaign.
Since 2004, she has donated to the Women's Cancer Research Fund to support innovative research, education, and outreach directed at the development of more effective approaches to the early diagnosis, treatment and prevention of all women's cancers. In October 2007, Tyler, along with her mother, Bebe Buell and her grandmother, Dorothea Johnson, helped launch the Emergen-C
Emer'gen-C
Emergen-C is a dietary supplement drink mix which is sold as an energy booster. It is manufactured by Alacer Corp. of Foothill Ranch, California. It contains more than 1600% of the USDA recommended daily allowance of vitamin C, 416% of the recommended vitamin B12 daily value, and 500% of the...
Pink energy drink, in which the event was in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month.
She is good friends with designer Stella McCartney
Stella McCartney
Stella Nina McCartney is an English fashion designer. She is the daughter of former Beatles member Sir Paul McCartney and the late photographer and animal rights activist, Linda McCartney.-Early life:...
, model Helena Christensen
Helena Christensen
Helena Christensen is a Danish fashion model, Victoria's Secret Angel, beauty queen, and photographer. She has also served as creative director for Nylon magazine, designed clothing, and supported funding for breast cancer organizations and other charities.-Early life:Christensen was born in...
and actresses Kate Hudson
Kate Hudson
Kate Garry Hudson is an American actress. She came to prominence in 2001 after winning a Golden Globe and receiving several nominations, including a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, for her role in Almost Famous. She then starred in the hit film How to Lose a Guy in 10...
, Chloe Sevigny
Chloë Sevigny
Chloë Stevens Sevigny is an American film actress, fashion designer and former model. Sevigny gained reputation for her eclectic fashion sense and developed a broad career in the fashion industry in the mid 1990s, both for modeling and for her work at New York's Sassy magazine, which labeled her...
and Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwyneth Kate Paltrow is an American actress and singer. She made her acting debut on stage in 1990 and started appearing in films in 1991. After appearing in several films throughout the decade, Paltrow gained early notice for her work in films such as Se7en and Emma...
. Tyler was formerly a vegan, but has since begun to eat meat. In 2003, she became the spokesperson for Givenchy
Givenchy
Givenchy is a French brand of clothing, accessories, perfumes and cosmetics with Parfums Givenchy.The house of Givenchy was founded in 1952 by designer Hubert de Givenchy and is a member of Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture et du Pret-a-Porter...
perfume and cosmetics; in 2005 the brand named a rose after her, which was used in one of its fragrances. In 2009, Tyler signed on for two more years as Givenchy spokesperson.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 1994 in film 1994 was a significant year in film.The top grosser worldwide was The Lion King, which to date stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated film of all time... |
Silent Fall Silent Fall Silent Fall is a 1994 mystery film about a boy with autism who is the only witness to a savage double murder. The film was directed by Bruce Beresford, and stars Richard Dreyfuss, Linda Hamilton, John Lithgow, J. T. Walsh, and Liv Tyler.-Plot:... |
Sylvie Warden | |
| 1995 1995 in film -Top grossing films:-Events:* March 22 - The Dogme 95 movement is officially announced in Paris by Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg.* March 28 - Actress Julia Roberts and singer Lyle Lovett announce their plans for separation.... |
Heavy Heavy (film) Heavy is a 1995 independent American drama film written and directed by James Mangold, and starring Liv Tyler, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Shelley Winters, and Deborah Harry... |
Callie | |
| Empire Records Empire Records Empire Records is a 1995 coming of age film that follows a group of record store employees over the course of one exceptional day. The employees of this independent music store try to fight off a large chain, all while learning about each other... |
Corey Mason | ||
| 1996 1996 in film Major releases this year included Scream, Independence Day, Fargo, Trainspotting, The English Patient, Twister, Mars Attacks!, Jerry Maguire and a version of Evita starring Madonna.-Events:... |
Stealing Beauty Stealing Beauty Stealing Beauty is a 1996 drama film directed by Academy Award-winning Italian filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci and written by Bertolucci and Susan Minot. It stars Liv Tyler, D.W. Moffett, Jeremy Irons, and Rachel Weisz... |
Lucy Harmon | Nominated – Young Star Award for Best Performance by a Young Actress in a Drama Film |
| That Thing You Do! That Thing You Do! That Thing You Do! is a 1996 comedy-drama musical film written and directed by Tom Hanks. Set in the summer of 1964, the movie tells the story of the quick rise and fall of a one-hit wonder rock band... |
Faye Dolan | ||
| 1997 1997 in film -Events:* The original Star Wars trilogy's Special Editions are released.* Production begins on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.* Titanic becomes the first film to gross US$1,000,000,000 at the box office making it the highest grossing film in history until Avatar broke the record in 2010.*... |
Inventing the Abbotts Inventing the Abbotts Inventing the Abbotts is a 1997 romance film directed by Pat O'Connor, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Billy Crudup, Liv Tyler, Jennifer Connelly, and Michael Keaton. The screenplay by Ken Hixon is based on a short story by Sue Miller. The original music score is composed by Michael Kamen... |
Pamela Abbott | |
| U Turn | Girl in Bus Station | Cameo appearance | |
| 1998 1998 in film -Events:* February 14 - Sharon Stone marries Phil Bronstein.* Former child star Gary Coleman is charged with assaulting a young female bus driver at a California shopping mall.-Top grossing films:... |
Armageddon | Grace Stamper | Nominated – MTV Movie Award for Best Female Performance Nominated – MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo Shared with Ben Affleck Ben Affleck Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt , better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats and Chasing Amy... Nominated – Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress -Science Fiction |
| 1999 1999 in film The year 1999 in film involved several noteworthy events and has been called "The Year That Changed Movies". Several significant feature films, including Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut, Pedro Almodóvar's first Oscar-winning film All About My Mother, science fiction The Matrix, Deep... |
Plunkett & Macleane Plunkett & Macleane Plunkett & Macleane is a 1999 British historical action comedy film directed by Jake Scott, and starring Robert Carlyle, Jonny Lee Miller and Liv Tyler. It follows the story of Captain James Macleane , and Will Plunkett , two men in eighteenth century Britain who are both struggling to survive... |
Lady Rebecca Gibson | |
| Cookie's Fortune Cookie's Fortune Cookie's Fortune is a 1999 comedy film directed by Robert Altman and starring an ensemble cast, including Patricia Neal, Charles S. Dutton, Julianne Moore, Glenn Close, Liv Tyler and Chris O'Donnell... |
Emma Duvall | ||
| Onegin Onegin (film) Onegin is a 1999 British-American romantic drama film based on Alexander Pushkin's novel in verse Eugene Onegin, co-produced by British and American companies and shot mostly in the United Kingdom... |
Tatyana Larina | Russian Guild of Film Critics Russian Guild of Film Critics The Russian Guild of Film Critics is a Russian organization of professional film critics. A member of FIPRESCI since 1999, the guild critiques Russian and Foreign films. Beginning in 1998, the guild began conferring annual awards in several categories... Award for Best Foreign Actress |
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| 2000 2000 in film The year 2000 in film involved some significant events.The top grosser worldwide was Mission: Impossible II. Domestically in North America, Gladiator won the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor .... |
Dr. T & the Women Dr. T & the Women Dr. T & the Women is a 2000 American romantic comedy film directed by Robert Altman. It stars Richard Gere as wealthy gynecologist Dr. Sullivan Travis and Helen Hunt, Farrah Fawcett, Laura Dern, Shelley Long, Tara Reid, Kate Hudson and Liv Tyler as the various "women" that encompass his everyday... |
Marilyn | |
| 2001 2001 in film The year 2001 in film involved some significant events, including the first of the Harry Potter series and also the first of The Lord of the Rings trilogy... |
One Night at McCool's One Night at McCool's One Night at McCool's is a 2001 American dark comedy/neo-noir film, directed by Harald Zwart and starring Liv Tyler, Matt Dillon, Michael Douglas, John Goodman, Paul Reiser, Reba McEntire and Andrew Dice Clay.-Plot:... |
Jewel | |
| The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring | Arwen Undómiel Arwen Arwen Undómiel is a fictional character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. She appears in his novel, The Lord of the Rings, usually published in three volumes. Arwen is one of the Half-elven who lived during the Third Age.-Literature:... |
Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast The Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast is an annual award given by the Phoenix Film Critics Society.-2000s:*2001: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring... Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast |
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| 2002 2002 in film The year 2002 in film involved some significant events. The first significant releases of sequels took place between The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Men in Black II, Analyze That, Spy Kids 2: The Island of... |
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers | Arwen Undómiel | Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble The Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble was an annual film award given by the Online Film Critics Society to honor the best ensemble of the year, given between 1998 and 2002.-Winners:*1998: Saving Private Ryan ... Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast The Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast is an annual award given by the Phoenix Film Critics Society.-2000s:*2001: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring... Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast |
| 2003 2003 in film The year 2003 in film involved some significant events. Releases of sequels took place with movies like The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions, Pokémon Heroes, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,... |
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a 2003 epic fantasy-drama film directed by Peter Jackson that is based on the second and third volumes of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings... |
Arwen Undómiel | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast National Board of Review Award for Best Cast National Board of Review Award for Best Cast The National Board of Review Award for Best Acting by an Ensemble is an annual film award given by the National Board of Review.-1990s:... Nominated – Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Ensemble |
| 2004 2004 in film The year 2004 in film involved some significant events. Major releases of sequels took place. It included blockbuster films like Shrek 2, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, The Passion of the Christ, Meet the Fockers, Blade: Trinity, Spider-Man 2, Alien vs. Predator, Kill Bill Vol... |
Jersey Girl Jersey Girl (2004 film) Jersey Girl is a 2004 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Kevin Smith. It stars Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Raquel Castro, George Carlin, Jason Biggs, Jennifer Lopez and Will Smith... |
Maya | |
| 2005 2005 in film - Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2005... |
Lonesome Jim Lonesome Jim Lonesome Jim is a 2005 American comedy/drama film directed by Steve Buscemi. Filmed mostly in the city of Goshen, Indiana, the film stars Casey Affleck as a chronically depressed aspiring novelist who moves back into his parents' home after failing to make it in New York City... |
Anika | |
| 2007 2007 in film This is a list of major films released in 2007.-Top grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2007... |
Reign Over Me | Dr. Angela Oakhurst | |
| 2008 2008 in film This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008... |
The Strangers The Strangers The Strangers is a 2008 American horror film written and directed by Bryan Bertino, and starring Liv Tyler, Scott Speedman, Glenn Howerton, Gemma Ward, Laura Margolis, and Kip Weeks... |
Kristen McKay | Scream Awards Scream Awards The Scream Awards is an award show dedicated to the horror, sci-fi, and fantasy genres of feature films. Originally only having Scream Queen and Heroic Performance awards for actors, the personnel awards have expanded to include actors and actresses of all three recognized genres. In addition,... for Best Horror Actress Nominated – Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Actress: Horror/Thriller |
| The Incredible Hulk The Incredible Hulk (film) The Incredible Hulk is a 2008 superhero action film based on the Marvel Comics character the Hulk. It is directed by Louis Leterrier and stars Edward Norton as Dr. Bruce Banner. It is the second film to be released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe... |
Betty Ross | ||
| Smother Smother (film) Smother is a 2008 comedy film starring Diane Keaton as a mother who is over-attached to her adult son. The movie is directed by Vince Di Meglio.- Plot :... |
Clare Cooper | ||
| 2011 2011 in film The year 2011 is notable for containing the release of the most film sequels in a single year, at 27 sequels. The following tables list films that are in production or have completed production and will be released in the United States and Canada at some point in 2011.- Highest-grossing films :... |
Super | Sarah | |
| The Ledge The Ledge (film) The Ledge is a 2011 thriller film written and directed by Matthew Chapman, starring Charlie Hunnam, Terrence Howard, Liv Tyler and Patrick Wilson. The film premiered in the U.S... |
Shana |
Further reading
- Corliss, Richard. "One life to Liv -- But can she act?." Time. June 17, 1996. Accessed January 8, 2009.
- Fischer, Paul. "The Liv Factor." Girl.com. 2001. Accessed January 8, 2009.
- Mottram, James. "BBC Movies - Liv Tyler interview." BBC Films. December 5, 2001. Accessed January 6, 2009.
- Mzimba, Lizo. " Liv Tyler on Two Towers: full interview." BBC News. December 10, 2002. Accessed January 7, 2009.
- Head, Steve. "IGN: An Interview with Liv Tyler". IGN Movies. December 16, 2002. Accessed January 12, 2009.
- Otto, Jeff. "IGN: An Interview with Orlando Bloom and Liv Tyler." IGN Movies. December 17, 2003. Accessed January 8, 2009.
- Fischer, Paul. "Exclusive Liv Tyler Interview." Girl.com. 2003. Accessed January 8, 2009.
- Cole, Bethan. "Cover story: Liv a little." The Times. February 29, 2004. Accessed January 13, 2009.
- Head, Steve. "IGN: An Interview with Liv Tyler - Bringing it on home for Jersey Girl." IGN Movies. April 2, 2004. Accessed January 19, 2009.
- Collura, Scott. "IGN: Liv Tyler Talks The Hobbit." IGN Movies. May 20, 2008. Accessed January 13, 2009.
- Barnard, Linda. "It's a scream." Toronto Star. May 31, 2008. Accessed January 9, 2009.
- Palmer, Alun. " Interview: Liv Tyler on her son, work and marriage break up." Daily Mirror. June 12, 2008. Accessed January 7, 2009.
- Thompson, B. "Interview: Liv Tyler." Montreal Gazette. June 12, 2008. Accessed January 7, 2009.