Meet Natalie Portman: Hollywood’s Favourite Harvard Graduate And Marie Claire's Latest Cover Star...

We’re a little bit in love with this month’s cover star, Oscar-winning genius Natalie Portman.

We’re a little bit in love with this month’s cover star, Oscar-winning genius Natalie Portman.

Here’s a rundown of the 11 things you really should know about Hollywood’s favourite Harvard graduate…

1. Born in Jerusalem on June 9 1981, Natalie Portman’s real name is Neta-Lee Hershlag.

2. She really is a genius. Natalie has an IQ of 140 – the average is 100.

3. So smart is Ms Portman, in 1999 she took a step back from the world of acting to go to university. And not just any university, Harvard. Talking about her decision to study psychology, Natalie said: “I’d rather be smart than a movie star”. Hear, hear.

4. Oh and she can speak fluent Hebrew as well as conversational French, Spanish, German and Japanese. No biggie.

5. She was first spotted by a Revlon beauty scout at the age of nine in a pizza parlour but decided on acting instead of modelling.

6. She might only be 34 but Natalie is something of an old pro. Acting for 20 years, you might remember her early roles in Leon, Heat and Mars Attacks.

7. She won an Academy Award in 2011 for her starring role in ‘Black Swan’ but has since decided to step behind the camera. Her directorial debut is an adaptation of author Amos Oz’s memoir ‘A Tale of Love and Darkness’ about life in post-WWII Israel. Not only is she directing and starring in the feature-length film, she wrote the script which is entirely in Hebrew.

8. As well as being an Academy Award winning genius, Natalie is mum to four- year-old Aleph and wife of French ballet dancer and choreographer Benjamin Millepied, who she met on the set of ‘Black Swan’.

9. The Portman-Millepied family currently live in Paris, where Benjamin is the director of dance at the Paris Opera Ballet.

10. Natalie had been a vegetarian from the age of eight but became a fully-fledged vegan in 2009.

11. In 2010, Natalie became the face of Dior beauty and has since appeared in ads directed by Sofia Coppola and Anton Corbjin.