CAMERON DIAZ (Natalie) made her feature film debut at age 21, captivating moviegoers as femme fatale Tina Carlisle in The Mask In addition to becoming one of Jim Carrey's biggest hits, The Mask gained distinction as the film that launched Cameron Diaz's career in motion pictures.
As a follow-up to The Mask, Diaz chose a small, independent film called The Last Supper with a first-time feature director. The black comedy, released by Sony Pictures Classics, gave Diaz the chance to play a condescending, liberal graduate student among a talented ensemble cast that included Annabeth Gish, Ron Eldard, Jonathan Penner and Courtney B. Vance. An art house hit, The Last Supper was the beginning of two years of non-stop work in feature films for Diaz.
Her third feature was writer/director Steven Baigelman's offbeat love story Feeling Minnesota, in which Diaz co-starred with Keanu Reeves and Vincent D'Onofrio, playing a white trash bride who falls in love with her brother-in-law. She went on to play a cold, manipulative New Yorker in Edward Burns' follow-up to his critically acclaimed The Brothers McMullen, a working-class romantic comedy called She's the One. Next, she starred opposite Harvey Keitel and Craig Sheffer in Head Above Water, a thriller about a respectable judge, his wife, her ex lover, their neighbor and a dead body that won't go away.
In 1996, Diaz was named ShoWest's Female Star of Tomorrow by the National Association of Theatre Owners (a title previously held by such actresses as Winona Ryder, Nicole Kidman and Julia Ormond). Diaz's first studio film since The Mask, My Best Friend's Wedding, became one of the biggest hits of the summer of 1997 and one of the top 10- grossing films of the year. Starring opposite Julia Roberts, Dermot Mulroney and Rupert Everett as a sweet debutante on the eve of her wedding, Diaz had an opportunity to show yet another side of her many talents, capturing the hearts of critics and moviegoers in the process. Her performance earned her the Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Supporting Actress in a Comedy, voted on by more than 11 million customers of Blockbuster Video internationally.
In A Life Less Ordinary—by yet another talented young filmmaker, director Danny Boyle of Trainspotting fame-Diaz starred opposite gifted Scottish actor Ewan McGregor, playing a spoiled, unhappy rich girl who falls in love with the janitor who accidentally kidnaps her.
For her performance in the title role of the romantic comedy There's Something About Mary, Diaz was honored with the New York Film Critics Circle Award as Best Actress, in addition to a Golden Globe nomination, the American Comedy Award, the Blockbuster Entertainment Award for "Favorite Movie Actress," The Netherlands' "Best Actress" Rembrandt Award and the "MTV Movie Award" for Best Female Performance.
Diaz also starred in the critically acclaimed Being John Malkovich, opposite John Cusack, Catherine Keener and John Malkovich. Directed by Academy Award® nominee Spike Jonze, the film captured the imaginations of filmgoers around the world, and Diaz's performance was nominated for a Golden Globe, the Screen Actors Guild Award and the British Academy of Film (BAFTA) Award.
Diaz also starred in Very Bad Things and Oliver Stone's Any Given Sunday, which boasted an all-star cast including Al Pacino, Jamie Foxx, Dennis Quaid, LL Cool J, James Woods and Ann-Margret. Her portrayal of a tough young owner of a professional football team earned her a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actress in a Drama.
She will be seen in Rodrigo Garcia's Things You Can Tell Just By Looking At Her, featured at this year's Sundance International and Cannes Film Festivals, and The Invisible Circus, an edgy 1970s drama co-starring Jordana Brewster and Christopher Eccleston.
Diaz has completed a vocal role in DreamWorks' animated feature Shrek with Eddie Murphy, John Lithgow and Mike Myers, due out later this year.
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