Jena Malone

Date of birth: November 21, 1984
Astrological Zodiac sign: Scorpio
Age: 28

Jena Malone is an American actress, primarily in independent films. She made her screen debut with the movie Bastard Out of Carolina (1996), and has appeared in films including Donnie Darko (2001), Saved! (2004), Stepmom (1998) and Into the Wild (2007).

Malone was born in Sparks, Nevada, and lived in 27 different locations by the age of nine, including Lake Tahoe, Nevada. Malone was raised by her mother, Deborah, and her mother's girlfriend, whom Jena calls "Godmom". She began taking an interest in acting after watching her mother, who was involved in community theatre. She briefly moved to Las Vegas, hated it, and persuaded her mother to move on to Los Angeles.

Malone made the jump to professional acting with the 1996 film Bastard Out of Carolina. She was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance in a TV Movie or Miniseries for this role. From there, her roles grew in stature, including several Hollywood features. In 1997, she was nominated for a Golden Globe, Best Actress in a Mini-Series or TV Movie, for her role in Hope. After several years of being homeschooled, she briefly attended the Professional Children's School in New York, but did not last long. In January 2000, Malone won legal emancipation from her mother, barring her from interfering with her career and earnings; Malone has said that her mother "mismanaged" some of her earnings.

Malone was a co-producer for the 2002 film American Girl, a drama which she also acted in. She was due to feature in the film Vinyl, but had to withdraw due to filming conflicts, and was replaced by Michelle Trachtenberg. She had her first starring role in the 2004 film Saved!. In 2006, she made her professional stage debut in the Broadway production of the Tony Award winning play Doubt.

In 2007, it was announced that she was releasing her first single on Social Registry, a New York City experimental music label. A number of tracks were posted to her MySpace page, and the first single, a 7" vinyl record featuring two tracks, is scheduled for release in 2007. Pitchfork Media has described her music as "pretty out-there-- bedroom electronics, spaced-out keyboards, and Malone's spare vocals."

Malone has completed the horror film The Ruins along with Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey, and Johnathan Tucker which is due for release on April 4, 2008.

See also:  Actress,  American,  Sucker Punch