Brie Larson

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**Brianne Sidonie Harrison** (née **Desaulniers**; born October 1, 1989), known professionally as **Brie Larson**, is an American actress, director, and singer. Born in Sacramento, California, Larson was home-schooled before she studied acting at the American Conservatory Theater. She began her acting career in television, appearing as a regular on the 2001 sitcom *Raising Dad*, for which she was nominated for a Young Artist Award.

As a teenager, Larson had brief roles in the 2004 films *13 Going on 30* and Sleepover. Her performance in the comedy film *Hoot* (2006) was praised, and she subsequently played supporting roles in the films *Greenberg* (2010), *Scott Pilgrim vs. the World* (2010), *21 Jump Street* (2012), and *Don Jon* (2013). From 2009 to 2011, Larson featured as a rebellious teenager in the television series *United States of Tara*.

Larson's breakthrough role came with the independent drama *Short Term 12* (2013), for which she received critical acclaim. Further success came in 2015 when she starred in *Room*, an acclaimed drama based on Emma Donoghue's novel of the same name. She won several awards for her portrayal of a troubled mother kidnap victim in the film, including the Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critic's Choice Award, Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and Canadian Screen Award for Best Actress. In 2017, she starred as a war photographer in the adventure film *Kong: Skull Island*, her highest-grossing release.

## Early Life

Larson was born in Sacramento, California, the first daughter of Heather (née Edwards) and Sylvain Desaulniers. Her parents were chiropractors who ran a practice together. Her parents divorced when she was a child, and she moved to Los Angeles with her mother and her sister. She studied acting at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Before that she was home-schooled.

Her paternal grandparents were French-Canadians from Manitoba. Her paternal grandmother, Gabrielle Desaulniers, died in December 2015. Growing up, Larson's first language was French. Brie stated in an interview with *Glamour* that she chose "Larson" as her stage name from her Swedish great-grandmother's maiden name, as her surname was too difficult to pronounce. She later stated on *The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon* that she also took her stage name from Kirsten Larson, an American Girl doll she received as a child.

## Career

### **Acting**

Larson's first job was performing in sketches on *The Tonight Show with Jay Leno*. Soon after, she was cast in the television series Schimmel, which never aired because its star, Robert Schimmel, was diagnosed with cancer shortly before filming was to begin. After it was "on hold" for ten months, Fox canceled the show. Larson later auditioned for a new show for The WB called *In Your Dreams*, and landed the role of Bob Saget's character's younger daughter, Emily. The show was selected for the 2001–02 fall season, and was renamed *Raising Dad*. It was then canceled after 22 episodes. Larson was also cast in the pilot for the ABC sitcom *Hope & Faith*, but she and some other cast members were dropped after the unaired pilot.

In 2003, she starred alongside Beverley Mitchell on the Disney Channel original movie *Right on Track*. In July 2004, she co-starred with a large cast of teen actors in the film *Sleepover*. She also had a small role in the movie *13 Going on 30*. Larson appeared in the 2006 film *Hoot*, opposite actors Logan Lerman and Cody Linley. Her voice is also featured in the film *Farce of the Penguins* as a teenage penguin. She played Angie in the 2007 comedy-drama *Remember the Daze* and also appeared in the 2008 short film *The Babysitter*, written and directed by David H. Steinberg. She appeared in an episode of *Ghost Whisperer* in January 2008. She also has a role as Kate in the 2008 film, *Tanner Hall*, directed by Francesca Gregorini and Tatiana von Fürstenberg. Larson played the character Kate Gregson on the Showtime series *United States of Tara*. The show premiered on January 18, 2009 and was not renewed after its third season. The season finale aired on June 20, 2011.

In 2012, Larson played Molly in the film adaptation of the popular 1980s TV show *21 Jump Street*, co-starring with Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum. In 2013, she guest-starred as Rachel in an episode of *Community* titled "Herstory of Dance", and again in the episode "Analysis of Cork-Based Networking" the following year. In 2013, she also starred in *Short Term 12*. She appeared as a guest on *The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson* several times between 2010 and 2013.

In 2015, Larson played the sister of Amy Schumer's character in the film *Trainwreck*. She also starred in Room, a film adapted from the novel of the same name by Emma Donoghue. The film played at the Toronto International Film Festival, and began its theatrical release on October 16, 2015. It has received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for Larson's performance, which earned her several awards, including the Academy Award for Best Actress as well as Golden Globe & BAFTA Awards.

In 2016, it was confirmed that Larson would reunite with her *Short Term 12* director, Destin Daniel Cretton, for T*he Glass Castle*. The Lionsgate’s script is an adaptation of Jeannette Walls' memoir. It tells the story of a successful young woman who was raised by dysfunctional and nonconformist parents. Her world gets turned upside down when they move to New York to be near her. Woody Harrelson is already on board as the woman’s alcoholic father with Naomi Watts joining the project as Larson's eccentric mother. The film begins production in West Virginia in May 2016 with Gil Netter producing. Later on in June, *The Hollywood Reporter* reported that Larson was the favorite to star as Carol Danvers / Captain Marvel in the upcoming Marvel Studios film *Captain Marvel*. Marvel later announced her casting at a panel at the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con International.

In 2017, Larson starred in the fantasy action film *Kong: Skull Island*, along with Samuel L. Jackson and Tom Hiddleston, which was filmed in Queensland, Australia and Vietnam. It proved to be her highest-grossing release.

In March 2017, Larson was cast as the titular lead in *Victoria Woodhull*, a biopic produced by Amazon Studios about the first female presidential candidate in U.S. history. She is also set to produce the film.

## Personal Life

Larson began dating English footballer James Harrison in 2015 whilst Harrison was still legally married to Alexandra Daddario. Larson and Harrison's relationship became closer after Harrison's divorce to Daddario was official and in 2016 they had their first child together, a daughter Caitlin Rose. Larson and Harrison got engaged on Valentine's Day 2016 before marrying roughly a year later.