One of the most versatile artist, Rosario Isabel Dawson is an American actress, producer and comic book writer who is known for her work in the Hollywood film and American TV industries. The actress who made her debut on the silver screen with Kids (1995) has appeared in several popular films like He Got Game (1998), Men in Black II (2002), Alexander (2004), Clerks II (2006), Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010), and Top Five (2014). The winner of Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress apart from acting is also known for her charity works. The actress is actively involved with several NGO and works for several causes like raising funds for NGOs that work for the betterment of women who are victims of violence.
Early Life
Born in New York City, Rosario Dawson is the daughter of Isabel Caleste, a singer and writer and Patrick C. Harris. Her mother never married Patrick and when Dawson was just one-year-old she married Greg Dawson, a construction worker who loved and raised Rosario Dawson as his own daughter. The actress has a half-brother named Clay who is four years younger. In 2001, when Isabel and Greg divorced, Dawson lived in Garland, Texas and went to Garland High School.
Movie Career
Rosario Dawson began her journey in the film industry with a small role in the 1995 American coming-of-age film Kids directed by Larry Clark. The film, which is based on the life of a group of sexually active teenagers in New York City and their hedonistic behavior towards sex and substance abuse during the mid-1990s when the AIDS epidemic was at its peak received mixed critical reviews but it fared well commercially. Following her debut, Dawson appeared mostly in supporting in films like He Got Game (1998), Side Streets (1998), Down to You (2000), and Josie and the Pussycats (2001).
Dawson earned her first major role as the lead in Edward Burns-directed American crime drama film Ash Wednesday (2002). The film also starring Edward Burns, Elijah Wood, and Oliver Platt was panned by the critics and it turned out to be a commercial disaster. The actress got her first major hit in 2002 as she starred alongside Men in Black II, a science-fiction action-comedy film starring Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, Lara Flynn Boyle and Johnny Knoxville. The film, which is based on the Marvel comic book series named The Men in Black by Lowell Cunningham garnered mixed reviews but emerged to be a massive commercial hit; it grossed more than 441 million USD worldwide. The same year, director Spike Lee cast Dawson alongside Edward Norton, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Barry Pepper in the American drama film 25th Hour. Upon release, the film received wide positive reviews, with critics terming it one of the best films of the decade.
Dawson continued her successful run in 2003 as she starred in Shatter Glass directed by Billy Ray and The Rundown directed by Peter Berg. Whilst both the films failed to do well at the box office, it received positive critical reviews. In her solitary release of 2004, Dawson starred in the American epic historical drama film Alexander featuring an ensemble cast Colin Farrell, Angelina Jolie, Jared Leto and Anthony Hopkins. The film, which was based on the life of the King of Macedonia, Alexander the great performed well in Europe but it failed the impress the American audience and the critics.
In 2005, the actress collaborated with directors Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino for the American neo-noir crime anthology Sin City, which is based on a graphic novel of the same name by Frank Miller. The film featuring an ensemble cast Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Benicio del Toro and Clive Owen opened to wide critical acclaimed and emerged to be a box office hit. The film was screened at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival competition and where it won the Technical Grand Prize for its visual shaping. The following year, Dawson starred in the American comedy Clerks II, which was written and directed by Kevin Smith. The film was screened at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, 2006 where it won the Audience Award.
After the success of Clerks II, over the next couple of years, the actress starred in films like Death Proof (2007) and Eagle Eye (2008) both of which fared well at the box office. The actress got her next major hit with Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010), a fantasy film directed by Chris Columbus. The film starring Logan Lerman, Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, Jake Abel and Sean Bean received mixed critical reviews but turned out to be a massive commercial hit; it grossed about 226.5 million USD. The actress had a lull period between 2011 and 2013 as most of her films did not perform well at the box office and she made a strong comeback with Top Five (2014), an American comedy film directed by Chris Rock. The film, which was screened in the Special Presentation section at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival received mostly positive critical reviews.
In 2015, she lent her voice to the character Wonder Woman in Justice League: Throne of Atlantis, a direct-to-video animated superhero film directed by Ethan Spaulding. Dawson later reprised the role in Justice League vs. Teen Titans (2016) and Justice League Dark (2017). Her other 2017 release includes Unforgettable, an American erotic thriller directed by Denise Di Novi.
Television Career
Apart from her elaborate and successful career in the film industry, Rosario Dawson also has worked extensively in the TV industry. The actress started her acting career in TV with Punk’d (2003) and later rose to fame with her role in Gemini Division, a web series where she appeared in more than 50 episodes. The actress’ other popular TV series appearances includes Jessica Jones (2015), Luke Cage (2016), Iron Fist (2017) and The Defenders (2017).