Charlize Theron (born August 7, 1975, Benoni, South Africa) is a South African-born actress who was noted for her versatility and earned an Academy Award for best actress for her performance as a real-life serial killer in Monster (2003). Theron grew up on a farm near Benoni, South Africa Theron came to international prominence in the 1990s by playing the leading lady in the Hollywood films The Devil's Advocate (1997), Mighty Joe Young (1998), and The Cider House Rules (1999). She received critical acclaim for her portrayal of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster (2003), for which she won the Silver Bear and Academy Award for Best Actress, becoming the first South African to win an acting Oscar. She received another Academy Award nomination for playing a sexually abused woman seeking justice in the drama North Country (2005).