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Name: Paula Patton
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Date of Birth:
December 05, 1975
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Place of Birth:
Not available
Mini-bio:
Even though bright-eyed actress Paula Patton began performing as a little girl, putting plays in her own back yard, the shy young woman didn't realize she wanted a career onscreen for many years to co... read moreme. In high school, she became involved in a PBS series that took young, aspiring filmmakers on a trip across the country to work on their own documentaries, and when Patton graduated high school, she continued to pursue her interest in working behind the camera by enrolling the film school at the University of Southern California. After graduation, she worked as a production assistant, nurturing her goal of producing her own movie, but something felt missing. Finally, Patton realized that her passion was to be on the other side of the camera, so she enrolled in acting classes and strove toward her new goal in full force.Within a few years, Patton had landed a small role in Will Smith's 2005 comedy Hitch. The next year, she auditioned for a strange and exciting project by music-video director and first time filmmaker Bryan Barber starring Andre 3000 from the hip-hop group OutKast. The movie was called Idlewild, and the super-stylized comedy/crime drama/musical was set in the Prohibition-era American South. Patton's fresh new face was exactly what the unique project needed, and she was cast in the role of Angel Davenport, the female lead. Though the film wasn't geared toward the mainstream, it was a cult success among audiences and critics who appreciated its quirky style. Patton's star continued to rise as later that same year she was cast in another substantial role, this time in a much more high-profile movie. As the damsel Denzel Washington must travel through time to save in the Tony Scott action thriller Déjà Vu, Patton's sweet but solid force onscreen was lauded, even by critics who bashed the movie for being overly serious. For her next project, the actress signed on to star opposite Kiefer Sutherland in the horror movie Mirrors, slated for release in 2007. Patton was married to R&B singer/songwriter Robin Thicke in 2005. She appears on the cover of his 2003 album A Beautiful World and in a number of his music videos. ~ Cammila Albertson, Rovi
Paula Maxine Patton was born on December 5th, 1975 in Los Angeles, CA to a teacher Mom and lawyer Dad. They lived close to Twentieth Century Fox Studios, which helped fuel her love of films from very young. This fondness of acting led her to acting parts in school. While at Hamilton Magnet Arts High School, Paula flourished, playing various roles especially her favorite part as Abigail in "The Crucible".She was selected to work on a documentary called "The Ride" during a 3-month stint for PBS sometime after high school. Paula continued to follow her goals in filming at UC Berkeley, but after only one year, she transferred to the prestigious USC Film School and graduated magna cum laude in 1997. She then went on to work as an assistant producer on TV documentaries and on Howie Mandel's talk show 1998-1999 and in 2000 the comedy show, Freddy Prinze, Jr's' "Boys and Girls. It led to employment as a producer of the show Medical Diaries for the Discovery Channel in 2000-2002. Paula felt that although she was enjoying the work she did, it was not the path she had envisioned. So she signed up for acting classes with a private coach. She began auditioning and was soon getting some notice for her very unique beauty. By 2005, diligence and patience paid off, and she was cast in "Hitch" with Will Smith and Eva Mendes, and a part in an independent drama "London", which starred Jessica Biel, Chris Evans and Jason Stratham that same year. It was not long after that the breakthrough came with the role of Angela Davenport in the period movie Idlewild, a project of Andre Bejamin and Big Boi of the music group OutKast. The rave reviews got more attention and she became Denzel Washington's leading lady in the hit "Deja Vu" that fall of 2006. Paula had a starring role in the Oscar nominated movie "Precious" alongside MO'Nique, Gabourey Sidibe, Sherri Shepherd and Lenny Kravitz.
