Sigourney Weaver biography, age, daughter, husband, young pictures, Alien, height 2025

Biography of Sigourney Weaver

Sigourney Weaver is an American actress best known for her role as Ellen Ripley, the heroine of the film "Alien," who became one of the most significant female characters not only in commercial cinema but also in popular culture in general.

Childhood and Youth

The future actress was born in New York in October 1949. At birth, she was named Susan. She changed her name voluntarily as a teenager, at the age of 14, naming herself after one of the characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby."

Her father, Sylvester Weaver, was a media manager and one of the founders of the NBC television network, who invented the talk show format. Back in the fifties, he launched the shows Today, Tonight, Home on air—programs that became long-running on American television.

Her mother, Elizabeth Inglis, was British by origin and once worked in theater and acted in films—albeit briefly, but with renowned directors like Alfred Hitchcock. However, after the birth of her children—son Trajan and Susan—she left her career and devoted herself to home and family.

The family lived in Manhattan and led a fairly affluent life. Susan and her brother had everything—maids and governesses, private school education. However, the girl did not escape insecurities. By the age of 11, she was 5.9 feet all and considered herself unattractive.

Contrary to custom, her mother did not take her daughter's side and did not even try to support her. Once Susan asked her if she could consider herself pretty, to which she replied that her appearance was "quite ordinary."

Sigourney Weaver with her parents on the set of 'Alien'

In 1969, she entered Stanford University, where she began studying literature. Stanford was a liberal place at the time. Many students preferred trailers to dorms. And Sigourney, who was bored with her conservative roommates from good families, sometimes preferred to spend her free time in a treehouse.

In 1971, Sigourney enrolled in the Yale School of Drama. Her classmate was Meryl Streep. Here, she gained experience performing on stage.

Acting Career

In 1977, Sigourney Weaver made her film debut. It was a very small role, but it was in Woody Allen's film "Annie Hall." Her second role, however, brought Weaver incredible success.

Sigourney Weaver at the Dawn of Her Career

As the actress admitted, she was offered to audition for the lead role in "Alien," but she wasn't keen on playing Ellen Ripley. She was 29, rehearsing a production in an avant-garde theater with friends. The actress wanted to work with Shakespeare, not science fiction. She envisioned herself as a character actress gradually making her way, not a blockbuster heroine. However, life naturally led her to the role of the brave astronaut.

Initially, Meryl Streep was cast as Ripley. But just before filming began, her beloved John Cazale passed away. They had to urgently find a replacement actress.

Weaver was one of the last candidates at the casting. Director Ridley Scott wasn't impressed with anyone. By the time Sigourney auditioned, the film sets were already built. And when she arrived at the studio in her magnificent 182-centimeter height, even in heels, she towered over everyone like a tower. Scott immediately saw what he was looking for in her.

ALIENS - Bobbie Wygant interview 1986/87 - Sigourney Weaver tarlanx 228 подписчиков

Soon, the studio management tried to challenge his choice, as Weaver was unknown. So, they gathered all the women working at the studio to view some of the filmed scenes with her. After seeing them, they applauded. This became the decisive argument in favor of Sigourney Weaver.

At that moment, the actress couldn't have imagined that the saga with "Alien" would stretch across four films, the last of which was released in 1997. Initially, the script seemed implausible to her even for the science fiction genre. She decided she would play Shakespeare's "Henry V," regardless of the setting on a spaceship.

After "Alien," her career featured many interesting roles. Audiences particularly remembered Dana Barrett in "Ghostbusters," Katharine Parker in the comedy "Working Girl," the animal rights activist Dian in "Gorillas in the Mist" (for both films, Sigourney won Golden Globes), and the stepmother in "Snow White: A Tale of Terror."

And in 2009, there was the unprecedented blockbuster "Avatar," in which the actress portrayed scientist Grace Augustine. She was invited to the film by James Cameron, with whom she had previously worked on one of the "Alien" films.

As Sigourney recounted, at first, the director was concerned that viewers might have unnecessary associations with "Alien," but he understood that she was the perfect fit for the role of Grace. Weaver herself said that the role was "worth two cents." However, she was drawn to the film's exploration of the pressing issue of "enlightened human barbarism."

Sigourney Weaver on the Set of 'Avatar'

Her character smoked a lot, meant to emphasize her constant agitation due to the hopelessness of the situation, although the actress herself does not have this habit. She had to smoke a disgusting herbal cigarette, as she admitted.

Public Activities

In 1988, Weaver played the lead role in the biographical drama "Gorillas in the Mist," dedicated to the issue of the destruction of apes for profit. Inspired by the example of her character, the real-life animal rights activist Dian Fossey, the actress became involved with the charity organization The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, eventually taking on the role of honorary chairperson. The foundation is engaged in the protection of endangered mountain gorillas.

Gorillas Revisited with Sigourney Weaver

Sigourney Weaver's Personal Life

In 1967, Sigourney Weaver, a recent high school graduate, lived in Israel for several months, working in a kibbutz. There she met reporter Aaron Latham and soon married him.

The marriage lasted less than a year. Sigourney turned out to be quite hot-tempered, and one of their arguments ended sadly: they quarreled in bed, after which she went to the kitchen, returned with a carton of eggs, and started throwing them at her husband. One of them hit him right in the face.

Sigourney met her future husband, theater director Jim Simpson, in 1983 at a party after a play. From her interaction with Simpson, she felt as if she had known him for a long time. She was charmed by his sober outlook on life, lack of quirks, and ungrounded ambitions.

Sigourney Weaver and her husband Jim Simpson

Jim was seven years younger than the actress, and when he proposed to her, she didn't believe it was serious and even tried to dissuade him from such a step. Nevertheless, a year after they met, the couple formalized their relationship. At that time, the actress was already 35 years old.

It took quite some time before the couple could have a child. Weaver admitted that she really wanted children, but she only managed to become a mother at the age of 40. The long-awaited girl was named Charlotte.

Sigourney Weaver and her daughter Charlotte

The couple was united not only by their life together but also by a common endeavor—the theater founded by her husband, where Sigourney Weaver performed as an actress.

Sigourney Weaver Now

In 2022, audiences saw Sigourney Weaver in the lead role of the thriller "The Gardener," where she played Mrs. Haverhill, the owner of a wealthy estate. The gardener Narvel Roth was played by Joel Edgerton.

That same year, the historical film "Call Jane," related to abortion issues, was released. Weaver played one of the main roles—Virginia, the leader of an anonymous group helping women whose lives are threatened by pregnancy and legal restrictions related to its termination.

The main premiere of 2022 for the actress was "Avatar: The Way of Water," initially planned for release in 2021 but postponed to 2022 due to the pandemic. In this film, Weaver, who was already in her seventies at the time, not only returned to the role of Grace but also, with the help of computer technology, transformed into Kiri, a teenage girl from the Na'vi people of the planet Pandora, the adopted daughter of the film's main character, Jake Sully.

Director James Cameron spoke highly of Sigourney Weaver's performance. In his opinion, she seemed to have become younger and never broke character during motion capture.

And this despite the fact that a significant part of the filming took place underwater, making it challenging for Weaver to shoot in such conditions. To achieve the desired result, she had to train to hold her breath. Eventually, she learned to stay underwater for more than six minutes. Weights were attached to her belt during immersion, and professional divers periodically brought her to the surface.

As the actress admitted, an additional motivation for her was not wanting to give her colleagues a reason to think she was too old for such work and couldn't handle it. By 2028, the third, fourth, and fifth parts of "Avatar" were planned, in which Sigourney Weaver was also expected to participate.

In 2023, the Amazon series "The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart" premiered, with Sigourney Weaver in the lead role. Additionally, the actress served as the executive producer of the project.