The force of the second Star Wars trilogy was not strong for Natalie Portman career-wise. Portman, a former child star, began her onscreen career more than five years before her Star Wars debut. In the summer of 2001, Portman also appeared with Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman in an adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s 19th century play The Seagull in New York City. Portman, who in the Star Wars movies played Anakin Skywalker’s love interest Queen Amidala, said, “Star Wars Episode I had come out around the time of Seagull, and everyone thought I was a horrible actress. I was in the biggest-grossing movie of the decade, and no director wanted to work with me.”
