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The Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence was discovered at 12 years old while she was vacationing in New York City. Born on August 15, 1990, in Indian Hills, Kentucky, Lawrence had a pretty different childhood. She was raised on a horse farm and was more accustomed to rough-and-tumble life than prim and proper etiquette. “We thought we were finished having kids,” her mother, Karen, alluded. But then came Lawrence, and they were back in baby mode.
Though Lawrence didn’t always fit in with her peers, she found solace in acting. A “hyper” child with social anxiety, she recalled during an interview with Rolling Stones, “I didn’t have any friends. I remember being kind of lonely.” Her anxieties, however, vanished when she was performing. Acting gave her purpose, and little did she know, it was only the beginning.
At age 9, she took her first step into the acting world. Jennifer Lawrence played a Ninevite prostitute in a church play. Fast forward to age 14, and she was vacationing with her family in NYC when a talent scout spotted her on the street. The scout, seeing potential, arranged for her to audition for agents. Although her mom was initially skeptical about a career in acting, the family eventually moved to NYC so Lawrence could read for roles.
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Her first audition? A cold reading that left the agents stunned. “It was the best they had heard from someone so young,” Lawrence recalled. Yet, her mother was unconvinced, thinking the agents were simply being kind. Lawrence faced lonely and difficult days early on, but the spark was there.
Her big break came when she signed with CESD Talent Agency. Though her mom pushed her toward modeling, Lawrence knew where her passion truly lay—acting. She turned down several modeling offers (though she briefly modeled for Abercrombie & Fitch, and those photos never saw the light of day) and instead focused on acting.
By 14, she was already dropping out of school to pursue her career, opting for a self-educated path instead. She was so determined that acting became her priority, leaving behind the traditional classroom experience. During her acting gigs in NYC, she even worked as an assistant nurse at her mother’s summer camp in Louisville.
Jennifer Lawrence’s rise to stardom wasn’t overnight, but that vacation in New York City was the moment everything changed. From that point, the world would eventually come to know her as the fearless Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games and a powerhouse actress in Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, and beyond.
So, next time you see Jennifer Lawrence owning the red carpet, remember: this Hollywood legend was spotted by a scout while she was just a curious 12-year-old on vacation. Life, as always, works in mysterious ways.
For more such stories, check out Hollywood News
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