Rachel McAdams

Birthday: 17 November 1978, London, Ontario, Canada

Birth Name: Rachel Anne McAdams

Height: 163 cm

Rachel Anne McAdams was born on November 17, 1978 in London, Ontario, Canada, to Sandra Kay (Gale), a nurse, and Lance Frederick McAdams, a truck driver and furniture mover. She is of English, Welsh, Irish, and Scottish descent. Rachel became involved with acting as a teenager and by the age of 13 was performing in Shakespearean productions in summer theater camp; she went on to graduate with honors with a BFA degree in Theater from York University. After her debut in an episode of Disney's The Famous Jett Jackson (1998), she co-starred in the Canadian TV series Slings and Arrows (2003), a comedy-drama about the trials and travails of a Shakespearean theater group, and won a Gemini award for her performance in 2003.Her breakout role as Regina George in the hit comedy Mean Girls (2004) instantly catapulted her onto the short list of Hollywood's hottest young actresses. She followed that film with a star turn opposite Ryan Gosling in the adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks bestseller The Notebook (2004), which was a surprise box office success and became the predominant romantic drama for a new, young generation of moviegoers. After filming, McAdams and Gosling became romantically involved and dated through mid-2007. McAdams next showcased her versatility onscreen with the manic comedy Wedding Crashers (2005), the thriller Red Eye (2005), and the holiday drama The Family Stone (2005).McAdams then explored the independent film world with Married Life (2007), which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and also starred Pierce Brosnan, Chris Cooper and Patricia Clarkson. Starring roles in the military drama The Lucky Ones (2008), the newspaper thriller State of Play (2009), and the romance The Time Traveler's Wife (2009) followed before she starred opposite Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in Guy Ritchie's international blockbuster Sherlock Holmes (2009). McAdams played the plucky producer of a failing morning TV show in Morning Glory (2010), the materialistic fiancée of Owen Wilson in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris (2011), and returned to romantic drama territory with the hit film The Vow (2012) opposite Channing Tatum. The actress also stars with Ben Affleck in Terrence Malick's To the Wonder (2012) and alongside Noomi Rapace in Brian De Palma's thriller Passion (2012).In 2005, McAdams received ShoWest's "Supporting Actress of the Year" Award as well as the "Breakthrough Actress of the Year" at the Hollywood Film Awards. In 2009, she was awarded with ShoWest's "Female Star of the Year." As of 2011, she has been romantically linked with her Midnight in Paris (2011) co-star Michael Sheen. Show less «

I have a certain curiosity for life that drives me and propels me forward.

I guess each relationship is different. That's what I love about relationships. Even when they end, ...Show more »

I guess each relationship is different. That's what I love about relationships. Even when they end, you've learned so very much, so much to take into your next relationship and to take into your life. It's the greatest thing that comes out of an ending - so it depends on the person - On what she learned about herself when her relationship with Ryan Gosling ended. Show less «

Paramount sent them nine-foot-high (theater lobby) cutouts of me. They say, "You don't have to come ...Show more »

Paramount sent them nine-foot-high (theater lobby) cutouts of me. They say, "You don't have to come home, we've got you in every room of the house!" Show less «

I would love to have kids someday; I actually can't imagine not having them. My parents have been ma...Show more »

I would love to have kids someday; I actually can't imagine not having them. My parents have been married for 36 years. They [Lance, a mover, and Sandy, a nurse] have a pretty honest, straightforward relationship that I hope to have myself. - On having her own kids someday. Show less «

The most romantic thing, a lovely boy bought me a dress once. He got my measurements, actually they ...Show more »

The most romantic thing, a lovely boy bought me a dress once. He got my measurements, actually they were from The Notebook (2004) and I had them sitting somewhere, and he found them and bought me this dress, tailor-made, this beautiful little black cocktail dress. And I thought that was very, very classy. Show less «

The craziest thing I've ever done to get a guy's attention? I admit I stalked someone. I showed up a...Show more »

The craziest thing I've ever done to get a guy's attention? I admit I stalked someone. I showed up at a restaurant where I knew the guy worked, and we were actually good friends and had lost touch, and I pretended that I didn't know he worked there. And then ran into him and, "Oh my God, you work here? I had no idea." It's the most manipulative thing I've done in my entire life, but it all worked out very well, so I have no regrets. Show less «

I want to try a lot of things that I haven't tried. You know, I did a thriller (Red Eye (2005)) afte...Show more »

I want to try a lot of things that I haven't tried. You know, I did a thriller (Red Eye (2005)) after this, because it was so different and it was a genre I hadn't worked in yet. Then I did a beautiful family ensemble drama. And next? I don't know. I might go off to do a small independent in New York. I'm not sure. The quality of material is important but, basically, I'm open to anything. I like to stay open to anything. Show less «

If I hurt someone, if I were to accidentally poke someone's eye out, I would laugh. And then I'd say...Show more »

If I hurt someone, if I were to accidentally poke someone's eye out, I would laugh. And then I'd say, 'I'm sorry, I really do feel bad,' but then I'm on the floor rolling. Show less «

I was not popular in high school, I know every actress says that, but really, I was a big geek.

You never really know the person you're sleeping beside. You have a right to your secrets, but that'...Show more »

You never really know the person you're sleeping beside. You have a right to your secrets, but that's very difficult when you're supposed to be someone's partner. - On marriage as a minefield of secrets, as suggested in Married Life (2007). Show less «

I want to work with great directors and try not to put too much pressure on myself and just read thi...Show more »

I want to work with great directors and try not to put too much pressure on myself and just read things for the story and recognize when I'm drawn to something for the right reasons and try to maintain some sanity. Show less «

As strange as movie making is, doing love scenes for the first time with someone you've never even s...Show more »

As strange as movie making is, doing love scenes for the first time with someone you've never even said hello to does work in terms of having a fresh quality to a relationship. Show less «

Most of the time, people will just pass me by, or if they do realize, they'll say something like, "M...Show more »

Most of the time, people will just pass me by, or if they do realize, they'll say something like, "My girlfriend said that was you, but I didn't believe her." Show less «

I've sort of heard that "it" girl thing, but not really. Hearing it from a few people doesn't solidi...Show more »

I've sort of heard that "it" girl thing, but not really. Hearing it from a few people doesn't solidify it in my mind and I wouldn't know how to solidify that title. It's so elusive and what does it mean, I don't know? Show less «

I once made a (it was supposed to be a 30-minute) bean salad that took me like 6 hours.

Yeah. I still live in Canada, so it's not quite the same. And when I'm in L.A., I'm in a car; you do...Show more »

Yeah. I still live in Canada, so it's not quite the same. And when I'm in L.A., I'm in a car; you don't have the contact with the public. It's not so bad. It's still pretty much the same. I still feel pretty normal-ish. Show less «

I guess you have to be really open to your acting partners and believe in the story.

I've discovered as I've grown up that life is far more complicated than you think it is when you're ...Show more »

I've discovered as I've grown up that life is far more complicated than you think it is when you're a kid. It isn't just a straight-forward fairytale. Show less «

What about nudity in films? Nudity for fictional characters is as normal and mundane as eating break...Show more »

What about nudity in films? Nudity for fictional characters is as normal and mundane as eating breakfast. What bothers me is our culture's obsession with nudity. It shouldn't be a big deal, but it is. I think this overemphasis with nudity makes actors nervous. There's the worry about seeing one's body dissected, misrepresented, played and replayed on YouTube. - On nudity in films. Show less «

I'll put on a punk rock T-shirt, a '50s style skirt, and a pair of flip-flops. I like to mesh a whol...Show more »

I'll put on a punk rock T-shirt, a '50s style skirt, and a pair of flip-flops. I like to mesh a whole bunch of things together. Show less «

I've been very lucky so far. I haven't had any bad experiences as far as fan encounters. They don't ...Show more »

I've been very lucky so far. I haven't had any bad experiences as far as fan encounters. They don't really recognize me. I think it has to do with my hair. I change it all the time. I like changing my hair color and sometimes it's just not for a role. Usually, I just do it for me. Show less «

I did (training in) tennis, ballet, swing dancing, piano, art class and etiquette. I also did French...Show more »

I did (training in) tennis, ballet, swing dancing, piano, art class and etiquette. I also did French dialect, but then it was mixing me up with my Southern dialect, so we stuck to Southern! Show less «

I'm a sucker for those sweeping love stories. When I read the script (The Notebook (2004)), I couldn...Show more »

I'm a sucker for those sweeping love stories. When I read the script (The Notebook (2004)), I couldn't stop crying! I just had such a powerful, instantaneous reaction - it was written so well. Show less «

I don't know, I like to go on really different types of dates. Going someplace new or some new part ...Show more »

I don't know, I like to go on really different types of dates. Going someplace new or some new part of the city, something that's not your average thing. Something where you just go have an adventure together. Show less «

It takes a lot of time, commitment and a choice. I've chosen this path, but it's not to say I'm not ...Show more »

It takes a lot of time, commitment and a choice. I've chosen this path, but it's not to say I'm not open to love or whatever comes my way. You never close doors. Show less «

A friend of mine had this great theory about the Teletubbies (1997), that it's preparing us for bein...Show more »

A friend of mine had this great theory about the Teletubbies (1997), that it's preparing us for being mindless. And getting us ready for living in an underground world. When they build the underground world because we can no longer breathe the air that it will look like Teletubbie land. Show less «

I wanted to be a secretary, I love paper clips and staplers.

Rachel McAdams

Rachel McAdams's FILMOGRAPHY

Rachel McAdams'S roles

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