Portman began filming the part of Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel trilogy in 1997, which marked her first big-budget production.
The first film of the series, Episode I – The Phantom Menace was released in 1999, when she was in her final year of high school.
Portman was unfamiliar with the franchise when she was cast, and watched the original Star Wars trilogy before filming began.
She also worked closely with the director George Lucas on her character's accent and mannerisms, and watched the films of Lauren Bacall, Audrey Hepburn, and Katharine Hepburn to draw inspiration from their voice and stature.
Filming in arduous locations in Algeria proved to be a challenge for Portman, who struggled with the process of making a film involving special effects.
She did not attend the film's premiere so she could study for her high school final exams.
Critics disliked the film but with earnings of $924 million worldwide it was the second highest-grossing film of all time to that point, and it established Portman as a global star.

Portman graduated from Syosset High School in 1999.
Her high school paper, "A Simple Method to Demonstrate the Enzymatic Production of Hydrogen from Sugar", co-authored with scientists Ian Hurley and Jonathan Woodward, was entered in the Intel Science Talent Search.
Following production on The Phantom Menace, Portman initially turned down a lead role in the coming-of-age film Anywhere but Here (1999) after learning it would involve a sex scene, but director Wayne Wang and actress Susan Sarandon (who played Portman's mother in the film) demanded a rewrite of the script.
Portman was shown a new draft, and she decided to accept the role.
Mary Elizabeth Williams of Salon called Portman's performance "astonishing" and said that "unlike any number of actresses her age, she's neither too maudlin nor too plucky".
She received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Portman's sole screen appearance in 2000 was in Where the Heart Is, a romantic drama filmed in Texas, in which she played a pregnant teenager.
After finishing work on the film, she began attending Harvard University to pursue her bachelor's degree in psychology, and significantly reduced her acting workload over the next few years.
At school, she served as Alan Dershowitz's research assistant.
In the summer of 2001, she returned to Broadway (at the Delacorte Theater) to perform Chekhov's drama The Seagull, which was directed by Mike Nichols and co-starred Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Linda Winer of Newsday wrote that the "major surprises come from Portman, whose Nina transforms with astonishing lyricism from the girl with ambition to Chekhov's most difficult symbol of destruction".
Also in 2001, Portman was among several celebrities who made cameo appearances in the comedy Zoolander.
The following year, she reprised her role of Amidala in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, which she had filmed in Sydney and London during her summer break of 2000.
She was excited by the opportunity to play a confident young woman who did not depend on the male lead.
When asked about balancing her career and education, she said, "I don't care if [college] ruins my career.
I'd rather be smart than a movie star."
In 2002, she contributed to a study on memory called "Frontal lobe activation during object permanence: data from near-infrared spectroscopy".
Portman graduated from Harvard in 2003 and her sole screen appearance that year was in the brief part of a young mother in the war film Cold Mountain.

Portman began 2004 by featuring in the romantic comedy Garden State, written and directed by its star Zach Braff.
She was the first actor to sign on to the film after finding a connection with her part of a spirited young girl suffering from epilepsy.
Her role in it is considered a prime example of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl character type.
Portman later commented that she found it upsetting to have contributed to the trope.
She followed it by playing a mysterious stripper in Closer, a drama directed by Mike Nichols based on the pl
Portman began filming the part of Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel trilogy in 1997, which marked her first big-budget production. The first film of the series, Episode I – The Phantom Menace was released in 1999, when she was in her final year of high school. Portman was unfamiliar with the franchise when she was cast, and watched the original Star Wars trilogy before filming began. She also worked closely with the director George Lucas on her character's accent and mannerisms, and watched the films of Lauren Bacall, Audrey Hepburn, and Katharine Hepburn to draw inspiration from their voice and stature. Filming in arduous locations in Algeria proved to be a challenge for Portman, who struggled with the process of making a film involving special effects. She did not attend the film's premiere so she could study for her high school final exams. Critics disliked the film but with earnings of $924 million worldwide it was the second highest-grossing film of all time to that point, and it established Portman as a global star.
Portman graduated from Syosset High School in 1999. Her high school paper, "A Simple Method to Demonstrate the Enzymatic Production of Hydrogen from Sugar", co-authored with scientists Ian Hurley and Jonathan Woodward, was entered in the Intel Science Talent Search. Following production on The Phantom Menace, Portman initially turned down a lead role in the coming-of-age film Anywhere but Here (1999) after learning it would involve a sex scene, but director Wayne Wang and actress Susan Sarandon (who played Portman's mother in the film) demanded a rewrite of the script. Portman was shown a new draft, and she decided to accept the role. Mary Elizabeth Williams of Salon called Portman's performance "astonishing" and said that "unlike any number of actresses her age, she's neither too maudlin nor too plucky". She received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Portman's sole screen appearance in 2000 was in Where the Heart Is, a romantic drama filmed in Texas, in which she played a pregnant teenager. After finishing work on the film, she began attending Harvard University to pursue her bachelor's degree in psychology, and significantly reduced her acting workload over the next few years. At school, she served as Alan Dershowitz's research assistant. In the summer of 2001, she returned to Broadway (at the Delacorte Theater) to perform Chekhov's drama The Seagull, which was directed by Mike Nichols and co-starred Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Linda Winer of Newsday wrote that the "major surprises come from Portman, whose Nina transforms with astonishing lyricism from the girl with ambition to Chekhov's most difficult symbol of destruction". Also in 2001, Portman was among several celebrities who made cameo appearances in the comedy Zoolander. The following year, she reprised her role of Amidala in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, which she had filmed in Sydney and London during her summer break of 2000. She was excited by the opportunity to play a confident young woman who did not depend on the male lead. When asked about balancing her career and education, she said, "I don't care if [college] ruins my career. I'd rather be smart than a movie star." In 2002, she contributed to a study on memory called "Frontal lobe activation during object permanence: data from near-infrared spectroscopy". Portman graduated from Harvard in 2003 and her sole screen appearance that year was in the brief part of a young mother in the war film Cold Mountain.
Portman began 2004 by featuring in the romantic comedy Garden State, written and directed by its star Zach Braff. She was the first actor to sign on to the film after finding a connection with her part of a spirited young girl suffering from epilepsy. Her role in it is considered a prime example of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl character type. Portman later commented that she found it upsetting to have contributed to the trope. She followed it by playing a mysterious stripper in Closer, a drama directed by Mike Nichols based on the pl
Natalie Portman