Background
She was born Natasha Abigail Taylor in Surrey, in 1969 to Noreen and Mike Taylor, who were both journalists. She took her mother"s maiden name as her stage name.
She was born Natasha Abigail Taylor in Surrey, in 1969 to Noreen and Mike Taylor, who were both journalists. She took her mother"s maiden name as her stage name.
McElhone, who took lessons in Irish dancing from ages 6–12, was educated at Saint Mary"s Hall School for Girls, an independent boarding school in Brighton, Sussex. She graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in 1993.
McElhone has a scriptwriter brother, Damon, who lives in Los Angeles, and two half-brothers, Alexander and Nicholas, who live in Stockholm. McElhone began her career in the theatre, including starring roles in Richard III and A Midsummer Night"s Dream at the Open Air Theatre, Regent"s Park, London, and in The Count of Monte Cristo and The Cherry Orchard at the Haymarket Theatre, Leicester. She made her television debut in the British Broadcasting Corporation"s Bergerac in 1991 (credited on screen as Natascha Taylor), and was seen in an episode of Absolutely Fabulous in 1992.
McElhone was seen in the Dennis Potter television mini-series Karaoke.
One of her most successful films to date has been 1998"s The Truman Show with Jim Carrey. She had leading roles opposite Brad Pitt in The Devil"s Own, Robert De Niro in Ronin and George Clooney in Solaris.
In 2005, she co-starred in the National Broadcasting Company miniseries Revelations with actor Bill Pullman. She starred in a 2006 West End production of Honour at the Wyndham"s Theatre alongside Diana Rigg and Martin Jarvis.
She then accepted a leading role in the Showtime cable television series Californication as Karen, alongside David Duchovny.
McElhone is the newest Neutrogena spokeswoman and the face of the Ageless Essentials Continuous Hydration line. In 2010 she was the voice of Marie in the video game Castlevania: Lords of Shadow from Konami. McElhone co-starred in a 2013 adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, as Juliet"s mother, Lady Capulet, alongside Hailee Steinfeld and Damian Lewis.
In 2014, she played the role of Alex Forrest in Fatal Attraction, at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.
In 2015, McElhone starred as Sarah Churchill in the Royal Shakespeare Company"s production of Helen Edmundson"s Queen Anne.