As the daughter of Oscar-winning director Ron Howard (“Beautiful Mind”, “Apollo 13”), it would have been easy for Bryce Dallas Howard to become a successful actress. Her father would no doubt have done all he could to assure his daughter’s success. Determined to make it on her own, however, Howard opted not to use her father’s influence in her rise to stardom and instead chose to pursue acting on her own terms. For Howard, success—or failure—rested squarely on her own shoulders.

Born to Ron and Cheryl Howard, the actress spent her youth growing up in scenic, but stodgy Connecticut. At 17, she was accepted into the drama program at the esteemed Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. In keeping with her conviction to pursue acting on her own, Howard enrolled as Bryce Dallas, dropping her famed last name to eschew special treatment. Her first play, House Garden, by accomplished director Alan Ayckbourn, challenged the young actress. As two plays—one House, the other Garden—performed simultaneously on adjacent stages, the actors had to move between sets in the telling of two different, yet similarly-themed stories. Though the play received mixed reviews, Howard was noted for her ‘shining’ performance.

Subsequent theater work helped Howard hone her already exceptional talents, including roles in Thornton Wilder’s Our Town and Tartuffe, French dramatist Molière’s masterpiece. Howard then made her film debut in the independent drama “Book of Love” (2004), by director Alan Brown. Though never released, “Book of Love” premiered at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. Meanwhile, she returned to the stage, playing Rosalind in Shakespeare’s As You Like It. It was during this critically acclaimed performance that Howard’s career took a giant leap, as she was discovered by one of Hollywood’s most prominent directors.

On the advice of big time producer Scott Rudin, director M. Night Shyamalan (“Sixth Sense”, “Unbreakable”) went to see Howard in As You Like It and was immediately taken by her performance. When Kirsten Dunst, who was previously attached to star in “The Village” (2004), dropped out, Shyamalan offered the unknown Howard the part. She starred alongside such Hollywood heavyweights as Joaquin Phoenix, William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver in the period thriller about an isolated 19th Century village cut off from the rest of the world. Once again, Howard was lauded for her performance as Ivy Walker, a mesmerizing young blind woman with an unusual wisdom beyond her years. To bolster her Hollywood arrival, Howard was cast in Lars Von Trier’s “Manderlay” (2004), the second in the director’s trilogy “U, S and A”. As with “The Village”, Howard was cast to replace a previously attached star—in this case, she took over for Nicole Kidman. In a short time, Howard has gone from virtual unknown to hot commodity entirely on her own terms.

• Job Titles:Actress

Education

• New York University, New York, New York, acting
• Stella Adler Conservatory

Milestones

• — Cast in “Mary Queen of Scots” produced by Ridley Scott (lensed 2005)
• — Replaced Nicole Kidman in “Manderlay,” director Lars von Trier’s Dogville sequel (lensed 2004)
• 1995 Had a small uncredited role in “Apollo 13″ directed by her father Ron Howard
• 2000 Played a minor role in Ron Howard’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”
• 2002 Portrayed a haughty, flirtatious teenager in Alan Ayckbourn’s production of “House and Garden” at Manhattan Theatre Club
• 2003 Gained the attention of director M. Night Shyamalan, while performing as Rosalind in the critically lauded Shakespearian comedy “As You Like It”
• 2004 Cast as Ivy, a young blind woman, in the supernatural period drama “The Village,” directed by M. Night Shyamalan; offered the role after Kirsten Dunst dropped out
• Signed on to star in Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of “As You Like It” (lensed 2005)
• Will co-star with Paul Giamatti in M. Night Shyamalan’s “Lady in the Water” (lensed 2005)