Los Angeles: Actor Charlize Theron's mother influenced her to pursue acting after her career as a ballerina did not work out the way she had planned.
"I was a ballerina from the time I was four years old and I thought that's what I'd always do. I left South Africa at 16 and studied abroad and supported myself by modelling. I ended up in New York and soon realised that my career was over and my knees had said goodbye to me and I'd never thought of a plan B," Theron told Notebook magazine when asked if she always wanted to be an actor.
The 43-year-old star says it was her mother Gerda, who told her to try her hand at acting, after noticing how her daughter was struggling to make a name for herself in the ballet world, reports femalefirst.co.uk.
"She visited me once and said, 'You know, I hear they make those movies in Los Angeles, you should go. You don't want to be 80 and on your deathbed and wonder what could have been.' And boy, was she right."