'Showbiz Kids': Milla Jovovich's mother projected her short-lived dreams of acting and stardom onto her child
Ukrainian born actress Milla Jovovich shot to fame after she first appeared in a magazine cover. This was after she was spotted by a photographer at the age of 11. By the time she turned 24, she had several professional achievements under her belt including a teen elopement and annulment, a second husband and a divorce. In HBO's new documentary 'Showbiz Kids', Jovovich gets candid about how she started out in show business and how her mother's constant push affected how she grew up under the spotlight.
Jovovich was born in Ukrania, USSR, but her family emigrated to the United States when she was 5. Her mother, Galina Jovovich, was a Russian actress and quite successful at that, while her father, Bogdan Jovovich, was a doctor. In Los Angeles, her parents had to work as house cleaners for Director Brian De Palma, and Jovovich explained how her mother would often imagine that the celebrities visiting De Palma's house would recognize her and ask her to socialize with them. Her parents eventually separated and divorced because her father was arrested and spent many years in prison.
Jovovich was thereafter brought up by a single mother who projected her aspirations and short-lived acting dreams on her daughter after she was discovered. Jovovich said that for her mother, it was more like a ticket out from the poverty-stricken life that they had been living since they had moved to Californa.
Her career took off after her first magazine cover appearance and she eventually became a full-fledged model slowly transitioning into an actress. She was coached by her mother since childhood while at home, and even studied music, ballet and acting in Los Angeles. She took an adult acting class at the age of 7. Many emotional scars marred her struggle in becoming an actress and she was constantly under the pressure that her mother was an amazing actress and she had to meet those standards as well.
Jovovich eventually emerged as a talented, resilient and confident actress, with a rebellious streak and the tendency to take risks. While she indulged in the pleasures of being a child, she was forced to grow up because at her age she came off as extremely mature and her modeling career took off in the adult world of fashion. Jovovich was essentially portrayed as an adult while still a teenager.
She often felt lost, but her mother had a tight hold on her and wouldn't let her mess around or enjoy the simple pleasures of life. It had been instilled in her as a young girl that she was mature, special and she took full advantage of it going as far as to describe herself as a brat. She revealed that her mother had emancipated at her to work adult hours. She knew she had a bad start in the industry, yet she yearned to be a successful actress.
