Eva Gaëlle Green (French: [eva ɡa.ɛl ɡʁeːn]; Swedish: [ˈêːva ˈɡreːn]; born 6 July 1980) is a French-British actress, known for portraying eccentric, villainous, and complex characters.

The daughter of actress Marlène Jobert, she began her career in theatre before making her film debut in Bernardo Bertolucci's The Dreamers (2003). She portrayed Sibylla, Queen of Jerusalem in Kingdom of Heaven (2005). The following year, she played Bond girl Vesper Lynd in the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006), for which she received the BAFTA Rising Star Award.

Green has since starred in numerous independent films, including Cracks (2009), Womb (2010), and Perfect Sense (2011). In 2014, she played Artemisia in the 300 sequel 300: Rise of an Empire and Ava Lord in Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez's Sin City sequel Sin City: A Dame to Kill For. Green is also known for her collaborations with director Tim Burton, starring as Angelique Bouchard in the horror comedy film Dark Shadows (2012), the title character of the fantasy film Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016), and Colette Marchant in the fantasy film Dumbo (2019). For her role as an astronaut mother in the drama film Proxima (2019), she earned a nomination for the César Award for Best Actress.

Green starred as Morgan Pendragon in the Starz historical fantasy series Camelot (2011). She also starred as Vanessa Ives in the Showtime horror drama series Penny Dreadful (2014–2016), earning critical acclaim and a nomination for Best Actress in a Television Series – Drama at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards.

Early life

Green was born on 6 July 1980, two minutes earlier than her fraternal twin sister Joy. She is the daughter of French actress and author Marlène Jobert and Walter Green, a Swedish dental surgeon and occasional actor in his youth (Au hasard Balthazar directed by Robert Bresson).

Green is of Jewish descent through her Algerian-born mother. She is the great-granddaughter of French composer Paul Le Flem and of Swedish photographer Mia Green, the niece of actress Marika Green and the maternal first cousin of singer Elsa Lunghini and actress Joséphine Jobert. The surname "Green" [ˈɡɾeːn] has nothing to do with the color green; instead being derived from the Swedish word gren, which means 'tree branch'.

Green was raised in France and attended the American University of Paris, an English-speaking institution. She developed an interest in Egyptology when she visited the Louvre at age seven. At age 14, after seeing Isabelle Adjani in The Story of Adele H., Green decided to become an actress. She has also stated that watching Jack Nicholson's performance in the 1980 movie The Shining laid the groundwork for her future profession. Her mother initially feared that an acting career would be too much for her sensitive daughter, but later came to support her ambitions. Green continued her studies at Cours Eva Saint Paul in Paris and took an acting course at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London. After that, Green returned to Paris, where she performed in several plays. Green stated that when she was in drama school, she "always picked the really evil roles" because "it's a great way to deal with your everyday emotions".

Personal life

Green has been living in London since 2005. She has stated that she is happier in England than in France.

When asked about her preference to play graphic, sexually charged roles, Green described it as "paradoxical" given her self-confessed shyness. She commented humorously, "I don't really understand why I do that. I need to go through therapy!" Green also favours dark, twisted characters, as they allow her to feel liberated. She spoke about her role in Penny Dreadful as, "it's like I don't have a corset anymore when I'm playing Vanessa, you know? People will think that it's terrible to have fun in a show like that. But I do." However, she has tried to take more diverse roles in order to avoid being typecast.

Green is non-religious Jewish, though she describes herself as "very spiritual" and having complex beliefs about supernatural forces.

Green has expressed interest in returning to theatre. She says she has no plans to work in Hollywood full-time because "the problem with Hollywood is that the studios are super powerful, they have far more power than the directors... [my] ambition at this moment is just to find a good script".

From 2005 to 2009, she was in a romantic relationship with her Kingdom of Heaven co-star Marton Csokas.

In 2017, she revealed that Harvey Weinstein made an inappropriate advance during a business meeting but she "pushed him off".

In a 2020 interview with Town & Country magazine, Green said she did not currently want children, citing fear of judgement and public scrutiny, and explaining that she "can't visualise [herself] embracing motherhood any time soon". She added, "I don’t know. For now, no. What will be, will be. It's difficult — it's the judgement of other people, really."

Public image

Green's sex appeal has often been discussed in the media, and critics have described her as a sex symbol. Fashion outlets such as W Magazine and Vogue have described her as a style icon, emphasizing her avant-garde and gothic glamour, which extends to her dark and seductive roles—reinforcing her image as a "cinematic femme fatale".

Green has collaborated with various luxury brands throughout her career including modelling for the 2003 and 2005 Emporio Armani fashion collections. She also fronted perfume campaigns for Lancome's "Attraction” in 2006, and Dior's "Midnight Poison" in 2007, and a Montblanc accessories campaign in 2007.

In 2015, she was featured as the face of L'Oréal Professionnel, a campaign that promoted the Tecni.ART Wet Domination haircare and styling products, and in Campari calendar.

In 2020, she became brand ambassador for Bulgari, and has campaigned for Alexander McQueen. She is also brand ambassador for Roger Vivier, for which she was featured in the 2024 short film Vivier Express and in the 2025 "La Rose Vivier” rose–themed campaign, both for heels and handbags, and with creative director Gherardo Felloni.

Green has appeared on the cover of several high profile magazines, including Vogue Italia (2007), British GQ (2014), Elle Russia (2010), (2015), Harper's Bazaar UK (2012), Elle (2015), W Magazine (2016), Glamour Italia (2016), Madame Figaro (2023), Vanity Fair France (2023), Vogue Greece (2023) and Harper's Bazaar Taiwan (2025).