There aren’t many people who can defeat Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson in a duel, but Scarlett Johansson is one of them. A few weeks ago in the States, Johansson’s brain-busting sci-fi Lucy, directed by Luc Besson, beat Hercules into second place with a remarkable opening weekend of $43.9 million. It’s the latest success story in the career of Scarlett Johansson, who has had one hell of a year, matching critical adoration with commercial success and creative fulfilment. So how did the girl with the croaky voice from Ghost World become Hollywood’s hottest actress?

Scan down Scarlett Johansson’s IMDB résumé and you might be shocked at just how diverse a career she’s had – and she’s not even 30 until November. How many actresses can say they’ve worked with Michael Bay AND Woody Allen? For every Luc Besson, there is a Sofia Coppola; for every Christopher Nolan, there is a Spike Jonze. The list of filmmakers charmed by Scarlett continues: Robert Redford, the Coen brothers, Cameron Crowe, Brian De Palma, Peter Webber, Terry Zwigoff. Three-time Scarlett director Woody Allen said it best: “She’s great-looking, sexy, funny, a good dramatic actress, she can sing. I mean, she’s got it all, really.”

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