Mathilda May

Mathilda May (born Karin Haïm; 8 February 1965) is a French film actress. Her most well known roles include portraying Space Girl in Lifeforce (1985) and Jeanne Gardella in Toutes peines confondues (1992). Early life May was born in Paris, France. Her father, playwright Victor Haïm, is of Sephardic Jewish (Greek and Turkish) descent. Her mother is the Swedish ballet teacher and choreographer Margareta Hanson. She studied under Christiane Vaussard at the Conservatoire de Paris, graduating at age 16. Career May's film work is primarily in French and made for the European market; she was the recipient of the César Award for Most Promising Actress in 1988 and the Prix Romy Schneider in 1989. Non-French films she has appeared in include Naked Tango (1990), Becoming Colette (1991) and The Tit and the Moon (1994). In the United States, she is best known for her naked performance as an alien vampire in the science fiction-horror film Lifeforce (1985), directed by Tobe Hooper. She also appeared in the 1996 space adventure game Privateer 2: The Darkening. She played Isabella in The Jackal, a 1997 action film. May recorded an album in 1992 called Joy of Love.