Charlize Theron ( shar-LEEZ THERR-ən; Afrikaans: [ʃarˈlis trɔn]; born 7 August 1975) is a South African and American actress and film producer. She is known for starring in numerous Hollywood films, such as The Devil's Advocate (1997), Mighty Joe Young (1998), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000), Monster (2003), The Italian Job (2003), Hancock (2008), The Road (2009), Snow White and the Huntsman (2012), Prometheus (2012), A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), The Fate of the Furious (2017), Atomic Blonde (2017) and Tully (2018).

Theron received critical acclaim for her portrayal of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster, for which she won the Academy Award, Silver Bear, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actress, among other accolades, becoming the first South African to win an Academy Award in a major acting category. She received Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for her performance in the sexual harassment-themed drama North Country (2005), and a Golden Globe Award nomination for her performance in Jason Reitman's film Young Adult (2011).

Theron moved into the field of producing in the late 2000s. She founded and owns the production company Denver and Delilah Productions. She has produced numerous films, many of which she had a starring role in, including The Burning Plain (2008) and Dark Places (2015). Theron became a U.S. citizen in 2007, while retaining her South African citizenship. In 2016, Time named her in the annual Time 100 most influential people list.