Natalie Portman Really Cares!
Adopting a photogenic little African child can do wonders for an actress's image. Just ask Madonna, or Angelina, or even Mary-Louise Parker. But supposing you're a little young to be a mother, yet still want to be seen as a serious, politically engaged save-the-world type? Natalie Portman—or her canny managers—have the answer: You involve yourself with a high-profile project to help Rwandan orphans!
The Israeli-American star—who could do with some good PR after pulling out of a remake of Wuthering Heights having lobbied heavily for the part—is making a film, to be shown on Oprah, about a "youth village" for 500 Rwandans orphaned in the 1994 genocide. The project, which is being built by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee and run by Israeli counselors, is currently hush-hush, but you can bet that come August, when it opens, Portman will be giving heartfelt interviews left, right and center.
