Vera Farmiga Biography: In Her Own Words – Exclusive Video, News, Photos, Age

Vera Ann Farmiga is an American actress who is perhaps best known for her distinct role as real-life paranormal investigator Lorraine Warren in the mystery/thriller film franchise The Conjuring, where she demonstrated her bone-chilling scream.

VERA FARMIGA BIOGRAPHY: AGE, EARLY LIFE, FAMILY, EDUCATION

Farmiga was born on August 6, 1973 (Vera Farmiga age: 49) in Clifton, New Jersey. Her parents came from Ukraine. Her father, Mykhailo Farmiga, worked as a computer systems analyst, while her mother, Lubomyra “Luba” Farmiga, was employed as a schoolteacher. Farmiga has one older brother, Victor, as well as five younger siblings, Stephan, Nadia, Alexander, Laryssa and Taissa. Farmiga’s maternal grandparents were introduced at a displaced persons camp in Karlsfeld during World War Two.

Farmiga has publicly stated that she is “100% Ukrainian American,” as she was raised in an insular Ukrainian American community located in Irvington, New Jersey, with Ukrainian being her native tongue. She hadn’t learned English until the age of six when she was in kindergarten. At the age of 12, her family relocated to Whitehouse Station, New Jersey. Farmiga studied at St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic School in Newark, New Jersey. She toured with a Ukrainian folk-dancing ensemble, Syzokryli as a young teenager. In addition, Farmiga is also a classically trained pianist.

Farmiga graduated from Hunterdon Central Regional High School in 1991. During her junior year, she discovered acting after having been benched by her soccer coach. Her friend coaxed her into auditioning for their school production of The Vampire, where she was awarded the lead role of Lady Margaret. Farmiga then proceeded to study theater at Syracuse University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. During her senior year, Farmiga performed in The Seagull at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, and the production ended up receiving the top prize. Her drama professor, for one, was extremely impressed with her performance, stating that “we’d never have won had she not nailed the fourth act. A number of the judges told me that.”

VERA FARMIGA BIOGRAPHY: CAREER

Farmiga started her professional acting career on stage in the initial Broadway production of Taking Sides. She then went on to appear in the Fox fantasy/adventure series Roar for her television debut and made her feature film debut in the drama/thriller Return to Paradise. Farmiga’s breakthrough role, however, came in 2004, when she starred as a drug addict in the drama film Down to the Bone. She was given praise for her role in yet another drama spectacle Nothing But the Truth, and received critical acclaim for her starring role in the hit comedy/drama Up in the Air (2009), a performance which landed her nominations for the prestigious Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

In an exclusive interview with uInterview, Farmiga spoke about her experience working on the popular sci-fi/action film Source Code with fellow cast member Jake Gyllenhaal.

“You know, I think I was working with an alternate reality of Jake Gyllenhaal. I actually did not work with him,” Farmiga chuckled. “I mean that was one of the challenging things about the role. Our characters are in two different realities and two different spaces. So even though on screen it will appear as if we’re in each other’s presence, we were not at all. I know Jake. I know him. He’s a friend of mine, and so I can tell you what it would potentially be like to work with Jake, given the fact that he’s just so charming and so generous and sweet and energetic, but he was generous enough to show up a couple days and read the lines to me. I would stare into a camera and I hear you in my ear, but you’re not in the room with me.”

Farmiga then revealed what she would do if she’d discovered she’d only had eight minutes left to live.

“If I just had eight minutes to live, I would be making out with my husband,” Farmiga laughed. “Severe cuddles with my children. I think it would just be tactile. Look, you wouldn’t be human if after, you know, what’s happened in this world and how the world’s changed, you wouldn’t be human if those thoughts creep in, but I really, I don’t dwell on them. I don’t like to live in fear, and that’s not who I want to be. So, you know, I think the film, as scary as the circumstances are in the film, I think it does leave you with this idea that you should count your blessings. You should savor and relish life and those who are dear to you and be grateful for every moment. Don’t take anything for granted, and you do walk away with a positivity after seeing this film, regardless of the train wreck that it is.”

When asked about her hobby of goat breeding, this is what Farmiga had to say:

“Oh, god. You know, I’m breeding children at the moment,” Farmiga cackled. “I have a four-month-old and a two-year-old, and I think in the last couple of years that’s been on hold. I do have goats. They’re pets and you know, we do share them. And my husband, if he’s lucky enough, once a year he gets a hand-knit sweater, but it’s a hobby. It’s a big commitment, you know it’s a career. And I don’t really want to hire someone to look after it because breeding goats and then milking them is a twice-a-day activity and I should be there for it, and I’ve got my hands full at the moment.”

VERA FARMIGA BIOGRAPHY: PERSONAL LIFE

Farmiga currently resides with her family in Hudson Valley, New York. She began dating her current husband, Renn Hawkey, after being introduced to one another by mutual friend Allen Hughes on the set of Touching Evil. In September 2008, Farmiga and her husband had a shotgun wedding, with Farmiga being five months pregnant. She gave birth to her first child in 2009 in Rhinebeck, New York. The couple also have one daughter together, Gytta.

Farmiga and her family own homes in both Hudson Valley and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Farmiga was previously married to French-American actor Sebastian Roché. The couple had been with each other for numerous years before ultimately choosing to become divorced in 2004.

Farmiga’s sister-in-law is photographer and actor Molly Hawkey. Farmiga remains close friends with her Bates Model co-star Freddie Highmore, star of ABC’s primetime medical drama The Good Doctor, and godfather to Farmiga’s son. She is also good friends with her Conjuring co-star Patrick Wilson. 

Farmiga’s hobbies outside her professional acting career include playing piano, boxing, jujitsu, reading, and spending quality time with her pet goats.