Whirlwind RomanceBerry and Justice tie the knot in Atlanta just a few months after they begin dating. "As I tell Halle," Justice says to PEOPLE shortly after the wedding, "'I thank God every day for giving you to me.'" In April 1996, after three years of marriage, Berry and Justice file for divorce.
A Big Role
After a series of supporting roles in big movies, Berry displays her acting chops. She wins an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of pioneering African-American actress Dorothy Dandridge in the HBO film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge.
2000
February 14
Crash CourseBerry becomes tabloid fodder when she is involved in a car accident and flees the scene. Berry, who sustains a head injury, tells the Today show she was "in a state of mind that did not make me responsible in that moment" and pleads no contest to a misdemeanor charge. She pays a fine and performs community service. "Drama follows me," she tells PEOPLE in 2003. "I'm a drama magnet.
July 14
X Marks the SpotBerry takes on her first blockbuster, starring as the comic-book hero Storm in X-Men.
2001
January 24
Halle & Eric Benét Wed
Berry marries singer Eric Benét. "He's a very kind, sensitive, gentle soul," Berry tells Vogue. "Very unlike, in that regard, any man I've ever been with." The actress also immediately bonds with Benét's daughter India. Berry tells Elle, "It feels as if she's my own; she calls me Mommy."
December
Berry's Ball
Angela Bassett pulls out of Monster's Ball, and Berry lands the role of Leticia Musgrove, the wife of a death-row inmate. Her emotional performance gets much buzz, as does the graphic sex scene with costar Billy Bob Thornton. Berry tells PEOPLE the scene made her "wiser and more comfortable with my womanhood."
2002first African-American woman to win the Oscar for Best Actress, awarded for her role in Monster's Ball. "This moment is so much bigger than me," a tearful Berry says onstage. "It's for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance." Along with Denzel Washington's Best Actor win, the 74th Academy Awards marks the first time the two lead acting statuettes are won by African-Americans.
March 24
First Time Gold and GloryBerry makes history as the
Summer
Marital StrugglesBerry's husband, Eric Benét, checks into Meadows rehab clinic in Arizona to seek treatment for his admitted philandering. "All marriages are challenging and complicated," Berry tells PEOPLE that year. "You say, 'I'm in this no matter what, through good times and bad times.' We're in this thing for the long haul."
November
From It Girl to Bond GirlIn
am I supposed to walk sexy? One guy told me I looked like I was giving myself a hip displacement."
2003
March 23
Pucker UpOnstage to present the Oscar for Best Actor, Berry receives her own surprise when Best Actor winner Adrien Brody leaps onstage and steals a smooch. "He's a wet kisser," Berry says to PEOPLE. "I didn't kiss back at all." Of course, "I didn't stop him either!" For his part, Brody is unapologetic, telling PEOPLE later, "If you ever have an excuse to do something like that, that was it."
2004files for divorce from Benét. "Eric and I have had marital problems for some time now and have tried to work things out," she says in a statement released through her publicist. "However, at this point, I feel we need time apart to reevaluate our union." The two finalize their split on Jan. 6, 2005.September 04
Berry PregnantThe 41-year-old announces she is
2008appears on the cover of In Style. "My skin is aglow from all the hormones," she says. "I want to stay pregnant forever." The 41-year-old actress adds, "I may only do this one time, so I want this moment to be as big as it can be. I want the biggest bang I can imagine."
February
Halle Wants to 'Stay Pregnant Forever'With her baby bump on full display, Berry
March 16
Halle Welcomes NahlaAfter a long struggle to get pregnant–she endured almost three dozen negative pregnancy tests–Berry and her boyfriend, model Gabriel Aubry, 32,
welcome a baby girl, Nahla Ariela Aubry. Of motherhood, Berry says, "I think it is the most important thing we do as women." November
Halle's One Hot MamaBerry, who gave birth to daughter Nahla in March, is
named Esquire's Sexiest Woman Alive. "Being 42 and having just had a baby, I think I'll take it," the actress says before quipping, "I've been in the business for more than twenty years, and you decide now, at this particular time, that I'm the sexiest woman alive?...you couldn't go with the Bond-girl year? You didn't like the orange bikini?"2010split. "It's not like a relationship with a man – they come and they go," Berry said on Oprah's Oscars special in March. "You may be with someone forever, you may not. I will always be her mother and she will always be my daughter, and nothing ever changes that."
April
The Singles SceneAfter a four-year romance and having a daughter together, Nahla, 2, Berry and Aubry
September
Halle's French KissFresh off her breakup from Aubry, Berry, 44, is
2011caught kissing another hunk, her Dark Tide costar Olivier Martinez, 44, in his hometown of Paris. "It was the classic 'I'm going to kiss you here in a dark corner' move," an onlooker tells PEOPLE of the new couple's romantic romp. "And she was waiting to be kissed."February
Battle Over NahlaAfter Aubry files for joint custody of daughter Nahla, 2½, Berry fires back, saying she has "serious concerns for her daughter's well-being while in the care of her father." The couple's custody battle heats up as accusations fly over Aubry's "vindictive" nature and Berry's aggravation with Aubry's brief romance with Kim Kardashianthree months pregnant with Aubry's child to Access Hollywood: "Gabriel and I are beyond excited and I've waited a long time for this moment in my life."
April 26
Over and OutBerry
2005seems happy to accept the Worst Actress statuette for her role in Catwoman at the Golden Raspberry Awards. "I never in my life thought that I would be here, winning a Razzie. It's not like I ever aspired to be here, but thank you," she says in mock excitement, holding her Oscar in one hand and the Razzie in the other. "When
February 26
The Old Razzie DazzleIt might not have been much of an honor, but Berry
I was a kid, my mother told me that if you could not be a good loser, then there's no way you could be a good winner."
2006start dating a hot younger man – Canadian model Gabriel Aubry – she's still appearing in Revlon ads and looking better than ever. Her beauty advice? "Wear what you feel good in. Then, when you wear it, your personality will shine far greater," she tells PEOPLE.
August 14
The Big 4-0Turning 40 doesn't worry Berry. Not only does the actress 2007Bruce Willis
April 03
A Teary-Eyed StarBerry receives the 2,333rd star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame in front of the Kodak Theatre in L.A. "I am so emotional...as soon as I saw the crowds of people and friends here, I started to cry," the Oscar-winning actress tells the AP. Her star coincides with the release of her new film Perfect Stranger, a cat-and-mouse thriller Perfect Stranger also starring
her role as James Bond's feisty sidekick Jinx in Die Another Day, Berry turns heads when she recreates Ursula Andress' sexy bikini scene. "The only direction I was given was 'Be sexy,'" she complains later to Entertainment Weekly, of re-creating the scene. "What does that mean? I'm supposed to walk out of the surf and onto the beach and somehow be sexy about it. HowWhile there are no complaints about the tight bodysuit required for the role, Berry's white wig gets mixed reviews. Entertainment Weekly calls it "annoying." For the 2003 sequel X2, Berry says to PEOPLE of her character's hairdo, "It's bad enough I've got to wear white hair with my dark skin, but the style is more layered this time. I welcomed the softening change." She reprises her role again in 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand.
1980-1984
Miss PopularityBerry edits the school newspaper, becomes class president, and captain of her cheerleading squad at Bedford High School, located in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio. "[Doing] all those things helped to make me feel a sense of empowerment," she tells Ebony of her experience attending an all-White school.
1984Spring
1985
No Contest
A boyfriend enters her into her first beauty contest, and Berry storms onto the pageant scene, winning Miss Teen All-American. "We didn't have a lot, so initially I saw dollar signs, she tells people. “But then I felt really empowered after winning." In 1986, after being crowned Miss Ohio USA, Berry comes in second place in the Miss USA contest and sixth in Miss World. But "I wasn't the consummate pageant girl," Berry later says to people of her tiara days.
A Shocking DiagnosisBerry takes on her first acting role. She plays a model on the short-lived Who's the Boss? spinoff Living Dolls, a Facts of Life-like story of four models with disparate personalities living together. Berry collapses during filming, and is later diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
1991 June
Breakin' OutBerry's breakthrough role comes in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever. Despite her role as a down-and-out drug addict, scoring such a meaty part wasn't easy. The "'too pretty' thing got to be old," she says to PEOPLE.
1992 FebruaryA Home Run
While Berry is watching an MTV celebrity baseball game, Atlanta Braves right fielder David Justice catches her eye. Later that year, during an interview with Berry, a reporter mentions that his pal Justice is a fan and would like a photo. She sends him one with her number written on it.
May 04
The Most BeautifulWhile her last few roles weren't pretty, Berry finds herself included in PEOPLE's 50 Most Beautiful People list for the first time. It won't be the last. She'll be recognized a total of 11 times of 2007, plus pick up honorable mentions for her cleavage and eyebrows.
