Charlize Theron's Trauma: Mom's Self-Defense

0:00On April 19th, Charlize Starran, now 50, opened up raw and tearful on the New York Times interview podcast about the night back on June 21st, 1991, when her mother shot her alcoholic father, dead in self-defense. Starran was just 15, living on a farm in apartheid, era, South Africa, and no charges were ever filed against her mom, Gerda. That childhood was rough, marched by her dad's constant drinking, building a bar right in the house, and unleashing verbal abuse that filled their home, with fear every weekend. Starran remembers the unpredictability hitting hardest, never knowing if the day would turn violent or stay tense. On that fateful night, her father came home drunk and furious, firing shots through steel doors to break in, dead set on harming them. Starran and her mom barricaded the bedroom door, dodging bullets that miraculously missed, before her mother grabbed a gun and ended the threat down, the hall. His new telling hits deeper than before, revealing how the trauma shifted Theran's

1:00bond with her mom. They were always tight, like a teen, but she now, sees her as a literal wife saver, even as they processed the pain together. Years later, Gerda remains her daughter's rock, pushing her into modeling at 16 and joining her on red carpets. Theran credits that messy family dynamic, with sharpening her edge as an actress, bringing real honesty to tough female roles. Stay in the know, with entertainment and celebrity news today, AI-powered updates.