Renée Kathleen Zellweger was born on April 25, 1969, in Katy, Texas, USA to parents Emil Erich Zellweger, a Swiss-born engineer who married Renée's mother Kjellfrid Irene Andreassen, a Norwegian-born former nurse and midwife in 1963. Renée also has a brother named Drew Zellweger, a marketing executive born on February 15, 1967. Renée got interested in acting in high school while working on the drama club. She also took an acting class at the University of Texas (Austin), where she began looking towards acting as a career. After graduation, she wanted to continue acting, but Hollywood is a tough town to break into, so Renée decided to stay in Texas, and auditioned for roles around Houston, where she managed to grab roles in such films as Reality Bites and Empire Records.

She then took a role in the sequel The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, where she met Matthew McConaughey, another Hollywood up-and-comer. He was working on a project at the time that Renée was interested in, auditioned for, and won the role in the film Love and a .45, which earned her enough critical praise that she decided to move to Los Angeles. Another role in The Whole Wide World followed which led to her big break. Cameron Crowe was busy casting his next film, Jerry Maguire, starring Tom Cruise. Crowe was considering such actresses as Cameron Diaz, Bridget Fonda, Winona Ryder, and Marisa Tomei, when he heard of Zellweger's performance in The Whole Wide World. He auditioned Zellweger and was sure he'd found his Dorothy Boyd.

Renée followed her huge success with a few small independent films and after receiving further critical praise, she felt confident enough to reenter the world of big-budget Hollywood films. She starred opposite Meryl Streep in the tear-jerker One True Thing. She also took a role in Me, Myself & Irene, opposite Jim Carrey, and soon after began dating Carrey. The two denied their relationship at first, but finally gave in and admitted it; today they are no longer together. Also in 2000, she starred in the title role in Nurse Betty, where she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical. In 2001, she received even more critical and commercial success in the title role in Bridget Jones's Diary. She received her first Academy Award nomination for her role, which was followed by her second Oscar-nominated role in the musical Chicago. She then again wowed audiences with her fierce yet warm portrayal of Ruby Thewes in the film adaptation of Cold Mountain, which won Zellweger an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, which was her first Academy Award.
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004): $11,000,000
Cold Mountain (2003): $15,000,000
Down with Love (2003): $6,000,000
Chicago (2002): $10,000,000
Bridget Jones's Diary (2001): $3,750,000
Swiss father, Norwegian mother. Chosen by 'People Magazine' as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world. [2001] She was a part of the Katy High School Bengal Brigade and Cheerleaders. Was in the bathroom when it was announced that she won the Golden Globe for her performance in Nurse Betty. Named one of E!'s "top 20 entertainers of 2001." With no dance or voice training, she learned how to perform for Chicago by watching co-star Catherine Zeta-Jones. She endured a grueling training regime of vocal coaching and dance training for 10 months to rise to professional standards. Her dog, Dylan, a collie-golden retriever mix, died in November 2003. While her mother is originally from Norway, her Swiss father was raised in Australia. Attended University of Texas at Austin, Graduated 1991, majoring in English. Worked as a cocktail waitress in a strip club while trying to catch her "big break" in acting. Had a non-speaking role in Dazed and Confused. Prior to the filming of Chicago, Renee had only sung previously in public in the last scene of Empire Records and in the comical karaoke scene in Bridget Jones's Diary. However, critics were amazed how good her voice was in the movie. Lived with actor Rory Cochrane for four years. Gained 20 pounds for her role in Bridget Jones's Diary. Her Norwegian mother, Kjellfrid Irene Andreassen, is of sami origin (a minority originating mainly from the northern parts of the Scandinavian peninsula often referred to as Lapland). Zellweger herself has many typical sami features, such as the strong cheekbones and the squinty eyes. She became the first performer to win 2 individual (excluding best acting ensemble) SAG awards in film catagories. Is accompanied to many award shows and other functions by her long time agent John Carrabino. Her father (Emil Erich Zellweger) and her grandparents (Dorothy and Emil Zellweger) lived in Switzerland, a village called Au in the canton of St. Gallen. They left right after World War II and moved first to Australia and then to the U.S. Emil Erich met Renee's mother on a boat during the crossing to the U.S. Ended her relationship with Jack White (they met during the filming of Cold Mountain) over the Christmas holidays in 2004. Married country singer Kenny Chesney on the resort island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Her wedding ceremony lasted 15 minutes. Met her future husband Kenny Chesney at a tsunami relief benefit in January 2005. Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame [May 24, 2005]. In 2004, she accepted the Screen Actors Guild Award for "Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role" on behalf of Johnny Depp, who wasn't present at the awards ceremony She wore a gown designed by her favorite designer, Carolina Adriana Herrera, for her wedding to Kenny Chesney. Friend of Reese Witherspoon. Dyed her hair brown for her role in Cinderella Man. Her father's family comes from Au in canton St. Gallen/Switzerland. This is just a few minutes away from Rorschach where Emil Jannings was born, the very first actor to receive the Academy Award for Best Actor. Fan of Chelsea FC (England soccer club). Is fluent in German. First on screen kiss was with Ethan Hawke in "Reality Bites" (1994).