Audrey Tautou (born August 9, 1978) is a French film actress, best known to worldwide audiences as the title character in the award-winning French film Amélie (2001, Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain) and as Sophie Neveu in The Da Vinci Code (2006).
Tautou was born in Beaumont, Puy-de-Dôme, France. In 1999, she participated in a Star Search-like competition sponsored by Canal+ called "Jeunes Premier" (The Young First) and won Best Young Actress at the 9th Béziers Festival of Young Actors. Then, she came to the attention of Tonie Marshall who gave her a role in the César-winning Venus Beauty Institute (1999, aka Vénus beauté (institut)). In 2000, she won the Prix Suzanne Bianchetti as her country's most promising young film actress.
In 2001, Tautou rose to international fame by playing the eccentric Amélie from the romantic French comedy of the same name. However, in her native France she was already well-known for her work in the earlier Venus Beauty Institute.
In 2005 Tautou worked in her first full Hollywood production, opposite Tom Hanks, in the film version of Dan Brown's best-selling novel, The Da Vinci Code, directed by Ron Howard and released in May 2006.
At one time fascinated by monkeys, she wanted to be a primatologist.
Tautou takes pictures of each reporter who interviews her. She keeps these pictures in a scrapbook for later review.
The Brand New song 'Tautou', from the album Deja Entendu is named after her.
