She was born in 1972 in Los Angeles. Her mother is a famous actress and her father was a film and television director.
She made her professional stage debut in 1990, and in the next year she performed in Shout (1991), starring John Travolta. Later that year, she appeared in Hook (1991), as Young Wendy. Then she had minor roles in Malice (1993) and Flesh and Bone (1993). She was next cast in a supporting role in Se7en (1995) alongside Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, which earned her a Satellite Award nomination. In 1996, she played the title character in Emma to critical acclaim,particularly in the United Kingdom, where her perfection of the English accent was appreciated.
In 1998, she starred in Shakespeare in Love, whereby she won an Oscars award. Since then, her success films have been less noteworthy. Her last role is in the sequel to Iron Man, Iron Man 2.