Johansson had long held dreams of becoming an actress, and enrolled at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute and the Professional Children’s School as a child. Her film debut came in 1994, when she appeared a John Ritter’s daughter in the fantasy comedy “North.” She later landed minor roles as the daughter of Sean Connery and Kate Capshaw’s characters in “Just Cause” (1995), and as an art student in “If Lucy Fell” (1996).
Her first leading role was as Amanda in “Manny & Lo” (1996), and her performance earned her a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Lead Female. She continued to appear in films such as “Fall” (1997), “Home Alone 3” (1997), “My Brother the Pig” (1999) and “The Man Who Wasn’t There” (2001). She began attracting wider attention after her role in “The Horse Whisperer” (1998), for which she was nominated for the Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actress.
Her big breakthrough came in 2001 with the black comedy “Ghost World.” Despite the film’s poor box office performance, Johansson’s acting earned widespread praise. After graduating from Professional Children’s School and being rejected from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts in 2002, Johansson decided to focus full time on her film career, and transition from teen to more adult roles.