Quick Facts
Biography
Claire van der Boom (born 1983) is a Logie Award winning Australian film, television and theatre actress of Dutch ancestry. Internationally, she is best known for her appearance as Stella in the HBO miniseries The Pacific, and her recurring role playing the ex-wife of Det. Danny Williams in the 2010 remake of Hawaii Five-O.
Biography
Van der Boom was born in Broome, Western Australia. She attended Presbyterian Ladies' College in Perth, where she studied drama, graduating in 1999. She also graduated from Sydney's National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in 2005.
Acting career
Following graduation, van der Boom appeared in the Australian TV series Love My Way and East West 101. Her first major role in a feature film was in The Square, opposite Joel Edgerton and directed by Nash Edgerton. It premiered at the Sydney Film Festival in June 2008. It was released in the USA in 2010 by Apparition (company).
She had a prominent role in the Steven Spielberg-produced mini-series The Pacific. This 10-part series, which is a follow-up to the critically acclaimed Band of Brothers, was largely filmed in Australia and was released internationally in March 2010. The role of Stella required her to speak Greek.
In 2008, Van der Boom appeared on Australian TV as Grace Barry in Channel 10's police drama Rush, but her character was killed off in episode 11, which aired 11 November 2008. Josef Ber's character, Sergeant Dominic "Dom" Wales, was originally scripted to be killed off. However, during production of the first season, Van der Boom had her USA green card approved which required her to relocate. She was nominated for a TV week Silver Logie for her work.
She stars in the 2010 released psychological thriller Red Hill, opposite Ryan Kwanten and directed by Patrick Hughes. Also in 2010 she starred in the comedic LGBT short 'Baby Cake' which screened at multiple festivals around the world.
In 2010, she portrayed Sister Berenice Twohill in the telemovie Sisters of War, directed by Brendan Maher in which she won a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actress in 2011.
Van der Boom starred in the 2011 telemovie Underbelly Files: The Man Who Got Away, the true story of the notorious drug smuggler David McMillan. She played McMillan's doomed lover Clelia Vigano.
She played the role of reporter Juliette Gardner in the first three episodes of the Australian police procedural "City Homicide"; the episodes aired in February and March 2011.
She portrays the ex-wife of Danny Williams (Scott Caan) in the new Hawaii Five-0 series.
In 2012, Claire was cast in two Off-Broadway world premiere productions of internationally renowned playwrights. She played 'Karen' in David Rabe's An Early History of Fire (The New Group) and took over the role of 'Sally' (originally played by Julianne Nicholson) in the extended season of Sam Shepard's Heartless (Signature Theatre).
Claire had previously worked with Shepard in Tough Trade, the original series pilot for Epix. She played Billie Tucker in the "one-hour drama about a three-generation Nashville music dynasty with a penchant for drink, debauchery and divorce."
In the 2015 film 5 Flights Up with Morgan Freeman and Diane Keaton Claire played 'Young Ruth' to Keaton's 'Ruth'.
In November 2014, Universal Pictures secured the international distribution rights to the Australian feature Love Is Now, starring Claire, Eamon Farren and Anna Torv.
In 2015 she appeared in Stephen Suettinger's movie, A Year and Change as Vera.
Claire will next be seen in films Chronic (film), (best screenplay at 2015 Cannes Film Festival), in Dear Eleanor, and in Alison Eastwood's "Battlecreek"
Claire appeared in the two top rated episodes of Constantine, portraying the character of Anne-Marie who has secluded herself away from society in the guise of a Catholic nun in Mexico, as a result of the Newcastle incident. She also has a shaky past with John Constantine and introduced him to the life he now leads.
In 2015 she was in the world premiere of Scott Caan's play "The Trouble With Where We Come From" at The Falcon Theatre in Los Angeles.
She was a series regular in the 2016 10 part NBC series Game of Silence (U.S. TV series)
In 2016 she played the infamous femme fatale Phyllis in the world premier theatre adaptation of Double Indemnity (novel) for Melbourne Theatre Company.
Music career
In 2003 Claire recorded vocals for a track titled "Do What You Want" produced by Jason Hearn. This track was later remixed by Infusion, Max Graham and Jacob Todd. The Infusion remix is featured on the critically acclaimed Balance 005 compilation mixed by James Holden. It is most notably found on renowned DJ Tiëstos album In Search Of Sunrise, Volume 4 (2005).