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Charlize Theron details how her mother shot her father in self-defense

Article (news)

Alyana De Guzman

Push Team

<div><em>Trigger warning: This article mentions domestic violence. </em></div><div><br/></div><p>Award-winning actress Charlize Theron spoke up about one of the most difficult experiences of her life as she recalled the night her mother, Gerda Maritz, shot her father, Charles Theron, in self-defense during a violent domestic incident.  </p><p>In an interview with The New York Times Magazine on April 18, the Hollywood star reflected on her teenage years and the trauma that unfolded when she was just 15 years old. The actress detailed how the incident began on an otherwise ordinary evening when she and her mother returned home from the cinemas, only to find themselves locked out. </p><p>“My dad had taken the key to the front steel door. Every room in our house had a steel door. So if you got into the front door, the kitchen had a steel door that you had to unlock, because that’s the kind of violence that we were living in. Our country was on the brink of civil war. So my mom couldn’t get into the first lock. We always knew where my dad was. His brother lived a couple of streets away, and if he wasn’t home, he was there drinking.” </p><div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fweb.facebook.com%2Fwatch%2F%3Fv%3D1299597895444548&amp;width=500&amp;show_text=false&amp;height=889&amp;appId" width="500" height="889" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><p>Knowing where he was, the two went to her uncle’s house. Charlize recalled how a simple moment quickly escalated due to her father’s intoxicated state. </p><p>“Nothing out of the usual. We went over, they were pretty loaded, and I had to pee really badly. So I ran into the house to get to the toilet, and he took that as me being rude, because I didn’t stop and say hello to everybody,&quot; Charlize recalled, adding that her father saw the action as disrespectful.  </p><p>&quot;We left, but you could just tell something was different. When we got home, I sat down with my mom and said: ‘I think you’re right. I think you should separate from him.’ I had never imagined that those words would come out of my mouth. Leaving that house, I knew something was just different,” she said.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17771918548411777191983854.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">Charlize Theron with her mother, Gerda Maritz </span></span></span><em></em><br/></div><p>Back home, Charlize sensed the danger escalating and urged her mother to keep her distance from her father. She retreated to her room, hoping to avoid confrontation. </p><p>“She knew it, too. I knew he was mad at me. So I said to her, ‘When he eventually decides to come home, please tell him I’m asleep.’ I went into my room, I turned my lights off, and I was scared. My window faced the driveway, and I could tell the level of anger, frustration or unhappiness by the way he drove in. The way that he drove into that property that night, I can’t explain it to you. I just knew something bad was going to happen,” she added. </p><p>What followed was a terrifying ordeal. </p><p>“To get to the point: He finally broke into the house. He shot through the steel doors to get in, making it very clear that he was going to kill us. His brother was with him as well,” she said. </p><p>“We knew it was serious, and so by the time he broke into the first gate, my mom ran to the safe to get her gun. She came into my bedroom. The two of us were holding the door with our bodies because there wasn’t a lock on it. And he just stepped back and started shooting through the door. And this is the crazy thing: Not one bullet hit us. It’s insane when you think about it that way. But the messaging was very clear. I’m going to kill you tonight,” she described.  </p><p>“He walked to the safe, and my mom pulled the door open while the brother was still standing there. The brother ran down the hallway, and she shot one bullet down the hallway that ricocheted seven times and shot him in the hand. It’s stuff you can’t explain. And then she followed my father, who was by then opening the safe to get more weapons out, and she shot him,” Charlize added.  </p><p>The actress emphasized that their story is not unique, pointing to the widespread reality of domestic abuse especially in the United States.  </p><p>&quot;Unfortunately, this is not an isolated story,&quot; Charlize said. &quot;These things are prevalent in a lot of homes. Women really get a very, very unfair shake, even in this country. Nobody takes it seriously, the situation that they’re in. And I don’t think anybody took my mom seriously.&quot; </p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17771918075021777191931863.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner">Charlize Theron at Netflix&#x27;s &quot;Apex&quot; New York Premiere. </span></span></span><em></em><br/></div><p>Despite the trauma, the actress shared how her mother showed resilience in the aftermath, choosing to push forward. &quot;The next morning she sent me to school. She was just like, ‘We’re going to move on’. Not necessarily the healthiest thing, but it worked for us. She wanted me to forget about it. She didn’t want me to sit in it. We didn’t have therapists around, so in her head the best therapy was, ‘We’ve got to move on.&#x27;&quot;  </p><p>While she once carried “a lot of shame” about the incident, the actress now uses her voice to raise awareness about domestic violence and its lasting impact. </p><p>&quot;I think these things should be talked about because it makes other people not feel alone. I never knew about a story like that. When this happened to us, I thought we were the only people. I’m not haunted by this stuff anymore,” she stated.</p><p>Charlize later moved to Italy at around 16 years old to pursue modeling before eventually building a successful entertainment career in the United States. </p><p>Today, Charlize continues to thrive in Hollywood, starring in projects including the action film <em>Apex</em>, released on April 24, as she moves forward while honoring the strength that carried her through one of her life’s darkest moments.</p>

<p>Charlize shares how her mother shot her drunk father in self-defense when she was 15 years old. </p>

Charlize shares how her mother shot her drunk father in self-defense when she was 15 years old.