Charlize Theron Opens Up About Mother's Self-Defense Shooting of Father in New Interview
In a profoundly personal and revealing new interview with The New York Times Magazine, Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron has shared a raw and detailed account of the traumatic 1991 night when her mother shot and killed her father during a violent, drunken rampage. Theron explained that revisiting this painful chapter of her life has ultimately allowed her to no longer feel "haunted" by the incident, transforming her trauma into a source of strength and advocacy for others.
A Turbulent Childhood and a Father's Abuse
Reflecting on her turbulent upbringing in South Africa and the chaos that preceded her father Charles Theron's death, the actress told journalist Lulu Garcia-Navarro that she was willing to confront this deep-seated trauma to help other survivors of domestic violence feel less isolated. "I think these things should be talked about because it makes other people not feel alone," Theron stated. "When this happened to us, I thought we were the only people. I'm not haunted by this stuff anymore."
Theron was just 15 years old when she witnessed her mother, Gerda Jacoba Aletta Maritz, act in self-defense. However, she recalled her father as a menacing and threatening presence long before that fateful night. "He was scary. He didn't hit me, he didn't throw me against a wall, but he would do things like drive drunk," Theron described. She characterized him as a "full-blown functioning drunk" who subjected the family to constant verbal abuse and threatening language, which tragically became normalized.
The Night of the Shooting: A Harrowing Sequence of Events
The evening began innocuously, with Theron and her mother going out to see a movie. Upon returning home, they discovered that Charles Theron had locked them out and left to drink at his brother's house several streets away. When they arrived to retrieve the key, Theron noted her father and uncle were already "pretty loaded." A seemingly minor incident—Theron rushing inside to use the bathroom without greeting everyone—sparked her father's rage due to cultural expectations of respect for elders in South Africa.
"He was in a state where he just spiraled," Theron recounted. "Like: 'Why didn't you stop? Who do you think you are?'" Sensing the danger, Theron later pleaded with her mother to leave the marriage, a conversation she never imagined having. "I sat down with my mom and said, 'I think you're right. I think you should separate from him,'" she shared.
After retreating to her bedroom, Theron recognized the severity of the situation when her father returned home enraged. "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 said. Despite barricading themselves behind multiple steel doors—common in apartheid-era South Africa—Charles Theron shot his way in, making it "very clear that he was going to kill us."
Maritz grabbed her own gun, joining her daughter in the bedroom where they physically blocked the door as Charles Theron opened fire. Miraculously, neither was hit. "The messaging was very clear. I'm going to kill you tonight," Theron recalled her father saying. As he moved to access a shotgun from a safe, Maritz opened the door, firing a shot that ricocheted into her brother-in-law before shooting her husband.
Clarity and Advocacy Through Shared Experience
Theron emphasized the importance of understanding the full context of such traumatic events, rather than isolating a single moment. "It helps to explain that these things build, and they build, and it takes years for things to go as wrong as it did in my house," she explained. By sharing her story, Theron aims to provide solace and solidarity to countless others affected by domestic abuse, turning personal tragedy into a powerful message of resilience and support.
Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
