You can usually work out how old someone is by asking them where they know Claire Danes from. If they say "Romeo and Juliet", chances are they're upwards of 30. If it's "Homeland", you're dealing with someone a little younger. Claire has been working in film and television since she was a child, and she already had a couple of film roles to her name before a lead role in "My So Called Life" made her famous.
A dynamic and versatile performer, her career can almost be looked at in two halves; she seemed to vanish for a while between 2005 and 2012 as she got married and started a family, then returned like she'd never missed a day. Outspoken politically, and heavily involved in charity work, Claire Danes is every bit as big a deal now as she was twenty years ago.