DAVIDTZ ON DAVIDTZ A double exposure of Embeth Davidtz, photographed in Topia State Park in California, September 27, 1999.

A lithe beauty with brown eyes that could melt steel and a body men would happily go to war for, Embeth Davidtz first captured moviegoers' attention as the concentration-camp prisoner Ralph Fiennes alternately abused and adored in Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List. Davidtz was born in Indiana but raised in South Africa. Her father is a professor of chemical engineering. She had a B.A. in English literature and a master's in drama when she met Spielberg. "It was like a dream—18 months after coming to Los Angeles from Johannesburg with a suitcase and $3,000, and you end up working with that guy."

Davidtz next managed to slip through several forgettable movies only to be re-established last month in the film version of Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, as the sophisticated, wicked Mary Crawford. "She was lovely to play—a very exciting, dark, cavalier creature," says the actress. She'll surprise audiences again this month when she stars in Disney's big-budget romantic drama Bicentennial Man, directed by Chris Columbus. She plays opposite Robin Williams, who is a robot in search of humanity. "Robin and Chris are big, commercial, heavyweight guys. I was scared—I didn't know if I could act in a film like this, but the same rules apply. Robin is hilarious. They would go, 'Action!,' and I would fall apart with laughter." Columbus adds, "Embeth and Robin had an amazing amount of chemistry. The connection was instant."

Davidtz has now lived in Los Angeles eight years, and she promises that she's not leaving anytime soon. "I have been so lucky. If I can just carry on as is, I don't mind if it doesn't get bigger."