Juman Malouf: The Longtime partner of Wes Anderson

Who is Juman Malouf?

Juman Malouf is a renowned Lebanese writer, illustrator, costume designer, and voice actress. The daughter of Lebanese novelist Hanan al-Shaykh, Juman Malouf, has long-term relationships with the Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Wes Anderson.

Juman Malouf has a fashion label named Charlotte Corday. She has authored the children’s fantasy book, The Trilogy of Two, and has worked as a voice actress in Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Juman Malouf Biography
Juman Malouf Biography

Quick Facts

Full NameJuman Malouf
Birthdate1975
Age 49 years old
BirthplaceBeirut, Lebanon
Currently residingParis, France
NationalityLebanese
EthnicityLebanese
GenderFemale
Sexual OrientationStraight
EyesDark Brown 
HairBlack
ParentsFouad Malouf (father)
Hanan al-Shaykh (mother)
SiblingsTarek Malouf
Marital statusIn a relationship
SpouseWes Anderson (partner)
ChildrenFreya Malouf Anderson (daughter)
EducationBrown University
Tisch School of the Arts 
Profession Writer, illustrator, costume designer, and voice actress
Net WorthUSD 19 million

Juman Malouf Birthday

Juman Malouf was born in 1975. She was born in Beirut, Lebanon. As of 2024, Juman Malouf is 49 years old.

Early Life, Parents, and Childhood

Juman Malouf is the daughter of Hanan al-Shaykh, a famous Lebanese feminist author. Her father’s name is Fouad Malouf. He is an engineer.

Juman was born in Beirut, Lebanon but spent most of her childhood in London. When she was three months old, Juman, her older brother, Tarek, and their mother fled Lebanon due to the civil war in the country. Initially, they lived in Saudi Arabia for a couple of months, where Malouf’s father worked as an engineer.

Juman Malouf with her parents
Juman Malouf with her mother, Hanan al-Shaykh and father, Fouad Malouf

Juman has described that growing up; her life was “full of outsiders.” For example, after fleeing their home country, she and her family lived in a community of foreigners in Saudi Arabia.

In an interview with Vogue, Juman said,

“We lived in a community of foreigners, and there were all different types of characters. There were people from England, America, Germany, and Switzerland. All these different types of people would come over for tea at my mom’s, and there were all these various people with all these histories. So I think I was interested in this idea of people who don’t fit into society.”

After the Gulf War broke out in Saudi Arabia, the Malouf relocated to London. They hopped on the last plane to London before the airport closed. After settling in London, Juman’s family often visited Lebanon.

As a child, Juman traveled to many countries. However, she mostly spent her summer vacations in Antibes, France, since her maternal grandmother lived there. According to Juman, her grandmother largely influenced her style of storytelling.

Educational Background

Due to displacement, Juman has described feeling like an outsider for most of her life. However, while living in London, Juman studied at an American school and “decided I would be American.”

She was fascinated with British and French history and often immersed herself in books detailing royal court scandals and Victorian-era fashion stories. Inspired by her mother’s writing style, Juman developed Dickensian humor and a deep interest in fashion.

Juman Malouf
Juman Malouf

After moving to the US, Juman studied at the prestigious Brown University and graduated with a BA in Fine Arts and Art History. After finishing her undergraduate studies, she completed her graduate education and earned an MFA from the Tisch School of the Arts for Set and Costume Design.

Career

After graduating from Tisch School, Juman Malouf started her career as a set designer. She designed the sets for several theaters around New York.

After working as a set designer on several productions, Juman realized that she “didn’t like working with directors” and had her “own desire to create versus working on someone else’s creation.” So, in the early 2000s, she collaborated with Jen Mankins and Jonathan Schmitt and started the indie fashion label, Charlotte Corday.

She said,

“I wanted to do my own thing, create my world, and that’s how I came to do a knitwear line, Charlotte Corday.”

Before this, Juman had also worked as an assistant for renowned stylist Yvonne Sporre and had attended Olivier Theyskens and Jeremy Scott’s first shows.

Unfortunately, although her fashion business was booming, Juman felt that “fashion didn’t have the same depth that theater had.” In addition, she realized that she “would design the clothing based on a character, but the stories didn’t go on.”

Juman Malouf with her boyfriend, Wes Anderson
Juman Malouf with her boyfriend, Wes Anderson

Following this realization, Juman Malouf joined forces with her filmmaker boyfriend, Wes Anderson. The pair collaborated on several projects.

She was the voice of the character of Agnes in Anderson’s Academy Award-nominated 2009 stop-motion movie, Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Likewise, Juman was involved with the cover design of the books shown in Anderson’s 2012 film Moonrise Kingdom. In fact, the film was made by Anderson as a tribute to his and Juman’s “happy relationship and to the redemptive power of love itself.”

In Anderson’s 2014 film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Juman made the illustrated character sketches for the cast. Those sketches were hung around the cast and crew’s hotel and helped set their mood. Ultimately, the drawings were published in the film’s illustrated screenplay.

Writing Career

In the late 2000s, Juman Malouf experimented with being a writer. According to her, writing allowed her to fulfill her wish “to be the world-maker” and gave her complete control over the creative process.

Juman Malouf Now
Juman Malouf Now

Her first novel, The Trilogy of Two, was released in 2015. The Trilogy of Two revolves around Sonja and Charlotte’s lives, identical twins, and musical prodigies. Along with writing the book, Juman also illustrated the book with detailed pencil sketches.

Although Juman felt under-confident about being a writer so late, The Trilogy of Two received rave reviews. In fact, the book also earned a feature in TIME magazine’s “Top 10 Children’s Book of 2015” list.

Apart from this, Juman Malouf and her partner, Wes Anderson, also made their joint debut as curators at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, Austria, in November 2018. The celebrity couple participated in displaying over 400 objects for “Spitzmaus Mummy in a Coffin and other Treasures,” an exhibition that took place over several months.

Relationships and Children

Since 2010, Juman Malouf has been in a long-term relationship with the Golden Globe Award-winning director Wes Anderson. Anderson and Malouf primarily live in Paris, France.

Wes Anderson with his girlfriend
Wes Anderson with his girlfriend, Juman Malouf

However, the celebrity couple also frequently travel all over Europe and the US to fulfill work commitments. Along with Wes Anderson’s longtime girlfriend, Juman Malouf has collaborated with Anderson many times throughout her career.

When it comes to children, Anderson and Malouf share a daughter. Juman gave birth to their daughter, Freya, in 2016. Freya was named after a character from the film The Mortal Storm.

Who is Juman Malouf Partner, Wes Anderson?

Born on May 1, 1969, Wes Anderson is an American film director. Known for making films with eccentricity and unique visual and narrative styles, Anderson has often been hailed as a modern-day example of the work of an auteur.

His films: The Royal Tenenbaums, Moonrise Kingdom, and The Grand Budapest Hotel, were featured in BBC Culture’s 2016 poll of the greatest films since 2000. In addition, Anderson was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for all three films.

The filmmaker also earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature for the films Fantastic Mr. Fox and Isle of Dogs. His other Academy Award nominations include Best Director and Best Picture for The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson

Anderson, who won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, was also honored with the BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay for The Grand Budapest Hotel. In 1998, Anderson founded the production company American Empirical Pictures.

Juman Malouf Net Worth

As of 2024, Juman Malouf has an estimated net worth of approximately USD 19 million. She has accumulated impressive earnings due to her career as a writer, costume designer, and voice actress.

While Juman Malouf’s net worth is undoubtedly remarkable, her partner, Wes Anderson, has an even more jaw-dropping net worth. Anderson has an estimated net worth of approximately USD 50 million.

As a result, the power couple boasts a combined net worth of around USD 69 million. Hence, Juman Malouf leads a lavish lifestyle that most can only dream of.

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