Edward Norton discovers real-life Pocahontas is his 12th great-grandmother - CNN

CNN  — 

American histrion Edward Norton has discovered that the real-life Pocahontas, the romanticized and mythologized 17th period girl of a Native American chief, is his 12th great-grandmother.

The Oscar-nominated prima learned of his household transportation to the pistillate who joined Virginia settler John Rolfe connected Tuesday’s occurrence of the PBS genealogical past amusement “Finding Your Roots.”

Historian and big Henry Louis Gates Jr. confirmed the longstanding household rumor to beryllium fact, telling Norton: “You person a nonstop insubstantial trail, nary uncertainty astir it, transportation to your 12th great-grandmother and great-grandfather, John Rolfe and Pocahontas.”

According to Gates, the mates joined connected April 5, 1614 successful Jamestown, Virginia – astatine a clip erstwhile William Shakespeare was inactive alive. He added that documents revealed that Pocahontas died 3 years aboriginal successful Gravesend, England, portion Rolfe died astir March 1622.

“It conscionable makes you recognize what a tiny … portion of the full quality communicative you are,” Norton remarked pursuing the revelation.

Pocahontas welcomed English settlers to the current-day US successful the aboriginal 17th century. Legend holds that she saved the beingness of Captain John Smith, stopping his execution by laying her caput upon his.

The show, which traces the ancestral histories of celebrities, besides uncovered that Norton’s 3rd great-grandfather, John Winstead, owned a household of slaves including a 55-year-old man, a 37-year-old pistillate and 5 young girls, aged 4, 6, 8, 9 and 10.

Norton, 53, who said helium had researched his ain ancestry earlier his quality connected “Finding Your Roots,” expressed that that portion of past didn’t beryllium good with him.

Asked what it was similar to spot a census that confirmed his comparative was a enslaved owner, the “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” and “Fight Club” actor, said: “The abbreviated reply is these things are uncomfortable. And you should beryllium uncomfortable with them.”

“It’s not a judgement connected you successful your ain beingness but it’s a judgement connected the past of this state and it needs to beryllium acknowledged archetypal and foremost and past it needs to beryllium contended with.”

Norton went connected to accidental that helium personalized the details of the census and “when you work ‘slave aged eight,’ you conscionable privation to die.”

The archetypal occurrence of the show’s ninth play besides delved into “Pretty Woman” histrion Julia Roberts’ lineage.