Léon: The Professional is a 1994 English-language French action-thriller film written and directed by Luc Besson. It stars Jean Reno and Gary Oldman, and features the film debut of Natalie Portman. The plot centers on Léon (Reno), an Italian-American professional hitman who reluctantly takes in twelve-year-old Mathilda Lando (Portman) after her family is murdered by corrupt Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent Norman Stansfield (Oldman). Léon and Mathilda form an unusual relationship as she becomes his protégée and learns the hitman's trade. The film was released in France by Gaumont through Gaumont Buena Vista International on 14 September 1994 and received mostly positive reviews from critics.