Apparently so, according to this Q&A article from salon.com:

Salon: Did you cast Natalie Portman because, like everyone else in the known universe, you're in love with her and want to have a million of her babies, or did you cast her because she auditioned?

ZB: No, Natalie Portman doesn't audition for movies anymore. I just think she's a magnificent actress and has something really unique. I don't think there's anybody quite like her. And I feel like, as a kid, in "The Professional" and "Beautiful Girls," she showed something that was so extraordinary, and I haven't really had a chance to see her do that as a young woman, and I was dying to see her [do that] because I knew she could. So she was the first choice.
http://dir.salon.com/story/ent/indie/2004/07/27/braff/print.html

I really need to watch this again. It's been way too long!

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