|
Elizabeth Hurley was born to an army
officer father and elementary schoolteacher mother on June 10, 1965 in
Hampshire, England, United Kingdom. As a youngster growing up in the
suburb of Basingstoke, England, Elizabeth Hurley's dream was to become a
dancer, so she went to a boarding school for ballet instruction when she
was twelve years old. However, she soon returned home. Around the age of
16, Hurley became caught up in the English punk-rock scene and even wore
pink hair and a nose ring. Hurley says, "When I was sixteen -- this
was about 1981, '82 -- the thing to be in Basingstoke, the suburb I grew
up in, was punk. Which, as any hip person will tell you, was way past
its sell-by date. But the thing to do was to have a pierced nose and
spiky hair. And I loved the music. Still do." Despite her punkiness,
Hurley won a college scholarship to the London Studio Centre, which
taught courses for dance and theater.
Hurley parlayed her training at the London Studio Centre into theatre
work and made her screen debut at the age of 21 in Bruce Beresford's
movie Aria in 1987. Several roles in television and the film Remando al
viento (1987) with young actor (and future beau) Hugh Grant soon
followed. Continuing her streak of success, Hurley drew accolades for
her portrayal of the title role of Christabel Bielenberg in the BBC
mini-serial Christabel in 1988. In 1992, Hurley made her Hollywood film
debut as a terrorist in the Wesley Snipes action movie Passenger 57.
Disappointed, however, at the lack of meaty roles she received after two
years of auditioning, Hurley returned to England.
Unbeknownst to Hurley, her fame was soon to skyrocket for several
reasons. Reason one was the London premiere of Four Weddings and a
Funeral, where Hurley wowed the crowd with her black Versace dress that
was held together by nothing more than safety pins. Hurley says,
"That dress was a favor from Versace because I couldn't afford to
buy one. His people told me they didn't have any evening wear, but there
was one item left in their press office. So I tried it on and that was
it."
Reason two for Hurley's fame really taking off was when Hugh Grant was
found with Divine Brown. Since she also was the model representing top
cosmetics house Estée Lauder at the time, Hurley was thrust into the
public eye. Despite the Brown incident, Hurley and Grant founded Simian
Films in partnership with Castle Rock Entertainment in 1994. Hurley, the
Head of Development, discovered the script and was producer of the film
Extreme Measures (1996). Extreme Measures, a medical mystery thriller,
is Simian Films' first production and a departure from what Hurley and
Grant had planned on doing in their first production comedy. Hurley
found out about Extreme Measures after Simian Films was established,
during her first meeting with executives from Castle Rock Entertainment.
Elizabeth liked the story and read Tony Gilroy's script eagerly. "I
found the moral intricacies of the script so complex that even now,
nearly two years after reading the first draft, I still can't decide
exactly where I stand on the ethical issues," said Hurley during an
interview.
Since producing Extreme Measures, the well-rounded Hurley has continued
to be very busy with a plethora of projects. The film Austin Powers:
International Man of Mystery (1997) was probably the biggest and and
most successful of those projects. In addition to portraying the "shagadelic"
Vanessa Kensington in Austin Powers, Hurley still models for Estée
Lauder; has been working on producing Simian Film's second film, Mickey
Blue-Eyes; appeared in the film Dangerous Ground (1997); and has been
filming her characters in Permanent Midnight and in Ed TV and My
Favorite Martian.
|
Elizabeth Hurley
Occupation
- Actress
Date of Birth
- 10 June 1965
Birth Place
- Hampshire, England, UK
Mailing
Address
Elizabeth Hurley
3 Cromwell Pl.
London SW 2JE
United Kingdom
|
celebrity pictures then
celebrity
photos.