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 | Biography |  |
Born June 10, 1965, in Hampshire, England, Elizabeth Hurley is the daughter of an army officer and an elementary schoolteacher mother. While growing up in Basingtoke, England, Hurley dreamt of becoming a dancer, which prompted her to attend a boarding school specializing in ballet at the age of twelve. Her attendance at the boarding school was short-lived, and Hurley then went through a different phase; the English punk stage. Although it must be hard to imagine the now so glamorous Hurley with pink hair and a nose ring, she was a victim of punk fashion of the early 80s, since this was the thing to do at that time and place.
At age 21, Hurley got her first film role in the 1987 film Aria, after having attended the London Studio Centre on scholarship. Hurley's role in the film Remando al viento that same year could be considered a crucial one, as it also starred her future boyfriend Hugh Grant. One year later, Hurley received critical acclaim for her role as Christabel Bielenberg in the BBC miniseries entitled Christabel.
Hurley became more noticed in the United States for her role in the 1992 action film Passenger 57 starring Wesley Snipes. Although this was a Hollywood role, she was still having difficulty receiving quality Hollywood roles, and consequently returned to England.
Whoever said that clothes are not important must not know about Elizabrth Hurley's claim to fame. Apparently, Versace did Hurley a favor by giving Hurley an unsold dress to wear to the 1994 London premiere of Hugh Grant's film Four Weddings and a Funeral. The low-cut risqué dress held together by safety pins became Hurley's ticket to stardom, as she made heads turn at the premiere.
More attention followed when Estée Lauder signed Hurley to be the face of Estée Lauder cosmetics. And who can forget the Hugh Grant scandal (what was he thinking?) when he was arrested for his one night tryst with prostitute Divine Brown. Contrary to public belief, Hurley and Grant remained a couple, and together founded the production company Simian Films in 1994. Its first production was the film Extreme Measures, a 1996 thriller starring Hugh, Gene Hackman and Sarah Jessica Parker.
If by this time someone had still not heard of Elizabeth Hurley, 1997's Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, the little movie that became a smash hit, was sure to get her the recognition she deserved. With her comedic turn as agent Vanessa Kensington alongside Austin Powers, played by Mike Myers, Hurley was now seeing the movie scripts rolling in. Several movie roles followed the huge success of the film, including an important role in Dangerous Ground (1997), as well as roles in Permanent Midnight (1998), My Favorite Martian, Ed TV, and a cameo appearance in the sequel to Austin Powers, Austin Powers 2: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999). That same year Hurley worked as producer of Mickey Blue Eyes which starred her boyfriend Hugh Grant, and marked the second film for Simian Films.
Still modeling for Estée Lauder, Hurley is currently working on The Weight of Water and has completed her work on Bedazzled.
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