Olga Kurylenko

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Date of Birth
14 November 1979, Berdyansk, Zaporozhye Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, USSR [now Zaporizhia Oblast, Ukraine]

Birth Name
Olga Konstantinovna Kurylenko

Height
5' 9¼" (1.76 m)

Mini Biography
Olga Kurylenko, a Ukrainian-born actress and model who grew up in poverty sharing a Soviet flat with her aunt, uncle, grandparents and cousin, is now starring as Bond girl opposite Daniel Craig.

She was born Olga Konstantinovna Kurylenko on November 14, 1979, in Berdyansk, Ukraine, Soviet Union. Her mother, Marina Alyabysheva, divorced her father, Konstantin Kurylenko, soon after her birth. After the divorce, her mother struggled to survive as an art teacher. Young Olga Kurylenko was brought up by her mother and her grandmother, Raisa. During her youth, Olga had a humbling experience of living in poverty; she had no choice but to wear rags and had to darn the holes on her sweater. During the years in Ukraine she studied art, languages, did 7 years of musical school studying piano and went to a ballet studio until 13.

At age 13, Olga and her mother made a trip to Moscow. There she was scouted by an agent who approached her at a subway station and offered a job as a model. Initially, Olga's mother was suspicious, but eventually Olga made a good career choice and took training as a model in Moscow. By age 16, she was ready for the next step. She moved to Paris, learned French in six months, and was signed by the Madison agency. At age 18, Olga appeared on the cover of Glamour, then she graced magazine covers of Elle, Madame Figaro, Marie Claire, and Vogue, and also became the face of Lejaby lingerie, Bebe clothing, Clarins and Helena Rubinstein cosmetic companies.

In 1999, Olga married her friend, French photographer Cedric Van Mol and divorced him three and a half years later. One day Olga presented herself to an acting agency. Eventually, she swapped the catwalk for celluloid, and her acting career took off. In 2005 she made her film debut as Iris, a sensual beauty in L'annulaire (2005) by director Diane Bertrand.

Olga's cinematic roles have been notably steamy, and her natural beauty and explicit nudity attracted the attention of the male audiences. She appeared opposite Elijah Wood in Paris, je t'aime (2006) and as Sofia in Le serpent (2006), then co-starred as Russian beauty Nika Boronina opposite Timothy Olyphant in Hitman (2007/I). She also appears as Mina Harud in the indy surveillance-thriller "Tyranny" (2008) and is billed as Camille, the Bond girl in Quantum of Solace (2008), a sequel to Casino Royale (2006).


Spouse
Damian Gabrielle (2006 - 2007) (divorced)
Cedric van Mol (2000 - 2004) (divorced)

Trivia
Trained as a model in Moscow.

Plays the piano.

Served on the jury at the 2007 Brussels International Film Festival.

Loves to see old movies.

Speaks English and French fluently.

Originally believed she had failed to impress director and producers of Quantum of Solace (2008) after her audition.

Was told she had got the part of Camille in Quantum of Solace (2008) on Christmas Eve 2007.

Trained as a ballerina in the Soviet Union (Ukrainian SSR) (from age 8 to 12) and Independent Ukraine (from age 12 to 13).

Quantum of Solace (2008) in which she starred, opened worldwide on her 29th birthday (November 14).