Olivia Wilde

Best known for her lusty portrayal of the stunningly sexy and bisexual Alex Kelly on the Fox teen drama, “The O.C.” (Fox, 2003- ), starlet Olivia Wilde broadened her status as one of the decade’s most promising new actors by appearing in a slew of feature films in 2006. Born Olivia Jane Cockburn on March 10, 1984 in New York City, NY, the future actress was raised in Washington D.C. by journalist parents – National Geographic reporter/author Andrew Cockburn and “60 Minutes” (CBS, 1968- ) producer Leslie Cockburn. In fact, her entire family was steeped in journalism – her sister Chloe Cockburn was a writer, her grandfather was James Helvick (aka Claud Cockburn) and her two uncles Alexander and Patrick Cockburn were also journalists. Cockburn graduated from Philips Academy in Andover, MA, where she studied acting and starred in, directed and produced over two dozen school productions. During her summers, she traveled abroad, including Ireland, where she studied drama at the renowned Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin. She was a rebellious teen and acted out by getting tattoos and piercings, dating older guys, and at one time, even shaving her head – hence “Wilde” as her stage name. After graduating, Wilde moved to LA where, after spending a month on the set of the film “The Girl Next Door” (2004), starring Elisha Cuthbert (of “24” fame), her knock-out good looks and talent landed her a small role in the film. Before the movie was released, Wilde was cast as Jewel Goldman, the female lead in “Skin” (Fox, 2003), a Romeo and Juliet update set in the wild world of porn. Unfortunately for Wilde (and viewers), the much publicized drama series ended up being a flop and was yanked from the schedule after only three out of eight completed episodes were aired. After her show was canceled, Wilde eloped in the back of a LAFCO (Los Angeles Filmmaker's Cooperative) bus with photographer and documentary director Tao Ruspoli, who just happened to be an Italian prince. Upon returning to LA, she was one of the key models in Abercrombie & Fitch’s “Rising Stars” campaign in the summer of 2004. However, it was Wilde’s next television role that really put her on the map. She breathed dynamic and provocative life into the temptress Alex Kelly on “The O.C.” during the 2004-05 season, stealing the show and attracting many male fans. In 2005, Wilde was ranked #61 on the Maxim magazine’s Hot 100 list. As she continued her work on the popular Fox show, she began to land roles in feature films, including Nicholas Kazan’s hotly anticipated, hyper-violent and Sundance Film Festival favorite “Alpha Dog” (2006), co-starring pop singer Justin Timberlake, Sharon Stone and fellow “The Girl Next Door” alum Emile Hirsch; the adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel “Running with Scissors” (2006), co-starring Annette Bening, Evan Rachel Wood, and Alec Baldwin; and “Bickford Shmeckler’s Cool Ideas” (2006). Wilde was also cast in the pilot of Bobby Moreseco’s (co-screenwriter and co-producer of 2005’s “Crash”), TV drama “The Black Donnellys” (NBC, 2006). In addition to her acting work, Wilde was a team member of the Los Angeles Filmmaker's Cooperative, serving as the editor in chief of LAFCO NEWS and as a chair member of the education department. She served as project manager for the LAFCO production of The Lysistrata Project, the first-ever world-wide theatrical event for peace held in hundreds of cities worldwide.