20 Models Who Became Famous Actresses

Before playing her character Izzie Stevens, an ex-model turned doctor on the hit show “Grey’s Anatomy”, actress Katherine Heigl had started a modeling career in real life.

At the age of ten, she was already earning $75 an hour working with Wilhelmina Models, posing on magazine covers and for Sears and Lord & Taylor catalogs. She even starred in a television commercial for Cheerios cereal and also posed during photo shoots for Macy’s, JC Penney and Scoop.

At sixteen, Katherine Heigl was also on the cover of the popular youth-oriented magazine Seventeen; she had already entered Hollywood long before she starred in “Grey’s Anatomy,” “27 Dresses” and “The Ugly Truth,” and became the well-known and popular actress she is today.

Uma Thurman started modeling at the age of 15, signing with Click Models and appearing in Glamour magazine. She also appeared on the cover of British Vogue twice.

At the age of 17, she made the transition to acting with her first film, Kiss Daddy Goodnight, a teen thriller.

Uma Thurman followed with films such as “Welcome to Gattaca”, her career took off, she then turned completely to the cinema and the Oscar-nominated actress could soon be seen in the erotic thriller “Nymphomaniac” by Lars von Trier.

She also played in famous productions such as “Kill Bill”, “Pulp Fiction” and “Batman & Robin”.

Sofia Vergara

Before becoming the popular actress known for her interpretation of the character of Gloria Delgado-Pritchett in the TV series “Modern Family”, a role for which she was cited four times at the Emmys Awards, Sofia Vergara first studied dental surgery, but also was a model.

She was spotted by a photographer at the age of 17, while she was on a beach in Colombia with her parents, Sofia Vergara then appeared for the first time in a Latin American ad for Pepsi, and she also shot a commercial for shampoo, which is how her acting career took off.

Sharon Stone

The charismatic actress Sharon Stone won the title of Miss Crawford County after deciding to leave school to start modeling.

She was then spotted by the Ford Models agency where she signed in 1977. As a model, she appeared in both television commercials and print ads for magazines.

Sharon Stone had several small roles like in “Total Recall”, but also the famous film “Casino” followed two years later by her sultry role in “Basic Instinct”, a role that will propel her to the rank of world star.

Hayden Pannetiere

The Golden Globe-nominated actress began modeling at the age of five months old and appeared in her first commercial at the age of 11 months, for Playskool toys. She made her first screen appearance in 1994 as Sarah Roberts in “One Life to Live” at the age of five.

Hayden Panettiere became known thanks to her interpretation of Claire Benett in the fantasy series “Heroes” (2006-2010, a role that earned her a few awards.) She also appeared on the small screen in the musical and dramatic television series the screen “Nashville” (2012-2018), the young actress will then appear in the fourth installment in the cult horror saga “Scream.”

Hayden Panettiere has become a full-fledged star in Hollywood.

Jennifer Lawrence

When she was a teenager, Jennifer Lawrence was discovered by a talent agent while on a family vacation at the beach.

At just 14 years old, the future actress left school and her home state of Kentucky to pursue her dream of becoming an actress. But she first went through a short career as a model.

She was quickly spotted by a recruitment agency in New York while shooting an ad for H&M. She later shot an ad campaign for Abercrombie & Fitch in 2006, however the images were never used by the brand.

Jennifer Lawrence began acting as a teenager, appearing in several television series and films such as “Silver Linings Playbook”, for which she won an Oscar, or “American Hustel”, before breaking through to the big screen in the famous saga “The Hunger Games”.

Angelina Jolie

As the daughter of Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight. It’s only natural that Angelina Jolie would follow in his footsteps and become an Oscar-winning actress in her own right. However, before becoming an iconic Hollywood actress, she first started modeling at the age of 14.

Angelina Jolie accepted contracts as a model with the support of her mother. But at 20, she chose to turn into actin and embrace that career path fully.

“I was told I had all these problems I needed to fix,” she told Vogue. “They told me to lose weight, and I was already thin. They actually put me in a room in a bathing suit and measured every part of me. I felt really bad.”

In 2000, the award-winning actress then won the Oscar for her role in “Girl, Interrupted.” This award was only the beginning of the promising career Angelina Jolie.

Leighton Meester

Long before the world knew her as the iconic Blair from the 2007 series “Gossip Girl,” Leighton Meester was already very comfortable in front of the cameras.

The star of the series “Gossip Girl” experienced hardships during her childhood as her mother was incarcerated at the time.

However, when she was ten years old, Leighton Meester and her family moved to New York,. That’s  when she signed a contract with Wilhelmina Models agency. The young girl modeled for Limited Too and Ralph Lauren, among other brands. And she even worked with the famous director Sofia Coppola.

She also appeared in advertising campaigns for Tamagotchi and Clearasil, and she also appeared on Juice Bar sprays.
She then made her debut as an actress, playing in “Law & Order” at the age of 14.

Brooke Shields

Brooke Shields, started early in acting and modeling. She was only 11 months old when she appeared in a commercial for Ivory Soap. She then moved into acting with her breakthrough role in “Pretty Baby” (1978).

Brooke Shields then signed to become a model at  Ford Models. She began modeling for Calvin Klein Jeans at only 14 years old, and became the youngest model ever to grace the cover of Vogue.

Very comfortable in front of the camera, the young Brooke made her first steps as an actress in the controversial film “La Petite” by director Louis Malle.

Brooke Shields then carved out a successful acting career with a starring role in “Blue Lagoon”. She went on to study at Princeton University, then returned to Hollywood to star in “Endless Love” and “Suddenly Susan”, “Army Wive” and “The Mid.

Kirsten Dunst

The actress started modeling at the age of three, including for Ford Models and Elite Model Management. One of her first photo shoots was for the cover of a book in the “Baby-Sitters Club” series. She also posed for a catalog alongside actress Lindsay Lohan when they were both young children.

Kristen Dust also appeared in Woody Allen’s “New York Stories” at the age of 6.

The young girl was already comfortable in front of the camera when she played in the famous movie “Interview With the Vampire”, alongside famous Hollywood actors Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. She was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress at the time, Kristen Dust was only twelve years old.

Amanda Seyfried

Before being a famous Hollywood actress, Amanda Seyfried was first a model.

The Pennsylvania native started modeling at the age of 11 and in addition to appearing on book covers, she has participated in advertising campaigns for brands such as Limited Too alongside another actress, Leighton Meester.

Amanda Seyfried has also appeared on the three covers of the Sweet Valley High book series by author Francine Pascal.

Cameron Diaz

At the age of 16, while still in high school, Cameron Diaz was noticed by a photographer and signed with the prestigious agency Elite Model Management. She then worked as a model for five years. The pretty blonde walked every Fashion Week catwalk at that time. She also made the cover of the American teen magazine Seventeen.

Then in 1994, she landed a role in “The Mask” alongside Jim Carrey, and her performance in the comedy, as well as her fresh face and bright smile immediately made her star.

Her career took off and the American is now one of the best paid actresses in the world.

Julia Roberts

When she first trie dto make it in Hollywood, Julia Roberts worked as a model in the 90’s.

Demi Moore

The famous actress dropped out of school at 16 years old. She then accepted modeling gigs while trying to make a name for herself in Hollywood. She was considered the highest paid actress in 1995.

Milla Jovovich

Before becoming a successful actress, Milla Jovovich was walking the runway for Marc Jacobs and Chanel.

Halle Berry

The African-American awtress was a beauty pageant winner. She won Miss Ohio 1986.

Elle Macpherson

Elle Macpherson was a supermodel and walking every runway before landing a role in Sirens in 1994.

Tyra Banks

She started her modelling career at the age of 15 going across the world for Fashion Week. By the 90’s, she appaered in many movies like “Life Size” and “Coyote Ugly”. She’s become a Tv personality on “America’s Next Top Model”.

20 Models Who Became Famous Actresses

Many celebrities first walked Fashion Week catwalks before walking the Oscars red carpet. It’s no secret that Hollywood is full of attractive people. Even though talen tis undeniable, it is still clear that a pretty physical appearance is a considerable and undeniable asset if you want to have a big break into the film industry.  From runways and photo shoots to the big screen, find out which celebrities began their careers as models only to make their way to the top.

FROM MODELS TO ACTRESSES

That’s why modeling seems to be a great springboard to success in the movie industry. Some celebrities have started their career by posing in front of the cameras for advertising campaigns and by parading on the catwalks of Fashion Week, they knew how to seize the opportunity and took advantage of their advantageous physique to turn to a career of acting.

Among the many models who tried to break into Hollywood, here are 20 celebrities who went into modeling before turning to acting. A transition they did well to make and led them straight to fame and international recognition.