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Monica Bellucci

Monica Anna Maria Bellucci (born September 30, 1964) is an Italian actress and former fashion model.

Personal life
Bellucci was born in Città di Castello, Umbria, Italy, to Luigi Bellucci, who owned a trucking company, and Maria Gustinelli, a painter. Bellucci started modelling at 16, when she was attending to the Liceo Classico. Initially pursuing a career as a lawyer, by modeling Bellucci helped finance her tuition while at the University of Perugia, but the glamorous lifestyle tempted Monica away from her law studies. She speaks Italian, French, and English fluently and has acted in each of these languages, as well as Aramaic.

Bellucci is married to fellow actor Vincent Cassel, with whom she has appeared in several films and had a daughter, named Deva (born September 12, 2004). In 2004, while pregnant with her daughter, Bellucci posed nude for the Italian Vanity Fair Magazine in protest against Italian laws that allow only married couples to use in-vitro fertilization and that prevent the use of donor sperm.

Height
5' 7" (1.70 m)

Career Monica Bellucci

Modeling
In 1988, Bellucci moved to one of Europe's fashion centers, Milan, where she signed with Elite Model Management. By 1989, she was becoming prominent as a fashion model in Paris and across the Atlantic, in New York City. She posed for Dolce & Gabbana and French ELLE, among others. In that year, Bellucci made the transition to acting and began taking acting classes. The February 2001 Esquire Magazine's feature on Desire featured Ms. Bellucci on the cover and in an article on the five senses. In 2003, she was featured in Maxim. In 2004, she topped AskMen's 100 Most Beautiful Women in the World annual list. Bellucci's modelling career is managed by Elite+ in NYC. She is considered an Italian sex symbol.

Entertainment
Bellucci's film career began in the early 1990s. In 1992 she made her first appearance in a major English-language film as one of Dracula's brides in Bram Stoker's Dracula. She became known and popular with English-speaking audiences following her lead role in the acclaimed Italian film Malèna, as well as through the portrayal of a rape victim in the highly controversial Irréversible, though is perhaps best known for her role as Persephone in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions followed by her portrayal of Mary Magdelene in The Passion of the Christ.

After her work in The Passion of the Christ, Bellucci was assumed by many fans to be Roman Catholic. However in a documentary about the film, The Big Question, she stated: "I am an Agnostic, even though I respect and am interested in all religions. If there's something I believe in, it's a mysterious energy; the one that fills the oceans during tides, the one that unites nature and beings."

In 2003, Belucci starred in Tears of the Sun as a Roman Catholic doctor and in the 2005 fantasy film The Brothers Grimm as a beautiful evil queen. Her latest films are The Stone Council, directed by the Frenchman Guillaume Nicloux (2006) and Manuale d'amore 2 (2007) where she portrays a physiotherapist in the first segment of the film who is object of the desire of her patient. She was supposed to be seen portraying Indian politician Sonia Gandhi in the biopic Sonia, originally planned for release in 2007 but now shelved. September 2007 saw the release of Shoot 'Em Up, where she plays a prostitute opposite Clive Owen. She is currently filming Le Deuxième souffle, an Alain Corneau thriller with Daniel Auteuil, Michel Blanc and former football player Eric Cantona.

Bellucci also voiced as Kaileena in the video game Prince of Persia: Warrior Within.

Monica Bellucci - Why Is She Famous?

After roles in a list of Italian and French films like Malena (2000) and Irreversible (2002), Monica Bellucci struck gold as Persephone in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. She's sustained her presence stateside with roles in The Passion of the Christ (2004), Shoot 'Em Up (2007), and The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009). 2010 is actually Bellucci’s most prominent year to date in English-language films, with The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, opposite Nicolas Cage and Jay Baruchel; The Whistleblower, opposite Rachel Weisz; and Joel Schumacher’s

Monica Anna Maria Bellucci was born on September 30, 1964, in Perugia, Italy. The daughter of a painter and a businessman, Monica grew up with dreams of becoming a lawyer -- though it eventually became clear that her calling lay in the arts. After kicking off her modeling career at the age of 16, Monica Bellucci remained determined to pursue a career in law, and she even used her modeling money to pay for her post-secondary education. Yet there came a point at which Monica Bellucci was powerless to resist the allure of the fashion industry, and she devoted herself full-time to modeling.

In 1988, Monica Bellucci signed with the prestigious Elite Model Management agency and moved to Milan where she began establishing herself as one of the most naturally talented and flat-out gorgeous up-and-coming models on the scene. Though her burgeoning fame ensured that she had little downtime, Monica Bellucci nevertheless decided to give acting a try and she made her debut in a 1990 made-for-Italian-TV movie. She spent the next several years taking on small roles in obscure films, and Monica Bellucci found herself developing a real affinity for the world of performance.

monica bellucci in bram stoker’s dracula
Monica Bellucci’s hard work and perseverance paid off in 1992 when she successfully auditioned for a part in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, in which she starred opposite such luminaries as Winona Ryder, Gary Oldman and Anthony Hopkins as one of Dracula’s three brides. Monica Bellucci worked steadily throughout much of the 1990s, appearing in a whole host of critically acclaimed foreign movies (including ‘96’s L’Appartement, which was eventually remade as the Josh Hartnett/Diane Kruger flick Wicker Park).

monica bellucci in malena
Though Monica Bellucci had already established herself as a bona fide star in Europe, she remained virtually unknown in North America -- something that changed dramatically with the emergence of the new century. She kicked off 2000 with a star-making performance in the drama Malena, which went on to receive Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations. It was also around that time that Monica Bellucci married fellow actor and frequent costar Vincent Cassel, and in 2004, she gave birth to her daughter Deva.

monica bellucci in the matrix reloaded
After well-regarded turns in 2001’s Brotherhood of the Wolf and 2002’s Irreversible, Monica Bellucci reteamed with her Dracula costar Keanu Reeves with a stint as Persephone in 2003’s The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. The following year proved to be even more fruitful for Monica Bellucci, as she appeared opposite Jim Caviezel in Mel Gibson’s extremely controversial The Passion of the Christ. Monica Bellucci took on a role alongside Clive Owen and Paul Giamatti in the ultra-violent and purposefully ridiculous action flick Shoot ‘Em Up.

monica bellucci is named no. 18 in 2009 top 99
Though Monica Bellucci is in her mid-40s, there’s little doubt that she remains one of the sexiest and alluring actresses working today. Her raw sensuality is unparalleled, and it’s certainly not difficult to see why she continues to outshine her younger and far more famous contemporaries.

In 2008, Monica Bellucci proved that she was still brimming with sex appeal as she ranked at No. 22 on AskMen.com's Top 99 list of Most Desirable Women and then moved up in the ranks in 2009, coming in at No. 18.

2010 is Bellucci’s most prominent year to date in English-language films, with The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, opposite Nicolas Cage and Jay Baruchel; The Whistleblower, opposite Rachel Weisz; and Joel Schumacher’s 1:30 Train. Did we mention that she’s 45?

Trivia:

She appeared in a black & white TV commercial for Dolce & Gabbana. The director was Giuseppe Tornatore, who also directed her in the movie Malèna (2000).

Measurements: 35C-24-35 (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine.)

Fluent in Italian, English, French and Spanish.

Daughter-in-law of Jean-Pierre Cassel.

Made a nude calendar for the Italian magazine Max in 1998 and another one for the Italian magazine GQ in 2000.

Was originally cast as Mina Harker in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003) but had to drop out due to a scheduling conflict. The part then went to Peta Wilson.

Wears a size 10 shoe.

Studied jurisprudence for a short time.

Daughter, Deva Cassel (b. 12 September 2004 in Rome, Italy).

She was elected the most beautiful woman in the world by French viewers on a TV show "La Plus belle femme du monde" on 8th November 2004.

One of the world's top fashion models.

Favourite poem is "A Silvia" by Giacomo Leopardi.

Has her look-alike puppet in the French show "Les guignols de l'info" (1988).

She ranked #6 in Maxim's '50 Sexiest Women' (1999).

She ranked #9 in Maxim's '100 Sexiest Women' (2002).

She ranked #1 in Askmen's 'Most Desirable Woman' (2002).

Italian citizen.

Shares birthday with Marion Cotillard, Deborah Kerr and Angie Dickinson.

Favorite movie is Una giornata particolare (1977) by Ettore Scola.

Her role as Chantal in "Under suspicion" was held by Romy Schneider in the original film:"Garde à vue".

Owns an apartment in London.

Doesn't always live with her husband Vincent Cassel, for avoiding routine the two live in separate apartments; she lives most of the time in London and he lives in Paris.

Bellucci is a typical surname from center Italy, it comes from the Latin word "Bellutus", and has the same root as surnames like Belluto, Belluti, Belluzzo, Belluccio, or the aristocratic surname of Belluzzi.

She speaks to her daughter Deva Cassel in Italian.

She has said in an interview that Sophia Loren and Claudia Cardinale have inspired her acting career.

Ranked as #89 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2005" special supplement. (2005)

Member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 2006

Supports the Italian football team.

Has a wax statue in the Grevin Museum in Paris.

Her parents are Pasquale Bellucci (the owner of a trucking company) and Brunella (a painter).

She's an only child.

Good friends with Guillaume Canet.

Ranked #5 on E! Entertainment Networks list of "101 Sexiest Celebrity Bodies" list of 2006.

Attended University of Perugia.

Mother is painter Maria Gustinelli.

Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#35). [2007].

Her best friend is Ilaria D'Amico.

Personal Quotes:

My body is so important to me... my face, my arms, my legs, my hands, my eyes, everything. I use everything I have.

When I eat with my friends, it is a moment of real pleasure, when I really enjoy my life.

I come from a Catholic religion, but I'm not Catholic.

"I didn't have familiarity with children. I'm learning day after day, with her. And what impress me the most is that she, Deva, is an individual person. But in miniature, she seems to be a special effect." - talking about her daughter Deva.

After love, the man sleeps, while the woman reflects.

Beauty becomes alive and interesting when it's habited.

Being an actress is the sublimation of feminity.

The human intelligence has progressed at the technological level; not a the level of feelings.

It is a handicap if you're stupid, but not if you are intelligent and know how to use your beauty.

I feel fine and comfortable with myself, but not because I'm beautiful. I know many beautiful people and their lives are just so terrible. They feel so uncomfortable with themselves. Being comfortable is not about what you look like, but how you feel. I'm a lucky person because I've been loved a lot. I have a great family.

"Acting is not words. Holly Hunter didn't speak in The Piano (1993) and she won an Oscar".

I live in Paris but I feel I am a daughter of Europe.

When I'll be old, I'd rather watch my children than my films.

My career, at the moment, is very exciting, but love comes first because it balances me.

I listen to "young" music, the one from my age. I adore soul, rap and funky.

"Vincent was so incredible, so sweet. When we went to Cannes for the film, you know the moment when I come out from the tunnel and we see me for the first time completely with blood all over, he was crying. I said, 'Vincent, come on. It's just a movie. We know it's not real." (on her husband's support when Irréversible (2002) was released).

As a European, I need to stay in Europe and I make Italian movies, French movies. Then to come to America is something interesting for me.

"I think this is something that touches every country - America, Italy, France, England, all over. You will see all these people, they don't know how to sing, they don't know how to dance, and still they become famous. You know, just celebrities. And I think this is a very dangerous process." (about real TV).

This is what I like about America, because you have very big budget movie, and also independent movies, so you have many different choices. But I know that I'm European... Being European, it is not easy to find the right project, because you may look different, you sound different, and you have to find the right character.

As a woman I am so curious about prostitutes because of the idea that they know men better than you. Also, it's such a strange way to live. But at the same time there are prostitutes who just want to be prostitutes, and this is this woman, nobody pushed her to do it. She's a prostitute because she wants to be a prostitute. It's her philosophy of life.

"I'm not scared by nudity, because for me, nothing is more beautiful than a body. You can have such an amazing emotion from a body. In Irréversible (2002), I treated my body like it was an object and it's great when you can have this kind of relation with your body, it's a part of your job, an object you can work with. When you can have this kind of freedom it's the moment where you can give your best as an actress".

In 10 years I've done so many things. In the beginning I didn't know if I was still a model, if I was an actress. I knew I wanted to be an actress, but it was so difficult to be believed. Now things are going better and better and the proposals I have are much more interesting than five years ago. It's like getting older is getting better.

Maybe the reason I work a lot is because each director thinks that I'll be better with him. Maybe the moment where I'll be completely accepted I won't work any more.

[Talking about why she will not move to Hollywood to further her film career]: "I could never live there. They are obsessed with youth and beauty even more than us. There is this thing in America where actresses reach 40 and go mad. The film industry wants all these young people. They also like a different sort of woman (to me). I will never be skinny. I also had a child a year ago, and I have been lazy. I love to eat. Who cares? I am natural."

I am at a stage in my life where if I don't go out, I don't feel I'm missing something. I get bored surrounded by people smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol. And I'm not so interested now in going to premieres or being photographed on the red carpet. I want to be with my daughter.

Contact Monica Bellucci:

Creative Artists Agency
9830 Wilshire Boulevard
Beverly Hills, California 90212-1825
USA