Elizabeth Hurley Biography:

Hurley, who was born in Hampshire, England, on June 10, 1965, originally wanted to be a dancer. Her interest in dancing soon gave way to acting pursuits, and following studies in dance and theatre at the London Studio Centre, she began going on casting calls. The aspiring actress found work in a number of forgettable films and TV miniseries, and it was while working on a film set that she met fellow actor Hugh Grant.

Considered to be one of the world's most famous arm ornaments, model and sometimes-actress Elizabeth Hurley first became the topic of gossip sheets when she appeared on the arm of boyfriend Hugh Grant at the premiere for his Four Weddings and a Funeral in 1994. Scantily clad in a Versace gown held up by safety pins, audacity, and little else, Hurley was soon attracting as much press coverage as Grant, and a career as one of the most photographed women of the 1990s was born.

Although she first became recognizable due to activities associated with Grant's on screen work, it was her boyfriend's dubious off screen exploits that really put Hurley in the spotlight. Thanks to Grant's notorious dalliance with a prostitute by the name of Divine Brown, Hurley was thrust into the public eye with little room to hide. Further complicating the situation was her work as the spokesmodel for Estee Lauder at the time, a position that both heightened her fame and compounded the problems associated with Grant's infamous behavior.

After the ruckus surrounding the Brown scandal died down, Hurley began earning more recognition for her work in Hollywood, both as a producer (she and Grant founded the production company Simian Films in 1994) and an actress. Perhaps her most famous role to date has been as Vanessa Kensington, sidekick and eventual paramour of Mike Myers' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997). She reprised the role for the film's 1999 sequel, although her character was killed off only minutes into the movie. Hurley has also appeared in such films as Permanent Midnight (1998), in which she played the wife of a heroin addict; and EdTV (1999), which featured her as a model who provides heady temptation for the film's titular protagonist (Matthew McConaughey).

In 2001 Elizabeth’s private life was again thrown into the spotlight when she announced her pregnancy, her then boyfriend, Stephen Bing, immediately released a statement saying he was not in an exclusive relationship with Hurley and was not sure he was the father. Hurley was devastated and outraged but remained composure as Bing was pummeled in the press. Her ex-beau of 13 years, Hugh Grant, comforted Hurley through this difficult time and was said to be present at the child's birth. A month after the birth, a DNA test proved Bing was in fact the father. Bing stated that he was "pleased" with the results and would be involved in the child's upbringing.

In 2000 she starred as the sexy temptress in the remake of Bedazzled with Brendan Frasier. In early 2002 she appeared in the disappointing comedy Serving Sara with Mathew Perry. Also this year The Weight of Water is due to be released, Elizabeth co-stars with Sean Penn in this film, that was shot in 2000 but not released.