Kimberly Alexis Bledel (born September 16, 1981) is an American
actress and
fashion model. She is best known for her role as
Rory Gilmore in the
television series Gilmore Girls.
Early life
Bledel was born in
Houston, Texas. Her mother, Nanette Dozier, is
Mexican, and her father is
Argentinian.
[Alexis Bledel Biography (1981-)]
She has a younger brother, as well as an adopted younger sister. Her first language is
Spanish, and she did not learn
English until she began school.
[www.dvdtown.com/news/a-chat-with-alexis-bledel/29] Bledel's mother encouraged her to try
community theater when she was a child to overcome her shyness.
She attended
St. Agnes Academy in Houston.
As a child, Bledel appeared in local productions of
Our Town and
The Wizard of Oz. She was scouted at a local
mall and given work as a
fashion model. She went to Page Parkes Center for Modeling and Acting and attended
NYU's
Tisch School of the Arts for one year.
[www.limelife.com/blog-entry/Alexis-Bledel-Is-An-IMG-Model/5772.html]
Career
Bledel made her TV debut on
The WB series
Gilmore Girls in 2000. She portrayed
Rory Gilmore, the daughter of single mother
Lorelai Gilmore. Initially, Rory was a high school student living with her mother, but later moved on to college at
Yale University, where she, among other things, worked as the editor of the
Yale Daily News. She made her film debut in
Tuck Everlasting, released in 2002, though she had worked as an extra in the 1998 film
Rushmore.
[www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1494805/12132004/story.jhtml]
She appeared as the main character in the
music video for
Less Than Jake's "She's Gonna Break Soon", lead single from their 2003 album
Anthem. The single charted at number 39 on the UK charts. In 2005, she starred in
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants based on the book by
Ann Brashares. She played
Lena Kaligaris, an artist on a journey with her three best friends, linked over the summer by a pair of "magical" jeans.
In 2005, Bledel portrayed Becky, a
prostitute, in the movie
Sin City. "She's a very professional prostitute. She carries a gun and she kicks ass," said Bledel of Becky.
is shot almost entirely in
black-and-white, with splashes of color here and there, such as a red dress, blood or an entirely yellow character named
That Yellow Bastard. In Becky's case, it was her eyes that kept their color.
In 2006, Bledel starred in
I'm Reed Fish as Reed Fish's fiance. Bledel reprised her role of
Lena Kaligaris from
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants in
the film's sequel, released in August 2008. Bledel next starred in
Post Grad, which opened on August 21, 2009, alongside
Jane Lynch,
Michael Keaton, and
Carol Burnett.
In May 2009, Bledel returned to the modeling world, signing a contract with the modeling division of
IMG.
[www.limelife.com/blog-entry/Alexis-Bledel-Is-An-IMG-Model/5772.html]
Future work
She has recently been cast in a new movie entitled
The Letters, which is anticipated to be released in 2010.
The Letters is a drama / thriller film by director Todd Fjelsted and is currently in pre-production. Bledel is set to star opposite
Scott Porter in the film
The Good Guy, which premiered at
Tribeca Film Festival April 26, 2009. In this, Porter plays a Wall Street businessman whose life begins to fall apart when he helps out a new salesman. Bledel will play Beth, Porter's girlfriend.
Anna Chlumsky of
My Girl will play her friend.
[[1].] She was also a guest star on the
two-hour series finale of
ER, playing new intern Dr. Julia Wise.
[www.gilmoregirlsnews.com/2009/03/01/alexis-bledel-on-er-finale/]
Personal life
Bledel enjoys reading, hiking, taking
photographs and spending time with her family and friends. She also likes to play the piano. Between scenes on
Gilmore Girls, she headed to her trailer to play her keyboard. She also works with
First Book, a nonprofit organization, which gives books to the poor. After drinking so much
coffee due to her character Rory's strong appreciation for it on the first season of
Gilmore Girls, she became sick of it. When Rory "drinks coffee," Bledel is drinking
tea or
Coca-Cola instead.
She dated her
Gilmore Girls co-star
Milo Ventimiglia for three and a half years, beginning around December 2002, before separating sometime before July 2006.
During an April 25, 2006 appearance on
Late Night With Conan O'Brien, Bledel revealed that she loves traveling to Europe, and that she has already been to the
Tuscany region of
Italy. In that same appearance, she also stated that she likes all types of foods, from gourmet cuisine to fast food specialties.
In an appearance on
Late Show with David Letterman, she revealed that she plays
soccer recreationally, on a team called "The Hustlers".
Filmography
Awards and other recognition
Nominations
Awards
- 2001: Young Artist Award Best Performance in a TV Drama Series: Leading Young Actress. Gilmore Girls.
- 2002: Family Television Award for Actress for Gilmore Girls.
- 2005: Teen Choice Award for Choice It Girl.
- 2005: Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actress Comedy for Gilmore Girls.
- 2006: Teen Choice Award for Choice TV Actress Comedy for Gilmore Girls.
In 2002, Bledel was voted one of
Teen Peoples "25 Hottest Stars Under 25". She was ranked #87 on the Maxim Hot 100 Women of 2005.
