Olivia Wilde Biography

Olivia Jane Cockburn
* Born: Olivia Jane Cockburn on March 10, 1984 in New York, New York
* Job Titles: Actress

Mini Biography
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. Cockburn graduated from Philips Academy in Andover, MA, where she studied acting and starred in, directed and produced over two dozen school productions. 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. 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.

Family
* Brother-in-law: Bartolomeo Ruspoli.
* Father: Andrew Cockburn.
* Father-in-law: Dado Ruspoli.
* Grandfather: James Helvick. (aka Claud Cockburn)
* Mother: Leslie Cockburn. “60 Minutes” (CBS) producer
* Mother-in-law: Debra Berger.
* Sister: Chloe Cockburn.
* Uncle: Alexander Cockburn.
* Uncle: Patrick Cockburn.

Significant Others
* Husband: Tao Ruspoli. Italian American; married June 2003; founder of The Los Angeles Filmmakers Cooperative (LAFCO)

Education
* Philips Academy, Andover, MA, acting

Milestones
* 2003 Made TV series debut as the female lead on the short lived Fox series, “Skin”
* 2004 Played bisexual Alex Kelly on the FOX teen drama, “The O.C.”
* 2004 Feature debut in a small role in the teen comedy, “The Girl Next Door”
* 2006 Cast in the feature adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel “Running with Scissors”
* 2006 Featured in the adult-themed relationship drama Conversations With Other Women
* 2007 Cast as childhood friend, Jennifer Reilly in the short-lived NBC drama The Black Donnellys
* 2007 Co-starred in the Nick Cassavetes directed Alpha Dog an independent feature about a real-life drug dealer
* 2007 Joined the cast of the FOX medical drama House as Remy Hadley/ Thirteen