Bijou Phillips

Biography:

Bijou Lilly Phillips (born April 1, 1980) is an American actress, fashion model, and singer. Some of her larger film roles include Bully, Havoc, Hostel: Part II, and Tart.

Early life

Phillips was born in Greenwich, Fairfield County, Connecticut, and is the daughter of John Phillips of The Mamas and the Papas and his then-wife Geneviève Waïte, a South African model, artist, and actress. The youngest of Phillips' children, she has one brother—Tamerlane—and three half-siblings—Mackenzie, Jeffrey, and Chynna. Her father got out of jail/rehab and took Bijou to upstate New York Bolton Landing, through a custody battle in which her parents were found unfit and Bijou was placed in foster care with a family in Bolton Landing. She lived there on and off doing extended visits with her parents, who had both gotten houses upstate. Her father won custody when she was in third grade and she moved with him to Long Island; he had a liver transplant two years later.

At 13, she moved to NYC to be a model. She appeared on the cover of Interview Magazine, Italian Vogue twice, and did a number of ads for Calvin Klein. At 17, she got a record deal and began working on her album 'I'd Rather Eat Glass' produced by Talking Heads' Jerry Harrison. She was later cast in Black and White by director James Toback and garnered glowing praise from critics for her performance. Later, director Larry Clark cast her in Bully and she won a role opposite Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger in The Door in the Floor, a film adaptation of John Irving's novel A Widow For One Year. She starred opposite Anne Hathaway in Stephen Gaghan's Havoc, directed by Barbara Kopple. Her portrayal of 'Lorna Doom' opposite Shane West in What We Do Is Secret, about late '70s seminal punk band "The Germs" also earned her glowing reviews. She can be seen in the film Choke, with Angelica Huston and Sam Rockwell. Other films include the comedy Made for Each Other with Chris Masterson. She was also cast as Nancy Spungeon in a biopic about the Chelsea Hotel directed By Abel Ferrara.

Personal relationships

In 2004, Phillips began dating That '70s Show actor Danny Masterson; the couple met at a poker tournament in Las Vegas. The couple announced their engagement in March 2009. Both Phillips and Masterson have been described as "devout Scientologists."

Career

Modeling career

Besides Vogue, Phillips has also appeared on the cover of Stuff, Interview,People, Detour, Nylon, Paper, 944, and Missbehave magazines. She has been on the catwalk of Jill Stuart and Heatherette.

Music career

Her debut album, released in 1999, was titled I'd Rather Eat Glass, She toured with the Lilith Fair music festival in 1999. As of 2007[update], Phillips is working on a second album and has posted several demos on her MySpace page.

Film career

In 1999, Phillips had a brief cameo in the film Sugar Town, playing a girl wanting an autograph. That same year, Phillips appeared in Black and White as Charlie. In 2000, she played Estrella Starr in Almost Famous. Beginning in 2001, Phillips got bigger parts, including a supporting role in Bully and starring roles in Tart and Fast Sofa.

Later film appearances include Octane, What We Do Is Secret, and Hostel: Part II, for which she was nominated for Scream Queen in the 2007 Scream Awards. Her most recent starring roles are in Dark Streets and a remake of It's Alive. She also has an uncredited cameo in the as-yet-unreleased Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead. Philips will star alongside Danny Masterson, in the 2009 drama The Bridge to Nowhere.

Discography

* "When I Hated Him (Don't Tell Me)" single (1999)
* I'd Rather Eat Glass (1999)