Olga Kurylenko. Famous Russian-Women: Olga Kurylenko, a Ukrainian actress and model. Olga Kurylenko, the 22-nd Bond girl

Great Russian women

Olha Kurylenko is a Ukrainian actress and model, became known to the wide audience after her roles as the Bond girl, Camille Montes, in the 22nd James Bond film, "Quantum of Solace".

Olga Kurylenko was born on 14 November 1979 in Ukrainian town of Berdyansk. She was brought up by her mother, Marina Alyabysheva, who divorced her father, Konstantin Kurylenko, soon after her birth. Her mother struggled to survive as an art teacher and Olga had a humbling experience of living in poverty. During the years in Ukraine, she studied art, languages, did 7 years of musical school studying piano and went to a ballet studio until 13.

When she was 15, she went to Moscow for a week's vacation at the suggestion of her mother, and it was there that she was "discovered" by a scout from a modeling agency. Olga took training as a model in Moscow. By the age of 16 she moved to Paris, learned French in six months, and was signed by the Madison agency. At the age of 18, Olga appeared on the cover of Glamour, then she graced magazine covers of Elle, Madame Figaro, Marie Claire, and Vogue, and also became the face of Lejaby lingerie, Bebe clothing, Clarins and Helena Rubinstein cosmetic companies.

Kurylenko's first acting appearance was in Seal's music video, "Love's Divine" in 2003, but her film career began in France during 2005. She received the certificate of excellence award at the 2006 Brooklyn International Film Festival for her performance in "L'Annulaire", and also starred in the "Paris, je t'aime" segment Quartier de la Madeleine opposite Elijah Wood. She also appeared in the French-Swiss telefilm "Le Porte-bonheur". That same year, she was selected to be the face of Kenzo's new fragrance, Kenzo Amour.

Next Olga Kurylenko appeared in "Suspectes", a mini-series which aired on French television during the spring of 2007. Her other credits for that year included the role of sexy seductress Sofia in the thriller "Le Serpent" (aka The Snake) as Nika, and opposite Timothy Olyphant's Agent 47 in "Hitman", based on the video game of the same name. She also played Mina Harud in the sci-fi drama "Tyranny", which was introduced as a web-series before hitting the big screen sometime in 2008.

She played Bond girl Camille Montes in the 2008 James Bond film, "Quantum of Solace". In the film she plays the role of a Bolivian Secret Service agent named Camille, who teams up with James Bond to avenge the death of her parents. This role finally solidified her place in Hollywood.

The fact that she is the first Bond girl from a post-Soviet state received mixed reactions in Russia. The Saint Petersburg based Communist group KPLO has accused her of "moral and intellectual betrayal" in starring in a film about the "enemy of the Soviet people" (meaning James Bond) In Ukraine the then-mayor of Berdyansk suggested naming a street after her in early 2008.

Olga Kurylenko was married twice, has French citizenship, speaks Russian, English, French and resides in London. Kurylenko is a philanthropist noted for her charity work for the underprivileged, focusing on children in her native Ukraine.

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