Rosie Huntington-Whiteley biography

Synopsis

Early Years

The oldest of three children, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley grew up on a farm in Plymouth, Devon, England. Her family raised chickens, sheep, pigs and horses among other animals. Her mother worked as a personal trainer and had her own distinct style. Rosie would often flip through the pages of Vogue and other fashion magazines with her mother.

While she covered her room with pictures of Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell, Huntington-Whiteley didn't dream of being model at first. She simply aspired to their glamorous urban lifestyle. She, too, wanted to live in a big city and to escape her "pretty boring" life on the farm. At fifteen, Huntington-Whiteley got a work placement, a type of paid internship, at a modeling agency in London. There she got her first glimpse inside the modeling world, handling all sorts of odd jobs for the agency.

The following year, Huntington-Whiteley stopped by the agency for a visit. A new agent working there asked her if she would be interested in modeling. A Levi's ad was her first job in front of the camera. With her first paycheck, Huntington-Whiteley bought a car at her parents' insistence.

A Rising Star

Huntington-Whiteley's modeling career thrived. She appeared in the pages of Teen Vogue and ELLEgirl and in campaigns for such designers as Tommy Hilfiger and French Connection. At age 18, she moved to New York City. There Huntington-Whiteley started to work for lingerie giant Victoria's Secret. She appeared in its famous runaway show, walking with the likes of Gisele Bündchen and Karolina Kurkova.

Three years later, Huntington-Whiteley landed a contract with the high-end fashion house Burberry. She took over as the face of the brand from model Agyness Deyn. Huntington-Whiteley also made the cover of British Vogue for the first time in 2008. More high-profile work soon followed, including starring in a short film for the risqué lingerie line Agent Provocateur in 2009.

'Transformers' and Beyond

News broke in 2010 that Huntington had landed a plum role in the big budget action flick Transformers: Dark of the Moon. She had been brought to replace Megan Fox as Shia LaBeouf's love interest in this third installment of director Michael Bay's film franchise. Handling some of her own stunts, Huntington-Whiteley got numerous bumps and bruises while making the physically demanding movie. She also had to learn to run in heels to escape from all of the on-screen calamity.

Even before the film's release, Huntington-Whiteley enjoyed a new-found celebrity status. The full-lipped model earned two unique honors in the spring of 2011. She topped Maxim magazine's Hot 100 list and the readers of Britain's FHM magazine voted her in as number one in their list of the world's 100 most beautiful women.