Biography
Date of Birth
10 December 1984, New York City, New York, USA
Birth Name
Olivia Jane Cockburn
Height
5' 7" (1.7 m)
Mini Biography
Actress and activist Olivia Wilde is a modern day renaissance woman, starring in many acclaimed film productions, while simultaneously giving back to the community.
She was born on March 10, 1984 in New York City. Her parents are Leslie Cockburn (née Leslie Corkill Redlich) and Andrew Cockburn. Her mother is American-born and her father was born in London, England to an upper-class British family; he also later became a citizen of Ireland. Wilde is the middle child, having an older sister, Chloe Cockburn, and, a younger brother, Charlie Cockburn. She is of English, Irish, Scottish, German, and Manx descent.
She was raised in Georgetown, Washington, D.C., and spent her summers in Ardmore, County Waterford, Ireland. She attended the private Georgetown Day School, as well as, Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, graduating in 2002. She was accepted to Bard College, another highly selective private school in Duchess County, New York but deferred her enrollment three times in order to pursue an acting career. She later studied at the Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, Ireland.
Wilde is known for her television roles as Alex Kelly in The O.C. (2003) from 2004-2005 and Dr. Remy "Thirteen" Hadley in the medical-drama television series, House M.D. (2004) when she joined the cast in 2007 and appeared on the show until the series end in 2012.
Wilde is a board member of the organization "Artists for Peace and Justice," which supports communities in Haiti through programs in education, health care, and dignity through the performing arts. She has served as executive producer on several documentary short films, including, Sun City Picture House (2010), which is about a community in Haiti that rallies to build a movie theater after the disastrous 2010 earthquake and Baseball in the Time of Cholera (2012), which explored the cholera epidemic in Haiti.
Wilde is known for her roles in Year One (2009), TRON: Legacy (2010), Cowboys & Aliens (2011), In Time (2011), People Like Us (2012), Her (2013), Rush (2013), Drinking Buddies (2013), The Longest Week (2014), Love the Coopers (2015), and Meadowland (2015).
Since 2011, Wilde had been in a relationship with Jason Sudeikis. They have two children together, Otis Alexander Sudeikis (born April 20, 2014) and Daisy Josephine Sudeikis (born October 11, 2016). In November 2020, they announced that they had ended their relationship.
Wilde made her Broadway debut in the play "1984" at the Hudson Theatre in New York City in 2017. She has recently starred in Life Itself (2018) and A Vigilante (2018).
Trivia
Granddaughter of Jean Ross and Francis Claud Cockburn, who used the pen name Claud Cockburn.
Attended Georgetown Day School in Washington, D.C., through 8th grade.
Ex-sister-in-law of Bartolomeo Ruspoli and Aileen Getty.
Ex-daughter-in-law of Dado Ruspoli, 9th Prince of Cerveteri and Debra Berger.
Spent one month on the set of The Girl Next Door (2004) before being asked to join the movie's cast.
Has a dog named Paco who, as of July 26, 2006, is the new mascot for Old Navy. Paco died on her 34th birthday on March 10, 2018. She has another dog, Elvis.
Best friends with Patrick Fugit and Megalyn Echikunwoke. Close friends with Kal Penn.
Ranked #95 on the 2006 FHM list of "100 Sexiest Women in the World".
Has dual originary citizenship between Ireland and the United States.
Eloped with her high school boyfriend, Tao Ruspoli, and they were married on a bus in Washington, D.C. when she was age 18. As of 2011, she is separated and seeking divorce.
Once won a pancake eating contest while in Australia.
Ranked #15 on Maxim magazine's Hot 100 Women of 2011 list, after being ranked #1 in 2009. Previously, she had been rated #97 in 2008 and #61 in 2005.
Is the 20th great-granddaughter of King Edward VII.
Olivia's father was born in London, England, grew up in County Cork, Ireland, and became an Irish citizen. Olivia's mother is American-born. Olivia's father has English, Scottish, Northern Irish (Irish Protestant or Scottish-Irish), and 1/32 Sephardi Jewish, ancestry, while Olivia's mother has English, German, Irish, and Manx (Isle of Man) ancestry. Olivia's Sephardi Jewish great-great-great-great-grandfather, Ralph Bernal-Osborne, was a British Whig politician who was also an actor. Olivia is also a descendant of James IV of Scotland through his illegitimate daughter Margaret Stewart.
She was rumored to play the lead Bond girl in Skyfall (2012).
Replaced Kate Hudson in the comedy movie Butter (2011).
Niece of Alexander Cockburn, Patrick Cockburn and Sarah Caudwell.
A lifelong lover of classic cars, she owns a 1958 Chevy Biscayne and a 1959 Thunderbird convertible. Once owned a 1966 Lincoln Continental.
Adopted her professional name "Wilde" after she developed a profound respect and admiration for Irish poet and writer Oscar Wilde and his body of literature.
Ranked #30 in Ask men's top 99 "most desirable" women of 2011. Previously, she ranked #49 in 2010.
Ranked #5 in the 2011 FHM list of "100 Sexiest Women in the World".
Ranked #18 in the 2010 FHM UK list of "100 Sexiest Women in the World".
Mick Jagger was once her parents' dinner guest at their Washington, D.C. home, and she had an impromptu brownie-eating contest with Chris Farley when, at age 10, she visited the set of Saturday Night Live (1975).
Her well-connected journalist parents once helped her get a casting office job in Los Angeles, California, hoping the experience would dissuade her from taking up acting.
Her paternal grandmother, Jean Ross, was the inspiration for Christopher Isherwood's character Sally Bowles, portrayed on film in I Am a Camera (1955) by Julie Harris, and Cabaret (1972) by Liza Minnelli.
Ranked #23 in Ask men's top 99 "most desirable" women of 2012.
Ranked #54 in Ask men's top 99 "most desirable" women of 2013.
As a young girl, Wilde was frequently babysat by British writer and family friend Christopher Hitchens.
Her parents were friends with The Rolling Stones lead singer, Mick Jagger.
Good friends with TRON: Legacy (2010) co-star Garrett Hedlund.
When asked about the meaning behind her tattoo on her wrist, which says, "All love, A", Wilde explained, "It's in honor of my late uncle Alexander Cockburn. He was a dear dear friend. The tattoo is the last phrase he wrote to me. All love, A. It reminds me to love everyone, just as he did.".
Was in a relationship with Jason Sudeikis from November 2011 until November 2020. They were engaged from January 2013 until November 2020. They have two children together.
Gave birth to her 1st child at age 30, a son named Otis Alexander Sudeikis on April 20, 2014. Child's father is her now ex-fiancé, Jason Sudeikis.
Was two months pregnant with her son Otis when she filmed her guest appearance on Portlandia (2011).
Returned to work two months after giving birth to her son Otis to begin filming Vinyl (2016).
Ranked #14 on Maxim magazine's Hot 100 Women of 2014 list.
Named her son Otis after the late singer-songwriter Otis Redding, of whom she has been a huge fan since childhood.
Gave birth to her 2nd child at age 32, a daughter named Daisy Josephine Sudeikis on October 11, 2016. Child's father is her now ex-fiancé, Jason Sudeikis.
Her first job in Hollywood was as an assistant to casting director Mali Finn. Olivia was cast by Finn in her first feature film The Girl Next Door (2004).
She was considered for the role of Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), but she refused and turned it down. So Zoe Saldana was cast instead. She was also considered for a role in Oz the Great and Powerful (2013).
From 2011-2016, she was the brand ambassador for the cosmetic company Revlon.
Resided in a school bus after first moving to Los Angeles, California.
Is a huge fan of the Star Trek franchise since childhood.
Is a fifth cousin of Rose Leslie through Scottish nobility.
Her Irish maiden name is actually pronounced "coh-burn".
Trademarks:
Her feline eyebrows
Cat-like green-blue eyes
Husky voice
Quotes
[interview in The New York Observer] When people saw The Black Donnellys (2007), they didn't know it was the same girl from The O.C. (2003). I'm a natural blonde, but I feel like a brunette. I feel like people treat me now how I should be treated. People used to be shocked, when I was blonde, that I wasn't stupid. I used to get these comments that I swear people thought were compliments. Like, "Oh! You're smart" -- like they couldn't believe it. (April 15, 2007)
Trying to find this industry's tendency to celebrate the physical is a waste of time. So I'm happy to play the game. But I am also thirsty for input. I'm not a dunce whose only skill is knowing how to take a photograph, you know? And at the end of the day, I think it makes me slightly less replaceable.
[on her marriage, at age 19] It was a great eight years, but it was time for both of us to move.
[on TRON: Legacy (2010)] It was an effort to get into that suit, but if I was a real astronaut I wouldn't expect that to be easy either. It's all part of the process, it's a challenge and that is what creates the rewards.
I wanted to be on Saturday Night Live (1975) as a cast member. So I went to my mom at ten years old and said, "This is what I want." And she said, "Great, well, you're going to have to go to Second City and you're going to have to audition." And she took me seriously. And I think that's what always kind of helped propel me and take myself seriously is that I had supportive parents that were in no way pressuring me to do anything. But if I declared that I wanted something, they took me seriously. And that is often what it takes when you decide to be an artist.
[on her character in Cowboys & Aliens (2011)] I liked that she is a strong character. Ella is brave and mysterious and resilient and can hold her own against the men.
I've worked with a lot of the greatest guys in the business, and now I am slowly working with more and more women. We don't really get to work together, the girls, so much.
I feel like the luckiest child in the world because I got to grow up in Ireland. In summer is when you really grow up. During the year, I would go back to the States, and all year long really couldn't wait to get back to Ardmore. I love the landscape, the cliff walks, the smell, the freezing cold water, the music. Do I sound like some soppy romantic? I even love the food. People always laugh at me when I say that. People in Ardmore would say, "Oh isn't living in America cool -- you live in a big city, you get to be close to all these things we only see on TV", but I found Ireland much more inspiring as a kid, much more fun, and the people had such an amazing effect on me, and I credit a lot of my growth as a child and a lot of my happiness with the people I was surrounded by in Ireland.
[on fiancé Jason Sudeikis] I thought, "He won't be interested in me. I'm not a contender." He was so cool, so funny - I was such a fan of his and had always fancied his speed and his intelligence. He's a brilliant actor with a brain like lightning. I thought, "I'm not beautiful enough or his type." He seemed to really see me, see through the bullshit. He said very few words and couldn't keep eye contact. He was so handsome, and he could dance.
[on ex-husband writer Tao Ruspoli] I had grown up with Tao; we had just drifted. I felt I had something to prove. If you fall off a horse, you get back up. I am not a quitter. I hung on for as long as possible, until it was more hurtful to stay. I'm so grateful for the pain and the heartbreak. It gave me the courage to leave and brought me to the great love of my life.
[on the death of James Gandolfini] James Gandolfini was a kind, funny, wonderful guy. I'm so lucky to have worked with him. Sending love to his family. Such a sad, sad day.
My parents said marrying was an optimistic thing to do in pessimistic times.
Motherhood is heart-exploding, blissful hysteria.
