Thursday, April 21, 2011

Before she was famous: Black Swan beauty Mila Kunis in unseen yearbook pictures

She is one of Hollywood's hottest rising stars and is often dubbed as the next Angelina Jolie.
But before she was famous, Black Swan actress Mila Kunis was just an average fresh-faced schoolgirl who attended high-school dance class.
These yearbook pictures of show that the 27-year-old has come a long way in the last 16 years.
Mila Kunis Howe Hubert Bancroft Middle School
But before she was famous: Black Swan actress Mila Kunis pictured left in March this year, was just your average 11-year-old schoolgirl, pictured right in , who attended high school in Los Angeles
In the unearthed images, the actress is seen as a 11-year-old girl with tumbling waves of brunette curls and the features that would see her cemented as one of the most beautiful sought after actresses in Tinsletown today.
Snaps from the following two years, after she had turned 12, and then 13, show the raven-haired beauty slowly morph into a gorgeous teenager.
And while the Black Swan star has said in the past that she has never professionally danced, it seems she got her foothold on flexibility in the form of high-school class dance.
In the snaps take from Howe Hubert Bancroft Middle School, the actress is seen posing in various dance moves with fellow students.
Cutie: Another snap shows the little girl with the same grin and pretty features
Cutie: Another snap shows the little girl with the same grin and pretty features
Russian born Mila did not moved to the United States until she was seven-years-old.
She was born in Chernivtsi in the Ukrainian SSR of the Soviet Union and her family moved to Los Angeles, in 1991 after the American lottery system allowed them to immigrate.
Kunis is Jewish and has cited antisemitism in the former Soviet Union as one of several reasons for her family's move to the US.
Fluent in Russian but unable to speak English she learned the language by watching hit game show 'The Price Is Right' and when confident enough with the language, she begged her parents to enrol her in acting classes.
Growing up: At 13-years-old the raven-haired beauty morphs into a gorgeous teena
Growing up: At 13-years-old the raven-haired beauty morphs into a gorgeous teenager
It was at the Beverly Hills Studio that she met the woman who would change her life, her long-time manager, Susan Curtis.
'My parents told her, "Listen, we can't afford head shots; we can't afford anything,' said Mila.
'We can't take her to auditions because we work full time'. But Susan told them, "Don't worry. I'll fix everything," and she did. I ended up getting the first thing I went out for, which was a Barbie Commercial.'
'All my parents said was, 'You can do whatever you want to do as long as you get A's and stay in school."'
And she did continue to study, attending Hubert Howe, a performing arts school.
And while her cute yearbook photos show her as a smiley, happy child, Kunis says she was bullied for her unique looks.
Moves: It seems Mila got her foothold on flexibility in the form of high-school dance class, she is seen here top middle
Moves: It seems Mila got her foothold on flexibility in the form of high-school dance class, she is seen here top middle
'I had a very funny looking face when I was little,' she said. 'I had  big eyes, big lips, big ears. But when I was little I was constantly being made fun of for having big eyes and that was awful.
'I used to come home crying, 'Why do I have big eyes?' And my parents  were like, 'You're crazy!'
'I've learned it wasn't a bad thing to be picked on because when  you're little it seems awful, like it's the end of the world. But then I grew into my face.'
Despite being bullied, Kunis, made the most of school life and joined her dance team, posing in a black leotard and grinning ear to ear for the group yearbook photos.
She attended Howe Hubert up until her high school years, until she scored the role of Jackie Burkhart on American sitcom That 70's Show.
She was mostly taught by an on-set tutor and when not on the set, she attended Fairfax High School, where she graduated in 2001.
Flexible: Posing in a black leotard, she is seen top left, grinning ear to ear for the group yearbook photos with her class mates
Flexible: Posing in a black leotard, she is seen top left, grinning ear to ear for the group yearbook photos with her class mates
Mila landed her first acting gig in an episode of Baywatch.
'I started acting when I was nine as a hobby because it was fun, and it allowed me to get out of school,' she admitted in an interview with W Magazine back in February this year.
'From nine to 14, I did close to 15 commercials, and I guest starred on just about every television show. I was on Baywatch twice.
'The second time, I played a blind girl who’s lost in the forest next to the beach and needs to be saved.'
Dance troupe: In an extended version of the snap above, Mila is seen in the very left-hand corner
Dance troupe: In an extended version of the snap above, Mila is seen in the very left-hand corner
She became known for her comedy roles - playing Jackie in That 70's Show and voicing the character Meg on Family Guy but when That 70's Show ended, when she was just 22, she made the decision to make acting her career and attempt different things.
Ballet beauty: Her role in Black Swan earned the actress a Golden Globe nomination
Ballet beauty: Her role in Black Swan earned the actress a Golden Globe nomination
'I was never raised to think that I was pretty,' she says.
'It’s not that I was raised to think I was unattractive, but it was just never something that was pointed out to me by my family. They would point out personality traits—Our daughter is really quirky—versus what I look like, because inevitably, looks go, so it makes no difference.'
However the actress had to transform her body in preparation for her role in Black Swan and the experience has made her vow to never dance again.
'I trained for four months, seven days a week, five hours a day. I had one day off on my birthday,' explaining the gruelling regimen that she was put on by the films choreographers, alongside her co-star Natalie Portman.
'I lost 20 pounds. I tore a ligament. I dislocated my shoulder. I have two scars on my back. And it was worth every minute.'
But she does not plan to repeat the experience.
'I will never dance again... I was like, Well—I wear heels; I can do this. I was wrong: Christian Louboutins are uncomfortable, but I screamed the first time I put on a pointe shoe.'
Luckily there will be no dancing, and no dark themes in the next couple of films she is doing, possibly providing some respite.
She recently completed filming on the romantic comedy Friends With Benefits, alongside Justin Timberlake and is due to start work on Ted, another comedy written by her Family Guy boss Seth MacFarlane, in the spring.

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