Hillary Duff

 



Hilary Duff

Duff at The Heart Truth's 2009 Red Dress Collection
Born     Hilary Erhard Duff
September 28, 1987 (age 24)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Occupation     Actress, author, entrepreneur, recording artist
Years active     1997–present
Spouse     Mike Comrie (2010–present)
Children     1
Relatives     Haylie Duff (sister)
Website
hilaryduff.com

Hilary Erhard Duff (born September 28, 1987) is an American actress, author, entrepreneur and recording artist. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Duff appeared in local theatre plays and television commercials before coming to prominence in the title role of the Disney Channel's teen comedy Lizzie McGuire and The CW's teen drama Gossip Girl as movie star Olivia. Established as a teen idol, Duff reprised that role in the The Lizzie McGuire Movie and subsequently ventured into motion pictures, appearing in a string of successful films that include Agent Cody Banks, Cheaper by the Dozen, A Cinderella Story and Cheaper by the Dozen 2. Most recently, she has performed in a legion of television dramas and independent films.

Duff expanded her repertoire to include pop music and has released three RIAA-certified platinum albums including Metamorphosis (2002), her debut studio album which was certified triple platinum, Hilary Duff (2004) and Most Wanted (2005), which were both certified platinum. Her most recent studio album Dignity (2007) was certified gold and spawned her highest charting US single to date "With Love".[1] Followed by Best of Hilary Duff (2008), a compilation of her greatest hits, Duff has since sold thirteen million albums worldwide.[2]

Branching into the fashion industry, Duff has launched her own clothing lines Stuff by Hilary Duff and Femme for DKNY Jeans in addition to being signed with IMG Models and releasing two exclusive perfume collections with Elizabeth Arden.[3] Her other business ventures include writing a series of young adult novel, including Elixir (2010) and Devoted (2011), while working as an executive producer for According to Greta and as a producer for Material Girls and Beauty & the Briefcase.

Early life

Hilary Erhard Duff was born on September 28, 1987 in Houston, Texas,[4] to Susan Colleen (née Cobb), a homemaker, and Robert Erhard Duff, a partner in a chain of convenience stores.[5] Duff has an elder sister, Haylie, who is also an actress and singer. Her mother encouraged her to enroll in acting classes alongside Haylie. Both girls won roles in local theatre productions.[6] At the ages of six and eight, the two sisters participated in a BalletMet Columbus production of The Nutcracker Suite in San Antonio.[4] The sisters became increasingly interested in pursuing acting and their mother moved with them to California, while their father stayed in Houston to take care of his business.[5][6] The sisters auditioned for several years and were cast in several television commercials.[5] Due to her acting career, Duff was home-schooled.[7]
Acting career
1997–2002: Career beginnings and Lizzie McGuire

Duff primarily played minor roles during her initial acting years. In 1997, she had an uncredited role in the Hallmark Entertainment western miniseries True Women. The following year, she played an uncredited extra in an ensemble dramedy, Playing by Heart. Her first major role was as a young witch, Wendy, in Casper Meets Wendy. The film, however, was released to mostly unenthusiastic reviews.[8][9] In 1999, Duff appeared in a supporting role in the television film The Soul Collector, which was based on a Kathleen Kane novel. For her performance, Duff won a Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a TV Movie or Pilot (Supporting Young Actress).[10]

Duff first rose to fame in 2000 when she was cast as one of the children in the pilot episode of the NBC sitcom Daddio. Her co-star, Michael Chiklis, stated, "After working with her the first day, I remember saying to my wife, 'this young girl is going to be a movie star'. She was completely at ease with herself and comfortable in her own skin."[5] However,prior to the airing of the show, Duff was dropped from the cast which made her reluctant to pursue her acting career further.[5] However, her manager and mother urged her on and a week later she auditioned successfully for the title role of a newly developed children's television series, Lizzie McGuire.[5] The show focused on the growth of the central character, "Lizzie McGuire" into teenhood. Lizzie McGuire first aired on the Disney Channel on January 12, 2001, and was a ratings hit. It attracted about 2.3 million viewers per episode.[5] Her participation in the show made her popular among children between the ages of 7 and 14.[11] That same year, she began dating teen singer Aaron Carter. Richard Huff, a New York Daily News critic, called her "a 2002 version of Annette Funicello".[5] After Duff fulfilled her 65 episode contract with Lizzie McGuire, Disney considered expanding the franchise to films and a prime-time television series. The plans however failed, because Duff's representatives said she was not being paid enough for the proposed series.[12]

Duff's first role in a theatrical motion picture was in Human Nature in 2002. The film was showcased first at the Cannes and Sundance film festivals.[13] In the film, Duff portrayed the younger version of a female naturalist, played by Patricia Arquette. Duff also starred in the Disney Channel television film Cadet Kelly (2002), which became the network's most watched program in its 19-year history.[5] In the film, she played the role of a free-spirited girl who struggles in a strict military school.
2003–06: Breakthrough film roles
Hilary Duff poses with one of her fans at the pre-show "meet and greet" at the Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville, N.C in 2006

In 2003, Duff received her first major role in a feature film when she was cast alongside Frankie Muniz in Agent Cody Banks. The film received positive reviews and was successful enough to spawn a sequel in which Duff was however not cast. That year, Duff reprised her role as Lizzie McGuire for The Lizzie McGuire Movie. It received mixed reviews, with certain critics calling it "an unabashed promotion of Duff’s image, just as Crossroads was for Britney Spears".[14][15][16] Later that year, Duff played one of the 12 children of Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt in the family film Cheaper by the Dozen, which remains her highest grossing film to date.[17]

Early in 2002, she entered a high-profile feud with Lindsay Lohan because she was also dating Aaron Carter along with her, but then he broke up with Lohan and resumed dating Duff. Later that year, she ended her two year relationship with Aaron Carter after he reportedly cheated on her.

She reprised her role in the sequel Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005), which was less successful as the original film and was panned by critics.[18]

Duff also made several guest appearances in television shows, her first being as a sick child in the medical drama Chicago Hope in March 2000.[19] In a 2003 episode of George Lopez, she had a role as a makeup salesperson; she later reappeared in the show in 2005 as Kenzie, a feminist poet friend of the character Carmen (Masiela Lusha). In the same year, she acted opposite her sister Haylie in American Dreams, while in 2005, she played a classmate and idolizer of the title character of Joan of Arcadia.[20]

In 2004, Duff starred in the romantic comedy A Cinderella Story. Though the reviews were mostly negative, the film went on to become a moderate box office hit,[17][21] and some critics were impressed by Duff's performance.[22] Later that year, she starred in the film Raise Your Voice, her first role in a drama film. While some critics praised her for appearing in a more mature and serious role than her previous films, the film itself was heavily panned and was not successful at the box office.[23] Several reviews were indifferent towards her acting performance and were critical of Duff's vocals, with critics pointing out what appeared to be her digitally enhanced voice.[24][25][26][27] The same year, Duff received her first Razzie nomination for worst actress for her roles in Raise Your Voice and A Cinderella Story.[28] In 2005, Duff starred in The Perfect Man, in which she played the eldest daughter of a divorced woman (Heather Locklear). In the same year, Duff was again nominated for a Razzie Award, for The Perfect Man and Cheaper by the Dozen 2.[29] Later that year, the Duff sisters lent their voices to the computer animated comedy Foodfight!, which was to be distributed by Lions Gate Entertainment but was never released. The director of the film, Larry Kasanoff, said that he was "absolutely thrilled to have the Duff sisters as part of the cast".[30] She also starred in the 2006 satirical comedy Material Girls, in which she co-starred with her sister Haylie Duff.[31] Duff along with her sister Haylie, received two more nominations for Razzie Awards for their roles in the film.[32]
2007–present: Independent films and television appearances
Hilary Duff at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival

A two-part introspective documentary television special, Hilary Duff: This Is Now was produced to chronicle Duff's return to the recording industry. The show took two weeks to film and was shot in Los Angeles, Europe, and Spain. It was broadcast on MTV on April 3 and April 9, 2007. Duff was the guest star on The Andy Milonakis Show for its third season premiere in September 2007.

On September 7, 2007, Duff confirmed on MuchOnDemand, that she would be filming two independent films According to Greta, and What Goes Up.[33] Duff starred opposite John Cusack in War, Inc. which was released in theatres in Los Angeles and Manhattan, New York on May 23, 2008. In June 2008, Duff joined the cast of the Polish brothers comedy Stay Cool. She co-starred alongside Winona Ryder, Mark Polish, Sean Astin, Chevy Chase, and Jon Cryer. In the film, she portrayed the character of Shasta O'Neil, described as a sexy high school senior, the film was released in 2010.[34]

In early 2008, she was offered the lead role of Annie Mills in the CW Network's Beverly Hills, 90210 spinoff, but she turned it down because she was more interested in looking for projects outside the teen genre.[35][36] In July 2009, She attained a role in Gossip Girl as a recurring guest star.[37] She played the character of Olivia Burke, a movie star who enrols at NYU in search of a traditional college experience. The following year, she won a Teen Choice Award for "Best Female Scene Stealer" for her role as Olivia Burke.[38] Duff starred in Beauty and the Briefcase, a romantic comedy based on the book Diary of a Working Girl, by Daniella Brodsky and directed by Gil Junger. The film premiered on ABC Family on April 18, 2010. In the film, Duff plays a fashion magazine columnist who writes about her dating struggles in the city.[39]

In May 2011, Duff starred in Bloodworth, an adaptation of the novel Provinces of Night by William Gay, where Duff plays Raven Halfacre, a teenage daughter of a promiscuous, alcoholic mother.[40] As of August 2011, Duff is scheduled to appear in an independent film called She Wants Me, directed by Rob Margolies,[41] in which, she plays a young Hollywood actress named Kim Powers.
Music career
2002-03: Santa Claus Lane and Metamorphosis
Hilary Duff at the MuchMusic Video Awards in 2007

In 2002, Duff recorded a cover version of Brooke McClymont's "I Can't Wait" for the Lizzie McGuire soundtrack, and "The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room" for the first DisneyMania compilation album. She also released her first album, titled Santa Claus Lane which was a collection of Christmas songs which included duets with her sister, Haylie, Lil' Romeo, and Christina Milian. Accompanied by the Disney Channel-only single "Tell Me a Story (About the Night Before)", the album peaked at 154 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart and was certified gold.[42][43]

Duff's studio debut album, Metamorphosis (2003), reached number one on the U.S. and Canadian charts[44] and sold over 3.9 million copies in the U.S by January 2007.[45] The lead single, "So Yesterday" was a top ten hit in several countries;[46] its follow-up was the Laguna Beach theme song "Come Clean". The third single, "Little Voice", was not released in the U.S. and was a minor hit in Australia.[47] In late 2003, Duff embarked on her first concert tour, the "Metamorphosis" tour, and later the "Most Wanted" tour. Most shows scheduled in the major cities were sold out.[48]
2004-08: Hilary Duff and Dignity
Hilary Duff at the taping of Live@Much: Hilary Duff

Duff's second studio album was the self-titled Hilary Duff, for which she co-wrote some songs.[49] It was released on her seventeenth birthday (in September 2004) and debuted at #2 in the U.S. and at #1 in Canada. The album sold 1.8 million copies in the U.S.[50] Most Wanted, her first compilation album, was released in August 2005. Most Wanted included songs from her previous two albums, remixes and three new songs which included "Wake Up" written by Joel Madden and his brother, Benji, both members of Good Charlotte.[51] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200[52] and became her third number one debut in Canada. It sold over two hundred thousand copies within its first week of release and was certified platinum by the RIAA a month after its release.[53] [54] In 2006, an Italy-only compilation, 4Ever was released. Duff also recorded a cover version of Madonna's "Material Girl" with her sister for their movie, Material Girls.[55]

Duff co-wrote the material for her third studio album Dignity, along with Kara DioGuardi, who co-produced the album with Rhett Lawrence, Tim & Bob, and Richard Vission. She stated that compared to her previous music, it was "more dancey" and made use of more real instruments. She said, "I don't know exactly how to explain what we're doing, but it's fun and funky and different, something new for me. It's really cool".[56] In November 2008, Duff's first greatest hits album, Best of Hilary Duff was released[57] and the album's first single "Reach Out", which samples Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus", was released in the preceding month. The song became Duff's third #1 dance hit.[58][59]
2012-present: Fifth studio album

She then parted ways with Hollywood Records after six years of service and then announced to MTV that she would begin work on her new album in December 2008.[60] In October 2011, Duff mentioned plans of a possible new album to E! Online.[61] In January 2012, she confirmed that she had begun recording via her official website and twitter.[62][63]
Other ventures
Entrepreneurship
Duff at a book signing in October 2010.

In March 2004, Duff launched her clothing line, "Stuff by Hilary Duff", which was distributed through Target in the United States, Kmart in Australia, Zellers in Canada, and Edgars Stores in South Africa. The company, which initially started as a clothing line, later expanded its business into furniture, fragrances and jewelry, primarily targeted at the teen and preteen crowd.[64] In a November 2008 interview to Fashion Rules magazine, Hilary stated that her "Stuff by Hilary Duff" line was officially discontinued since she did not have full control of the line anymore.[65]

In September 2006, Duff released her perfume, "With Love... Hilary Duff", which was distributed by the Elizabeth Arden company. The perfume was initially sold only in Macy's in the U.S. and soon it was being sold in other regions like Europe, Japan and Canada. "With Love...Hilary Duff" was one of the three best-selling fragrances launched at U.S. department stores in late 2006. In 2007, Duff announced that she will be releasing a summer version of the perfume titled, "Wrapped with Love". It was released in January 2008, and a Spring Gift Set version was released in time for Valentine's Day.[66]

In February 2009, Duff and DKNY Jeans announced their new design partnership and the launch of their collaborative apparel line in the objective of designing a clothing line for girls her own age.[67][68] Duff co-designed a collection of special pieces with DKNY Jeans brand called Femme for DKNY Jeans. The clothing line debuted nationwide in August 2009 and was around for a limited time.[69][70] A series of three-minute long shorts titled The Chase were released to promoted the brand.

On October 12, 2010, Simon & Schuster published Duff's first novel, Elixir co-written with Elise Allen.[71] The book, aimed at young adults, has since been released internationally and has become a New York Times best-seller. The sequel to the book, titled Devoted was released in hardcover on October 11, 2011.[72] Duff also plans to release a non-fiction book in 2012 based on children coping with divorce.[73]
Philanthropy
Hilary Duff and Sarah Negrette in June 2005

Duff is involved with various philanthropic activities and is an animal rights enthusiast and a member of Kids with a Cause.[74] She donated $250,000 to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.[75] In 2005, she donated over 2.5 million meals to Hurricane Katrina victims in the south. In August 2006, Duff traveled to a New Orleans elementary school and worked with USA Harvest to distribute meals.[76] She has also served on the Advisory Board of the "Audrey Hepburn Child Benefit Fund" and the Celebrity Council of "Kids with a Cause".[77] On October 8, 2008, Duff starred in a public service announcement for The Think Before You Speak Campaign by Ad Council and GLSEN, to prevent youth from using anti-LGBT vocabulary, such as the phrase "That's So Gay".[78] In July 2009, Duff was named as a Youth Ambassador to the children of the Colombian capital, Bogota. As a Youth Ambassador, she spent five days in the country, distributing backpacks filled with food to needy children.[79]

Duff has stated numerous times that she’s a strong animal rights supporter and has commented, when asked what she would be doing if she weren’t a celebrity, "I always wanted to be a veterinarian when I was younger, but then I figured out that animals actually die there, so that was not the job for me. Definitely something with kids or animals or something like that."[80]
Personal life and image
Hilary Duff at the Toronto International Film Festival Party in 2007

She dated Aaron Carter on and off between 2001 and 2003. In July 2004, a 16 year old Duff began dating Good Charlotte singer Joel Madden.[81] After a long period of tabloid speculation, Duff's mother Susan announced their relationship in a June 2005 interview for Seventeen magazine.[82] In November 2006, Duff and Madden broke up.[83] The same year, Duff's parents separated after 22 years of marriage. She wrote about the pain caused by the separation in her songs "Stranger" and "Gypsy Woman".[84] In a June 2006 interview with Elle magazine, Duff was quoted as saying: "...(virginity) is definitely something I like about myself. It doesn't mean I haven't thought about sex, because everyone I know has had it and you want to fit in".[85][86] Duff later told MuchMusic that she did not say the quotes attributed to her in the article and that the subject was "definitely not something that I would talk about..."[87] She denied the quotes again in a 2008 interview with Maxim magazine.[88]

In 2007, Duff began dating NHL player Mike Comrie. On February 19, 2010, Duff and Comrie announced their engagement.[89][90] The couple married on August 14, 2010 in Santa Barbara, California.[91] Duff gave birth to their first child, a son named Luca Cruz Comrie, on March 20, 2012.[92][93]