Age: 20.

Born and raised: Boston, Massachusetts.

She fell into it, literally: "I was tagging along with my older brother on an audition and I fell and hit my face and got a bloody nose, turned into an instant drama queen and they were like, 'Who's the kid?'"

Later she found Faith: the "evil slayer" on Buffy."It was only supposed to be five shows, but that turned into ten and then they asked me to stay for the season and I figured I'd have to get myself a place out here. I had to grow up fast."

Now she's a movie star: thanks to roles as a cheerleader in Bring It On; as a wild child in Soul Survivors; in college comedy The New Guy; with Robert De Niro in City By The Sea.

Reaping the benefits."It's extraordinary. My mother raised my three brothers and I on a $55,000 pay cheque a year. And when I look at the amounts of money they hand me I almost don't believe it's real. It's hard work but when you put it into perspective, I'm not doing brain surgery."

Reprinted from GQ UK edition - June 2001