Before Chloe Sevigny ever set foot in front of the camera, the indie darling was dubbed the "It Girl" in a seven-page 1994
New Yorker spread by
Bright Lights, Big City author Jay McInerney who was taken with her unique style. The year before, Sevigny moved from Connecticut to Brooklyn and was spotted by a fashion editor at Sassy magazine who offered her an internship, which led to modeling jobs and design work. But Sevigny's acting career began when she met aspiring writer-director Harmony Korine in Washington Square Park. Their friendship resulted in her being cast in the controversial art-house hit
Kids, which Korine wrote. First cast in a minor role, Sevigny snared the lead part just before filming began and turned in a powerful performance as a teen who learns she is HIV-positive. The blonde bohemian continued to make her name in art-house features in films like
Trees Lounge,
Gummo (for which she also designed the costumes) and
The Last Days of Disco. Hollywood finally took notice in 1999 and gave Sevigny a well-deserved Oscar nomination for
Boys Don't Cry, in which she held her own against eventual Academy Award-winner Hilary Swank. But mainstream stardom still eluded her so Sevigny continued to accept roles in eccentric films directed by independent cinema leaders, like Mary Harron (
American Psycho), Lars von Trier (
Dogville) and Jim Jarmusch (
Broken Flowers). She garnered unwanted headlines for ex-boyfriend Vincent Gallo's 2003
The Brown Bunny, in which she performed some much-gossiped-about on-screen fellatio. Sevigny finally turned to TV in search of financial security and more commercial fare. She auditoned for HBO's
Deadwood but was turned down. However, she was later cast in the cable network's polygamy drama
Big Love for which she won a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in 2010.
Chloë Sevigny Fast Facts:
- Shaved her head and pierced her nose during her junior year of high school.
- Used to babysit for Topher Grace.
- Dubbed "the coolest girl in the world" by Jay McInerney, writing in the New Yorker.
- Appeared in Sonic Youth's music video Sugar Kane.
- Designed the costumes used in the 1997 indie film Gummo.
- Served as creative director for fashion label Imitation of Christ and designed clothes for Opening Ceremony boutiques.
- Chloë Sevigny Relationships:
- Matt McAuley - Ex-significant Other
- David Sevigny - Father
- Janine Sevigny - Mother
- Harmony Korine - Ex-significant Other
- Paul Sevigny - Brother
- Vincent Gallo - Ex-significant Other
- Chloë Sevigny Awards:
- 1999 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role - Nominee
- 1999 Oscar: Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role - Nominee
- 2010 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television - Winner
- 2000 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture - Nominee