Early life
Silverstone was born in San Francisco, California, to Monty Silverstone, a real-estate investor, and Didi Radford, a former flight attendant. Silverstone's parents are both English. Her father, a native of East London, is Jewish and her mother converted to Judaism upon marrying Silverstone's father. She attended San Mateo High School. Silverstone is the youngest of three children and also has a half-sister, London rock singer Kezi Silverstone, and a half-brother, David Silverstone, both from her father's previous marriage. Silverstone visited England during the summer during her childhood. When she was six, she began modeling and was subsequently cast in television commercials, the first being for Domino's Pizza. She acquired some early modeling and advertising work and was eventually cast as the 'dream girl' on American TV series The Wonder Years.
Early career
Silverstone won a leading part in the 1993 film The Crush, playing a girl who sets out to ruin an older man after her teenage crush is spurned; she won two awards at the 1994 MTV Movie Awards for the role. Silverstone became legally emancipated at the age of fifteen in order to work the hours required for the shooting schedule of the film. She went on to star in three Aerosmith music videos. "Cryin," "Crazy," and "Amazing", which were hugely successful both for the band and Silverstone, making her a household name (and also gaining her the nickname, "the Aerosmith chick").
Silverstone's next starring role was in Clueless, which became a sleeper hit and critical darling during the summer of 1995.[citation needed] Silverstone's performance was well received, and she was branded the spokeswoman for an emerging young generation. As a result, she signed a deal with Columbia-TriStar worth $10 million. As part of the package, she got a three-year first-look deal for her own production company, First Kiss Productions. Silverstone also won "Best Female Performance" and "Most Desirable Female" by the MTV Movie Awards in 1996 for her performance in the film.
Silverstone's next role was as Batgirl in Batman & Robin, which was neither a critical nor a financial success. Silverstone won a Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress. She suffered further bad press for allegedly striking a pedestrian with her vehicle in a crosswalk. She also starred in 1997's dark comedy Excess Baggage, which was the first movie to be released by First Kiss Productions. In the film, Silverstone played a chain smoking, underage drinking, rich brat who fakes her own kidnapping in order to get her father's attention. The film was not as critically or commercially embraced as Clueless[6] After just one film, Columbia-TriStar let their production deal with Silverstone expire.[citation needed]
Later career
Silverstone appears in Kenneth Branagh's film adaptation of the Shakespeare play Love's Labour's Lost in 2000, in which she was required to sing and dance.
She effectively removed herself from the public eye for many years, resurfacing in the critically acclaimed NBC television show Miss Match, which was cancelled after thirteen episodes in fall 2003. This long hiatus was referred to in the pilot episode of the television series Get Real, as an exasperated Kenny remarked, "Why can't I fall off the face of the earth, like Alicia Silverstone?"
Silverstone later acknowledged that she hates the trappings of fame, insisting that being a celebrity is a horrific ordeal that she wouldn't want her worst enemy to suffer. According to Silverstone, "Fame is not anything I wish on anyone. You start acting because you love it. Then success arrives, and suddenly you're on show.[7]
After the cancellation of Miss Match in 2003, she scored a pilot with FOX called Queen B, in which she would've played a former high school prom queen named Beatrice (Bea), who has found out that the real world is nothing like high school.
For the pilot season of 2006-2007, she surfaced on pilot being developed by ABC called Pink Collar, in which she would have worked in a law firm.
Silverstone's most recent movie, Stormbreaker, was released in the UK on July 21, 2006, and in North America on October 13, 2006. Silverstone filmed the role of Jack Starbright (Alex Rider's housekeeper and guardian) in the summer of 2005, several days after her wedding. She took the role because the opportunity to work with co-stars Ewan McGregor and Sophie Okonedo, both of whom she has said she admires.[citation needed]
In November 2006, she starred in the television movie Candles on Bay Street for Hallmark Hall of Fame, based on the book by Cathie Pelletier under the pseudonym of K.C. Mikinnon.
Personal life
She married her longtime boyfriend Christopher Jarecki in a beachfront ceremony at Lake Tahoe on June 11, 2005. The couple dated for eight years prior to being married, and Silverstone has noted that she feels "really lucky" to have been in a long-term relationship from a young age.[citation needed]
She is also noted for her strong views on animal welfare and is a committed vegan. In 2004, Silverstone was voted sexiest female vegetarian by PETA. Alicia recently went to the South Central Farm in LA to support the community.
