Ashton Kutcher's Transformation From Model to Hollywood Star
Did you know he changed his name to break into the business?
Today, you probably think of Ashton Kutcher as the goofball actor who starred in a bunch of early 2000's romantic comedies, but you may not realize that Kutcher had an impressive modeling career long before he became the go-to, onscreen love interest. Let's take a look back at Kutcher's journey from underwear model to Hollywood star.
1997
Here, Kutcher does his best model pose in a shoot for Calvin Klein. During a 2017 interview with Howard Stern, Kutcher revealed that he got into modeling after winning a contest at a mall when he was in college. When he won, he was sent to New York, but lost the second round to Josh Duhamel.
1998
Despite that setback, modeling did eventually work out for Kutcher. Mary Clarke, one of the founders of Mother Model Management, told The Wall Street Journal that she convinced Kutcher to try modeling, got him signed with Next, and then suggested that he use his middle name, Ashton, instead of his real name, Chris.
1998
In 1998, Kutcher got his big acting break when he was cast as Michael Kelso in That '70s Show. This first photo of the cast shows how young they all were when the show began.
1999
Here, Kutcher hangs out at the Varsity Blues premiere in Los Angeles. In 1999, Kutcher was mainly working on That '70s Show. He later told Rolling Stone, "The first five episodes of That’70s Show, I was convinced I was going to be fired, because I was terrible."
1999
Throughout his career, Kutcher has dated a handful of famous females. His first notable relationship was with January Jones, before she was a mega-watt star herself.
1999
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Kutcher said that the cast of That '70s Show were best friends: "We hang out bullsh*tting for five days out of the week, and somehow on Friday we scrape together this show."
2000
In 2000, Kutcher started appearing in movies in additional to television. That year, he starred in the films Reindeer Games, Dude Where's My Car?, and Down To You. Here, he kicks back with his fellow Down To You cast members, Julia Stiles, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Rosario Dawson.
2000
Here's some photographic proof that Kutcher has always been on the goofy side, taken at the 2000 My VH1 Music Awards.
2000
Who could forget Kutcher's ridiculous role in Dude, Where's My Car? alongside Seann William Scott? In 2016, Kutcher told Conan O'Brien that he would still be down to film a sequel.
2001
After breaking up with Jones, Ashton dated Dark Angel actress Ashley Scott for almost a year. In 2001, he also starred in the film Texas Rangers.
2002
In 2002, Kutcher was mainly focused on That '70s Show — and his new girlfriend, Brittany Murphy. In an interview after her death, Kutcher said, "I just celebrate who [Murphy] was. She was like the person who walked in the room and she was always the first person to dance. You know when you go to a party and everybody is standing around, and the music is going - and you know sooner or later everyone is going to dance. She was always the first person to dance. And I just try to connect to that and celebrate who she was and how she was, and not make sense of it, 'cause there is no sense of making sense of it."
2003
In 2003, Kutcher starred in three films: Just Married, My Boss's Daughter, and Cheaper by the Dozen, solidifying his role as Hollywood's favorite adorably goofy actor.
2003
In 2003, Kutcher was photographed at the premier of Charlie's Angels 2: Full Throttle with his then-girlfriend Demi Moore, her ex Bruce Willis, and their three children. Kutcher and Moore began dating in 2003, and he later told Redbook about the beginning of their relationship, saying, "Well, there wasn't anything physical happening for a while, but from the get-go it was more than friendship. It was a deeper connection than that."
2003
2003 was the year Kutcher started filming Punk'd for MTV. The prank TV series really sealed the deal for Kutcher's frat boy reputation. In a later interview, he talked about the effects of it, saying, "Still, today, people are like, 'Are you punking me?'" He added, "You kind of want to get away from it and put the next thing under the belt because you don't want to be known for the one thing."
2004
In 2004, though, Kutcher took on a more buttoned-up role in the thriller, The Butterfly Effect. When Entertainment Weekly asked if that meant he wanted to be a more serious actor, he said, "I just want to do what keeps me interested. I get bored really quick. If I don’t have something to keep me interested, I’ll do bad things."
2005
In 2005, Kutcher starred in the films Guess Who and A Lot Like Love. But all eyes were really on his love life: Kutcher and Moore got married that year. In an interview about their age gap, Kutcher once said, "I just had to get over my ego, which was screaming, 'This guy used to sleep with your woman.' And I listened instead to the little voice inside that was whispering, 'This guy loves and cares about your woman.'"
2006
2006 marked the end of an era: That '70s Show wrapped up its final season. When asked if he watched the show, Kutcher later told Rolling Stone, "I just move onto the next one. But sometimes [my assistant] T.J. will be watching it and I’ll join him, and then I’ll laugh at my own jokes and feel guilty about it. My guilty pleasure is watching me."
2008
In 2008, Kutcher starred in the film What Happens In Vegas. In an interview, he later revealed that he almost didn't take the role, saying, "I got the script and I was really set on not doing a comedy. I read the script and for the first 30 or 40 pages of the script I was laughing out loud, really hard, multiple times. When that happens you have to stop and go 'something’s really working here.'"
2009
In 2009, Kutcher starred in the films Spread and Personal Effects. He was also dominating social media: He became the first Twitter user to reach more than one million followers, beating CNN in the site's "Million followers contest."
2011
In 2011, Kutcher starred in the surprise hit No Strings Attached, as well as the film New Year's Eve. In an interview with Collider, Kutcher later discussed No Strings Attached, saying, "to create a movie with a female lead that is empowered with her own sexuality I think is a really powerful thing. I think if we can give teenage people something to think about from a sex perspective, I would say that it would be to start opening up a conversation where women are empowered with their own sexual experiences from an educational level, as well as an entertainment level."
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