Isabel Lucas: 'I'm a bit of a kook'
April 23rd 2010 00:19
When I first wrote about the gorgeous Isabel Lucas in 2008, she was a fresh-faced 23-year-old who had only just begun to work her Aussie charm in Hollywood. Now 25, Miss Lucas has become hot property in the movie industry, with three films due out later this year and a significant fan base that gets bigger by the day. She's currently gracing our TV screens in the Spielberg-directed WWII miniseries The Pacific, and despite her success has remained as sweet and easygoing as she always was... even going so far as to describe herself as "a kook"!
"I'm a bit of a kook; a bit of a quirk," she told Cleo magazine recently. "And I guess I'm quiet when I first meet people, but I'm not really!"
Isabel continues to be strongly committed to her humanitarian work, after making world headlines in 2007 for attempting to stop a whaling vessel in Japan. She and her fellow activists (including actress Hayden Panettiere) paddled out on surfboards and formed a human barrier between the whaling boat and the animals, an extremely brave move that was recorded in last year's Oscar-winning documentary The Cove. A warrant was issued for the arrest of the actress, which certainly made her think twice about attending the Japanese premiere of Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen!
"They did state there was an arrest warrant," Lucas said casually, "[but] I think it was more of a scare. My agents had to do some research: If I went back for the Transformers premiere, would they arrest me at the airport? We basically came to the conclusion that, because Transformers is the largest grossing film in Japan ever, it would obviously bring a lot more attention to what they're doing and what they're trying to hide," she said.
In addition to her anti-whaling work, Lucas has a large portfolio of causes that she devotes her time and money to. In January this year, she climbed Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro for Summit on the Summit in order to bring attention to the global clean-water crisis. "Currently, a third of the world's population doesn't have access to adequate drinking water. More kids die from lack of drinking water than any other thing - more than war, HIV/AIDS, malaria," she says.
"I like to give time to different events and environmental causes, otherwise I feel they'll slip under the radar and won't go ahead," she continued. "So it's just a matter of how important the issue is to me."
When it comes to living in the mecca of crazy that is Los Angeles, Lucas says that she stays grounded by surrounding herself with non-industry friends, and with the continual self-reminder of how lucky she is to be doing something she loves.
"I think you definitely have to have good roots," says Isabel. "Mum and Dad are very grateful people, and that's rubbed off on my sister and me. I think that I'm just really fortunate to be working at an art that I enjoy. But I think some girls do get bitten by Hollywood... I'm sure if they travelled and spent their time thinking about other things, they'd come to the same conclusion - it's not all about how you look."
As for those persistent rumours that she's dating Jake Gyllenhaal? Not true, according to Isabel: she's adamantly single, saying that she loves the unique sense of freedom that comes with being on her own. "I think the last time I was single was when I was seventeen," she said. "That was my first boyfriend and, I guess, having been a serial monogamist, it's been a really positive experience to have more time for other interests."
Lucas, whose former boyfriends include fellow Aussie expat Chris Hemsworth and Entourage hottie Adrian Grenier, feels that being single allows her to enjoy her work and travel more... but that if she found the right man, a new relationship certainly wouldn't be out of the question. "When you're shooting films overseas, it's not really conducive to having a relationship," said the young star.
"But I still think there's a possibility for it to work quite well; it just takes more maintenance. At the moment, it's just right to be single."
Isabel will be hitting our cinemas in three films due for release later this year. She'll be portraying a young Russian woman in Kin, trying on her dancing shoes in the Aussie musical A Heartbeat Away, and appearing in the highly anticipated remake of the 1984 movie Red Dawn. With such a philosophical approach to life, and a huge array of interests other than acting, there's little doubt in my mind that this thoughtful, quirky and totally lovable Australian girl is going to make it all the way in Hollywood and beyond.
Talented, beautiful, and with an impressive social conscience... we can't help but love her!
"I'm a bit of a kook; a bit of a quirk," she told Cleo magazine recently. "And I guess I'm quiet when I first meet people, but I'm not really!"
Isabel continues to be strongly committed to her humanitarian work, after making world headlines in 2007 for attempting to stop a whaling vessel in Japan. She and her fellow activists (including actress Hayden Panettiere) paddled out on surfboards and formed a human barrier between the whaling boat and the animals, an extremely brave move that was recorded in last year's Oscar-winning documentary The Cove. A warrant was issued for the arrest of the actress, which certainly made her think twice about attending the Japanese premiere of Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen!
"They did state there was an arrest warrant," Lucas said casually, "[but] I think it was more of a scare. My agents had to do some research: If I went back for the Transformers premiere, would they arrest me at the airport? We basically came to the conclusion that, because Transformers is the largest grossing film in Japan ever, it would obviously bring a lot more attention to what they're doing and what they're trying to hide," she said.
Working with the Whaleman Foundation in 2007
In addition to her anti-whaling work, Lucas has a large portfolio of causes that she devotes her time and money to. In January this year, she climbed Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro for Summit on the Summit in order to bring attention to the global clean-water crisis. "Currently, a third of the world's population doesn't have access to adequate drinking water. More kids die from lack of drinking water than any other thing - more than war, HIV/AIDS, malaria," she says.
"I like to give time to different events and environmental causes, otherwise I feel they'll slip under the radar and won't go ahead," she continued. "So it's just a matter of how important the issue is to me."
Isabel's wise words: ''You can't give if your cup of inspiration isn't full.'
When it comes to living in the mecca of crazy that is Los Angeles, Lucas says that she stays grounded by surrounding herself with non-industry friends, and with the continual self-reminder of how lucky she is to be doing something she loves.
"I think you definitely have to have good roots," says Isabel. "Mum and Dad are very grateful people, and that's rubbed off on my sister and me. I think that I'm just really fortunate to be working at an art that I enjoy. But I think some girls do get bitten by Hollywood... I'm sure if they travelled and spent their time thinking about other things, they'd come to the same conclusion - it's not all about how you look."
'The most beautiful is always just what's natural, and not forced' - Isabel Lucas
At the Sydney premiere of her film Daybreakers, in February 2010
As Gwen in the war miniseries The Pacific
As for those persistent rumours that she's dating Jake Gyllenhaal? Not true, according to Isabel: she's adamantly single, saying that she loves the unique sense of freedom that comes with being on her own. "I think the last time I was single was when I was seventeen," she said. "That was my first boyfriend and, I guess, having been a serial monogamist, it's been a really positive experience to have more time for other interests."
Lucas, whose former boyfriends include fellow Aussie expat Chris Hemsworth and Entourage hottie Adrian Grenier, feels that being single allows her to enjoy her work and travel more... but that if she found the right man, a new relationship certainly wouldn't be out of the question. "When you're shooting films overseas, it's not really conducive to having a relationship," said the young star.
"But I still think there's a possibility for it to work quite well; it just takes more maintenance. At the moment, it's just right to be single."
Unattached and unafraid
Isabel will be hitting our cinemas in three films due for release later this year. She'll be portraying a young Russian woman in Kin, trying on her dancing shoes in the Aussie musical A Heartbeat Away, and appearing in the highly anticipated remake of the 1984 movie Red Dawn. With such a philosophical approach to life, and a huge array of interests other than acting, there's little doubt in my mind that this thoughtful, quirky and totally lovable Australian girl is going to make it all the way in Hollywood and beyond.
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