Denise Lee Richards born February 17, [ 1 ] is an American actress, television personality, and model. Her performance as Bond girl Christmas Jones , though criticized, granted Richards her mainstream breakthrough. Her television roles include the sitcom Blue Mountain State β , the mystery thriller series Twisted β , and the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful β As a child, she was the "only girl on the baseball team".
When Richards was 15 years old, her family moved to Oceanside, California. In , she graduated from El Camino High School. Richards began her career as a teenager in modeling and appeared in print ads for Bonne Bell cosmetics in In the s, Richards appeared in several films and television shows such as Loaded Weapon 1 , Tammy and the T-Rex , Lookin' Italian , and guest starring in episodes of Saved by the Bell , Married In , she portrayed Ben Affleck 's character's girlfriend named Jodi Collins, in the short-lived drama series Against the Grain.
Her first starring role in a wide theatrical release was Starship Troopers in for which Richards was nominated for the Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Female Newcomer. In , Slant Magazine ranked the film at number 20 on its list of the Best Films of the s. There's not a wrong note struck by the game group of players. Though she considered her role "brainy", "athletic", and having depth of character, [ 23 ] she was criticized as not credible in the role. The film has gained new fans with time and is regarded as a cult film.
Richards, playing a spoiled princess, was praised for her performance by Los Angeles Times for being "as rightly nasty as she is pretty".
She starred as Sheen's character's ex-girlfriend two years later in two episodes of Two and a Half Men. Richards made a brief appearance in the British romantic comedy Love Actually Macy and Mena Suvari. In , she reunited with her Wild Things on-screen mother Theresa Russell in the drama film Jolene The series followed the daily lives of Richards, her daughters Sam and Lola, and her married younger sister Michelle and father Irv.
