Ivana Milicevic(I)
- Actress
Ivana Milicevic (pronounced Ee-vah-nah Mee-lee-cheh-veech) was born on April 26, 1974, in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
(part of Yugoslavia at the time), into a Croat family. She is the daughter of Tonka
and Damir Milicevic, and has a younger brother, Tomo. The
family emigrated to the United States, and young Ivana was
raised in Michigan. She attended Athens High school in Troy, Michigan,
and worked as a model during her school years. She became a naturalized
citizen of the United States.
In 1992, Milicevic graduated from high school and moved to Los Angeles
in pursuit of an acting career. She was a struggling stand-up
comedienne, trying to win over crowds with her stories of the modeling
business. In 1996, she made her film debut under the name Ivana Marina
with a one-line role as a former girlfriend of
Tom Cruise in
Jerry Maguire (1996). In 1997, she
followed up with a guest role on NBC's
Seinfeld (1989) and made guest
appearances on several other television shows, including Royal Pains (2009) and playing the love interest of John Casey on Chuck (2007). She played bit parts in
Vanilla Sky (2001) and
Love Actually (2003), among her
many other cameo appearances. Milicevic capitalized on her experience
as a comedienne in a supporting role as Russian model Roxana Milla
Slasnikova in the romantic comedy
Head Over Heels (2001). She
appeared as a lookalike of Uma Thurman's character
opposite Ben Affleck, trying to fool him
into thinking she is Uma's character, in
Paycheck (2003). In a departure from her
one-dimensional roles, Milicevic showed her dramatic talent in a
supporting role as Milla Yugorsky in a dark and gritty drama
Running Scared (2006). In 2006,
she started a recurring role on the CBS TV series
Love Monkey (2006).
In 2006, Milicevic made a big step forward in her career appearing as
Valenka, one of three Bond girls in
Casino Royale (2006), for which she
did most of her scenes on locations in Prague and in London. She resides in Los Angeles, California.
(part of Yugoslavia at the time), into a Croat family. She is the daughter of Tonka
and Damir Milicevic, and has a younger brother, Tomo. The
family emigrated to the United States, and young Ivana was
raised in Michigan. She attended Athens High school in Troy, Michigan,
and worked as a model during her school years. She became a naturalized
citizen of the United States.
In 1992, Milicevic graduated from high school and moved to Los Angeles
in pursuit of an acting career. She was a struggling stand-up
comedienne, trying to win over crowds with her stories of the modeling
business. In 1996, she made her film debut under the name Ivana Marina
with a one-line role as a former girlfriend of
Tom Cruise in
Jerry Maguire (1996). In 1997, she
followed up with a guest role on NBC's
Seinfeld (1989) and made guest
appearances on several other television shows, including Royal Pains (2009) and playing the love interest of John Casey on Chuck (2007). She played bit parts in
Vanilla Sky (2001) and
Love Actually (2003), among her
many other cameo appearances. Milicevic capitalized on her experience
as a comedienne in a supporting role as Russian model Roxana Milla
Slasnikova in the romantic comedy
Head Over Heels (2001). She
appeared as a lookalike of Uma Thurman's character
opposite Ben Affleck, trying to fool him
into thinking she is Uma's character, in
Paycheck (2003). In a departure from her
one-dimensional roles, Milicevic showed her dramatic talent in a
supporting role as Milla Yugorsky in a dark and gritty drama
Running Scared (2006). In 2006,
she started a recurring role on the CBS TV series
Love Monkey (2006).
In 2006, Milicevic made a big step forward in her career appearing as
Valenka, one of three Bond girls in
Casino Royale (2006), for which she
did most of her scenes on locations in Prague and in London. She resides in Los Angeles, California.