Vendela Maria Kirsebom (born 12 January 1967) is a Norwegian-Turkish-Swedish model, actress, and host.
Early life and education Kirsebom was born in Stockholm, Sweden, to a Norwegian mother and a Turkish father.
At the age of 13, she was discovered in a Stockholm restaurant by Eileen Ford. At age 18, she graduated from the Oslo Waldorf School and moved to Italy to pursue a modeling career under the guidance of Ford Models.
Career Kirsebom moved to New York City at age 20 and signed a six-year contract with Elizabeth Arden soon after, in addition to modeling for fashion brands in the United States and Europe. During the 1990s, Kirsebom appeared on the magazine covers of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Harper's Bazaar, Brides, Flare, Shape, FHM and Zest. In 1996, she became a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF.
Kirsebom appeared in Batman and Robin in 1997 as Nora Fries and played the bridal gown model in the 1998 movie The Parent Trap, starring Lindsay Lohan, Natasha Richardson, and Dennis Quaid. She was also featured in the Disney Channel's Model Behavior with Justin Timberlake and Maggie Lawson. Kirsebom appeared as herself in 1995 episodes of The Larry Sanders Show and Murphy Brown, and made a cameo as a "space villainess" in a "Pigs in Space" skit on Muppets Tonight. She also lent her voice to a fictionalized version of herself on Johnny Bravo.
In 1999, Kirsebom hosted the Swedish music competition Melodifestivalen 1999, the competition that determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest. From 2006 to 2008, she hosted the Norwegian version of Top Model, and also hosted the fourth cycle of the Swedish version in 2007.
Kirsebom released her autobiography in 2017. In 2023, she walked the runway for Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Runway Show at Miami Swim Week.
Personal life Kirsebom was engaged to American film producer Jon Peters during the early 1990s. In 1996, she married Norwegian politician Olaf Thommessen, with whom she shares two daughters. They separated in 2007 after 11 years of marriage.
In 2019, Kirsebom got engaged to Petter Pilgaard and married him in June 2022 after a postponement due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to Swedish, Norwegian and Danish, Kirsebom speaks German, Italian and English fluently.
Filmography
Film +YearTitleRoleNotes1997Batman & RobinNora Fries1998The Parent TrapBridal Gown Model
Television YearTitleRoleNotes1988Piazza NavonaIngrid AllbergEpisode: "Cuore di ladro"1992BlossomFairy GodmotherEpisode: "Driver's Education"1995Murphy BrownHerselfEpisode: "Model Relationships"1995The Larry Sanders ShowEpisode: "The Bump"1995DweebsGreta NyquistEpisode: "The Actress Show"1996Muppets TonightPrincess VendelaEpisode: "Jason Alexander"1997Johnny BravoHerself (voice)Episode: "Talk to Me, Baby"1999Melodifestivalen 1999HostTelevision special2000Model BehaviorHerselfTelevision film2005Romy and Michele: In the BeginningTelevision film2005–2007Top Model SverigeHost4 episodes2006–2008Top Model Norge3 episodes
References
External links
Aftonbladet, "Jag vet inget om min pappa", 11 December 2006 Aftonbladet, "Vi måste alla hjälpa barn", 18 June 2001