Amanda Peet.

Amanda Peet was born January 11, 1972, in New York City, NY. The younger of two daughters, Amanda was raised by her father Charles, a lawyer, and mother Penny, a social worker, before their subsequent divorce in 1990.

Although it was clear from the start that Amanda had the showbiz flair after she jumped on a stage in the middle of a play, she majored in history at Columbia University. It was there that a drama professor encouraged her to audition for Uta Hagen, an acting teacher.

With the urge to study drama and try her hand at acting, Amanda spent 4 years under the dramatic training of Uta Hagen after she graduated University in 1994. In the meantime, she gained experience by performing in the play, Awake & Sing.

With no more than her income as a waitress, and paychecks from a candy commercial she starred in, to support herself, Amanda accepted whichever acting gigs she was offered. She was finally cast in an episode of NYPD Blue, and had a recurring gig in Central Park West. She also appeared in Law & Order and The Single Guy.

She finally received her film debut in 1995's Animal's Room, and bit parts in She's the One, with Jennifer Aniston, and One Fine Day, with Michelle Pfeiffer. Virginity followed a year later.

In 1997, Amanda appeared in Seinfeld's "The Summer of George" episode, as well as the sitcom Spin City. Roles in independent features were heading her way, namely Grind and Touch Me, and of course, they offered no more than experience and measly paychecks.

Named one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful Women in the World, Amanda is a one-woman man to actor Brian Van Holt, her Whipped co-star.