Jessica Alba
Actress and businesswoman known for Dark Angel and Honest Company.
Jessica Marie Alba (born April 28, 1981) is an American actress and businesswoman. She first gained widespread attention at age 19 for her starring role as Max Guevara on the television series *Dark Angel* (2000–2002), a performance that earned her a Golden Globe nomination. Shortly after, she landed her big-screen breakthrough as the lead in *Honey* (2003). In 2011, Alba co-founded the Honest Company, a consumer goods business.
Alba started acting at 13, appearing in *Camp Nowhere* and *The Secret World of Alex Mack* (both 1994). She went on to star in many commercially successful films, including *Fantastic Four* (2005), *Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer* (2007), *Good Luck Chuck* (2007), *The Eye* (2008), *Valentine's Day* (2010), *Little Fockers* (2010), and *Mechanic: Resurrection* (2016). She frequently worked with director Robert Rodriguez, appearing in *Sin City* (2005), *Machete* (2010), *Spy Kids: All the Time in the World* (2011), *Machete Kills* (2013), and *Sin City: A Dame to Kill For* (2014). From 2019 to 2020, she starred in the Spectrum action crime series *L.A.'s Finest*.
Born in Pomona, California, on April 28, 1981, Alba is the daughter of Catherine Louisa Alba (née Jensen) and Mark David Alba. Her mother has Danish, English, French, German, and Welsh ancestry; her father is of Mexican and Sephardic Jewish descent. She has a younger brother, Joshua, and is the second cousin of professional skateboarders Steve and Micke Alba, as well as a third cousin once removed of writer Gustavo Arellano. Because of her father's Air Force career, the family lived in Biloxi, Mississippi, and Del Rio, Texas, before settling in Claremont, California, when she was nine. Alba describes her family as "very conservative… a traditional, Catholic, Latin American family," while she considers herself very liberal and says she identified as a "feminist" from age five.
Her childhood was marked by frequent illnesses: she had pneumonia four to five times a year, suffered partially collapsed lungs twice, and experienced a ruptured appendix and a tonsillar cyst. She also had asthma from a young age. These health issues, along with her family's frequent moves, left her isolated from other children at school. She graduated from Claremont High School at 16 and later studied at the Atlantic Theater Company.
Alba wanted to act from age five. At 11, she convinced
- born
- April 28, 1981, Pomona, California
- field
- Actress, businesswoman
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- Dark Angel, Fantastic Four, co-founder of Honest Company
Lore & Background
Jessica Marie Alba was born in Pomona, California, on April 28, 1981, to Catherine Louisa Alba and Mark David Alba. Her mother has Danish, English, French, German, and Welsh ancestry; her father is of Mexican and Sephardic Jewish ancestry. She has a younger brother, Joshua. Her father's Air Force career took the family to Biloxi, Mississippi, and Del Rio, Texas, before they settled in Claremont, California, when she was nine. Alba has described her family as 'very conservative… a traditional, Catholic, Latin American family', and herself as very liberal; she says she identified as a 'feminist' as early as age five. During childhood, she suffered from pneumonia four to five times a year, had partially collapsed lungs twice, a ruptured appendix, tonsillar cyst, and asthma. She graduated from Claremont High School at age 16 and attended the Atlantic Theater Company.
Alba began her acting career at age 13 in Camp Nowhere, followed by The Secret World of Alex Mack (both 1994). Her big break came when James Cameron picked her from over 1000 candidates for the role of Max Guevara on Dark Angel. She later starred in numerous box office hits, including Fantastic Four (2005), Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), Good Luck Chuck (2007), The Eye (2008), Valentine's Day (2010), Little Fockers (2010), and Mechanic: Resurrection (2016). She is a frequent collaborator with director Robert Rodriguez, having starred in Sin City (2005), Machete (2010), Spy Kids: All the Time in the World (2011), Machete Kills (2013), and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014). From 2019 to 2020, she starred in the Spectrum action crime series L.A.'s Finest.
Reader's Guide
Jessica Alba's significance lies in her dual career as a Hollywood actress and a businesswoman. She gained early fame through the sci-fi series Dark Angel, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination and established her as a feminist icon for her role as Max Guevara. She transitioned to film with lead roles in Honey and the Fantastic Four franchise, and became a frequent collaborator with director Robert Rodriguez. In 2011, she co-founded the Honest Company, a consumer goods company based in Los Angeles, which was valued at roughly $550 million as of February 2022 and around $380 million as of May 2026. Her acting work includes a mix of action, romantic comedy, and ensemble films, and she has been included on lists of the world's most beautiful women by magazines such as Men's Health, Vanity Fair, and FHM. Her legacy encompasses both her contributions to popular film and television and her entrepreneurial ventures in the consumer goods industry.
Did You Know?
- Alba suffered from pneumonia four to five times a year during childhood and had partially collapsed lungs twice.
- She learned to swim before she could walk and had PADI certified scuba diving skills used on the TV series Flipper.
- Her father's Air Force career moved the family to Biloxi, Mississippi, and Del Rio, Texas, before settling in Claremont, California.
- She is the second cousin of professional skateboarders Steve and Micke Alba.
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