Olivia Munn
Photo: Mike Rollerson
Olivia Munn was born in Oklahoma to mother Kim Munn and father Sam Munn. She is of Chinese descent on her mother’s side and of Caucasian descent on her father’s. When Munn was two, her mother re-married to a man in the Air Force. Although the family relocated many times, Munn was predominantly raised in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, Japan, where the military assigned her stepfather. During this time, she had appeared in a number of local theater productions, and later became a model within the Japanese fashion industry. She also attended the University of Oklahoma, majoring in journalism and minoring in Japanese and dramatic arts.
Before landing the hosting job on AOTS, Munn did a lot of commercial work and print modeling. She was a sidelines reporter for Fox Sports, covering college football and womens’ basketball courtside. Munn also starred in The N’s upcoming teen-surfer drama Beyond the Break starring as a Mily Acuna, a tough surfer chick. Munn will be appearing on the big screen in Rob Schneider’s new comedy Big Stan in 2007, but her main focus is bringing her quick wit and take-no-prisoners attitude to Attack of the Show.
Lisa Olivia Munn moved back to the United States, settling in Los Angeles, California to pursue an acting career. In 2004, she interned at Fox Sports Net and worked as a sideline reporter for college football and women’s basketball. She has gone on to say that she disliked the experience, explaining "I was trying to be something I wasn’t, and that made me really uncomfortable on live TV." Munn had also gained a small role in the straight to video horror film Scarecrow Gone Wild. She also stars in the music video Hello Tomorrow by the band Zebrahead.
Photo: oliviamunn.com
In late 2005, Munn began her portrayal of Milly Acuna, a teen surfer, over two seasons of the TV drama Beyond the Break on The N network. She enjoys surfing and continues to practice the sport. She originally auditioned for the part of Kai, but the producers wanted a "local girl". She also appeared in the film The Road to Canyon Lake.
Munn is a successful model and has booked campaigns for Nike, Pepsi and Neutrogena. She appeared on the Fall 2006 cover of Foam magazine in September, in Men’s Edge magazine in August, and was featured in a pictorial in Complex in November 2006. In February 2007, she appeared as "Babe of the Month" in a non-nude pictorial in Playboy magazine. Munn also appeared in the July/August 2007 issue of Men’s Health. In September 2007, she was featured in the Italian Vanity Fair for their "Hot Young Hollywood" Issue.
Munn made her film debut in the Rob Schneider movie Big Stan. She plays Schneider’s character’s receptionist Maria. Munn also has a significant role in the 2008 horror film Insanitarium, in which she plays a nurse at an insane asylum.
