Elisabetta Canalis (Italian: [elizaˈbɛtta kaˈnaːlis]; born 12 September 1978) is an Italian actress and showgirl.

Elisabetta Canalis
Canalis at the 2009 Venice Film Festival
Born (1978-09-12) 12 September 1978 (age 46)
Sassari, Italy
Occupations
  • Actress
  • showgirl
  • television presenter
Years active1999–present
Spouse
Brian Perri
(m. 2014)
Children1
Websitewww.elisabettacanalis.it

Early life

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Canalis was born in Sassari, Sardinia, in Italy. Her father, Cesare, is a radiologist in University of Sassari's clinic, and her mother, Bruna, was a teacher.[1] She has a brother named Luigi, who is also a radiologist and was involved in a Switzerland debt scandal.[2] Canalis was educated in Sassari, where she attended the "classical" high school (liceo classico), and then moved to Milan to study foreign languages at Università degli Studi di Milano, though she never graduated because she started to work as a dancer for Silvio Berlusconi's TV channel Canale 5 at the age of 21.[3]

Career

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Acting and presenting

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Elisabetta Canalis was a dancer on the Canale 5 TV show Striscia la notizia from 1999 to 2002. Canalis had minor roles in the films Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo[4] and Virgin Territory, a comedy produced by Roberto Cavalli.[5] In 2005, she replaced a busy Michelle Hunziker in Love Bugs 2, the second season of the sitcom Love Bugs.[6] In 2007, she co-hosted the annual Italian music festival, Festivalbar but the TV program closed.[7] In 2009, she replaced a pregnant Elena Santarelli on the Italian version of Total Request Live, on MTV Italia.[8] Elisabetta hosted the Trofeo Birra Moretti 2008,[9] a summer football competition played between S.S.C. Napoli, A.C. Milan and Juventus.

In 2010, she played a recurring character in season 3 of the TNT series Leverage.[10] In February 2011, she co-hosted the most important Italian song contest, Sanremo Music Festival with Gianni Morandi and Belen Rodriguez,[11] during which she interviewed Robert De Niro .[12] Canalis appeared on the 13th season of Dancing with the Stars.[13] She was paired with Valentin Chmerkovskiy and was the second to be eliminated on 27 September 2011. She was interviewed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in September 2011.[14] She posed for PETA's "I'd Rather Go Naked than Wear Fur" campaign in 2011. For two nights, she co-hosted for the second time the Sanremo Music Festival 2012 and acted with the singer Adriano Celentano in the role of "Messy Italia".[15]

In March 2015, she was appointed Goodwill Ambassador UNICEF Italy.

Modeling

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Canalis in 2007

Canalis was featured in the 2003 Max nude calendar.[16][17] She has been a spokeswoman and runway model from 2006 to 2009 for the fashion brand "Hollywood Milano", a Milan-based disco club.[18] She promoted in a spot recorded in New York the new city limousine Musa "5th Avenue".[19] In June 2011 she appeared in a photoshoot of the Spanish version of Vogue,[20] and in September 2011 in the Arabian version of Harper's Bazaar.[21] That same year, she modeled for Roberto Cavalli.

Canalis was June 2010 cover girl for the third time on Vanity Fair.[22] In the same year, she is, for the Italian version of Vanity Fair, the 4th woman most beautiful in 2010.[23] She has been also on 2010 the 7th most beautiful woman for Maxim and in top 50 for DT Spain magazine.[24] Thanks to Clooney, she gained a contract as spokesmodel for Pantene.[25] In The Netherlands, she is a spokesperson for Auping.[26] She was the covergirl for a June 2012 edition of Sportweek Dreams, a special edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport. The shoot was in Santo Domingo.[27] She appeared in a July 2012 advertisement for PETA.[28] For Milano Fashion Week that year she modeled on the runway for Philipp Plein[29] and for the new collection of Miss Bikini.[30] On 2016 she became testimonial for the sportwear brand DEHA.

Personal life

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Canalis with George Clooney at 66th Venice International Film Festival (2009)

Canalis was previously engaged to footballer Christian Vieri,[31] and she also had a short relationship with film director Gabriele Muccino following his divorce.[32] Canalis subsequently had a short relationship with football player Reginaldo.[33]

Canalis dated American actor George Clooney for two years before breaking up in June 2011.[34] On 23 November 2011, Canalis and Clooney were among 200 witnesses accepted by a Milan court in the trial of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi for allegedly paying for sex with an underage prostitute, a scandal dubbed "Rubygate".[35]

Canalis married American orthopedic surgeon Brian Perri on 14 September 2014 in Alghero, Sardinia.[36] During the wedding, Italian singer Bianca Atzei sang the traditional Sardinian song Ave Maria.[37] On 29 September 2015, Canalis gave birth to their daughter, Skyler Eva.[38] In July 2023, Canalis said that she and Perri were separated pending a divorce, and that she was romantically involved with Romanian kickboxer Giorgian Cimpeanu.[39]

Filmography

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Films
Year Title Role Notes
2005 Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo Castle lady Cameo appearance
2006 Natale a New York Carlotta Ferri
2007 Virgin Territory Sister Gabriella
2008 La seconda volta non si scorda mai Ilaria Fiorito
La fidanzata di papà Felicity
2010 A Natale mi sposo Paloma
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2003–04 Carabinieri Alessandra Ferri Main role; 48 episodes
2005 Love Bugs Elisabetta Main role (season 2)
2007 Buona la prima! Herself Episode: "Non c'è 2 senza trendy"
2008 Medici miei Vittoria Colombini Main role; 11 episodes
2010 Fratelli Benvenuti Krishna Recurring role; 6 episodes
Leverage Mystery Woman Recurring role; 5 episodes
2014 Party On Party guest Episode: "Sardinia"
2018 L'isola di Pietro Giulia Canale Main role (season 2); 6 episodes

References

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  1. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis Brings George Clooney Home to the Folks". People. 18 September 2010. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  2. ^ Alison Schwartz (22 June 2011). "Elisabetta Canalis Tries Retail Therapy After George Clooney Breakup". People. Archived from the original on 18 January 2016. Retrieved 5 August 2011.
  3. ^ "About Me". elisabettacanalis.it. Archived 28 July 2012 at archive.today
  4. ^ "Canalis: per gelosia ho rigato l'auto a Bobo". corriere.it. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  5. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis sensuale in Decameron Pie". qnm.it. Archived from the original on 22 April 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  6. ^ "Fabio De Luigi – Corriere della Sera". Cinema-tv.corriere.it. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  7. ^ "Canalis festivalbar". vogue.it. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  8. ^ "Total Request Live, Mtv a Torino con Elisabetta Canalis sul palco". lastampa.it. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  9. ^ javascript:pgLoader.launch('/fotogallery/5556.json')
  10. ^ "Exclusive Advance Review: Leverage Season 3". TV.com. Archived from the original on 15 July 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2010.
  11. ^ "Festival di Sanremo, ok a Morandi. Ci saranno anche Belen ed Elisabetta". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Italy. p. 41. Archived from the original on 25 June 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2011.
  12. ^ "Sanremo 2011, la quarta serata in trenta foto – Panorama" (in Italian). Blog.panorama.it. 22 May 2012. Archived from the original on 25 June 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  13. ^ "Canalis nel casting di dancing with the stars". Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  14. ^ "Elisabetta Chats with Ellen" Ellen web site, 23 September 2011
  15. ^ "Debutta il Festival, Celentano attacca Avvenire e Famiglia Cristiana" IL Sole24ore.com (in Italian)
  16. ^ "Canalis per max". max.rcs.it. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  17. ^ "Max punta sulla Canalis "Calendario da 500mila copie"". La Repubblica. 23 October 2002. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  18. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis con look da maschiaccio alla sfilata 'Hollywood Milano' – Foto e Gossip by Gossip News" (in Italian). Gossip.it. 18 February 2008. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  19. ^ "Foto – Elisabetta Canalis batte Carla Bruni – 1 di 5 – Trovacinema" (in Italian). Trovacinema.repubblica.it. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  20. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis "soft hot" per Vogue Spagna". tgcom24.mediaset.it. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  21. ^ "Gossip/ Elisabetta Canalis su Harper's Bazaar Arabia". Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
  22. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis: «Non mi perdonano di essere felice". Style.it. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  23. ^ "Le 100 donne più sexy del 2011". Vanityfair.it. 16 May 2012. Archived from the original on 20 June 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  24. ^ "DT Magazine | Pairody dot Com :: This Is No Laughing Matter :: Your Celebrity Gossip Source". Pairody.com. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  25. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis: nuova testimonial Pantene" Archived 8 December 2011 at the Wayback Machine (in Italian) Elle Italy web site
  26. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis scaricata per un materasso" (in Italian) GQ Italy, 15 March 2012
  27. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis sulla copertina di Sportweek Dreams 2012". omg.yahoo.com. Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
  28. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis Gets Stuck in a Hot Car for PETA [VIDEO]". Retrieved 14 November 2013.
  29. ^ "La Canalis versione rock". Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
  30. ^ "Sfila anche la Canalis". Retrieved 14 November 2013.
  31. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis and Bobo Vieri". c2.iobloggo.com. 27 June 2013.
  32. ^ "Canalis-Muccino, sorpresa d'estate". tgcom24.mediaset.it. 7 June 2006. Archived from the original on 2 July 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  33. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis Miscarriage: TV Presenter Loses First Child With Boyfriend Brian Perri". Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  34. ^ Canalis, Elisabetta. "George Clooney, Elisabetta Canalis Split". Retrieved 26 October 2011.
  35. ^ "George Clooney, soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo named as witnesses in Silvio Berlusconi trial" Archived 28 December 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Daily News. 23 November 2011
  36. ^ McRady, Rachel (14 September 2014). "Elisabetta Canalis Marries Fiance: George Clooney's Ex Weds Brian Perri in Italy". Us Weekly. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  37. ^ "Nozze Canalis, l'Ave Maria sarà in sardo". Vanity Fair Italia. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  38. ^ "George Clooney's Ex-Girlfriend Elisabetta Canalis Gives Birth to First Child Skyler Eve—See the Pics!". E! Online. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  39. ^ "Elisabetta Canalis Opens Up about Her Private Life, Separation, and New Love". Il Messaggero. 30 December 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
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