In this episode of What Happened to this Celebrity, we take a look at the career of Denise Richards, the sexy star star of Wild Things and many others.
As far as 1990s and 2000s-era screen goddesses go, Denise Richards was probably the biggest of them all. From her role in Paul Verhoeven’s Starship Troopers to her iconic turn in Wild Things, Denise Richards was a formative crush for many of us who came of age in that era, and the image of Richards emerging from a swimming pool in Wild Things was enough to make many teenage pulses flutter. In this episode of What Happened to this Celebrity, we take a look at Richards’ rise to fame, from early roles in low-budget fare such as Tammy & the T-Rex to her eventual breakthrough to her controversial casting as nuclear physicist Dr. Christmas Jones in the James Bond epic The World is Not Enough and beyond.
Arguably, the late nineties and early 2000s were her peak, with her memorably turning up on Friends in a guest spot as Ross’s hot cousin, performing perhaps the most iconic hair flip of all time in her big reveal. She also settled down with notorious bad boy Charlie Sheen for a while, and despite their separation, was notably supportive during his eventual mental health crisis and HIV diagnosis. That seems to be a familiar refrain, with many noting that despite often playing an ice goddess on-screen, Richards is widely considered down-to-earth, approachable and kind in real life.
We also dig into some of her more underrated movies, like Drop Dead Gorgeous and Undercover Brother, and check in to see what she’s up to nowadays, with the still gorgeous actress looking like she’s living a pretty swell life. Will she return to the big screen anytime soon? We’ll dig into that in What Happened to Denise Richards, which is written (with Mathew Plale), narrated and produced by Taylor James Johnson, and edited by Kier Gomes/
What’s your favorite Denise Richards role? Let us know in the comments!