5 Things You Didn’t Know About Elisha Cuthbert

Jason LaVeris/WireImage
Jason LaVeris/WireImage

Although Canadian-born beauty Elisha Cuthbert has been acting since she was 9 years old, appearing in hit movies like "Old School" and "Love Actually," it was her role as Kim Bauer on "24" that made people sit up and take notice. Now everybody's favorite girl next door is starring as Alex, one of a group of friends trying to navigate love, life, and everything in between in the ABC hit "Happy Endings."

Shape magazine's February cover model spills her secrets on eating right, working out, and how she feels about turning 30 this year in the latest issue, on newsstands January 30. But there were a few fun facts that didn't make it to press—and were too good to keep to ourselves!

1. She speaks French. Cuthbert, who was born in Calgary, lived there until she was 11 years old, when her family packed their bags for Montreal. "We did a lot of moving around when I was younger," she says. "We lived in Vancouver for a while, and then Montreal, which was so foreign to us with everyone speaking French. It was wild!"

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2. She paints to relieve stress. "Sometimes when you've been acting for so long, you get burnt out on it," Cuthbert says. "Painting was always sort of my outlet. I work mostly in acrylics, but it's always different. I do a lot of portrait stuff." When she's not acting or painting, the blond bombshell can also be found cooking or hiking outdoors.

3. She's always traveling back and forth between L.A. and Toronto. Cuthbert, who is dating Toronto Maple Leafs' hockey player Dion Phaneuf, splits her time between the two cities and flies to Canada every weekend.

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4. She's not a fan of junk food. "I'm more likely to splurge on a savory dish than a sweet one," she says. "But that's because I'm not much of a junk-food eater. I think that comes from being on set so much and having the craft table that's full of doughnuts and sweets throughout the day."

5. But she does drink wine. "I used to drink a lot of Cabernet Sauvignon, which is a heavy, full wine," she says. "Lately, I've been drinking a lot of wines that don't have as much body to them."

To get more of Cuthbert's take on life, love, fitness, and food, make sure to pick up the February issue of Shape!

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