Early life

Lenoir was born in Les Ulis, Essonne, France. Her mother comes from the French island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean, and has Malagasy ancestry. Her father is a retired French electrician who later divorced her mother. Her family moved first to Gif-sur-Yvette and then to Palaiseau where she was discovered and started her career in modelling.

Career

Growing up in a banlieue district near Paris, which she describes as a "ghetto", Lenoir was first spotted at the age of 17 in 1997 when she was approached by a Ford booker in a post office. She signed with L'Oréal in 1997, and has since appeared in their advertisements alongside Laetitia Casta and long-term model and actress Andie MacDowell. She has also worked for Victoria's Secret, Gap, Next, and many others.

Lenoir was the face of UK high-street retailer Marks & Spencer, for four years until Christmas 2009 and was seen in various British magazines and billboards alongside fellow models Twiggy and Laura Bailey. Lenoir returned to Marks & Spencer advertising in 2012 where she is seen "enjoying a selection of quintessentially British pastimes".

In 2007, Lenoir featured in the hit film Rush Hour 3 alongside actors Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. In 2009, Lenoir featured in the music video for Usher's single "Hey Daddy (Daddy's Home)". As of April 2011 she was represented by Models 1.

Personal life

After a relationship with rapper Stomy Bugsy, she lived with international football player Claude Makélélé of Paris Saint-Germain. They have a son, Kelyan Makélélé (born February 2, 2005). The couple split in early 2009. Despite widespread reports Lenoir was married to Makélélé, she wrote a blog in 2009 clarifying their former relationship, saying: "I’m not and have never been married. I do have a son. I have a wonderful baby’s father and have a great relationship with him, however I’ve been single for some time now."

Suicide attempt

On May 9, 2010, Lenoir was found unconscious, after a suspected suicide attempt in a park near her Paris home, by a man walking his dog. She was rushed to hospital where large quantities of drugs and alcohol were found in her system. She spoke about the suicide attempt in a February 2011 interview with Britain's Guardian Weekend magazine, admitting she'd done 'something really, really stupid'. Some have referred to the incident as a case in a "series of suicidal tragedies" ongoing in the fashion industry at the time, along with the suicides of Ambrose Olsen, Daul Kim, Hayley Kohle, and Ruslana Korshunova.

Television

• Tout le monde en parle - (3 episodes, 2000-2003)
• 20h10 pétantes - (1 episode, 2004)
• French Beauty - (2005)
• On n'est pas couché - (1 episode, 11 June 2007)
• Britain's Next Top Model, Cycle 6 - (1 episode, 19 July 2010)
• Danse avec les stars - contestant (2013)

She hosted a show on Trace TV for two years. She appears in all three Marks and Spencer Christmas TV adverts for 2009, broadcast in both Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Director	Notes
2002	Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra	Chamandra	Alain Chabat
2003	Gomez & Tavarès	Gina	Gilles Paquet-Brenner
2004	After the Sunset	Mooré's Girl	Brett Ratner
	Jeff et Léo, flics et jumeaux	Anna	Étienne Dhaene	TV Series (1 Episode)
2006	The Valet	Karine	Francis Veber
2007	Rush Hour 3	Genevieve	Brett Ratner (2)
	Gomez vs. Tavarès	Gina	Gilles Paquet-Brenner (2) & Cyril Sebas
2013	What Ze Teuf	Herself	Benjamin Euvrard	TV Series (1 Episode)
2014	Scènes de ménages	Isabelle	Francis Duquet	TV Series (1 Episode)
2015	The Transporter Refueled	Maissa	Camille Delamarre

[ Source: Wikipedia ]