Early life

Hunter was born in Glenfield, a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. Her parents divorced when she was still a child. Wanting to be a ballet dancer, she was diagnosed with a rare blood disease as a teenager, which curtailed her dancing ambitions.

Modeling career

External images

Hunter's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover from 14 February 1994

Hunter's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue cover from 17 February 2006

Hunter began her career at age 17, modeling in Australia and New Zealand, appearing in Australian Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and for various campaigns throughout New Zealand and Australia. She was quickly snapped up by Ford Models and immediately embarked on a successful career, landing the Cover Girl cosmetics contract and becoming the spokesperson for the company. Hunter rose to global prominence after posing as a Sports Illustrated model in 1989. She subsequently appeared on magazine covers, including Cosmopolitan and on the 1994 "Dream Team" cover of Sports Illustrated's annual swimsuit issue. Hunter also graced the cover of Vogue Italia, Australian Vogue, American and international editions of Elle and Dutch Harper's Bazaar.

Hunter posed nude for a cover-featured Playboy pictorial published in April 2004.

Hunter is signed to Ford Models in New York, Select Model Management in London, and Chadwick Models in Sydney, Australia.

Film and television

Hunter first appeared on television in the 1980s in an advertisement for Tip Top's "Trumpet" ice-cream.

Hunter guest starred in a 1997 episode of The Drew Carey Show as herself. She has appeared in several independent films, including 1999's A Walk in the Park and 2000's Two Shades of Blue, an erotic thriller with Marlee Matlin. She stars as a lesbian cook doling out relationship advice in the award winning indie film La Cucina. She had a brief appearance as a sexy soccer mom in Dennis Dugan's The Benchwarmers (2006) and also played a sultry, bikini-clad mother in the music video for Fountains of Wayne's 2003 song "Stacy's Mom."

Hunter appeared on a 2005 celebrity episode of Lingo, where she and her partner Trista Rehn split $US30,000 for charity. Hunter is an ambassador to The Born Free Foundation, and established the Rachel Hunter Lowland Gorilla Fund. Hunter also appeared as herself in the 2004 Christmas Special of The Vicar of Dibley. She also starred in Confessions of a Go-Go Girl (2008), The Perfect Assistant (2008), the science fiction TV movies Piranhaconda (2011) and Swamp Volcano, aka Miami Magma (2012).

She appeared as a judge on New Zealand's Got Talent from 2012 to 2013. In 2015, Hunter fronted her own television series titled "Rachel Hunter's Tour of Beauty" for TV One where she traveled the world to discover what beauty meant in countries around the world.

Film and television work

Title	Role	Year
Rachel Hunter's Tour of Beauty	Herself	2015
Her Infidelity	Lily	2015
Soul Mates	Carly	2014
Dancing with the Stars (U.S. TV series)	Herself	2005
The Banksters, Madoff with America	Mimi	2013
New Zealand's Got Talent	Herself	2012-13
Antoinette Vitrini	2012
RuPaul's All Stars Drag Race (season 1)	Herself	2012
Awakening World (Documentary)	Herself	2012
Pirhanaconda	Talia	2012
A Matter of Justice	Nicole Ibiza	2011
Miami Magma	Antoinette	2011
The Brazen Bull	Det. Vinyec	2010
Gravity (TV Series)	Shawna	2010
The 2010 World Music Awards (TV Special)	Herself	2010
10 Things I Hate About You (TV Series)	Herself	2010
She's Got the Look (TV Series)	Guest Judge	2008-2010
Black Widow	Dr. Laura	2010
Sunrise (TV Series)	Herself	2010
Perfect Catch (TV Series)	Herself	2010
The Smoking Gun Presents: World's Dumbest	Herself	2009
Entertainment Tonight	Herself	2009
Jordon Saffron: Taste This!	Nikki	2009
Loose Women (TV Series)	Herself	2008
Celebrity Circus (TV Series)	Herself	2008
Confessions of a Go-Go Girl	Donna	2008
The Perfect Assistant	Judith	2008
La cucina	Jude	2007
Phenomenon (TV Series)	Herself	2007
Canada A.M. (TV Series)	Herself	2007
7-10 Split	Chiropractor	2007
Mexican American	Jacqueline	2007
Dead Write	Jade	2007
The Morning Show with Mike & Juliet (TV Series)	Herself	2007
Ozzie	Beth Morton	2006
Celebrity Paranormal Project (TV Series)	Herself	2006
Make Me a Supermodel (TV Series)	Herself	2006
The Sharon Osbourne Show (TV Series)	Herself	2006
The Tyra Banks Show (TV Series)	Herself	2005-2006
You Can't Fire Me, I'm Famous (TV Series)	Herself	2006
Howard Stern on Demand (TV Series)	Herself	2006
Style Me (TV Series)	Herself	2006
Playboy: Celebrity Centerfolds (TV Movie Documentary)	Herself	2006
Keith Barry: Extraordinary (TV Movie)	Herself	2006
Sports Illustrated: Swimsuit 2006 (TV Movie)	Herself	2006
Fox and Friends (TV Series)	Herself	2006
Graham Norton's Bigger Picture (TV Series)	Herself	2006
The Benchwarmers	Hot Mother	2006
I.R.A.: King of Nothing	British Intelligence Agent	2006
The Tony Danza Show (TV Series)	Herself	2006
MADtv (TV Series)	Herself	2006
The 32nd Annual People's Choice Awards (TV Special Documentary)	Herself	2006
E! True Hollywood Story (TV Series Documentary)	Herself	2006
Final Move	Iris Quarrie	2006
Freezerburn	Holly Hardin	2005
You and Your Stupid Mate	Karen	2005
MorphMan	Hayley Anderson	2005
Strictly Come Dancing (TV Series)	Herself	2005
Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two (TV Series Documentary)	Herself	2005
Lingo (TV Series)	Herself	2005
Living with Fran (TV Series)	Herself	2005
The 2005 World Music Awards (TV Special)	Herself	2005
Richard and Judy (TV Series)	Herself	2005
Bra Wars: Boom or Bust (Documentary)	Herself	2005
Sports Illustrated 40th Anniversary Swimsuit Special: American Beauty (Documentary)	Herself	2004
Christmas in Tinseltown (TV Short Documentary)	Herself	2004
The Real Gilligan's Island (TV Series)	Herself	2004
FilmFakers (TV Series)	Herself	2004
On-Air with Ryan Seacrest (TV Series)	Herself	2004
Howard Stern (TV Series)	Herself	2000-2004
This Morning (TV Series)	Herself	2004
10 Things Every Guy Should Experience (TV Series Documentary)	Herself	2004
Making the Video (TV Series Documentary)	Stacy's Mom	2004
The Vicar of Dibley	Herself	2004
El padrino	Newscaster	2004
Haunted Lighthouse (short)	Rich Widow	2003
Tussen de sterren (TV Documentary)	Herself	2003
V Graham Norton	Herself	2003
Today with Des and Mel (TV Series)	Herself	2003
The Late Late Show (TV Series)	Herself	2003
Are You Hot? The Search for America's Sexiest People	Herself	2003
VH-1 Where Are They Now (TV Series Documentary)	Herself	2002
Redemption of the Ghost	Gloria	2002
Rock Star	A.C.'s Wife	2001
Everyday Elegance: Make Room for Baby (TV Series)	Herself	2001
An All-Star Tribute to Brian Wilson (TV Movie Documentary)	Herself	2001
The Howard Stern Radio Show (TV Series)	Herself	2000-2001
Pendulum	Amanda Reeve	2001
Boys Klub	The Goddess	2001
MacArthur Park	Karen	2001
Best Actress (TV Movie)	Fiona Covington	2000
VH1 Divas 2000: A Tribute to Diana Ross (TV Special)	Herself	2000
Stars in Their Eyes (TV Series)	Herself / Marilyn Monroe	2000
TFI Friday (TV Series)	Herself	1996-2000
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (TV Special)	Herself	2000
Bra Wars (TV Movie Documentary)	Herself	2000
Style World (TV Series)	Herself	2000
Tripfall	Gina Williams	2000
A Walk in the Park	Sally's Sister	1999
Winding Roads	Kelly Simmons	1999
Two Shades of Blue	Susan Price	1999
Suddenly Susan (TV Series)	Meegan Garrity	1999
Just a Little Harmless Sex	Marilyn	1998
The Drew Carey Show (TV Series)	Herself	1997
MTV Music Video Awards 1996 (TV Special)	Herself	1996
Very Important Pennis (TV Series)	Herself	1996
The Oprah Winfrey Show (TV Series)	Herself	1995
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (TV Series)	Herself	1994-1995
CBS This Morning (TV Series)	Herself	1995
Ford Supermodel of the World (TV Movie)	Herself	1995
Mad About You (TV Series)	Herself	1995
Sports Illustrated 1994 Swimsuit Issue Video (Video Documentary)	Herself	1994
1993 MTV Movie Awards (TV Special)	Herself	1993
Good Morning America (TV Series)	Herself	1993
The 1993 World Music Awards (TV Special)	Herself	1993
Vicki! (TV Series)	Herself	1992
Shortland Street (TV Series)	Herself	1992
The 33rd Annual Grammy Awards (TV Special)	Herself	1991
Ford Supermodel of the World 1991 (TV Special)	Herself	1991
Late Night with David Letterman (TV Series)	Herself	1990
Making of the Sports Illustrated 25th Anniversary Swimsuit Issue	Herself	1989

Personal life

In the late 1980s Hunter lived with rock musician Kip Winger.

At the age of 21, Hunter met rock star Rod Stewart, 24 years her senior, and they were married on 15 December 1990. Together they have two children, Renee and Liam, but separated in January 1999 and their divorce was finalized on 2 November 2006.

Hunter was engaged to NHL hockey player Jarret Stoll of the Los Angeles Kings, 13 years her junior, and they planned to marry in August 2009, but the wedding was called off.

Charities

Rachel Hunter supports the following charitable causes: Children, Cancer, AIDS.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]