Model of the Week: Gisele Bundchen

Gisele Caroline Bündchen, born 20 July 1980, is a Brazilian fashion model and occasional film actress. She is the goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Environment Programme. In the late 1990s, Bündchen became the first in a wave of Brazilian models to find international success. In 1999, Vogue magazine dubbed her “The Return of the Sexy Model” and she was credited with ending the “heroin chic” era of modeling. Bündchen was one of Victoria’s Secret Angels from 2000 until mid-2007. Since 2004, she has been the highest-paid model in the world and the sixteenth richest woman in the entertainment industry (as of 2007) with an estimated $150 million fortune.

Models Claudia Schiffer and Naomi Campbell have stated that Bündchen is the only true remaining “supermodel” and according to Forbes she may become the world’s first ever billionaire supermodel. In June 2011, Forbes magazine estimated that Bundchen’s total earnings over the last 10 years have passed the $250 million mark. As an occasional actress, she had supporting roles in Taxi (2004) and The Devil Wears Prada (2006). From 2000 to 2005, Bündchen was in a much-publicized relationship with American actor Leonardo DiCaprio. She married New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in 2009.