Background:

American model and actress Carré Otis came to prominence after doing the cover of “French Elle” in 1986. She continued to appear in many magazine covers and advertising ads but slowed down after her marriage to Mickey Rourke. The couple met while they starred together in the 1989 erotic film, “Wild Orchid,”  in which she was nominated for a Razzie Award for her debut performance. The two reunited for “Exit in Red” (1996) before divorcing in 1998. She also acted in the film “Simon Says” (1998) and the made for TV film “Going Back” (2001). Otis resumed her modeling career step by step after the divorce, and she now makes a name for herself as a plus sized fashion model.  

In October 2011, Otis published a memoir called “Beauty Disrupted: A Memoir,” which she wrote with Hugo Schwyzer.

Otis has been married twice. Her first marriage to actor Mickey Rourke (born September 16, 1952) lasted for six years from 1992 to 1998. She is currently married to Matthew Sutton and has two daughters, Jade (born 2006) and Kaya (born 2008). She is a Buddhist. She has five tattoos: a rose and a Japanese peace sign on her right ankle; a Tibetan symbol on her left ankle; an angel on her back; and a Native American Thunderbird on her wrist.


Rourke's Ex

Childhood and Family:

In San Francisco, California, Carré Brennan Otis was born on September 28, 1968. Her father Morrow was an attorney, while her mother Carol was a professional fund raiser. She has an older sister,  Chrissie, a modeling agent, and a younger brother, Jordan Otis, an assistant director. Carré attended Marin Academy in San Rafael, California and the John Woolman School in Nevada City, California. She is a dyslexic.    

Carré began dating her “Wild Orchid” costar Mickey Rourke shortly after the release of the film. The couple married on June 26, 1992. In 1994, Rourke was arrested for spousal abuse. the charges were later dropped and the couple reconciled. Carré had a long time battle with bulimia and drug dependency, and almost died from heroin overdose. With the help of Rourke, she was able to become sober from heroin in 1994, though her struggles with other substances continued until 1996. Carré and Rourke divorced in December 1998. For several years before and during their marriage, Rourke rejected to allow Carré to model. He used to force her to decline lucrative chances and threaten photographers and agents with whom Carré had work.

In May 2005, while hiking, Carré met Matthew Sutton, an environmental scientist. They married later that same year in December. The couple welcomed their first child, daughter Jade, on November 11, 2006. Their second daughter, Kaya, was born in 2008. The family curreently live in Colorado.


French Elle

Career:

Carré Otis started modeling as a teenager. She was spotted by in San Francisco, CA and moved to New York City at age 15 to work more professionally. She was first signed to Elite Model Agency by John Casablancas.

Otis experienced her first big break when she landed the cover of “French Elle” in April 1986. For the next several years, she appeared on covers of “Vogue,” “Harper's Bazaar,” “Cosmopolitan,” “Allure,” “Mirabella” and “Marie Claire” in the United States and other countries. Otis also did ads for “Guess” jeans (1988-1989), “Calvin Klein” jeans (1991-1992) and “Ray Ban Sunglasses” (1992).

Her success in modeling subsequently opened the chances to break into the film industry, and in 1989, Carré was cast along with Mickey Rourke and Jacqueline Bisset in the erotic drama “Wild Orchid” (released in the US in 1990), directed by Zalman King. Starring Emily Reed, she was nominated for a 1991 Razzie Award for Worst New Star for her performance. Otis landed her second film role later in “Exit in Red” (1996), a thriller/drama directed by Yurek Bogayevicz and starring Rourke, whom she had married in 1992. She played the supporting role of Kate in the film. 1996 also saw Otis appear in the Pirelli calendar and do print ad for Donna Karen.

Otis appeared in print ads for Rado Watches in 1997 and Easy Spirit sneakers in 1998. She returned to features when she was cast as Elaine Johnston in the independent film “Simon Says” (1998), which was directed and written by Jim O'Malley and starring Zack Hopkins, Jason Andrews and Réal Andrews.

After her marriage to Rourke ended, she gradually restarted modeling. Her face graces the covers of “New Woman,” “San Francisco” and “Gear,” among other magazines. In 2000, at age 32, Otis appeared in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition, making her the  oldest models to do so. The same year, she also was featured in Playboy magazine, which marked her  first appearance on the magazine since 1990.

In 2001, Otis made her television film debut as Kathleen in the Sidney J. Furie directed drama/war “Going Back,” starring Casper Van Dien, Jaimz Woolvett and Bobby Hosea.  

Around the same period, Otis began a long suffering recovery from her eating disorder. As part of the recovery, she got a weight gain that opened her doors  to work as a plus sized model. She is perhaps best recognized as the face for iconic Marina Rinaldi clothing (of MaxMara Group) and in commentary and editorials for Mode Magazine. In 2003, she became the spokesperson for  the National Eating Disorders Awareness Week.

In 2005, Otis represented the Breil jewelry line. The same year, she also appeared in television commercial for Twigy in Turkey.  

On October 11, 2011, Otis was a guest in the talk show “Anderson,”  hosted by Anderson Cooper. In the following month, she appeared in “Piers Morgan Tonight.”


Awards:

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