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Born into a Hollywood family, gorgeous Kate Hudson is the second child of comedienne-singer Bill Hudson and bubbly actress Goldie Hawn. Sadly, within months of her birth, Hudson’s folks split up. She and her older brother visited their father in Malibu until he moved to Portland, reportedly without telling his kids. Not surprisingly, when Hudson talks to the media about her father, her responses range from fierce to forgiving.

It wasn’t long before Goldie’s “Swing-Shift” co-star Kurt Russell filled the fatherly role with the two tying the knot in 1983. Russell’s addition to the Hudson household brought stability and Hudson says that after Russell married her mother she had a normal childhood. In an interview with American magazine “Detour” she was quoted as saying: "Kurt is a saviour who came into my life".

With two actors in the house, it’s not surprising that Hudson had ambitions to be a star from an early age. She spent hours on movie sets or parading around the house, singing selections from “Annie” and “Flashdance”, sure that showbiz was her destiny. Her parents, however, were cautious to lend their support.

Hudson’s first real acting break came while mom Goldie was filming “Wildcats” (1986), when the youngster landed the job as the stand-in. Just four years later, Kate was making her stage debut at the Santa Monica Playhouse, but suffered a massive bout of stage fright. She later confessed to Rolling Stone magazine that she put on a better performance in her bedroom faking a headache than she would have on-stage.

By the mid-90s, Hudson had graduated from the Crossroads School of Arts and Sciences and was then accepted to the New York University's renowned Tisch School of Drama. The aspirant actress tried to break her way onto the Hollywood scene, auditioning for a role in step-dad Kurt Russell’s movie “Escape from L.A.” (1996). She failed to get a role, but landed a spot appearance on a series final of “Part of Five”.

Not many people noticed Hudson until she appeared in the “200 Cigarettes” (1999), along side Christina Ricci, the Affleck brothers, and Courtney Love. This was to be her breakthrough performance and it didn’t take long before comparisons with her famous mom were doing the rounds.

It was thanks to mom's good genes and her own charm that Hudson was among People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People of 1999. Her reputation firmly established, the young actress accepted the lead in another independent flick, “About Adam”, and then completed a teen psychological thriller, ‘Gossip”.

Moviegoers got to see Kate in action in three other films in 2000: “About Adam”; “Dr T and the women”, where she played the character of an engaged second-string Dallas Cowboy cheerleader, and “Gossip”, a teen psychological thriller.

The same year, Hudson jumped at the chance to work with Cameron Crowe on “Almost Famous”, even turning down parts in other films just to play a minor part as lead character William’s older sister. In the end, Crowe made the wise decision of casting the stunning actress as Penny Lane, a band groupie. As it turned out, Hudson went on to pick up a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress for her outstanding performance in this rock and roll flick.

Next up, Hudson will be working on the adaptation of humorist Dave Barry's first novel, “Big Trouble”, and she has also been cast opposite Wes Bentley (“American Beauty”) and “Heath Ledger (“The Patriot”) in the drama “Four Feathers”.

If mom is anything to go by, Kate Hudson is here to stay. At the tender age of 21, with a Golden Globe under her belt, she is firmly on her way to great fame.

Have a look at the "Almost Famous" web site.