L i b r a i r i e . . .

G Q . . .

G e n t l e m e n ' s  Q u a r t e r l y . . .

4.20pm, Silver Lake

Eliza Dushku

Wired for sound, Sunset Blvd, February 23 2001

Age : 20

Born and raised : Boston Masachusetts

She fell into it,literally : "I was tagging along with my older brother on an audition and I fell and hit my face and got a bloody nose, turned into an instant drama queen and they were like, 'Who's the kid ?'"

Later she found Faith : the 'evil' slayer on Buffy. "It was only supposed to be five shows, but that turned into ten and then they asked me to stay for the season and I figured I'd have to get myself a place out here. I had to grow up fast."

Now she's a movie star : thanks to roles as a cheerleader in Bring It On ; as a wild child in Soul Survivors ; in college comedy The New Guy ; with Robert De Niro in City by the Sea.

Reaping the benefits : "It's extraordinary. My mother raised my three brothers and I on a $55,000 pay cheque a year. And when I look at the amounts of money they hand me I almost don't believe it's real. It's hard work but when you put it into perspective, I'm not doing brain surgery."