Thanks to Starbee

Ft Lauderdale FL Sun Sentinel 10/7/01

Jessica Alba gives a terrific performance as Max, the genetically engineered superwoman in Dark Angel. How did she get so buffed for the role?

The usual way – a regimen of backbreaking workouts. The 20-year old actress works with a trainer seven days a week, doing crunches, lunges and treadmill sessions.

Alba admits there is nothing in her background that prepared her for her role as the mighty Max. Her heritage is a mixture of Canadian, Danish, Italian and Spanish. An Air Force brat, she was raised in California and began taking acting lessons at 12. Her break came a year later, when she was hired for a small role in the film comedy Camp Nowhere, then was promoted to a leading role when an actress dropped out. "I’d like to think it was because of my talent,” she says,” but actually it was because my hair matched that of the previous actress, making it easier to match up the shots.”