Tragic Details About Denise Richards

Denise Richards was 15 years old, her family moved from a Chicago suburb to Southern California. After they settled in San Diego County, she set her sights on modeling and acting. She popped up in roles on many popular series such as "Saved By The Bell," "Seinfeld," and "Beverly Hills, 90210" before moving on to films like "Drop Dead Gorgeous," "Starship Troopers," and the very racy "Wild Things."

In the 1998 flick, Richards plays a high school student who is involved in a complicated extortion scheme. The movie, which includes a sex scene in which Richards appears topless, solidified her bombshell status — but this wasn't necessarily a total boon for her career. "There were definitely parts I couldn't get. I couldn't get cast as 'the girl next door' even though that was how I always saw myself. I didn't see myself as a sex symbol. I was a girl from Illinois," Richards told Smashing Interviews.

But even when Richards leaned into her sex appeal, she was criticized. Her performance in "The World Is Not Enough" garnered some unfavorable critiques, as many thought her skimpy wardrobe was silly for a nuclear scientist character. "It broke my heart that people were making fun of me," she told Variety. "If I wore a lab coat and pants and a suit, then [fans] would have been upset, like, 'Okay, why isn't she looking like a sexy Bond girl?'"