Who's That Girl? Meet "Captain America" Actress Hayley Atwell

Image via Complex Original

Hayley Atwell was born in London to an English motivational speaker named Allison and an American shaman named Star Touches Earth, a.k.a. Grant. OK, so she recently admitted to Esquire that her father "doesn't walk around in a loincloth or live in a tent or anything like that." Yet, "he does vision quests and sweat lodges," which she's participated in (while wearing a bikini). So, no, that guy in the photo above is not her dad—we don't even know who that guy is.

Only the most beautiful and talented women get to become Woody Allen's muses, so it's no surprise that, with her classic Hollywood-like looks, the iconic filmmaker was drawn to Atwell. But Cassandra's Dream didn't come easily. Atwell was less than a year out of film school and thought she bombed the audition. In fact, she claimed she was so shaken by the experience that she almost gave up acting right there. So, thank you, Woody Allen, for first scaring the drive out of her and then keeping her in show business. Oh, and for writing love scenes throughout the film.

Atwell has been in so many costume-heavy period dramas that it's possible many fans have only witnessed her act in a wig. Her repertoire: The Duchess, Mansfield Park, and Brideshead Revisited, just to name a few. So, it's no wonder that she was anxious to star in an action blockbuster (Captain America: The First Avenger) where she gets to wear cut-off jean camo shorts and a ripped T-shirt. Yet, ironically, Captain America is set in 1942. To what does she owe this period piece reputation? It must be her classic looks and casting directors wanting to see her in corsets.

Atwell is no stranger to filming love scenes watched by everyone on the set, including, presumably, the caterers. She has experienced such exposed action on the sets of The Pillars Of The Earth and Brideshead Revisited, and she says the experience is very "liberating". She must have had a change of heart after wearing the less liberating body stocking and control pants in Cassandra's Dream.

In 2009, Atwell starred in her first show at the West End (the London equivalent of New York's Broadway), Lindsay Posner's revival of A View From The Bridge. She played Catherine, an orphan taken in by an uncle who begins to have an inappropriate obsession with her. The role earned her a Laurence Olivier Award nomination, while it earned Scarlett Johannson (whom Atwell also lost a role to for The Other Bolelyn Girl), the Catherine of New York's version of the play, a Tony Award. We're hoping for some Avengers on-set catfight photos.

Earlier this year, Atwell traveled to Nicaragua for Christian Aid Week. There, she saw what the charity has been working on for twelve years: a coffee co-operative. The profit made from the now 700 coffee producers is being put back into the community for healthcare and education. In her travel blog, the actress admits that the reason she went was because she's "a big coffee drinker" and staying informed seemed both morally and ethically right. Meaning, she was perfectly cast in Captain America as a woman ready to stand up for the little guy.

Despite primarily being an actress, Atwell, who opted to attend the Guildhall School of Music and Drama over a chance to study theology and philosophy at Oxford, is also a published writer, and not in the way Snooki sense. As eloquent as she is classy, Atwell has contributed two articles Vogue, one being a behind-the-scenes look at Brideshead Revisited.

To take on the role of empowered army recruiter Peggy Carter, Atwell underwent an intense boot-camp to get into Nazi-ass-kicking shape. She stuck to a strict schedule of four-hour workouts (six days a week) and a high protein diet. Despite dropping a whole dress size, she says the training's effects on her mind were what struck her the most. Not only did she feel more alive, but her new borderline-superhuman body also developed the ability to quickly recover from hangovers (not to mention, combat beer gut).

Already in post-production, I, Anna is a suspense flick about a woman who can't remember meeting a dashing detective at a murder scene. Atwell stars alongside veteran favorites Charlotte Rampling and Gabriel Byrne, so the biggest mystery now is how much screen time fans will get of their new Hollywood crush. This past March, the movie's composer, Rob Lord, blogged about I, Anna's positive reception at the Berlin Film Festival, writing, "The project received more interest than any other film at the festival by quite a large margin." Anyone want to guess why?

The long awaited Jimi Hendrix biopic, with Andre 3000 pinned to star, may or may not be in the works (it's been a rumor nearly as long Andre's elusive solo rap album). The independent film has been trying to find its way to the big screen for years. In a recent interview with Esquire, Atwell dropped word that she's also pegged to the project, and that her team is going to "wait and see" about whether it'll ever happen or not. Until then, here's to the British beauty working consistently—we're not prepared for withdrawal.