Brigitte Nielsen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Brigitte Nielsen
Nielsen at London Fashion Week in 2010
Born	Gitte Nielsen (1963-07-15) 15 July 1963 (age 61) Rødovre, Denmark
Occupation	Actress model singer
Years active	1984–present
Spouse(s)	Kasper Winding ​ ​ (m. 1983; div. 1984)​ Sylvester Stallone ​ ​ (m. 1985; div. 1987)​ Sebastian Copeland ​ ​ (m. 1990; div. 1992)​ Raoul Meyer ​ ​ (m. 1993; div. 2005)​ Mattia Dessì ​ (m. 2006)​
Partner(s)	Mark Gastineau (1988–1990) Flavor Flav (2004–2005)
Children	5

Brigitte Nielsen (born Gitte Nielsen on 15 July 1963) is a famous Danish actress, model, and singer. She started her career as a model, working with well-known photographers like Greg Gorman and Helmut Newton.

Brigitte became famous for her roles in movies like Red Sonja and Rocky IV in 1985. She even returned to the Rocky series in Creed II in 2018. She also starred in the 1986 film Cobra with her then-husband Sylvester Stallone. Later, she played a villain in Beverly Hills Cop II (1987) and the Black Witch in the Italian film series Fantaghirò in the 1990s. Over the years, Brigitte has also hosted TV shows and appeared in many reality shows.

Early Life and Background

Brigitte Nielsen was born Gitte Nielsen in Rødovre, Denmark. Her mother, Hanne, was a librarian, and her father, Svend Nielsen, was an engineer.

Exploring Her Career

Modelling Work

Brigitte Nielsen is very tall, standing at about 1.83 meters (6 feet). In the early 1980s, she began her career as a model. She was photographed by famous artists such as Greg Gorman and Helmut Newton. Because of her height and strong presence, the media often called her an "Amazon." In the late 1980s, Marvel Comics even asked her to pose as the comic book character She-Hulk.

Acting Roles

Brigitte started acting in 1985 with the fantasy film Red Sonja, where she starred alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger. In the same year, she married Sylvester Stallone. They appeared together in two films, Rocky IV and Cobra, before they divorced in 1987.

In 1987, Brigitte played Karla Fry in the movie Beverly Hills Cop II with Eddie Murphy. She was also considered for the role of Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk in a movie that was planned but never made. She even posed for photos as the character.

She continued to act in many films, including 976-Evil II, The Double 0 Kid (1992), Chained Heat II (1993), Galaxis (1995), and Snowboard Academy (1997). She became very popular as the villainess, the Black Witch, in the Italian TV fantasy film Fantaghirò 2 and its sequels (1992–1996). Her character was so loved that she was brought back even after being planned to be written out.

In 2011, Brigitte lent her voice to the Danish animated comedy film Ronal the Barbarian. She also appeared in the horror movie Eldorado in 2012. In 2014, she starred in the science-fiction film Exodus and the action film Mercenaries. A big moment was in 2018 when she played Ludmilla Drago again in Creed II, a role she first played in Rocky IV. In 2022, she joined the TV series The Guardians of Justice as Anubis Queen.

Music and Writing

Brigitte Nielsen began her music career in 1987. Her first album, Every Body Tells a Story, was released that year. She also recorded a duet with Austrian pop star Falco called "Body Next to Body", which was a hit in Germany and Austria. Her second album, I'm the One... Nobody Else, came out in 1992.

She released some songs under the name "Gitta" to see if her music could succeed on its own. Her song "No More Turning Back" reached the Top 10 in Spain. She also collaborated with Ru Paul on the song "You're No Lady" in 2002.

Brigitte appeared in Michael Jackson's "Liberian Girl" music video in 1989. She was also in the music video for "Make Me Bad" by the metal band Korn in 2000. In 2009, she published her autobiography in Scandinavia, which became a bestseller in Denmark. It was later released in the United Kingdom as You Only Get One Life.

Nielsen performing at the 2012 Vienna Opera Ball

Television Appearances

Brigitte has hosted several TV shows in Italy, including Festival (1987) and the 1992 Sanremo Music Festival. She also hosted Retromarsh! (1996–1997) and ..la sai l'ultima? (1999). In Denmark, she hosted a talk show called Gittes venner.

She has been a contestant on many reality TV shows. In 2004, she appeared on the Italian version of The Mole and the VH1 reality show The Surreal Life. In 2005, she was a contestant on Britain's Celebrity Big Brother, finishing in third place. She also appeared in Flavor of Love in 2006.

In 2008, Brigitte had her own German TV show called Aus alt mach neu – Brigitte Nielsen in der Promi-Beauty-Klinik. This show was about her journey to refresh her look. It also aired in Italy.

In 2010, she was a celebrity contestant on the French reality show La Ferme Célébrités. She also took part in Let's Dance, the German version of Dancing with the Stars.

A big win for Brigitte was in 2012 when she won Ich bin ein Star – Holt mich hier raus!, the German version of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. She was crowned the "Jungle Queen" and was very popular with viewers. Since 2015, she has hosted her own talk show, Gitte Talks, on a Danish TV channel.

Personal Life

Brigitte Nielsen speaks several languages fluently, including Danish, English, German, and Italian. She also understands some French.

Family Life

Nielsen with Sylvester Stallone, Ronald and Nancy Reagan at the White House, 1985

Brigitte Nielsen has been married five times and has five children: four sons and one daughter. Her first marriage was to Kasper Winding from 1983 to 1984. They have a son named Julian Winding.

She later married actor Sylvester Stallone in 1985. Their marriage and divorce were widely reported in the news because they starred in movies together like Rocky IV and Cobra.

From 1988 to 1990, she had a relationship with American football player Mark Gastineau. They had a son named Killian Gastineau.

Between 1990 and 1992, she was married to director and photographer Sebastian Copeland.

Brigitte has two sons, Raoul Meyer Jr. and Douglas Meyer, with her fourth husband, Raoul Meyer.

In 2004 and 2005, she had a relationship with rapper Flavor Flav, whom she met on the reality show The Surreal Life.

Brigitte's current husband is Mattia Dessì, who was born in 1978. They got married in Malta in 2006. They live in Palm Springs. In June 2018, Brigitte gave birth to her daughter, Frida Dessì, when she was 54 years old.

Filmography

Film

Television

Discography

Albums

• 1987 Every Body Tells a Story
• 1992 I'm the One... Nobody Else
• 2008 Brigitte Nielsen (re-release of I'm the One... Nobody Else and Every Body Tells a Story)

Singles

• "Body Next to Body" – Falco meets Brigitte Nielsen; 1987; (No. 6 Austria, No. 22 Germany, No. 1 Japan)
• "Every Body Tells a Story"; 1987; (No. 38 Italy; No. 15 Germany)
• "Maybe"; 1988
• "Siento"; 1988 (South America only)
• "It's a Strange Love"; 1988
• "Rockin' Like a Radio"; 1990
• "My Girl (My Guy)"; 1991
• "How Could You Let Me Go?"; 1992
• "Work That Body"; 1993
• "No More Turning Back" (as Gitta); 2000; released by Jive; (No. 1 Spain, No. 1 Eurodance chart; No. 64 Netherlands, No. 54 UK)
• "Everybody's Turning Back" (as Gitta vs. Rozalla)
• "Tic Toc" (as Gitta); 2001; released by Blanco y Negro
• "You're No Lady" (as Gitta with Ru Paul); 2002; released by Do It Yourself; (No. 1 Spain)
• "Misery" (as Gitte Nielsen with Spleen United); 2012

See also

In Spanish: Brigitte Nielsen para niños