WHO IS SHE?: This arresting Canadian fox gets her first starring role as the title neighbor in The Girl Next Door, a teen comedy of the Risky Business ilk. After high school senior Matt Kidman (Emile Hirsch) espies her undressing through her bedroom window, he recognizes the new girl next door as a porn starlet.

WHAT HAS SHE DONE?:
Cuthbert is best known as Kiefer Sutherland's perennially kidnapped daughter Kim Bauer in the Fox series 24. She had small roles as a party girl in Love Actually and as Luke Wilson's girlfriend in Old School.

WHY DO WE CARE?: The smokin' blonde's sizzle is downplayed on 24, but she's on fire on the big screen. Under the influence of Paris Hilton, her co-star in next year's House of Wax, we expect to see more of Cuthbert. Much more. Love thy neighbor.

Playboy.com: With your sexy long hair in the movie, you look much different than with your shorter conservative coif on 24. Is this longer hair your real hair?

Elisha Cuthbert: This isn't real. [Indicating her hair extensions] These are real! [Indicating her chest]

PB: In The Girl Next Door, your character did porn. In 24 you were kidnapped by your boyfriend and tracked through the woods by a cougar. What is the craziest thing you've done in real life?

EC: Moving to L.A. at 17. That was a big step for me, because I'd been working in Canada for a long time, and there was no real reason to leave, except for something was telling me I should. It was scary, like starting over.

PB: Your character has at least two semi-nude scenes in the movie: in the window, stripping down to her panties for bed, and dropping her robe from behind in the porno movie-within-the-movie. Not to mention a striptease in the street. How did you explain The Girl Next Door to your family?

EC: I said to them, "It's a lot of things. First off, it's a teen comedy. It's about a teenager going through what every teenager goes through, I suppose. It's also reminiscent of what teen comedies were in the '80s. Like 16 Candles and Risky Business." My parents saw it when I was in Montreal doing voiceovers. At first my dad was really quiet, then his first reaction was, "Well, she didn't show everything."

PB: Did your Old School co-star Will Farrell -- who memorably streaked through town to re-live his college glory -- give you any advice before doing a nude scene of your own?

EC: No. He's really quiet. He's kind of shy, but, man, when those cameras come on, he's a character. He's wild.
PB: So, how do you prepare yourself for stripping down?

EC: You really don't. You kind of just close your eyes and hope it works out. [Laughs] The window scene, which is as far as I push it nudity-wise in The Girl Next Door, is the second time you see my character in the entire film. My main point with the director was, if I show all myself the second time you see this character, what's to look forward to and what's Matt's drive for the entire film to come?

PB: Did you use a body double at any point?

EC: We did. We used a double for the clip of me in the porn film. I take off my robe and it's a shot of me from the back. You don't really see anything. Originally you did, but then they opted not to use the full shot. That wasn't my body. The front was, but the back wasn't. In the window it was me.

PB: What kind of research did you do? Did you watch adult movies?

EC: No. A lot of porn magazines were scattered all over the hair and makeup trailers. You kind of get numb to it after a while. You're just like, "Oh, that's good hair." That's how we came up with the red wig and the false eyelashes. Everything just seemed larger than life.

PB: In 24 you date an imperious secret agent. In Girl Next Door you go for a high school kid. What's your type in real life?

EC: Someone who's got their stuff together. I like someone who's got a plan and an idea for themselves. It doesn't have to be anything crazy. Someone who is down to earth and normal and fun. There is a lot of give and take and compromise when you're in a relationship, and if they're willing to listen, then I think that's a really nice quality to have.

PB: When have you risked everything for the person that you love?

EC: I don't think I've plunged into that undertaking yet. I haven't risked it all. You try and do nice things. When you're an actor it's hard because you're always working and you're always traveling and doing lots of things. I think it's nice just to make that person feel connected.

PB: Do you hang out with your 24 co-stars at night?

EC: I like to separate myself a little bit or else it blends into one long day for me. Carlos Bernard (who plays Kim's boss Tony Almeida) and I had worked till two in the morning, then we got up the next day to do it again. As we got going, I thought, "Did I even go home?" We're in the exact same position, in the exact same clothes doing the exact same scene.

PB: What precautions would you give teenagers to not get kidnapped as often as Kim Bauer?

EC: Just watch the show and do the opposite of what I did. I hope no one gets attacked by any cougars. [Laughs] There's actually been reports on the news of that going on in L.A. It's weird because you don't think you're going to sit and watch the news and go, "I can relate to that." Unfortunately, I can.

Photo Credit: ©2004 by Monarchy Enterprises S.a.r.l.