Estella Warren became a household name in the late 1990s and early 2000s. She was known for international modeling with the likes of Chanel, as well as for Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes and early 2000’s movies. But what has she been up to since then?
Whatever happened to Estella Warren from Planet of the Apes? Is she still acting? Is she married? Read on to get answers to these questions and more!
Early Days
Estella was born Estella Dawn Warren in Peterborough (Ontario, Canada). Her mother was an elementary school principal, and her father was a car salesman. She’s the youngest of three children (two older sisters).
As a child, Estella was a champion swimmer. At only twelve years old she moved to Toronto to begin training with the national team. She won Junior World Championships as part of Team Canada in 1993, and placed third in the Junior World Championships in 1995 (as well as winning again with Team Canada).
Although she had great success swimming, Estella began modeling in 1994. She was introduced to famous photographer Ellen Von Unwerth, who booked her for Italian Vogue. She ended up doing huge perfume campaigns for Cacharel and Chanel No. 5, the latter of which was shot by Luc Besson.
Later in the 1990s, she appeared on many magazine covers, including Elle, Vanity Fair, Cosmopolitan, and Vogue. In addition to television ads for Chanel No. 5, she stayed in the limelight with the #1 ranking on Maxim’s Hot 100 List in 2000.
Estella built upon her modeling success by exploring the world of acting, which we’ll cover next, particularly her big break, Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes.
Planet of the Apes
Planet of the Apes is a long-running series, ever since the novel by Pierre Boulle in 1963. Tim Burton’s version was the fruit of a long period of development, with different actors, writers, producers, and directors all involved. Eventually, Tim Burton would take over and Mark Wahlberg was chosen as the lead.
The film takes place in 2029 on the U.S. Space Station Oberon, where Leo Davidson trains apes for space missions. During an electromagnetic storm, he flees in a space pod. Eventually, he ends up in 5021 A.D., in a world run by apes who speak English and use humans as slaves.
After many travails, Leo eventually links up with Pericles, his former ape companion, and travels back in time through the same storm. When he arrives, however, he sees that the world has changed. Instead of the Lincoln Memorial, the monument is for one of the apes he encountered during his time travel. The world has become run by apes, just as it was in the future.
In the film, Estella Warren plays a slave who develops an attraction for Leo, played by Wahlberg. Her acting was not particularly acclaimed. In fact, she was nominated for a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actress.
While Planet of the Apes was a box-office hit, grossing $360 million on a $100 million budget, it received mixed reviews and a sequel was never made. Instead, the series was relaunched in 2011 with Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
After Planet of the Apes
After Planet of the Apes, Estella continued acting. Many of her biggest roles came around this time, including the films Perfume, Driven, and Tangled, all of which came out in 2001 (like Planet of the Apes). This was indeed a very busy time for Estella, as she was also modeling.
In 2003, was in the Oscar-nominated film The Cooler with William H. Macy, as well as Kangaroo Jack. She then played small parts in a variety of movies. Two of her bigger roles from this period were in Blue Seduction and Beauty and the Beast (both 2009). She also has earned multiple TV credits on huge shows, including That ‘70s Show, Law & Order: SVU, Ghost Whisperer, and Mental (2003-2009).
She has also appeared in music videos, notably Dr. Dre’s “I Need a Doctor,” feat. Eminem and Skylar Grey.
Her last acting credits come from 2019, and it is unclear whether Estella is still pursuing acting or not.
What is Estella Warren Doing Now?
Since she has not received any acting credits since 2019, it is unclear if Estella Warren is still pursuing acting.
Due to her high-profile modeling career starting in the mid-late 1990s, and her acting success in the early 2000s, Estella probably earned enough money to retire from acting. This is speculation, however, as she has not spoken out about her acting career or her finances.
Unfortunately, Estella has been in the headlines in recent years for more bad than good. For example, she was arrested on a DUI in 2011 and was subsequently charged with four misdemeanor counts, including hit-and-run driving, driving under the influence of alcohol, resisting arrest, and battery on a police officer. In 2012, she was sentenced to probation and ordered to attend an alcohol counseling program.
Then, in 2017, she was arrested for misdemeanor domestic violence for allegedly throwing a cleaning solution at her boyfriend.
In 2018, Warren reportedly pleaded with her landlord not to call the Sheriff’s deputies after she was instructed to leave a Los Angeles apartment she had been renting. The property owner, Jack Bitton, who is also a real estate agent, stated that a judge had ordered Warren to vacate the one-bedroom unit due to her failure to pay rent for five months.
Warren managed to vacate the apartment before the scheduled eviction by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies.
An Instagram account reported to be Estealla’s, shows an update on Feb 14, 2023, with Estella posing with her dog.