Everywhere you look — it’s the Olsens! Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen got their start as child actresses before taking the fashion world by storm.
The sisters famously took turns starring as Michelle Tanner on Full House from 1987 to 1995. While winning over fans on the beloved sitcom, the fraternal twins began appearing in their own films, including Double, Double, Toil and Trouble and How the West Was Fun.
As their following grew, their careers did too, with roles in It Takes Two, Passport to Paris, Our Lips Are Sealed, Holiday in the Sun and So Little Time. Their final joint movie, New York Minute, debuted in 2004.
Mary-Kate and Ashley ultimately retired from acting to pursue fashion design. They founded The Row in 2006 and Elizabeth and James in 2007, simultaneously retreating from the spotlight to gain more privacy.
The siblings rarely make public appearances or give interviews, but they made an exception in 2018 when they opened up to WSJ. Magazine about their partnership.
“It’s been 32 years of learning how to communicate,” Ashley explained at the time, comparing their bond to “a marriage and a partnership. We have had ups and downs.”
While she added that the two “do everything together,” Mary-Kate chimed in, “We came out of the womb doing that.”
Ashley also revealed why the pair opt to let their work speak for itself. “We’re not product pushers,” she said. “I don’t know if it’s because of the way we grew up — we just don’t like talking about ourselves or talking about what we’re doing. … It’s not really our approach.”
Mary-Kate, for her part, tied the knot with Olivier Sarkozy in November 2015, allowing her to settle into a quiet personal life. “I think we’re lucky. [Working hard] comes quite naturally for us. We don’t need so much time to sit and think and ponder,” she told Net-a-Porter’s The Edit of herself and Ashley in 2017. “But then I have a husband, two stepkids and a life; I have to go home and cook dinner. I ride horses on the weekends. You find the thing that helps you relax, and if you don’t have it, you have to look for it. Or you get burned out, and then you’re not productive.”
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News of the Beastly star’s split from the banker broke in May 2020. Us Weekly exclusively reported at the time that Mary-Kate had an “ironclad prenup” to protect “her business interests and fortune.” The exes finalized their divorce in January 2021.
From TV to the red carpet, scroll through the gallery below to see photos of the twins over the years.
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