Jessica Alba's transformation from action star to billion-dollar business mogul

Some people in Hollywood are happy just being a pretty face. Not Jessica Alba! Not only is she a sought-after leading lady, but she's the brains behind eco-friendly brand the Honest Company. To celebrate her 35th birthday on April 28, 2016, Wonderwall.com is taking a look at how Jessica went from kicking butt on-screen to kicking butt in the boardroom.

Jessica Marie Alba was born on April 28, 1981, in Pomona, California, to parents Mark and Catherine. (Brother Joshua arrived two years later.) Her father's Air Force job caused the family to move around a lot, taking them from Southern California to Biloxi, Mississippi, to Del Rio, Texas, and back to SoCal -- all before she turned 9. Jessica was often sick during her childhood, suffering from asthma, collapsed lungs, pneumonia, a burst appendix and a cyst on her tonsils.

 Growing up, Jessica Alba's family was very religious and conservative: Her grandmother was a devoted Catholic, and her parents later became born-again Christians. "That was hard-core," she told Glamour in 2014. "I was into God. I really went for it, man." But as Jessica got older, she began to distance herself from the Church, notably because of its stance on homosexuality and women's rights. "I was like, 'These are not my people,'" Jessica told the magazine. "The further I got into it, it wasn't for me. But I'm very close to my family [today]. Church gave me that enlightenment, that there's something bigger than yourself. I'm still connected to a spiritual thing, just not that."
 

 When she was a pre-teen, Jessica Alba begged her mom to let her take part in an acting competition -- and she won the grand prize: acting classes. Nine months later, she was signed by an agent. Roles quickly started coming in, including parts in "Camp Nowhere" and "The Secret World of Alex Mack." In 1995, she was cast in a television revival of "Flipper" and moved to Australia for filming.
 Jessica Alba's big breakout role came in 1999 when she was chosen from more than 1,000 young actresses to play genetically enhanced super-soldier Max Guevara on Fox's Sci-Fi series "Dark Angel." Jessica loved the butt-kicking role: "It's the most fun thing, and so rare to see women do that on-screen," she told the Daily Beast in 2014. "As a woman, to get the opportunity to do that is so cool. I just wish the experience lasted longer because I enjoyed it so much." However, the job was no cake-walk: Jessica had to undergo lots of hardcore training for the role, including learning gymnastics, motorcycle riding and kung fu.
 While working on "Dark Angel," Jessica Alba began dating co-star Michael Weatherly -- despite a 13-year age gap. The couple got engaged in May 2000 but split three years later. "I was so young, 18, when I started dating him," Jessica later told Cosmopolitan. "I was a virgin. I knew I wanted to be in love with the first person I slept with, because for almost everyone I knew, the first experience made them feel like s---. So I wanted to be really careful that he was going to be in love with me and wasn't just going to leave me." The failed relationship put her off dating actors. "It's really, really, really difficult to have the same occupation as the person you're with -- especially when you're both actors," she said. "Actors are pulled in so many different directions that unless you both are absolutely into it through thick and thin and completely sure about each other, it's just hard. I've decided I'll never date an actor again."

 Jessica Alba earned her superhero cred in 2005 when she starred as Sue Storm in "Fantastic Four." She reprised the role in 2007's "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer."

 While filming "Fantastic Four," Jessica Alba met Cash Warren, who was working as the assistant to the director. The super-sweet couple began their relationship as friends, but quickly started dating. "I just knew when I met him that I was going to know him forever," she told InStyle in 2013. "It was weird; he instantly felt like family. It was so easy. I'd never felt like that with anyone. I was usually pretty self-conscious, minding my Ps and Qs, very aware of every time my fork hit the plate when I was having dinner on a date. With him, there was none of that. We got each other. We're kindred spirits."

 Although Jessica Alba has starred in rom-coms and dramas, action flicks have been her bread and butter. Her butt-kicking roles through the years include performances as Nancy Callahan in the "Sin City" flicks (seen here), Sartana Rivera in the "Machete" movies and Domino in Taylor Swift's 2015 music video for "Bad Blood."

Jessica Alba and Cash Warren had an action-packed 2008. The couple tied the knot in a private courthouse wedding in May and welcomed daughter Honor Warren in June. Becoming a mother impacted the way Jessica regarded her career. "After I had Honor, I didn't leave the house for a while. It was all about changing diapers and feedings and still trying to get back in to the routine of my [acting] thing," she told Latina magazine in 2011. "I love what I do. But unless it's worth it, I'm not going to spend time away from my daughter. Before I had her, work was all I had. Now it's not."
While in Oklahoma City to film "The Killer Inside Me" in 2009, Jessica Alba found herself in trouble with the law. Photos released online showed the actress vandalizing public property and billboards, including one for the non-profit United Way, by putting up posters meant to raise awareness for the dwindling population of great white sharks. "I got involved in something I should have had no part of," she said in a statement. "I realize that I should have used better judgment, and I regret not thinking things through before I made a spontaneous and ill-advised decision to let myself get involved with the people behind this campaign. I sincerely apologize to the citizens of Oklahoma City and to the United Way for my involvement in this incident." In the end, she didn't face criminal charges and made a donation to United Way as a mea culpa.

After becoming a mom, Jessica Alba became interested in something completely new. "I realized that there are a lot of toxic chemicals in our everyday products, even our household products and sprays," she told ABC News. "And I was just flabbergasted that these chemicals weren't tested before they're put in products and put on shelves. And literally -- everyday products that you can get at Target, at Walmart, at Macy's -- nobody's testing before they're ending up in these products that could affect the health of our children." She became so involved in the cause that in 2011, she lobbied Congress on behalf of the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition for stricter safety standards. "It just gives me a lot of pride as an American to be here, and to advocate for a safer and healthier life for our children," she said.

Jessica Alba and Cash Warren welcomed their second daughter, Haven Warren, in August 2011. The baby's unique name was inspired by her atypical birth: She was delivered inside her amniotic sac. "Cash said, 'She was born in her safe haven,'" Jessica told People. "And so there we had it."
 Although Jessica Alba has starred in rom-coms and dramas, action flicks have been her bread and butter. Her butt-kicking roles through the years include performances as Nancy Callahan in the "Sin City" flicks (seen here), Sartana Rivera in the "Machete" movies and Domino in Taylor Swift's 2015 music video for "Bad Blood."
In 2012, Jessica Alba gave birth to another baby: the Honest Company. Frustrated by the lack of safe, eco-friendly products on the market, she launched her own line of toxic-free household cleaning goods, diapers and wipes with pal Chris Gavigan. "When I had my daughter Honor, my mom told me to buy a certain brand of detergent. It was really expensive, but she swore by it. She said she'd used it when we were kids, and it was the only thing safe enough for babies," she told Elle in 2013. "But when I tested it, I got huge red welts all over my skin. I panicked, but looking back, that freak out really inspired the Honest Company!"
 
 The following year, Jessica Alba added "author" to her resume when she released "The Honest Life." The New York Times best-selling book chronicles the star's search for the safest, healthiest environment for her family and offers her personal tips for developing a sustainable eco-friendly lifestyle.Jessica Alba and Cash Warren had an action-packed 2008. The couple tied the knot in a private courthouse wedding in May and welcomed daughter Honor Warren in June. Becoming a mother impacted the way Jessica regarded her career. "After I had Honor, I didn't leave the house for a while. It was all about changing diapers and feedings and still trying to get back in to the routine of my [acting] thing," she told Latina magazine in 2011. "I love what I do. But unless it's worth it, I'm not going to spend time away from my daughter. Before I had her, work was all I had. Now it's not."
Sure, the Honest Company been lucrative (in 2015, it was valued at $1.7 billion), but Jessica Alba says it's been personally fulfilling as well. "Hearing how we change families' lives and have a positive impact [means so much]," she said at a Self magazine panel in 2014. "A mom wrote, 'I have a 5-year-old daughter with severe eczema who now, because of your products, can wear shorts and run around like a normal kid.' To me, that's what it's all about." Jessica's desire to make the world a safer place for families has also extended to charitable works. In 2014, she unveiled the Honest Company Ultra Clean Room, a facility that measures the impact of environmental exposures on children's health at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. In fact, she called the ability to help create the space for environmental and chemical research "a dream come true."
But the Honest Company isn't just baby stuff! In 2015, Jessica Alba grew the brand to incorporate Honest Beauty. "From day one, our customers have been telling us that they want us to make beauty products," she told Allure. The line includes skincare, haircare, makeup and accessories. 
That doesn't mean it's all been smooth sailing for the Honest Company. Over the years, Jessica Alba's brand been hit with bad reviews, claims that their sunscreen doesn't work and lawsuits regarding deceptive marketing. Yikes!
Rumor has it Jessica Alba and her Honest Company partners are looking to cash in on their venture. Even if she does decide to sell, she'll stay as busy as ever with her thriving acting career: In 2016, she starred in horror flick "The Veil," which she'll follow up with the summer action thriller "Mechanic: Resurrection." 

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