Background and career
Vanessa Hessler (born January 21, 1988) is an Italian and American model and actress. A model since she was 15, Hessler has appeared in numerous publications throughout Italy, Germany, and France.
Daughter of an Italian mother and a German-American father, Hessler lived in Rome until she was 8, then moved to Washington, D.C., her father's birthplace. She lived in Rockville, Maryland, in her early teenage years. In 2002 she returned to Italy. She speaks Italian, English, and French.
Hessler worked for Donna sotto le stelle and Notte Mediterranea, both on TV. In 2004, she was chosen for Korff's advertising campaign and for Alta Roma Alta Moda, the Rome fashion week. She lives in Rome and Washington, D.C., and appeared in commercials for Baby Star, Nara Camicie, and Gilli.
Hessler planned to work in television, and in early 2006 she wanted to replace Alessia Marcuzzi to host Le Iene, but lost to Cristina Chiabotto. Hessler has appeared in advertising for GUESS, Calvin Klein, Giorgio Armani, L'Oréal, and Ferrero SpA. In February 2010, she walked for the Fall 2010 Prada show in Milan. In March 2006, she made her debut as a TV show host at the Festival di Sanremo with Claudia Cedro, Francesca Lancini, and Marta Cecchetto.
Hessler was the face of the DSL brand "Alice" (a service of Telefónica Europe) in both Germany and France until late October 2011. Telefónica Europe decided to terminate her contract due to her personal connections to, and public support for, the deposed Gaddafi family (she having been in a relationship with Mutassim Gaddafi, fourth son of Muammar Gaddafi) – stating that she had "failed to distance herself from her comments on the conflict in Libya."
Hessler appeared in the 2005 film Christmas in Miami (Italian: Natale a Miami), along with Christian De Sica, and consequently her popularity soared. She plays Greek princess, Irina, in the 2008 Asterix at the Olympic Games (French: Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques), a film that also stars Clovis Cornillac, Alain Delon, and Gérard Depardieu. She also plays the leading female role in For A Night of Love (Italian: Per una notte d'amore), which was filmed in Italy and released in 2008 as a two-part TV special, likewise in Cenerentola (2011) and One Thousand and One Nights: Aladdin and Sherazade (2012) (Italian: Le mille e una notte: Aladino e Sherazade).
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
