Diane Kruger learned a lot "about the world" when she started modelling.
Diane Kruger
The 40-year-old beauty left her native Germany for Paris, France, to launch a catwalk career as a teenager and the 'Inglourious Basterds' star has nothing but fond memories of her days appearing in campaigns for the likes of Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent.
She recalled: "I got to travel the world. I was 15, but you're expected to be an adult. You can't kid around.
"So it was educational about the world, about your power over men, your self-worth. It was a great time."
But despite her success, Diane wanted more from her career as she frequently found her work boring and needed a new challenge.
She told Britain's HELLO! magazine: "I got really bored with the posing as I didn't find it creatively all that challenging.
"I started meeting people in Paris who were actors and they were like, 'Just go to drama school'. I didn't even know you could do that."
Prior to beginning her modelling career, Diane was a dancer and found being on stage an outlet for her emotions.
She said: "I didn't know it then, but looking back I was a very angry kid.
"I had a lot of anger because things at home were tough.
"Unconsciously, dancing and performing was a way to get those emotions out. And then you're rewarded for that by being on stage.
But the 'Infiltrator' actress - who recently split from long-term boyfriend Joshua Jackson - had her dreams cut short when she broke her knee at the age of 13.
She admitted: "I was really lost for a long time."
Tagged in Diane Kruger Joshua Jackson