Along with her sister Ashley, Mary-Kate Olsen is one half of possibly the most famous twin
sibling duo in Hollywood.
These days, she's been staying off screen and focusing on their successful fashion company
The Row.
Let's take a look at the stunning transformation of Mary-Kate Olsen.
Started acting at 6 months
Mary-Kate Olsen was born moments after her twin, Ashley Olsen, and she got her start
as an actor almost as soon as she was born.
As she told David Letterman in 2008, she and her twin sister were hired at just 6 months
old.
She explained:
"My mom brought us in and we didn't cry."
Apparently, auditions are a little simpler when you can't walk or talk!
The sisters shared the role of Michelle Tanner on "Full House" until they were 9 years old.
As Jeff Franklin, the show's creator, said on a VH1 documentary about the sisters:
"All of their firsts managed to show up on that show — their first words, their first
steps."
It seems that the twins were natural performers.
As their co-star Bob Saget once told BUILD Series, the pair would help him with his lines
when they were just 3 years old.
Of course, Mary-Kate didn't choose to become a famous actress.
She told Marie Claire:
"I look at old pictures of me, and I don't feel connected to them at all."
However, she added that she wouldn't change it "for the world."
"What do you say, little momma?"
"No, thank you, big daddy."
Childhood fame
As adorable toddlers on "Full House," the sisters soon skyrocketed to fame.
Their family founded the company Dualstar when they were 6 years old, and by the end
of their time on "Full House," they were earning $80,000 an episode, according to Cosmopolitan.
Pretty soon, they were starring in other projects, too.
In 1992, they starred in the TV movie "To Grandmother's House We Go."
Then, in 1993, came the film "Double, Double Toil and Trouble," and in 1994, they starred
in "How the West Was Fun."
The list goes on.
The twins developed a reputation for adorable movies about twins or lookalikes, with Mary-Kate
often taking on the more outgoing, tomboy role.
According to The Telegraph, they were the youngest self-made millionaires in America
by the time they were just 10 years old.
"Put her there, sister."
Of course, their growing fame meant that there were certain pressures on their family.
Allegedly, their parents, who divorced in 1996, were driven apart by disagreements about
managing the girls' lives as superstars.
Plus, the pressures of being celebrities came with challenges.
In 2000, Mary-Kate and her sister complained about having 12 interviews scheduled the day
before a school paper was due, according to Life & Style.
Somewhat normal childhood
Mary-Kate and Ashley never had a normal childhood — they were millionaires and business owners
by the age of 10, after all.
However, the Olsen twins' entire childhoods weren't spent on set and in board rooms.
As Mary-Kate explained to Elle, their parents did try to give them time and space to grow
up and just be kids.
She said:
"I grew up going to regular school and still have friends from that time in my life."
In a 2004 interview with Oprah Winfrey, the twins explained that they had been to prom
every single year of high school.
However, as Ashley said, the pair had to choose between going to their senior prom and hosting
"Saturday Night Live."
Mary-Kate said:
"Every girl thinks about designing their senior dress."
Even though they ultimately chose "Saturday Night Live," it's clear that Mary-Kate valued
having some normalcy in her childhood.
Childhood interest in fashion
These days, Mary-Kate Olsen isn't known as an actress — she's known for her fashion
line that she shares with Ashley.
As Mary-Kate explained in an interview for Net-a-Porter:
"I think our love of fashion really started when we were younger.
We were surrounded by so many chic women.
I think it was just sort of ingrained in us."
Not only were the twins surrounded by fashion, but they also got a chance to create their
own styles when they were as young as 10.
The pair created a fashion line, as Ashley told Ellen DeGeneres, saying:
"It was for mass and it was for kids.
And that was extremely successful."
Mary-Kate added that when they were younger, they had taken adult clothing and cut it to
fit them as kids.
She said:
"So, we sort of understood fit and quality."
It sounds like Mary-Kate was practically destined to end up in fashion.
Eating disorder
Shortly after graduating from high school, Mary-Kate was reportedly admitted to a rehab
facility for an eating disorder.
She remained quiet about the ordeal at the time, but later she explained in an interview
with Elle:
"Look, I think it's important that what anybody goes through — and I'm not saying that it's
true or not true — you realize it's part of growing up."
For Mary-Kate, the hardest thing was finding the courage to reach out and ask for help.
She said:
"I think at some point I had to say that I deserve to be happy."
Clearly, Mary-Kate did what was right for her, and she got the help she needed.
In late July 2004, she reportedly came home from the facility.
As her spokesman told CBS News at the time:
"She is feeling very well and is looking forward to rejoining her family and friends and preparing
for her freshman year at New York University."
Apparently, Ashley was extremely supportive of her and continued attending events in her
place while she was away.
Studied at NYU
It's clear that getting a good education was important for the twins.
They studied at NYU, moving away from their family home in California.
Before they set off to begin their studies, they told Oprah Winfrey they still hadn't
decided exactly what they were interested in studying.
Ashley mentioned psychology, and Mary-Kate added they were interested in film or culinary
school.
She even suggested she might want to open a restaurant.
Studying at NYU wasn't easy for the ultra famous twins.
As Mary-Kate told Elle, some of their classmates sold details about their lives to the press,
so they gave up on their college ambitions and went into business.
Mary-Kate dropped out after a year and a half, according to Distractify.
While the pair didn't get degrees, they did learn a few things from their time at NYU.
As Ashley told Marie Claire, they were "shocked" by how much interest the tabloids took in
their style.
She said:
"I think that was the first time we were aware of the power of our personal style [...] Between
the big sunglasses and the Starbucks cup and the big sweaters, the hobo-chic thing."
It's no wonder their next move was towards fashion.
Full control of Dualstar
After becoming the owners of their own company when they were children, Mary-Kate and Ashley
Olsen assumed full control of Dualstar when they came of age at 18.
As Reuters reported at the time, the pair bought out their longtime attorney, Robert
Thorne, so that they could become full owners.
Throne explained:
"The decision was to respect their desire to take the helm perhaps a few years earlier
than I had anticipated."
It sounds like becoming full owners of the company had been the plan from the beginning.
As explained in the VH1 documentary about the twins, they'd even begun attending company
meetings at the age of ten.
Of course, it did mean that they had even more responsibility — but they handled it
like pros.
As Mary-Kate said:
"We are very thankful that we are able to enjoy our college experience, run a business,
and live our lives."
Passion for art
As Elle noted, when it comes to Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Mary-Kate is, quote, "considered
the artsier of the two sisters" thanks to her bold, unusual looks — though both Olsen
twins have changed their looks throughout the years.
It turns out, a lot of her fashion sense comes from her taste in fine art.
Apparently, she has a collection of art that includes pieces by Andy Warhol, Thomas Ruff,
and Nobuyoshi Araki.
She said:
"All I really need is my bed and my art around me."
In fact, when she worked with the actor Ben Kingsley, they spent most of their time on
set discussing her art.
This passion presumably led to Mary-Kate's sophisticated ability to design clothing.
She begins her clothing designs with, quote, "an object, a color, an era, a place, history."
Then, she incorporates a silhouette.
One thing's for certain — the actress-turned-designer really knows her stuff when it comes to visual
art.
The Row
The twins began the fashion brand The Row in 2006.
As Mary-Kate explained to i-D, the idea for it began as a side project while they were
still at NYU.
The pair had the idea to create the "perfect" white tee that had the ideal fit and was made
with the best fabric.
She said:
"It had to be comfortable on all bodies.
It really had to have all the elements that we continue to put into our projects and design.
The fabrics had to be luxurious and perfect and, hopefully, have longevity."
Soon, they had expanded their line to include seven simple items that were staples in any
wardrobe.
The pair rejected the idea of plastering logos all over their clothes.
As Ashley explained:
"We really didn't want to be in front of it.
We didn't necessarily even want to let people know it was us, in a way."
Soon enough, the brand had taken off and they were showing their clothes in intimate, low-key
shows.
Eventually, they started two other clothing lines: Elizabeth and James and Olsenboye.
Finally, it seemed that Mary-Kate had found her true calling.
Married in 2015
According to OK! magazine, Mary-Kate Olsen met her future husband, Olivier Sarkozy in
2012.
Apparently they met at a party.
The pair secretly tied the knot in New York in 2015.
According to Page Six, the event was incredibly private, with guests being asked to hand over
their phones upon arrival.
One source described the evening, saying there were, quote, "bowls and bowls filled with
cigarettes, and everyone smoked the whole night."
According to StyleCaster, Sarkozy splurged on a very pricey vintage Cartier engagement
ring worth $81,000.
We don't know much about Olsen's marriage to Sarkozy, although she did describe how
it made her routine change in a 2017 interview with The Edit.
She said:
"I have a husband, two step-kids and a life; I have to go home and cook dinner."
Apparently, she took up running on the weekends to help her remain grounded in her very busy
schedule.
Divorced in 2021
Mary-Kate's marriage hit the rocks in 2021 and she filed for divorce.
According to People, Sarkozy and Olsen weren't well-suited for each other.
Reportedly, he wanted someone who was more, quote, "available."
One source said: "She's super career-focused and he's very
French and wanted her to be more available."
As Tatler noted, their almost 20-year age gap probably also had something to do with
their divorce.
Another report in Page Six suggested that things became frosty between the pair during
the pandemic when Sarkozy moved his ex-wife into one of their homes.
As one source explained:
"It was simply erosion [...] growing apart.
No cheating or betrayals [...] sometimes couples just run their course.
The plan to move in his family was his way of moving on, and the final straw for Mary-Kate."
While only Mary-Kate and her ex-husband know the real reason they divorced, we're all for
them doing what was right for them.
Focus and discretion
These days, Mary-Kate is fiercely focused on her work and on maintaining her privacy.
Her clothing has been described as "discreet" and "modest."
It follows that Mary-Kate and her sister Ashley would be discreet not just in their fashion
sense but also in their lives.
As Mary-Kate put it to i-D:
"We were raised to be discreet people."
Mary-Kate rarely gives interviews, and when she does, she focuses on discussing her business
rather than her personal life.
Neither she nor Ashley has any public social media accounts.
In an interview with The Edit, they explained that they preferred to connect with fans through
their designs rather than through exposing their personal lives.
And, in an interview with Vogue Australia, they shared that all of their energy goes
into the business.
Luckily, they'll always have each other to lean on.
Mary-Kate said:
"There is a lot of pressure we put on ourselves.
I feel like we're really lucky that we have a great partnership and that we can rely on
each other for support, because I can imagine it can be so lonely."
Mary-Kate has definitely been through a lot and is clearly just as busy as ever — at
least she'll always have Ashley with her every step of the way.
If you are struggling with an eating disorder, or know someone who is, help is available.
Visit the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at
1-800-931-2237.
You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).