- She is fluent in English, Spanish, French and Italian.
- Her maternal grandfather Daniel Palma Robledo (born in the north of Chile in October 1915), a former Communist Party member until 1951, was kidnapped by DINA, Pinochet's political police, on August 4, 1976, and to this day is a missing person.
- Her son Matteo, was diagnosed with leukodystrophy shortly after his birth and died on November 16, 2018 at the age of 5.
- Mother, with husband Lucas Akoskin, of son Matteo Varela Akoskin (November 20, 2012-November 16, 2018) and daughter Luna Mae Akoskin (b. February 25, 2015).
- Her family fled to Costa Rica, leaving behind the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
- Beat out 35 other actresses to play the title role in Cleopatra (1999).
- Friend of the Mexican director Guillermo del Toro.
- Appeared on the cover of thirteen separate editions of the Maxim magazine, each naming a different North American city as the greatest on Earth.
- Her maternal grandmother, Rosalía Keller Keller, was born in 1919 in Tasnad, Romania, to Pablo Keller and Fanny.
- She is of Chilean (including Galician Spanish) ancestry. She is also said to have some French, Hungarian, Syrian, and German roots.
- Formerly engaged to Billy Zane, her co-star from the miniseries Cleopatra (1999).
- Has 3 siblings, Alejandra, Javier and Gabriel.
- Was featured as #11 in Maxim Magazine's "Hot 100 of 2002" supplement. (2002)
- Daughter of Leonor Palma, a massage therapist, and Francisco Varela (1946-2001), a famous biologist, neuroscientist, and philosopher.
- Her stay in Chile was brief, and she soon found herself in Germany, then back in Chile, and finally in France in her late teens.
- Filming a documentary about Aysén and its natural beauty in Chile. (January 2009)
- (April 15, 2013) Married her boyfriend of 2 years Lucas Akoskin. They have 2-year-old son Matteo together.
- Her favorite actresses are Meryl Streep and Cate Blanchett.
- Ranked #69 in FHM's "100 Sexiest Women in the World 2006" special supplement (2006).
- As a child, she got to see her homeland another time when her family returned to Chile.
- Member of NGOs for the conservation of the environment like WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), Global Green USA, Oceana (Osean Conservation Group) and Centro Ballena Azúl (Chile).
- She lived in Paris from the age of 14.
- Has actively participated in various ecological causes like "Save the Whales Again!".
- After graduating from the Ecole du Passage and the Conservatoire Superieur de Paris, she was ready for the big screen.
- Has a French bulldog called Monroe, or simply Mo.
- Led huge Anti-whaling Rally on the Eve of the 2008 Meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Santiago, Chile. (June 2008)
- One of her favorite writers is Milan Kundera.
- Her favorite place in California is Carbon Beach, Malibu.
- Support the candidate's campaign of Chilean president Michelle Bachelet.
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