Kurt and Goldie raised Kate and her brother Oliver in Colorado. Kate also has two half-siblings from Bill Hudson’s second marriage, Emily and Zachary. She also has one half-sibling, Wyatt, who resulted from Goldie and Kurt’s relationship. Kate graduated high school in 1997 from the performing arts school, Crossroads, located in Santa Monica.
She was then accepted to New York University but decided to focus on her acting career instead.
Kate’s first audition was a television show with Howie Mandel when she was eleven. Hudson got the part, but her mother never told her and secretly turned down the role. Goldie eventually told her what she had done, wanting her daughter to have a normal childhood.
Hudson’s first notable performance was in 2000, when she played Penny Lane in Almost Famous, which co-starred Patrick Fugit, Jason Lee, and Billy Crudup. Originally, she was only slated for a minor role in the film, but begged for the chance to read for Penny Lane. Director Cameron Crowe was impressed with her read and gave her the part.
Her role earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. It was through this film and previous lesser-known films that Kate began to develop a reputation for being a dependable and hard worker.
Also in 2000, Kate was voted as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World, by People magazine. Later that year, Kate married The Black Crowes frontman, Chris Robinson. The couple always traveled together, either on location of Kate’s films, or on tour with Robinson’s band. They have a child, Ryder Russell Robinson, born in 2004. Following her pregnancy Kate lost sixty pounds in three months for her role in The Skeleton Key. The couple divorced in November of 2006. Kate was known to be dating You, Me and Dupree co-star Owen Wilson after her divorce, but in June of 2007, it was reported that the couple broke up.
Hudson then completed a string of successful romantic comedies, catapulting her into superstardom. These films included How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days in 2003, co-starring Matthew McConaughey; Alex and Emma in 2003, opposite Luke Wilson; and Raising Helen in 2004, opposite John Corbett. Her paycheck also jumped quite a bit between 2003 and 2004. For How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Kate made a reported $4,500,000. For her role in Raising Helen, Kate brought in $7 million.
Kate is currently looking to broaden her roles and in 2005 starred in her first thriller, The Skeleton Key. She is also scheduled to begin filming A Dream of Red Mansions, a film that she will both star in and produce. The film is based on true events and is about a photojournalist who moves to China and becomes a Communist.
Kate has also created a successful business for herself behind the scenes. She currently co-owns and works at Cosmic Entertainment in 2003, along with Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn and her brother Oliver Hudson. Her combined success with the production company and her starring roles earned her a ranking of #99 on Premiere’s annual Power 100 list in 2003.
Kate considers herself to be a hippie at heart. She enjoys writing music and playing the guitar and piano. She also makes her own jewelry and buys her clothes at vintage clothing shops. Kate attended the 2004 Jammy Awards to celebrate the hippie/jam lifestyle.
Although rumours spread of Owen and Kate's split in June 2007, following a few brief appearances with Jennifer Aniston, Owen made his way back into the affections of Kate and the couple were once again seen in public in early 2008 amid sepculation that the pair had rekindled their relationship. This followed Owen's alleged suicide attempt in late 2007. But with the 'soufflé never rising twice', the relationship was doomed to failure and in May 2008 the couple finally split amid Kate's accusations of Owen's wandering eye and his love of partying.
YUDDY
