"Movie star" is probably not the job description Malin Akerman had in mind when she went off to study child psychology at York University.

Mind you, Akerman, 31, may have realized there was a bit of a sea change coming after she won the Ford Supermodel of Canada search at 17. The Swedish-born actress grew up in Niagara-on-the-Lake and Toronto and she was a successful model before she got a few small acting parts.

When the rising star left university and moved to Los Angeles to try her hand at acting full-time, she found success quickly.

You may have seen Akerman in The Heartbreak Kid, 27 Dresses, The Proposal or Watchmen, and she's back in theatres this week with the comedy, Couples Retreat.

Akerman and Vince Vaughn star in the film as one of four couples whose holiday in paradise turns into relationship hell. The duo is in good company in a cast that includes Jon Favreau, Jason Bateman, Kristen Bell, Kristin Davis and Faizon Love.

Over the phone from Bora-Bora, where Couples Retreat was filmed, Akerman says her life has changed more than somewhat.

"My sister and I were driving through Hollywood the other day when all the billboards for Couples Retreat were going up. We kind of just stared for a moment. There I am holding hands with Vince Vaughn. And had you met me five years ago -- my best friend and I were out one night and we saw Vince Vaughn, and we were like, 'He's so cute!' And it just seems sort of surreal that I'm now in films with him, and playing his wife. I do still pinch myself every day."

Anyone who sees The Heartbreak Kid or Couples Retreat can attest that Akerman is a gifted comic actress.

"That's a relief," she says, "because I'm such a big movie-goer myself, and to now be able to be the person others go to see, and to get the chance to make people laugh -- that's pretty amazing."

Akerman has a role in the upcoming Bang Bang Club, which is about combat photographers in South Africa during the last days of Apartheid. She's also starring in a movie written by Josh Radnor called Happy Thank You More Please, in which she plays a woman with Alopecia. It's a condition that causes one's hair to fall out, and she shaved off her eyebrows for the role.

"Luckily, they grew back," Akerman says, laughing.

"It's an ensemble cast and we're all in the search for love, but my character has a few more hurdles, being a bald woman. It's a beautiful film. It's well written."

Living proof that sometimes good guys finish first, Akerman talks with enthusiasm and gratitude about progress in her work. She doesn't really have to chase the work any more. It comes to her, more and more often. And she no longer has to audition for everything.

"So there are those doors opened, a few steps I get to skip nowadays," she says. "That is pretty surreal and exciting in itself, to get to that point in your career in something you love, and know you're succeeding in it."

She adds, "Just being able to pay the bills these days is pretty great. There was a time when I wasn't sure I could afford gas for the car, so just to pull out your credit card and know you have enough money for gas or groceries is a good feeling."

The actress, who has two brothers and a sister (her whole family will be in L.A. for the premiere of Couples Retreat) is married to musician Roberto Zincone, drummer for the Petalstones. Akerman herself is the band's singer.

Which brings us to ... her Smurf obsession?

"I do have kind of a weird hobby. I have started a smurf collection," she confesses.

"I know I sound like a crazy person right now. I realize that. I was a huge fan of the Smurfs when I was a kid. That's all I watched.

"And recently my husband and I were walking around and I found a Smurf with a whole drum set. And my husband is a drummer, so I bought it. And there was another Smurf who was dancing to the first Smurf's beats. And these were the first two I bought. I have about five," she says.

"I still want a boxed set of the Smurf TV show. If you find one out where, you have to tell me! And say hi to Canada for me."

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