TORONTO - She's undergone countless plastic surgeries, was disfigured by a serial killer, had a cocaine addiction, built a pornography business, designed a sex doll in her likeness and joined Scientology, which made her bankrupt.
Oh yeah, and she's having a child with her ex-fiance's son, whom she married just to spite her former lover.
Welcome to the freaky world of Kimber Henry, the troubled blond bombshell on the steamy plastic surgery drama series "Nip/Tuck," having its season 5 debut Sunday in Canada after the Super Bowl on CTV.
Minneapolis, Minn.-born actress Kelly Carlson, who plays Kimber, says most of the zany events on the bawdy show actually come from real life.
"As crazy as 'Nip/Tuck' sounds and is, 99 per cent of our stories come from true stories - stories from the paper or friends or other plastic surgeons or whatever," Carlson, sporting Kimber's trademark Marilyn Monroe-style hair underneath a beret, said in a recent interview in Toronto.
"They always say life is crazier than fiction, and in this case it's true."
Series creator Ryan Murphy has also said that "Nip/Tuck"'s bizarre medical cases are based on fact - including the story of an obese woman who was literally stuck to her couch - and Carlson says they have a medical adviser and several plastic surgeons feeding them information.
The Scientology angle was also played straight without any embellishments, said Carlson.
"I did do quite a bit of research on Scientology and had to learn the terms like Theta, Xenu and stuff like that," said Carlson.
"We always stuck to the truth of the matter and the audience can decide whether it's funny or serious or whatever their opinion is or how it's formed, it's up to them."
Season 5 of the Emmy-and Golden Globe-winning show, which airs on FX in the U.S., sees plastic surgeons Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh) and Christian Troy (Julian McMahon) moving their practice from Miami to Los Angeles.
Kimber and her new husband Matt also journey to L.A. with their baby during the new season that has a slew of guest stars including Lauren Hutton, Portia de Rossi, Jennifer Coolidge, Tia Carrere, John Schneider and Rosie O'Donnell.
Matt is the son of Christian, Kimber's on-again, off-again lover who did all her cosmetic procedures, broke her heart and shredded her self-esteem before proposing to her in season 3. They didn't end up marrying because Kimber was kidnapped by a killer on their wedding day. Said Carlson: "I'm sure before this show ends at some point Kimber and Christian will come back together."
Carlson and McMahon have had many eye-popping sex scenes together (and with a host of other characters) on the show, and while they both exude confidence while nude on screen, Carlson recalls being bashful in the beginning.
"Oh my God, I just had to take a step outside my body and say, 'Close your eyes and do this. My parents are going to kill me, my family will disown me but I'm going to do it anyways,"' said the 31-year-old former model and makeup artist, who started acting a decade ago and got her big break on "Nip/Tuck."
The L.A.-based beauty recalls her first sex scene with McMahon, when a light diffuser from the set fell on her head and helped relieve the tension.
"And then he snorted (fake cocaine) off (Kimber's) butt and we've been a family ever since," said Carlson in a fit of laughter, adding the role of Kimber has helped her grow as a person.
"God, if any of my cast members heard me say that they'd laugh, but it has forced me to be comfortable with my body and like it, because I don't have a choice," said the petite actress.
"It's made me a healthier person because I work out more, I watch what I eat, and I don't diet but I take good care of my body. It's improved my life in a lot of ways."
