The sexy and smoldering-eyed Australian actor (and former fashion model) Julian McMahon has managed to accumulate quite a dedicated fan following, particularly for his work in the hit TV drama Nip/Tuck, in which he stars as Dr. Christian Troy, as well as for his roles on Profiler, Charmed, and as Doctor Doom in the film Fantastic Four and its upcoming sequel.

McMahon, of Irish ancestry, was born on July 27, 1968, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, the son of former Australian Prime Minister Sir William McMahon.

After studying for law at the University of Sydney and economics the University of Wollongong, McMahon decided to pursue a career in modeling instead, and soon became well known in Paris, Milan, Rome, and New York.

He also embarked on an acting career, first with a role as a soldier on the Australian TV series Home and Away in the early 1990s. He crossed over onto the American small screen as Ian Rain on the soap Another World from 1993 to 1995, after which he snagged a lead role as Agent John Grant in the crime drama Profiler for four seasons until 2000.

Beginning in 2000, McMahon played Cole "Belthazor" Turner on the late Aaron Spelling’s supernatural series Charmed, which starred Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano, Rose McGowan, Shannen Doherty, Brian Krause, and Dorian Gregory, until he was killed off in 100th episode in 2003.

After Profiler and Charmed, McMahon snagged probably what is today his best known role on TV, as cosmetic surgeon Dr. Christian Troy, on Nip/Tuck, a role that earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Television Series in 2005. The show, which co-stars Dylan Walsh, Joely Richardson, and Roma Maffia, first aired in 2003 and is currently in its fourth season.

Although he had already appeared and starred in numerous films since the 1990s (such as Magenta and Chasing Sleep), McMahon’s breakthrough big-screen role didn’t come until he landed the part of super villain Doctor Doom in 2005’s Fantastic Four, co-starring Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, and Michael Chiklis. McMahon will reprise the role in the sequel, slated for release later in 2007.

McMahon was actually selected as a finalist to take over the role of James Bond from Pierce Brosnan for 2006’s Casino Royale, but the part eventually went to Daniel Craig—who, incidentally, did surprisingly well as Bond. However, McMahon recently starred opposite Sandra Bullock as her husband in the critically acclaimed dramatic thriller Premonition, in which actresses Nia Long and Amber Valletta also appeared, and which released on March 16, 2007.

By the way, ladies, he’s single—but keep in mind that he’s been married and divorced twice, to Dannii Minogue and Brooke Burns, and reportedly had an affair with 90210's Shannen Doherty while the two co-starred on Charmed.

YUDDY