To make it in the competitive world of acting you need to have unique natural attributes. This is exactly the case with Olivia Wilde, a gorgeous and amazingly talented actress who is also lucky to have a pair of uniquely colored eyes. The mother of two often rocks a smoky eye – something that gives her a truly iconic look. But what really is the color of Olivia Wilde’s peepers?
The Color of Olivia Wilde’s Eyes
Olivia Wilde has predominantly green eyes with prominent icy blue limbal rings. She has a condition called central heterochromia which is mostly harmless if one is born with it. Central heterochromia happens due to an uneven distribution of melanin in the iris.
So, in Olivia Wilde’s case the central part of her eyes has a slightly different concentration of melanin than the outer ring. This results in clear differences in terms of how those two different parts of her irises reflect the light.
Generally, people with blue, green, hazel, or gray eyes are known to have low amounts of melanin in the iris. On the contrary, people with brown eyes, on the other hand, have large amounts of melanin in the iris.
More About Wilde’s Dazzling Irises
In science there is a phenomenon known as the Tyndall Effect – and that is partly what causes the Olivia Wilde eye color to be so unique. The blue part of her eyes has no pigments at all and, therefore, when light enters it, it creates a visible blue hue as a result of the Tyndall effect.
What about the green part of her eyes? Well, green eyes have small amounts of melanin which turns the blue hue created by the Tyndall effect into green.
Does She Wear Contact Lenses?
It is not unusual for actresses to wear contact lenses and Olivia Wilde probably wears them from time to time. However, blue-green is the color of her eyes meaning she was born with it and is not as a result of wearing any contacts.
Interestingly, a closer look at her dad’s (Andrew Myles Cockburn) photos reveals that he also might have the same eye color. Further, the dad has an Irish heritage with statistics showing that Irish people mostly have blue eyes.
So, Wilde’s eye color has a lot to do with her heritage. That said, it is worth clarifying that central heterochromia is rarely ever genetic. Instead, it comes from a rare genetic mutation.
For “The O.C” and “Alpha Dog” actress, it might have been an accident of birth after all.
Her mom (Leslie Cockburn), seems to have grayish-blue eyes at a glance, though.
How Her Eyes Have Influenced Her Career
To stand out in the otherwise highly competitive world of acting you need to have unique attributes and that is exactly the case with Olivia Wilde. While it is not possible to measure just how much her eyes have contributed to her success, it is quite obvious that they have had something to do with it.
Apparently, she is the only one who didn’t need contact lenses in the “Tron: Legacy” movie to make her eyes computer-y. If that’s the case, it’s likely that her eye color was a factor that got her selected into the movie’s cast.
In another movie “The Lazarus Effect,” she had to wear colored contact lenses as the role required her to have bloodshot eyes.
So, either directly or indirectly, her eyes have influenced her acting career.
The Shape of Her Eyes
Other than the beautiful color of her exotic eyes, Olivia Wilde also has an attractive eye shape. Her eyes are almond-shaped and slightly slanted. They complement her cute cheek bones and prominent jaw line.
Other famous people with central heterochromia like Olivia Wilde are Emilia Clarke and Idina Menzel.
Also Read: 10 Famous People with Heterochromia