Antonia "Toni" Garrn is a German fashion model, actress and humanitarian. She got her big break in the fashion industry after signing an exclusive contract with Calvin Klein in 2008.
Early life
Garrn was born in Hamburg, Germany. Her father works for an oil company and her mother is a businesswoman. She has an older brother, Niklas, who is also a model. When Garrn was two years old, she moved to London with her family, and later to Athens when she was six, where she studied at Campion School. By the age of 10, she moved back to Hamburg with her family. Garrn can play classical piano, having taken lessons since age 6. When Garrn was 13, she was discovered during the 2006 FIFA World Cup in her hometown Hamburg, and then signed with New York agency Women Management. Garrn's native languages are English and German; she can also speak French.
In 2011, Garrn started modeling for Victoria's Secret, firstly appearing in their catalogs doing the clothing line. Soon after she walked in the 2011 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, and did a photo-shoot for the PINK-line with fellow model Shanina Shaik. Her first Victoria's Secret fashion show casting was actually in 2010, but she was ultimately not cast for that year's show. In April 2012, Garrn was reported incorrectly by the media to have been chosen to become an official Victoria's Secret Angel.Soon after it was revealed that Garrn was merely chosen to star in a Victoria's Secret campaign for the "Dream Angel" line alongside Erin Heatherton and Lindsay Ellingson as well as the "Angels in love" commercial starring Elyse Taylor. On 17 April 2012, Garrn and the Victoria's Secret Angels, Erin Heatherton and Lindsay Ellingson, launched the Victoria's Secret "Love Is Heavenly" fragrance in a Victoria's Secret store in SoHo. In November 2012, she returned to the catwalk of the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show for the second time, closing the show. She also walked the show in 2013. She walked again in the 2018 show after a hiatus.
Acting
Garrn was cast to play the role of Reeva Steenkamp in the 2017 Lifetime movieOscar Pistorius: Blade Runner Killer. The film chronicles Oscar Pistorius' conviction of culpable homicide after fatally shooting Steenkamp on 14 February 2013 in his Pretoria home. In the same year Garrn appeared in the first two episodes of the German drama series You Are Wanted. In 2018, she appeared in Head Full Of Honey by Til Schweiger and Álvaro Solers music video "La Cintura". In 2019, she appeared in a minor role in the superhero film .
Charity work
In 2014, she became an ambassador for Plan International's global Because I am a Girl campaign and has hosted and co-hosted several fundraising events in support of Plan. In February 2016, Toni Garrn established the Toni Garrn Foundation, which aims to raise money for projects advocating for and advancing girls’ rights.