Denise Richards: Drop Dead Delectable

With a couple that looks like these two, I have to ask, who beats whom to the mirror? Richards cracks up at the question. "We don't race each other to the mirror. Although... oh, he's going to kill me for saying this, but he owns hair spray and I don't. Of course, he does have that phenomenal Irish hair." When I ask what she finds sexiest about Muldoon, she doesn't miss a beat: "I think it's really sexy watching a man shave. If I'm in the makeup trailer getting my face done, I love it when guys come in and shave. I've even shaved Patrick's face. As far as what's sexy physically, do you know what I love? There's something so sexy in the part just below the jeans, a little below the abs, just between the hips. Oh, that is soooo sexy."

For the past several months, Richards and Muldoon have enjoyed precious little time together because she's been on location shooting the Bond flick. "It really tests your sense of security being away for a long time like this," she says. "Patrick's been to visit and I come back to L.A. when I can. When we're apart we talk on the phone two, three times a day. When we met, he was doing much better than I was in his career. We both know that careers, like life, seesaw forever. Right now, I'm working a little bit more than he is, but he's making choices about what to do next and he's very supportive of me."

With all the work Richards has been doing, and all that quality time she's been trying to fit in with Muldoon, has she been able to rub shoulders with famous people at swanky Hollywood shindigs? "I met Tom Cruise at a party a while ago and completely lost it. There I was with one of my girlfriends and he smiled and introduced himself so sweetly. I told him who I was, then made a complete ass out of myself because I could not stop staring and smiling. He has the most beautiful smile. I made it so obvious I was starstruck."

And has Richards had time to enjoy her new paychecks with any big-time splurging? "I'm saving to buy a house," she reports. "I haven't bought anything extravagant. I didn't grow up with a lot of money, so I appreciate every penny I have. It's a big adjustment for me having someone pick me up in a car, someone else meet me at the airport and check me in. It's fun and silly and great, but only because I can share it with people I love. During my first week in London I called my mom and said, 'I'm lonely,' and I bought her a first-class ticket to see me. That's the stuff that makes it fun for me." Every once in awhile, though, doesn't she lavish a little largesse on herself? "I'm a clothes kind of girl," she declares, "and a serious shopper. The last time I was home from England, Patrick and I were at Fred Segal and I couldn't decide between two pairs of shoes. Patrick, who had no idea how much the shoes cost, said, 'Why don't you buy both?' So, when I went up to the counter and the guy said, 'That'll be $700,' he looked like he was going to fall over."

There's a good chance Richards will soon be able to buy those shoes in every color. She's currently deciding whether or not to do a big-budget extravaganza, but in any case, she's certain that in the next couple of years she'll be working with the kind of higher-profile directors she aspires to--Jane Campion, Ang Lee and Cameron Crowe. As far as actors she'd like to share the screen with, her wish list includes Angelina Jolie and Kate Winslet. "I'm just plugging along, hoping to learn and establish myself," she says. "Hoping that each movie helps me. There is no Plan B. I would rather be a great actress than a movie star. If it meant I worked a lot less, that would be fine because then I could have the ideal: my career, children and a great personal and family life."

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Stephen Rebello interviewed Adam Herz for the June 99 issue of Movieline.

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