French Supermodel Casta to Quit the Catwalk

PARIS (Reuters) - Tired of strutting down catwalks for a living, voluptuous French supermodel Laetitia Casta plans to quit fashion shows for the silver screen as soon as her current contracts run out.

Casta, 22, who has earned millions from her dazzling fashion shows and sizzling lingerie ads, told the daily Le Figaro she didn't want to be a retired model by the time she hit 40.

"The fashion shows are finished, although I still have to honour my contracts," she said in an interview published on Wednesday. "I'm not going back. I want to evolve and undertake some artistic projects."

The brown-haired beauty has already tried her hand at acting, starring last year in the film version of a favourite French comic book, Asterix the Gaul.

Her debut was lambasted by the critics.

"I didn't take myself seriously," she explained when asked about the poor marks she got. "It wasn't a challenge, I did it for fun."

Casta, picked last year as the latest model for Marianne to symbolise the French Republic in white plaster busts in city halls around the country, said she didn't need "to become anyone well known".

She has since made a television film, The Blue Bicycle, which was due to be shown on France 2 television, Figaro said.

"Being an actress and a model attracts a lot of criticism," Casta said. "I'm lucky that I've been offered some real roles."