

Upton appeared on the cover of the 2012 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, released in February 2012.

She also appeared in The Three Stooges as Sister Bernice. Upton's acting debut was in the film, Tower Heist, as Mr. Hightower's mistress. Upton made an appearance in a June 2011 episode of Tosh.0 and participated in the 2011 Taco Bell All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball Game at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, in July 2011. In April 2012, Upton appeared in a video of herself performing the Cat Daddy dance to the song of the same name by The Rej3ctz, which also went viral. Guy Trebay of The New York Times observed that this served to illustrate the power of social media to bestow stardom upon a model, which had previously been the domain of top designer runway shows. In April 2011, an Internet video of her doing the dougie hip-hop dance at a Los Angeles Clippers game went viral and served to increase her popularity. Upton wore one of the Beach Bunny suits in the 2014 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. She has since modeled for Beach Bunny Swimwear, and has appeared in Complex and Esquire as " The Woman of the Summer". She was featured in the body paint section and named Rookie of the Year for the issue. In 2011, Upton appeared in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Upton first modeled clothing for Garage and Dooney & Bourke. She eventually moved to New York City, where she then signed with IMG Models. Upton attended a casting call in Miami for Elite Model Management in 2008 and was signed the same day. With a second horse, Colby, she won 14–18 Western Riding and was included in the top 5 in 14–18 Horsemanship and 14–18 Western Pleasure in 2009. In addition, Upton ended up third overall on the APHA youth Top Twenty. She was named the 13 and Under Reserve All-Around Champion, giving her a total of four reserve championships (2nd place). With her horse Roanie, she won three APHA Reserve World Championships – 13 and Under Western Riding, 13 and Under Horsemanship, and 14–18 Western Riding. As a young equestrian, she showed at the American Paint Horse Association (APHA) and competed at a national level. In 1999, Upton moved with her family to Melbourne, Florida, where she was a student at Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy. Upton's great-grandfather, Frederick Upton, was co-founder of appliance manufacturer and marketer Whirlpool Corporation. She is the daughter of Shelley (née Davis), a former Texas state tennis champion, and Jeff Upton, a high school athletics director.
