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Lana Parrilla Biography

Birth Name:
Lana Maria Parrilla
Birth Place:
Brooklyn, New York, United States
Profession
Actor

Fast Facts

  • Heritage is a mix of Puerto Rican and Italian
  • Wanted to pursue acting after spending time with her actress aunt Candice Azzara
  • As a kid, made short movies with her family's video camera, such as Attack of the Killer Handkerchief
  • Studied acting at the Beverly Hills Playhouse
  • Big break came in 2001 when cast as a deputy mayor assistant on Spin City opposite Charlie Sheen
  • Played a paramedic on the critically-lauded Boomtown and received a 2003 Imagen Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role
  • Helped the victims of the tsunami in Sri Lanka by starting an art and sports program for refugee-camp children
  • Continued her TV career with roles on Windfall (2006), Swingtown (2008) and Miami Medical (2010), each of which lasted only a season

Relationships