Fernanda Torres | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Torres in 2025 | |
| Born | Fernanda Pinheiro Monteiro Torres (1965-09-15)15 September 1965 (age 60)[1] Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1979–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Parents |
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| Relatives | Cláudio Torres [pt] (brother) |
Fernanda Pinheiro Monteiro Torres (Brazilian Portuguese:[feʁˈnɐ̃dɐˈtoʁis]; born 15 September 1965) is a Brazilian stage and screen actress and writer renowned for her versatility across both comedic and dramatic roles. She has earned numerous accolades, including aGolden Globe, theCannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress,[2] aBrazilian Academy Film Award, as well as a nomination for anAcademy Award.
Torres received international acclaim for her performance asEunice Paiva in the dramaI'm Still Here (2024). She became the first Brazilian, first South American and firstPortuguese-speaking actor to win theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama.[3][4] She was also nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Actress, becoming only the second Brazilian actress to be nominated in that category, the first being her mother,Fernanda Montenegro.
Her debut novel,The End, sold over 200,000 copies in Brazil. It was translated into seven other languages and adapted into a miniseries.[5][6]
Debuting as an actress at thirteen, Torres established a career that spans more than four decades in theater, television, literature and cinema.[7]
Her film debut was at the age of 17, in 1983, with the filmInnocência, based on the work ofViscount of Taunay and directed by Walter Lima Jr. Her next movieA Marvada Carne (1985), byAndré Klotzel, won her the award for Best Actress at theGramado Festival. ForLove Me Forever or Never (1986) byArnaldo Jabor, Torres won the Best Actress at theCannes Film Festival and at the Cuba Film Festival.
Among her 24 film credits, the most notable are:Excuse Me, I'm Going to Fight (1986), Best Actress at theNantes Film Festival and a special nomination at theLocarno Festival;[8]One Man's War (1991) bySergio Toledo, alongsideAnthony Hopkins andNorma Aleandro;[9]Foreign Land (1996) byWalter Salles andDaniela Thomas;Four Days in September (1997) byBruno Barreto, nominated asBest Foreign Language Film at the70th Academy Awards;[8]Gêmeas (1999);Redentor (2004), a film directed by her brother, Cláudio Torres; andThe House of Sand (2005), directed by her husbandAndrucha Waddington.
In 2024, she playedEunice Paiva in the biographical filmI'm Still Here, based on thebook of the same name byMarcelo Rubens Paiva and working again with director Walter Salles. For her performance, Torres became the second Brazilian to be nominated for aGolden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama, the first one being her motherFernanda Montenegro 26 years before her, and also the first Brazilian to win the award.[10][3] They also became the first mother-daughter duo to be nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Actress category sinceJudy Garland andLiza Minnelli.[11][12]
In June 2025, Torres was invited to join theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[13]
At thirteen, Torres attendedTeatro O Tablado.[8] Her first performance on stage was in 1978, in the playUm Tango Argentino, byMaria Clara Machado.[14] Torres acted in more than a dozen plays, having received praise for works such asOrlando (1989), byBia Lessa;Da Gaivota (1998), byDaniela Thomas;[15]Two Women and a Corpse (2000), byAderbal Freire Filho. She was the first actress of theCompanhia de Ópera Seca, founded byGerald Thomas, having starred in three plays, includingThe Flash and Crash Days (1991)—sharing the stage with her mother—which was presented on tour in theUnited States andEuropean.[16] The monologueA Casa dos Budas Ditosos, based on the novel of the same name byJoão Ubaldo Ribeiro, debuted in 2003 reaching more than one million spectators.[17]
On television, she acted in numerous popular comedy series and soap operas in Brazil.[18] From 2001 to 2003, Torres starred withLuiz Fernando Guimarães in the seriesOs Normais, which showed with humor and innovative language the everyday situations experienced by the couple Rui and Vani.[19]Os Normais became acult favorite and led many fans to not leave the house on Friday nights before the program ended.[20] Not only the characters' scenes and dialogues, but also thepanties andbras worn by Torres won over the public.[21][22] The success of the series also led to two feature films,Os Normais – O Filme (2003), a prequel telling how Rui and Vani met, andOs Normais 2: A Noite Mais Maluca de Todas (2009), a sequel to the show where Rui and Vani try to reignite their relationship.[23]
From 2011 to 2015, Torres starred, alongsideAndréa Beltrão, in the comedy seriesTapas & Beijos, for which she received several awards nominations and wins, such as theBest of the Year Award for Best Actress.[24]
In 2016, she wrote the script for the feature filmO Juízo, with her mother in the cast. In 2018, Torres was confirmed in the second season of the seriesSob Pressão, as Renata, the new hospital administrator.[25]
As a presenter, she developed the projectMinha Estupidez andBicho Homem for television, and the podcastThe Playlist of My Life, as an interviewer onDeezer.[26]
In 2007, she began writing for newspapers and magazines as a columnist, publishing a weekly column in the newspaperFolha de S.Paulo since 2010.
In 2014, Torres released her first novel,The End (Fim), which sold more than 200,000 copies in Brazil and was translated into seven languages. In 2023, Torres created, wrote and adapted the novel into a 10-episode miniseries for the Brazilian streaming serviceGloboplay.[27][28]
In 2017, Torres published her second novel,Glory and Its Litany of Horrors (A Glória e Seu Cortejo de Horrores).[6]
Torres is of Portuguese and Italian descent.[29][30] She is married to movie producer and directorAndrucha Waddington. The couple has two sons, Joaquim (b. 2000) and Antônio (b. 2008). She is also stepmother of João (b. 1993) and Pedro (b. 1995), from Andrucha's first marriage.[31][32]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Inocência [pt] | Inocência | [33] | |
| 1984 | Amenic – Entre o Discurso e a Prática | Extra | [33] | |
| 1985 | A Marvada Carne | Carula | [33] | |
| Madame Cartô | Voice | [33] | ||
| Sonho sem Fim [pt] | Cigana | [33] | ||
| 1986 | Love Me Forever or Never | The Woman | [33][34] | |
| Com Licença, Eu Vou à Luta [pt] | Eliane Maciel | [33] | ||
| 1988 | A Mulher do Próximo [pt] | Isabel | [33] | |
| Fogo e Paixão [pt] | Woman eating an apple | Cameo | [33] | |
| 1989 | Kuarup | Francisca | [33] | |
| 1990 | Beijo 2348/72 | Claudete | [33] | |
| 1993 | Capitalismo Selvagem [pt] | Elisa Medeiros | [33] | |
| 1996 | The Jew | Brites Cardoso | [33] | |
| Foreign Land | Alex | [33] | ||
| 1997 | Miramar | The Producer | [33] | |
| Four Days in September | Maria Augusta Carneiro / Andréia | [33] | ||
| 1998 | Midnight | Maria | [33] | |
| Traição | Irene | [33] | ||
| 1999 | Gêmeas [pt] | Iara / Marilena | [33] | |
| 2003 | So Normal | Vanilce "Vani" Alencar | [33] | |
| 2004 | Redeemer | Young Isaura | Also screenwriter | [33] |
| 2005 | The House of Sand | Áurea / Maria | [33] | |
| 2007 | Saneamento Básico | Marina | [33] | |
| Playing | Herself | Documentary | [33] | |
| 2009 | A Mulher Invisível | Lúcia | [33] | |
| Os Normais 2: A Noite Mais Maluca de Todas [pt] | Vanilce "Vani" Alencar | [33] | ||
| 2017 | Os 8 Magníficos | Herself | Documentary | [33] |
| 2018 | O Juízo | N/a | Screenwriter only | [35] |
| 2019 | Babenco: Tell Me When I Die | Herself | Documentary | [33] |
| Lina Bo Bardi: A Marvelous Entanglement | YoungLina Bo Bardi | [36] | ||
| 2024 | I'm Still Here | Eunice Paiva | [33] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Aplauso | Soraia | |
| 1981 | Baila Comigo | Fauna Rosa França | Telenovela |
| Brilhante | Marília Newman Carvalho | ||
| 1983 | Parabéns pra Você | Irene | |
| Caso Especial | Clara | Episode: "O Fantasma de Canterville" | |
| Maria Alice | Episode: "Todas as Mulheres do Mundo" | ||
| Eu Prometo | Dayse Ribeiro Cantomaia | Telenovela | |
| 1986 | Selva de Pedra | Simone Marques / Rosana Reis | |
| 1991 | One Man's War | Dolly | Television film[33] |
| 1994 | Terça Nobre | Diana | Episode: "Comédia da Vida Privada" |
| Dorinha | Episode: "O homem que sabia javanês" | ||
| Lúcia McCartney | Episode: "Lúcia McCartney" | ||
| 1995–97 | A Comédia da Vida Privada | ||
| 1999 | Luna Caliente | Dora | |
| 2001 | As Filhas da Mãe | Lulu de Luxemburgo (young) | Telenovela |
| 2001–03 | Os Normais | Vanilce "Vani" Alencar | |
| 2002 | Brava Gente | Jaci | Episode: "Lira Paulistana" |
| 2004 | Um Só Coração | Fernanda Montenegro | Episode: "8 de abril" |
| Sitcom.br | Nana | Episode: "Dia das Mães" | |
| 2006 | Os Amadores | Alice | Episode: "22 de dezembro" |
| 2008 | Sexo Oposto | ||
| 2009 | Bicho Homem | ||
| 2010 | Programa Piloto | Renata | |
| As Cariocas | Cris[37] | Episode: "A Invejosa de Ipanema" | |
| Amoral da História | [38] | ||
| 2011–15 | Tapas & Beijos | Fátima de Souza | |
| 2016 | Mister Brau | Bárbara[39] | Episode: "19 de julho" |
| 2016–17 | Minha Estupidez | ||
| 2017–19 | Filhos da Pátria | Maria Teresa Bulhosa | |
| 2018 | Sob Pressão | Dr. Renata Gomes | Season 2 |
| 2019 | Mulheres Fantásticas | Narrator[40] | Voice Episode: "Hedy Lamarr" |
| 2020 | Todas as Mulheres do Mundo | Estela[41] | |
| Diário de Um Confinado | Leonor[42] | ||
| Amor e Sorte | Lúcia Bóis[43] | ||
| Gilda, Lúcia e o Bode | Television special | ||
| 2023 | Fim | Celeste | Also creator and writer[44] |
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