Lauren Vélez | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Vélez at the 2013San Diego Comic-Con | |
| Born | Luna Lauren Vélez (1964-11-02)November 2, 1964 (age 61) Brooklyn, New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Spouse | |
| Relatives | Lorraine Vélez (twin sister) |
Luna Lauren Vélez (born November 2, 1964)[1] is an American actress. Her most notable television roles are asMaría LaGuerta onShowtime'sDexter, Detective Nina Moreno onFox'sNew York Undercover, Dr.Gloria Nathan onHBO's prison dramaOz, and Elena onABC's comedy-dramaUgly Betty.[2] She also starred as Rio Morales inSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) andSpider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023).
In the early 1950s, Vélez's parents moved fromPuerto Rico toBrooklyn, New York City, where she and her identical twin sister,Lorraine Vélez, were born. The twins have five other sisters and one brother. Vélez's father, aNew York City Police Department officer, eventually bought a house inFar Rockaway, Queens, and moved the family there. The twins staged improvised plays and acting for the family and participated in nearly all their high school drama productions, such asFiddler on the Roof. After graduating fromBeach Channel High School in 1982, they receivedscholarships to attend theAlvin Ailey Dance School. They went on to study acting at The Acting Studio - New York with its founding artistic director James Price, protégé and personal friend ofSanford Meisner. Lauren also studiedShakespeare with Michael Howard.[3]
Vélez landed her first performing job in the national touring company of the musicalDreamgirls. She was also an understudy for actressPhylicia Rashad inStephen Sondheim'sInto the Woods, and performedOff-Broadway in productions ofMuch Ado About Nothing.
In 1994, Vélez made her film debut as Lisette Linares in the movieI Like It Like That alongsideRita Moreno andJon Seda.[4] She was nominated for theIndependent Spirit Award and The Desi Award for Best Lead Actress. The movie was nominated for fourIndependent Spirit Awards and won an NYFCCA award. In 1995, Vélez landed her first major television role as Nina Moreno, a policewoman, in the TV seriesNew York Undercover.[5] Another TV series in which she performed wasHBO'sjail dramaOz. She also acted in the feature filmCity Hall (1996) withAl Pacino. In 1997, she starred inBuscando un Sueño (In Search of a Dream), the firstSpanish-language film sanctioned bySAG. She played police lieutenant María LaGuerta, in a major supporting role onShowtime's seriesDexter.[6]
On June 24, 2006, Vélez won the Best Supporting Actress award at the 2006Long Island International Film Expo for her performance as Roseanne Crystal in the independent feature filmSerial.[5]
In 2010, she received theRita Moreno HOLA Award for Excellence from theHispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA).
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | I Like It Like That | Lisette Linares | Independent Spirit Awards for Best Female Lead |
| 1996 | City Hall | Elaine Santos | Nominated – NCLR Bravo Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series |
| 1997 | I Think I Do | Carol | Nominated —ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in a Feature Film |
| 2000 | Prince of Central Park | Rosa Sanchez | |
| 2001 | Prison Song | Prison Counselor | |
| 2007 | Serial | Roseanne Crystal | Long Island International Film Expo for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2011 | Rosewood Lane | Paula Crenshaw | |
| 2016 | Officer Downe | Chief Berringer | |
| America Adrift | Cecilia Fernandez | ||
| 2018 | The First Purge | Luisa | |
| Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse | Rio Morales (voice) | ||
| 2019 | Swallow | Lucy | |
| Shaft | Bennie | ||
| Windows on the World | Eva | ||
| 2020 | Ana | Camila | |
| 2021 | Rogue Hostage | Sunshine | |
| 2023 | Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse | Rio Morales (voice) | |
| Transformers: Rise of the Beasts | Breanna Diaz | ||
| TBA | Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse† | Rio Morales (voice) | In production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | The Cosby Mysteries | Claudine Palmeri | "The Hit Parade" |
| 1995–1999 | New York Undercover | Lourdes / Det. Nina Moreno | Guest role (season 1); Main role (seasons 2–4) |
| 1997–2003 | Oz | Dr. Gloria Nathan | Guest (season 1), recurring role (seasons 2–6) |
| 1998 | Thicker Than Blood | Camilla Lopez | Television film Nominated – ALMA Award for Outstanding Actress in Made-for Television Movie or Mini-Series |
| 1999 | Strange World | Det. Arias | "Azrael's Breed" |
| St. Michael's Crossing | Vicki Solera | TV series | |
| Law & Order | Ms. Torres | "Marathon" | |
| 2000 | The Pretender | Emily Sadler | "Spin Doctor" |
| Profiler | Emily Sadler | "Clean Sweep" | |
| 2001 | Love and Treason | Agent Susan Mestre | Television film |
| 2003 | Dragnet | Det. Denise Beltran | "Redemption," "For Whom the Whistle Blows" |
| 2004 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Attorney Shamal | "Home", "Obscene" |
| 2005 | Strong Medicine | Dr. Vanessa Burke | "First Response" |
| Wanted | Faye Templeton | "The Last Templeton" | |
| 2006 | Medium | Elena Cabrera | "Knowing Her" |
| 2006–2007 | Numbers | Claudia Gomez | "Undercurrents", "Hardball", "Contenders" |
| 2006–2012 | Dexter | María LaGuerta | Main role (seasons 1–7) |
| 2008 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Officer Lois Melago | "Purgatory" |
| 2009–2010 | Ugly Betty | Elena | Recurring role (seasons 3–4) |
| 2011 | Breakout Kings | Carmen Vega | "Where in the World Is Carmen Vega" |
| Hawthorne | Dr. Kat | "For Better or Worse" | |
| 2014 | Unforgettable | Aisha Conway | "Fire and Ice" |
| 2015 | South of Hell | Tetra | Main role |
| 2016 | Elementary | Zoe Mercado | "Art Imitates Art" |
| 2016–2017 | How to Get Away with Murder | Soraya Hargrove | Recurring role (season 3), guest (season 4) |
| 2017 | Madam Secretary | Natalia Moreno | "Labor of Love" |
| 2017–2018 | Blue Bloods | Special Agent Veronica Molina | "The Thin Blue Line," "By Hook or by Crook" |
| 2017 | MacGyver | Cassandra Glover | "Packing Peanuts + Fire", "CD-ROM + Hoagie Foil", "War Room + Ship" |
| 2018 | Murder | Capt. Lili Alvarez | TV film, pre-production |
| 2022–2023 | Power Book II: Ghost | Evelyn Castillo | Guest (season 2), recurring (season 3) |
| East New York | Tamika Martin | Recurring | |
| 2024 | American Rust | Detective Angela Burgos | Main role (season 2) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983–84 | Dreamgirls | Stepp Sister/Ensemble | Tour |
| 1985–87 | Stepp Sister/Sweetheart/Ensemble Michelle Morris (u/s) | ||
| 1988–89 | Into the Woods | The Witch (u/s) | Broadway |
| 2024 | The Other Americans | Patti | Arena Stage, Washington, D.C. |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
