Lana Parrilla
Encyclopedia
Lana Parrilla is a Puerto Rican-American actress, best known for her roles on Spin City
, 24
, Boomtown and Miami Medical. She currently stars as The Evil Queen/Regina Mills in the ABC
series Once Upon a Time
.
, a professional baseball
player for the Philadelphia Phillies
in the early 1970s.
in 2000, playing Angie Ordonez for one season.
After this, she joined Donnie Wahlberg
and Neal McDonough
in the 2002 series Boomtown, for which she received the Imagen Award for Best Supporting Actress, in which she played Teresa, a paramedic. Initially a success, Boomtown began to struggle, and Lana's character became a police academy rookie, so as to tie her more closely to the rest of the show. That program was cancelled just two episodes into its second season.
Parrilla guest-starred in shows such as JAG
, NYPD Blue
and Six Feet Under. In 2005, Parrilla took a recurring guest role on the fourth season of 24 as Sarah Gavin, a Counter Terrorist Unit agent. After just six episodes, Lana was promoted to a main cast member, but in the thirteenth episode, she was written out for reasons unknown after her character demanded a promotion from temporary head Michelle Dessler
(Reiko Aylesworth
) which was denied.
In 2006, Parrilla starred in the NBC
summer series Windfall alongside Luke Perry
, fellow former 24 cast member Sarah Wynter
, and Parilla's former Boomtown castmate Jason Gedrick
.
In 2007, Parrilla guest starred as a character called Greta in the third season episodes of ABC's Lost
, "Greatest Hits
" and "Through the Looking Glass
"
In 2008, she starred on the Lifetime movie The Double Life of Eleanor Kendall, in which she played Nellie, a divorcee whose identity has been stolen.
In June 2008, she starred in the CBS
summer series Swingtown
as Trina Decker, a woman who is part of a swinging
couple.
In 2010, Parrilla starred in the Jerry Bruckheimer
-produced Miami Medical on CBS
, which had a short run towards the end of the 2009-10 television season before being canceled in July 2010. From 2010 to 2011 she made many guest appearances of TV shows, such as Covert Affairs
, Medium
, The Defenders
and Chase.
Parrilla stars as The Evil Queen/Regina Mills in the ABC adventure fantasy television series, Once Upon a Time
, which debuted in October 2011.
Spin City
Spin City is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 until April 30, 2002 on the ABC network. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show was based on a fictional local government running New York City, and originally starred Michael J. Fox as Mike...
, 24
24 (TV series)
24 is an American television series produced for the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration...
, Boomtown and Miami Medical. She currently stars as The Evil Queen/Regina Mills in the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
series Once Upon a Time
Once Upon a Time (TV series)
Once Upon a Time is an American fairy tale drama television series that premiered on Sunday October 23, 2011, on ABC. New episodes air Sunday nights at 8:00 pm ET/7:00 pm CT....
.
Early life
Parrilla was born in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of Sam ParrillaSam Parrilla
Samuel Parilla was a left fielder and pinch-hitter for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1970. He played in the minor leagues from 1963 to 1972....
, a professional baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
player for the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
in the early 1970s.
Career
She had roles in a few movies, including Very Mean Men (2000), Spiders (2000), Frozen Stars (2003) and Replicant. She was first noticed in the mainstream when she joined the cast of Spin CitySpin City
Spin City is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 until April 30, 2002 on the ABC network. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show was based on a fictional local government running New York City, and originally starred Michael J. Fox as Mike...
in 2000, playing Angie Ordonez for one season.
After this, she joined Donnie Wahlberg
Donnie Wahlberg
Donald Edward "Donnie" Wahlberg, Jr. is an American singer, actor and film producer. He is a member of the popular 1980s and 1990s boy band New Kids on the Block. His work background includes music, feature films, and television...
and Neal McDonough
Neal McDonough
Neal P. McDonough is an American film, television and voice actor.-Career:In 1991, McDonough won the Best Actor Dramalogue for "Away Alone". McDonough has made many television and film appearances since then, including Band of Brothers, Boomtown, Star Trek: First Contact, Minority Report and The...
in the 2002 series Boomtown, for which she received the Imagen Award for Best Supporting Actress, in which she played Teresa, a paramedic. Initially a success, Boomtown began to struggle, and Lana's character became a police academy rookie, so as to tie her more closely to the rest of the show. That program was cancelled just two episodes into its second season.
Parrilla guest-starred in shows such as JAG
JAG (TV series)
JAG is an American adventure/legal drama television show that was produced by Belisarius Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television and, for the first season only, NBC Productions...
, NYPD Blue
NYPD Blue
NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan...
and Six Feet Under. In 2005, Parrilla took a recurring guest role on the fourth season of 24 as Sarah Gavin, a Counter Terrorist Unit agent. After just six episodes, Lana was promoted to a main cast member, but in the thirteenth episode, she was written out for reasons unknown after her character demanded a promotion from temporary head Michelle Dessler
Michelle Dessler
Michelle Dessler is a fictional character played by Reiko Aylesworth on the television series, 24. She was one of Jack's closest and most trusted female allies at CTU as well as one of his closest friends outside of work. The character first appeared in the second season of 24 as an Internet...
(Reiko Aylesworth
Reiko Aylesworth
Reiko M. Aylesworth is an American film, television and stage actress, best known for her role on the television series 24 as Michelle Dessler.-Life and career:...
) which was denied.
In 2006, Parrilla starred in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
summer series Windfall alongside Luke Perry
Luke Perry
Luke Perry is an American actor. Perry starred as Dylan McKay on the TV series Beverly Hills, 90210, a role he played from 1990–95, and then from 1998–2000. Much publicity was garnered over the fact that even though he was playing a sixteen-year-old when 90210 began, Perry was actually in his...
, fellow former 24 cast member Sarah Wynter
Sarah Wynter
Sarah Wynter is an Australian actress, most widely known for her roles on American television – such as Kate Warner on the television drama 24 and as Beth on Windfall.-Personal life:...
, and Parilla's former Boomtown castmate Jason Gedrick
Jason Gedrick
Jason Gedrick is an American actor best known for his work on the television series Murder One and Boomtown and the motion picture Iron Eagle....
.
In 2007, Parrilla guest starred as a character called Greta in the third season episodes of ABC's Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
, "Greatest Hits
Greatest Hits (Lost)
"Greatest Hits" is the 21st episode of the third season of Lost and 70th episode of the series. It was written by co-executive producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and directed by supervising producer Stephen Williams. The episode first aired on May 16, 2007 on ABC in the United States and...
" and "Through the Looking Glass
Through the Looking Glass (Lost)
"Through the Looking Glass" is the third season finale of the ABC television series Lost, consisting of the 22nd and 23rd episodes of the third season. It is also the 71st and 72nd episodes overall. It was written by co-creator/executive producer Damon Lindelof and executive producer Carlton Cuse,...
"
In 2008, she starred on the Lifetime movie The Double Life of Eleanor Kendall, in which she played Nellie, a divorcee whose identity has been stolen.
In June 2008, she starred in the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
summer series Swingtown
Swingtown
Swingtown was an American television series created by Mike Kelley as a summer replacement series for CBS. The show was a period and relationship drama about the impact of sexual and social liberation in 1970s American suburban households, with story arcs involving open marriages and key...
as Trina Decker, a woman who is part of a swinging
Swinging
Swinging or partner swapping is a non-monogamous behavior, in which both partners in a committed relationship agree, as a couple, for both partners to engage in sexual activities with other couples as a recreational or social activity...
couple.
In 2010, Parrilla starred in the Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
-produced Miami Medical on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, which had a short run towards the end of the 2009-10 television season before being canceled in July 2010. From 2010 to 2011 she made many guest appearances of TV shows, such as Covert Affairs
Covert Affairs
Covert Affairs is a USA Network television series starring Piper Perabo and Christopher Gorham. The one-hour drama premiered on Tuesday, July 13, 2010. The show concluded its first season on September 14, 2010 and was renewed for a second season on August 19, 2010. The second season began airing on...
, Medium
Medium (TV series)
Medium is an American television drama series that premiered on NBC on January 3, 2005, and ended on CBS on January 21, 2011. Themed on supernatural gifts, its lead character, Allison DuBois , is a medium employed as a consultant for the Phoenix, Arizona district attorney's office...
, The Defenders
The Defenders (2010 TV series)
The Defenders is a 2010 American legal comedy-drama that was ordered to series by CBS for the 2010–11 television season. The series originally ran from September 22, 2010 to March 11, 2011....
and Chase.
Parrilla stars as The Evil Queen/Regina Mills in the ABC adventure fantasy television series, Once Upon a Time
Once Upon a Time (TV series)
Once Upon a Time is an American fairy tale drama television series that premiered on Sunday October 23, 2011, on ABC. New episodes air Sunday nights at 8:00 pm ET/7:00 pm CT....
, which debuted in October 2011.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Very Mean Men | Teresa | |
| Spiders | Marci Eyre | ||
| 2001 | Replicant Replicant (film) Replicant is a 2001 action- science fiction film starring Michael Rooker and Jean-Claude Van Damme and directed by Ringo Lam. It is set in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and Seattle, Washington, United States... |
Marci | uncredited |
| 2003 | Frozen Stars | Lisa Vasquez | |
| 2005 | One Last Ride | Antoinette | |
| 2008 | The Double Life of Eleanor Kendall | Nellie |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Grown Ups | Waitress | 2 episodes |
| 2000–2001 | Spin City Spin City Spin City is an American sitcom television series that aired from September 17, 1996 until April 30, 2002 on the ABC network. Created by Gary David Goldberg and Bill Lawrence, the show was based on a fictional local government running New York City, and originally starred Michael J. Fox as Mike... |
Angie Ordonez | 21 episodes; Main cast |
| 2002 | JAG JAG (TV series) JAG is an American adventure/legal drama television show that was produced by Belisarius Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television and, for the first season only, NBC Productions... |
Lt. Stephanie Donato | 1 episode |
| The Shield The Shield The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons... |
Sedona Tellez | 1 episode | |
| 2002-2003 | Boomtown | Teresa Ortiz | 24 episodes; Main cast Imagen Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2004 | NYPD Blue NYPD Blue NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan... |
Officer Janet Grafton | 3 episodes |
| Six Feet Under Six Feet Under Six Feet Under is an American drama television series created and produced by Alan Ball. It premiered on the premium cable network HBO in the United States on June 3, 2001 and ended on August 21, 2005, spanning five seasons and 63 episodes. The show was produced by Actual Size Films and The... |
Maile | 2 episodes | |
| 2005 | 24 24 (TV series) 24 is an American television series produced for the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration... |
Sarah Gavin | 12 episodes |
| 2006 | Windfall | Nina Schaefer | 13 episodes; Main cast |
| Lost Lost (TV series) Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island... |
Greta | 2 episodes | |
| 2008 | Swingtown Swingtown Swingtown was an American television series created by Mike Kelley as a summer replacement series for CBS. The show was a period and relationship drama about the impact of sexual and social liberation in 1970s American suburban households, with story arcs involving open marriages and key... |
Trina Decker | 13 episodes |
| 2010 | Miami Medical | Dr. Eva Zambrano | 13 episodes; Main cast |
| Covert Affairs Covert Affairs Covert Affairs is a USA Network television series starring Piper Perabo and Christopher Gorham. The one-hour drama premiered on Tuesday, July 13, 2010. The show concluded its first season on September 14, 2010 and was renewed for a second season on August 19, 2010. The second season began airing on... |
Julia Suarez | 1 episode | |
| Medium Medium (TV series) Medium is an American television drama series that premiered on NBC on January 3, 2005, and ended on CBS on January 21, 2011. Themed on supernatural gifts, its lead character, Allison DuBois , is a medium employed as a consultant for the Phoenix, Arizona district attorney's office... |
Lydia Halstrom | 1 episode | |
| The Defenders The Defenders (2010 TV series) The Defenders is a 2010 American legal comedy-drama that was ordered to series by CBS for the 2010–11 television season. The series originally ran from September 22, 2010 to March 11, 2011.... |
Betty | 1 episode | |
| 2011 | Chase | Isabella | 1 episode |
| 2011–present | Once Upon a Time Once Upon a Time (TV series) Once Upon a Time is an American fairy tale drama television series that premiered on Sunday October 23, 2011, on ABC. New episodes air Sunday nights at 8:00 pm ET/7:00 pm CT.... |
The Evil Queen/Regina Mills | TV series; Main cast |