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Portia de Rossi (Nelle Porter)
Unlike many actresses, Portia de Rossi did not intentionally seek out an acting career. Instead, she was pursued by it.
She was enrolled in law school and well on her way to becoming an attorney in her native Australia when movie stardom beckoned.
Local film producer John Duigan asked de Rossi to audition for an independent film he was making. The film turned out to be
Sirens, which co-starred Hugh Grant, Sam Neill and Elle MacPherson. She got the part of Giddy, a 16-year-old caught between the notion of being a wild and free "siren" or being a conventional and sophisticated woman. The film became an international and critical success.
Her other starring role was in the mega-hit
Scream 2 as Murphy, a social-climbing sorority girl who, along with Rebecca Gayheart, recruits Neve Campbell's character to join their elite group.
Also for the big screen, de Rossi will soon be seen in several upcoming films, including
A Breed Apart with Andrew McCarthy;
The Invisibles, a two-person film with Michael Goorjian;
American Intellectuals, an ensemble piece about a clique of upper class kids who experiment with smart drugs; and
Girl, a coming-of-age story with Dominique Swain, Summer Phoenix and Sean Patrick Flannery.
For television, de Rossi starred in
Too Something as Maria, a junior account executive at a financial corporation. Most recently, she guest starred on
Veronica's Closet and was a series regular on
Nick Freno.
She lives in Los Angeles.
Lucy Liu (Ling Woo)
Emmy-nominated in the second season for her role on
Ally McBeal, Lucy Liu has an extensive list of credits for film and television. Her feature film work includes co-starring as a dominatrix opposite Mel Gibson in
Payback as well as appearing in Clint Eastwood's
True Crime and with Elizabeth Shue in
Molly.
Most recently, she shot starring roles in two films - as a free-spirited hitchhiker opposite Woody Harrelson and Antonio Banderas in
Play It to the Bone, and as a kidnapped princess rescued by a Chinese Imperial Guard in
Shanghai Noon with Jackie Chan. She also basked in the limelight as the aggressive, butt-kicking Alex in the runaway success of the remake of
Charlie's Angels.
Her theatre credits include
Numb, Redwood Curtain and
M. Butterfly. She is also a member of the Met Theatre Development Ensemble.
Also nominated for a Viewers for Quality Television Award for
Ally McBeal, her other television credits include starring with Rhea Perlman and Malcolm McDowell in
Pearl, as well as recurring roles on
ER, High Incident and
Coach, and guest appearances on
NYPD Blue, LA Law, The X-Files and
Michael Hayes. She also starred in the telefilm
Riot.
Liu, a New York native, attended NYU and later majored in Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Michigan. During her senior year, she auditioned on a whim for a supporting role in Andre Gregory's adaptation of
Alice in Wonderland. Instead of a small role, she was cast as the lead and a career was born.
In addition to acting, Liu is a gifted artist. Her work first appeared at the Cast Iron Gallery in SoHo in 1993. She then received an art grant to study in China. Her exhibit of mixed-media photography - pictures laid in the centre of an original frame and intermixed with ceramics, paints, wood collages and papers - chronicled her experiences in China and debuted at a Venice, California gallery in 1997.
Liu resides in Los Angeles.
Lisa Nicole Carson (Renee Radick)
Lisa Nicole Carson's television credits include the series
ER, Divas, Girlfriend and
The Apollo Comedy Hour. She has appeared in the feature films
Love Jones, Devil In A Blue Dress, Jason's Lyric, and
Eve's Bayou. Her theatre credits include
Club 12, Hey Little Walter, Little Shop Of Horrors, Tar Beach Incidentals, and
Work It!
Born July 12 and raised in Brooklyn, NY, she now resides in Los Angeles and New York.
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