Biography of Michelle RodriguezMayte Michelle Rodríguez[1] (born July 12, 1978), better known as Michelle Rodríguez, is an American actress, known for her role in the television series Lost and films The Fast and the Furious, S.W.A.T., BloodRayne and Resident Evil.
Rodríguez was born in San Antonio, Texas, the daughter of Carmen Milady (née Pared), a native of the Dominican Republic, and Rafael Rodríguez, a Puerto Rican who served in the military. She has a total of ten half-siblings or siblings. She was raised by her devoutly religious maternal grandmother and was brought up in her mother's Jehovah's Witnesses religion. Rodríguez moved to the Dominican Republic with her mother when she was eight and lived in Puerto Rico when she was 11, later settling in Jersey City, New Jersey. She dropped out of high school at age 17 and later earned her GED.
Having run across an ad for an open casting call and attending her first audition, Rodríguez beat 350 other applicants to win her first role in the low-budget 2000 independent film, Girlfight. Rodríguez's performance as Diana Guzman, a troubled teen who decides to channel her aggression by training to become a boxer, was recognized by both critics and audiences, but despite major industry buzz of a possible Academy Award nomination, she did not receive the Oscar nod. Rodríguez did however accumulate several other significant awards and nominations for the role in independent circles, including major acting accolades from the National Board of Review, Deauville Film Festival, Independent Spirit Awards, Gotham Awards, Las Vegas Film Critics Sierra Awards, and many others. The film itself took home top prizes at both the Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals.
Subsequently, she has had notable roles in other successful movies, including S.W.A.T., The Fast and the Furious and Resident Evil. In 2002, she was ranked #77 in Stuff magazine’s "102 Sexiest Women In The World", and #34 in Maxim’s "100 Sexiest Women". That same year, Rodríguez portrayed Eden in the surfer girlpower flick Blue Crush.
In 2004, Rodríguez lent her voice to the video game Halo 2, playing one of the Marines. She also currently provides the voice of Liz Ricarro in the Cartoon Network series IGPX. From 2005 to 2006, she played tough cop Ana Lucia Cortez on the television series Lost during the show's second season (the character's first appearance was a flashback on season 1's finale, Exodus: Part 1).
In 2006, Rodríguez was featured in her own episode of G4's show Icons. Battle in Seattle, her latest film, is due for release in December 2007, and she is currently in New Zealand filming James Cameron's upcoming highly anticipated scifi adventure Avatar, due out in May 2009.
In early 2000, Rodríguez broke off a near engagement to a Muslim boyfriend, citing opposition to religious requirements he demanded of her, which included covering herself completely. In 2001, Rodríguez then dated her The Fast and the Furious co-star, Vin Diesel. In 2006, she expressed a romantic interest in Irish actor and S.W.A.T. co-star, Colin Farrell. In July 2006, Rodriguez told UK's Cosmopolitan magazine that she was not gay, but had "experimented with both sexes". In November of 2006, her openly bisexual Bloodrayne co-star Kristanna Loken's comments to The Advocate were widely interpreted and reported by the media as an admission that the two were in a relationship. Asked about the relationship in April 2007, Kristanna Loken said, "We're great friends. She'll always remain a great, close friend of mine. I'll always love Michelle".
Most recently, Rodriguez was linked to Kylie Minogue's ex Olivier Martinez after the two were seen dining at Chateau Marmont. Rodríguez reportedly spent the night at his hotel room, and the two have been spotted together several times over the course of the last 4 years.
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