Vanessa Marcil facts for kids

Vanessa Marcil is an American actress born on October 15, 1968. She is well-known for her roles in popular TV shows. You might recognize her as Brenda Barrett from General Hospital. She also played Gina Kincaid on Beverly Hills, 90210 and Sam Marquez on Las Vegas.

Vanessa Marcil's Early Life

Vanessa Marcil grew up in Indio, California. She is the youngest of four children. Her mother, Patricia Marcil, was a herbalist. Her father, Pete Ortiz, was a successful contractor. Vanessa's father had Mexican heritage. Her mother had French and Italian roots.

Vanessa Marcil's Acting Career

Vanessa Marcil started her acting journey in theater plays. In 1992, she got a big role on the soap opera General Hospital. She played the character of Brenda Barrett. Her performance earned her three nominations for the Daytime Emmy Award. She won one of these awards in 2003. This was for Outstanding Supporting Actress. In 1998, she was also named Outstanding Lead Actress at the Soap Opera Digest Awards.

Music Videos and First Movies

In 1993, Vanessa appeared in a music video for the artist Prince. It was called "Poorgoo." The next year, she was in another Prince music video, "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World." In 1995, People magazine included her on their list of the 50 Most Beautiful people. Her first movie role was in The Rock in 1996. She acted alongside famous stars like Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery.

Moving to New TV Shows

After six years on General Hospital, Vanessa left the show in 1998. She then starred in a TV movie called To Love, Honor and Deceive. She also had a guest role on the police show High Incident. This show was produced by Steven Spielberg. In November 1998, Vanessa joined the cast of Beverly Hills, 90120. She played the character of Gina Kincaid for about a year and a half. She also appeared in two independent films in 1999. These were Nice Guys Sleep Alone and This Space Between Us.

Returning to Familiar Roles

In 2001, Vanessa was cast in the TV show NYPD Blue. She played Detective Carmen Olivera. However, after her first episode, the role was changed. She made one more brief appearance as the detective later on. From 2002 to 2003, she returned to General Hospital as Brenda Barrett. This is when she won her Daytime Emmy Award.

Later, Vanessa joined the NBC drama Las Vegas. She played Sam Marquez, a casino host. She stayed on the show for five seasons until 2008. In 2008, she also hosted a reality show called Blush: The Search for the Next Great Makeup Artist. She also made guest appearances on the NBC show Lipstick Jungle.

Recent Projects

In 2009, Vanessa starred in two TV movies: The Nanny Express for the Hallmark Channel and One Hot Summer for Lifetime. In 2010, she was in a web series called The Bannen Way. She also returned to General Hospital in August 2010. She stayed for about a year. In April 2013, she made a special guest appearance for the show's 50th anniversary.

In 2014, she starred in the Hallmark Channel movie Stranded in Paradise. In 2015, she joined the cast of the reality series Queens of Drama. This show followed former soap opera actresses. In 2016, she starred in another Hallmark Channel movie, The Convenient Groom.

Vanessa Marcil's Personal Life

Vanessa Marcil was married to actor Corey Feldman from 1989 to 1993.

In 1999, she started dating her Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star, Brian Austin Green. They got engaged in 2001. Their son, Kassius Lijah Marcil-Green, was born in 2002. They ended their relationship in 2003.

On July 11, 2010, Vanessa married actor Carmine Giovinazzo. They had a private ceremony in New York City. In 2011, they announced they were expecting a child. However, Vanessa faced some personal challenges during her pregnancies. She filed for divorce in August 2012, and it was finalized in March 2013.

In April 2015, Vanessa shared that she was engaged to MC Martin, a California Deputy Sheriff. In late 2017 and early 2018, she announced another pregnancy. Sadly, she faced more personal challenges during this time.

Vanessa's father, Pete, passed away in September 2017. Vanessa has also converted to Judaism.

Film and Television Roles

Vanessa Marcil has appeared in many films and television shows. Here are some of her notable roles:

Film Roles

• 1996: The Rock as Carla Pestalozzi
• 1997: 976-WISH as Danielle (a short film)
• 1999: Nice Guys Sleep Alone as Erin
• 2000: This Space Between Us as Maggie Harty
• 2002: Storm Watch as Tess Woodward

Television Roles

• 1992–1998, 2002–2003, 2010–2011, 2013: General Hospital as Brenda Barrett
• 1996: To Love, Honor and Deceive as Sydney Carpenter (TV film)
• 1997: High Incident as Kerry Andrews (2 episodes)
• 1998–2000: Beverly Hills, 90210 as Gina Kincaid
• 2001: Spin City as Crazy Kara (1 episode)
• 2001 & 2003: NYPD Blue as Detective Maria Olivera (2 episodes)
• 2003–2008: Las Vegas as Sam Marquez
• 2004–2005: Crossing Jordan as Sam Marquez (2 episodes)
• 2008: Lipstick Jungle as Josie Scotto (3 episodes)
• 2008: The Nanny Express as Kate Hewitt (TV film)
• 2009: Without a Trace as Kim Marcus (3 episodes)
• 2009: One Hot Summer as Margarita Silva Santos (TV film)
• 2010: The Bannen Way as Madison (webseries)
• 2012: Hawaii Five-0 as Dr. Olivia Victor (1 episode)
• 2014: Hell's Kitchen as Herself (1 episode)
• 2014: Stranded in Paradise as Tess Nelson (TV film)
• 2016: The Convenient Groom as Dr. Kate Lawrence (TV film)
• 2017: The Wrong Mother as Kaylene (TV film)
• 2018: Bad Tutor as Kelly (TV film)
• 2019: My Stepfather's Secret as Tina (TV film)

Awards and Nominations

Vanessa Marcil has received several awards and nominations for her acting.

See also

In Spanish: Vanessa Marcil para niños