Jordana Spiro

Jordana Spiro (born April 12, 1977) is an American actress, director, and writer. As an actress, she has starred in numerous films and television series including Netflix's Ozark and TBS comedy television program My Boys.

Jordana Spiro
Spiro in December 2016
Born (1977-04-12) April 12, 1977 (age 47)
EducationCircle in the Square Theatre
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Columbia University
OccupationActress
Years active1995–present
SpouseMatthew Spitzer
Children1

Her debut feature Night Comes On, which she directed and co-wrote (with Angelica Nwandu) premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2018. She developed the film at the Sundance Institute's Directors, Screenwriters, and Composers Labs, and through a Cinereach development grant. Her short Skin premiered at Sundance and won the Women In Film Productions award. Skin also won the Honorable Mention Award at SXSW, showed at Telluride, Palm Springs, and AFI among others. Spiro earned her MFA in Film from Columbia University in 2015 and received the Adrienne Shelly Foundation Fellowship. She studied drama at the Circle in the Square Theatre School in New York and was selected to join the Berlinale Talent Campus in Berlin.

Early life and education

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Spiro was born and raised in New York City. She is Jewish.[1] Spiro has a brother and three sisters.[2] She studied at the Circle in the Square Theatre[3][4] School and briefly attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art[5][6] in London. In fall 2009, she began the MFA Program in Filmmaking at Columbia University.[7] She finished the degree in 2015.[8] Spiro currently splits her time between Los Angeles and New York.

Career

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Spiro's first film role was as Catherine Reece in the 1999 film, From Dusk Till Dawn 3: The Hangman's Daughter, a direct-to-DVD prequel to the 1996 film From Dusk till Dawn.

In 2000 Spiro starred in her first TV series, the USA crime drama The Huntress. Co-star Annette O'Toole and Spiro played mother and daughter bounty hunters, based on the lives of Dottie And Brandi Thorson. The series ran for 28 episodes, concluding in 2001.

Spiro starred in the TBS original comedy series My Boys.[9] She played the role of P.J., a twenty-something "guy's girl", and sports reporter who tries to find romance within her world that is dominated by male friends. The series wrapped its fourth and final season on TBS in 2010.

Spiro also appeared in the 2009 comedy The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard alongside Jeremy Piven, Ed Helms and Rob Riggle, and produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. The Goods was directed by Neal Brennan.[10]

Additional credits include The Year of Getting to Know Us, which premiered at the 2008 Sundance film festival, IFC's Alone with Her, as well as guest appearances on Cold Case,[11] Out of Practice,[12] and CSI: NY.[13]

Spiro was scheduled to star in the planned 2010–11 television series Love Bites, but fell out of the role in June 2010 due to other contractual obligations.[14] Spiro was also cast alongside Nicolas Cage and Nicole Kidman in the thriller, Trespass.[15] She was a guest star on the Showtime 2011 season of Dexter.[16] For the 2012–13 season, she had the lead role in the Fox-TV medical/crime drama The Mob Doctor.

Recently, Spiro starred as Rachel Garrison in the Netflix crime drama Ozark.[17][18]

In February 2024, Spiro joined the cast of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Shannah Sykes, an FBI agent on loan to the show's special victims unit squad.[19]

Personal life

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She is married to Matthew Spitzer[20] with whom she has a daughter.[21]

Filmography

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Film

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YearTitleRoleNotes
1999From Dusk till Dawn 3: The Hangman's DaughterCatherine Reece
2003Playas BallTonya Jenkins
2004The Greener GrassHeather
2005Must Love DogsSherry
Partner(s)Anne
2006Alone with HerJen
ArgoBeccaShort film
2007Living & DyingMary Jane
ResignedAlisonShort film
2008The Year of Getting to Know UsKim Temple
2009The Goods: Live Hard, Sell HardIvy Selleck
2011TrespassPetal
2019To the StarsFrancie Deerborne
2021Fear Street Part One: 1994Mrs. Lane
Fear Street Part Two: 1978Nurse Mary Lane
Fear Street Part Three: 1666The Widow / Mrs. Lane
Small Engine RepairKaren Delgado

Television

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YearTitleRoleNotes
1995Maybe This TimeChaseEpisode: "The Other Mother"
1996Her Last ChanceWaitressTV movie
If These Walls Could TalkAlison (segment "1974")TV movie
1997Buffy the Vampire SlayerCallie AndersonEpisode: "Reptile Boy"
1998Beverly Hills, 90210Carrie KnoxEpisode: "Dealer's Choice"
City GuysZoeyEpisode: "A Guy and a Goth"
One WorldAlex3 episodes
1999UndressedMerrith3 episodes
2000–2001The HuntressBrandi Thorson28 episodes
2004Beck and CallJemmaTV movie
2005CSI: NYTavia GreenburgEpisode: "Tanglewood"
Cold CaseSuzanneEpisode: "Revolution"
JAGNavy Lt. Catherine Graves3 episodes
Out of PracticeBianca/Roberta2 episodes
2006Kitchen ConfidentialAlisonEpisode: "Praise Be Praise"
2006–2010My BoysP.J. Franklin49 episodes
2011Harry's LawRachael Miller7 episodes
DexterBeth Dorsey2 episodes
Lost and FoundJoTV movie
2012–2013The Mob DoctorDr. Grace Devlin13 episodes
2013–2014The Good WifeDetective Jenna Villette4 episodes
2014TyrantDanaEpisode: "Pilot"
2015–2016Royal PainsJen3 episodes
2015–2016, 2020BlindspotSarah Weller11 episodes
2016The WildingMargaret HayesTV movie
2017–2018, 2022OzarkRachel Garrison24 episodes
2020EvilEma SerpagliEpisode: "Justice x 2"
2022, 2024Law & Order: Special Victims UnitDelia Hackman / Special Agent Shannah Sykes6 episodes
TBAThe SavantTBAUpcoming miniseries[22]

References

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