Gina Torres (born April 25, 1969 in Manhattan, New York) is an American actress of Afro-Cuban heritage. Her earliest TV role was a guest spot on Law & Order in 1992, but her first major role was as Queen Cleopatra in Xena: Warrior Princess. She later had a major role in Cleopatra 2525, though not as Cleopatra.
Torres gained further recognition when she played Nathan Fillion's gunslinging lieutenant Zoe in the short-lived Joss Whedon Space Western Firefly, a role she played once more in the spinoff movie Serenity. She has since appeared in Angel, The Shield, Boston Legal, Gossip Girl, Suits and other hit TV shows. She has also performed many voice roles, including Superwoman, Wonder Woman, Vixen, and Airachnid. Torres married Laurence Fishburne in 2002, welcomed a daughter named Delilah in 2007, and separated in 2017.
Roles
- Antigone (1987 production)
- Dreamgirls (1988 production)
- Law & Order (1992 and 1995) as Lauren Elkin, Charlene
- M.A.N.T.I.S. (1994) as Dr. Amy Ellis
- NYPD Blue (1995) as Dominican Woman
- One Life to Live (1995-1996) as Magdalena and Nell
- Xena: Warrior Princess (1997) as Queen Cleopatra
- Hercules: The Legendary Journeys (1997-1999) as Nebula
- La Femme Nikita (1998) as Jenna Vogler
- Cleopatra 2525 (2000-2001) as Helena "Hel" Carter
- Alias (2001-2006) as Anna Espinosa
- Firefly (2002-2003) as Zoe Washburne
- The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions (2003) as Cas
- Angel (2003) as Jasmine
- CSI (2004) as Warden Hutton
- 24 (2004) as Julia Milliken
- Justice League Unlimited (2004-2006) as Mari "Vixen" McCabe (voice)
- The Matrix Online (2005-2009) as Niobe (voice)
- Serenity (2005) as Zoe Washburne
- The Shield (2006) as Sadie Kavanaugh
- Without a Trace (2006) as Tyra Hughes
- Standoff (2006-2007) as Cheryl Carrera
- Dirty Sexy Money (2007) as Princess Ama
- Boston Legal (2008) as A.D.A. Mary Franklin
- Pushing Daisies (2009) as Lila Robinson
- Flash Forward (2009) as Felicia Wedeck
- Gossip Girl (2009) as Gabriela Abrams
- The Vampire Diaries (2010) as Bree
- Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010) as Superwoman (voice)
- The Boondocks (2010) as Ebony Brown (voice)
- Huge (2010) as Dr. Dorothy Rand
- Transformers: Prime (2011-2013) as Airachnid (voice)
- DC Universe Online (2011) as Wonder Woman (voice), until summer 2013.
- Suits (2011-2018) as Jessica Pearson
- Hannibal (2013-2015) as Bella Crawford
- Star Wars Rebels (2015-2018) as Ketsu Onyo (voice)
- Westworld (2016-2020) as Lauren
- Final Space (2018-2021) as Helper Hula, additional characters (voice)
- Elena of Avalor (2019-2020) as Chatana (voice)
- Riverdale (2019) as Mrs. Burble
- 9-1-1: Lone Star (2021-present) as Tommy Vega
- The Legend of Vox Machina (2022-present) as Keeper Yennen (voice)
- Immortals of Aveum (2023) as Kirkan (voice and likeness)
Tropes
- Action Girl: Starting with Xena: Warrior Princess, she often does her own stunts.
- Deadpan Snarker: Anyone who has been in two Joss Whedon productions becomes very good at being this.
- Playing Against Type: As Superwoman and Airachnid.
- Statuesque Stunner: 5 feet and 10 inches tall, and quite the beauty.
