American television actress Wendy Moniz (born January 19, 1969) is best known for playing Louisa Archer in The Guardian, Rachel McCabe in Nash Bridges, and Dinah Marler in the CBS soap opera Guiding Light.
Wendy Moniz played Elaine McAllister in the ABC drama series Betrayal from 2013 to 2014. In the television shows House of Cards (2015–2016) and Yellowstone, Moniz had recurring appearances as Governor Lynelle Perry and Laura Moretti, respectively (2018–present).
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Table of Contents
Career
In the role of Dinah Marler in the CBS daytime serial opera Guiding Light, Moniz made her acting debut. From 1995 through 1999, she played a series regular and received two Soap Opera Digest Award nominations. Later, in 2000 and 2002, Moniz made a comeback as a guest performer.
Moniz was cast in the primetime CBS drama pilot Partners in 1999. She appeared in the critically acclaimed television movie version of Mitch Albom’s book Tuesdays with Morrie that same year as the female lead. Later, she co-starred with Elizabeth Perkins as a series regular in the short-lived NBC comedy series Battery Park.
In the sixth and last season of the CBS television series Nash Bridges, Moniz was cast as a series regular in the character of Rachel McCabe. Later, she co-starred with Simon Baker as Louisa “Lulu” Archer in the CBS television series The Guardian. The television show ran from 2001 until 2004. Moniz had a recurring role as Stacey Walker on the ABC comedy-drama Big Shots in 2007, and she appeared as a guest character in an episode of the NBC legal drama Law & Order in 2005. Later, from 2009 to 2010, she played Jill Burnham in the FX series Damages.
She was originally slated as Tom Selleck’s love interest in the CBS police drama Blue Bloods in 2010, but Andrea Roth was given the part instead. On the ABC daytime drama opera One Life to Live, she later played the character of Llanview Mayor Finn, who takes over for departing Mayor Dorian Lord in 2011. In 2012, she also had an appearance in the ABC drama 666 Park Avenue.
Moniz was cast in the ABC drama series Betrayal, which Patty Jenkins is directing and is based on the Dutch drama series Overspel, in March 2013 alongside Stuart Townsend, James Cromwell, and Hannah Ware. Moniz was chosen to play the lead role in Patrick Wang’s independent drama film The Grief of Others in 2014.
Later, she made guest appearances in the Netflix programs House of Cards and Daredevil. She was given a recurring part in the DirecTV drama Kingdom in 2016 as a love interest for her real-life husband, Frank Grillo. She has been portraying Governor Lynelle Perry in the drama series Yellowstone on the Paramount Network since 2018. For the sixth season, she was made a regular on the show.
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Personal Life
Moniz was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and is of Portuguese and Irish ancestry. In 1991, she enrolled at Siena College in Loudonville, New York. In 1991, she wed David Birsner, but the pair split amicably in 1996. She wed Frank Grillo, a former co-star on Guiding Light, in October 2000; they divorced in September 2020 after they separated in February. The two sons of the marriage.
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Wendy Moniz’s Ex-Husband: Who Is Frank Grillo?
Italian-American actor Frank Grillo is well-known for playing roles in films like “Warrior” and “Zero Dark Thirty.” Additionally, he played some significant character roles in movies including “The Grey” and “End of Watch.” Before landing his first major role in 2014 as “Sergeant Leo Barnes” in the action movie “The Purge: Anarchy,” he began his career by acting in commercials. He then delved into cinema and played a number of lesser roles. Later, he made an appearance in the Chinese action movie “Wolf Warrior 2,” which went on to become the most successful non-Hollywood production in movie history.
His Early Life
Grillo, who is of Italian (Calabrian) ancestry, was born in New York City as the first of three sons into a working-class household. He was raised in Rockland County and the Bronx in New York. Grillo started wrestling at the age of eight and picked up boxing at the age of 18. He began training Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 1991; he is a brown belt and has studied under Rickson Gracie. After earning a business degree from New York University and working on Wall Street for a year, Grillo was approached to appear in a Miller Genuine Draft beer advertisement. He claimed to be an Italian citizen on the podcast The Fighter and the Kid.
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Career
Frank Grillo began his acting career by participating in advertisements for brands like Sure deodorant and American Express. His first film appearance was in The Mambo Kings in 1992. He then went on to star in Minority Report (2002), April’s Shower (2006), iMurders (2008), and Pride and Glory (2008), all produced by New Line Cinema.
Frank Grillo played Daniel Sohapi in the 2010 horror movie Mother’s Day. The following year, he played MMA coach Frank Campana in the supporting role of Warrior. He co-starred with Liam Neeson as Diaz in the survival thriller The Grey, and Jake Gyllenhaal as Sarge in End of Watch in 2012. He co-starred in 2013’s romance thriller Collision with Jaimie Alexander and appeared in Jason Statham’s action flick Homefront in a supporting capacity.
Frank Grillo played Brock Rumlow, a HYDRA agent, in the 2014 movie Captain America: The Winter Soldier. He played Sergeant Leo Barnes in the follow-up The Purge: Anarchy that same year, and he returned to the character for The Purge: Election Year in 2016. Additionally, on May 6, 2016, the third Captain America movie in the series, Civil War, saw him return to the character of Brock Rumlow/Crossbones.
In addition to Academy Award contender Minnie Driver, Ed Westwick, AnnaSophia Robb, Dianna Agron, John Leguizamo, Mary McCormack, Christopher McDonald, and Maggie Q, Grillo began filming for The Crash in October 2013. Aram Rappaport is the director, and Hilary Shor, Atit Shah, and Aaron Becker are the producers. Release day for The Crash was January 31, 2017.
Frank Grillo appeared in the movies Demonic and Big Sky in 2015. Beyond Skyline, another movie in which he starred, was supposed to be out in 2015 but instead debuted on Netflix in December 2017.
In the action movie Reprisal in 2018, Grillo played alongside Bruce Willis and Johnathon Schaech. The movie debuted on Netflix’s U.S. top five in October 2021, years after its release. Variety reported in 2019 that Grillo had a representation contract with the Creative Artists Agency (CAA).
Boss Level, which Frank Grillo produced and starred in, was first slated to be released by Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures on August 16, 2019, but was postponed. It was first announced in November 2017. Then, it was purchased by Hulu, which was broadcast on March 5, 2021. Alongside Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson, he also starred in the Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard sequel.
He will soon be seen in the movies This Is the Night, Copshop, Ida Red, The Yacht, and A Day to Die with Bruce Willis, as well as Melissa Leo’s and Gerard Butler’s.
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Appearances On Television
Before being hired to play oil tycoon Hart Jessup on the daytime serial opera Guiding Light in 1996 to 1999, Frank Grillo made his television debut in episodes of Silk Stalkings (1993) and Poltergeist: The Legacy (1996). He was hired as Det. J.C. Hunter in the television show For the People in 2002, and he played Hunter there through 2003. He played Nick Savrinn in the crime thriller Prison Break from 2005 to 2006, which was one of his more notable television performances. He made Marty Russo his character on the Blind Justice during that time.
He acted as Jimmy in the CSI: NY episode “The Things About Heroes,” which aired in November 2007, and he appeared in the first and only season of The Kill Point in 2007. He co-starred in the sci-fi series The Gates in 2010 with Rhona Mitra and Marisol Nichols. There was only one season of the show.
Alongside Nick Jonas and Jonathan Tucker, Grillo played MMA coach Alvey Kulina in the DirecTV drama series Kingdom from 2014 to 2017.
Grillo played artist Nico Tanner in season 5 of the television series Billions alongside Damian Lewis and Maggie Siff. Additionally, he voiced the character of Crossbones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe animated series What If.
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His Personal Life
His first marriage to Kathy ended in divorce in 1998. Together, they gave birth to one boy in 1997. On the set of Guiding Light in 1996, Grillo got to know Wendy Moniz, another actress. On October 28, 2000, the pair were hitched; their divorce was finalized in 2020. Together, they are the parents of two kids, who were born in 2004 and 2008. The New York Yankees are a team that Frank Grillo supports.
