Elizabeth Pena
Raised in New York,
Elizabeth Peña is a graduate of the High School of the Performing Arts and performed in many off-Broadway plays in New York. At17, she landed her first major film role in the award-winning independent feature El Super (1979). Thereafter she appeared in
Peter Bogdanovich's They All Laughed (1981), Times Square (1980) and Crossover Dreams (1985). Peña moved to Los Angeles where she got her big break in Touchstone's first feature film,
Paul Mazursky's Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986).
Other film credits include: La Bamba (1987); Batteries Not Included (1987); Jacob's Ladder (1990); Rush Hour (1998); The Waterdance (1992); and Lone Star (1996), for which she received an Independent Spirit Award and a Bravo Award for Best Actress in a Film. Peña received an Alma Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress for her role in Tortilla Soup (2001).
She starred and directed in Showtime's Resurrection Boulevard (2000) for which she received the Altia Award for Best Actress in a Series. She also garnered rave reviews for the CBS telepic Suburban Madness (2004). Peña lends her voice to PBS Kids where she can be heard in the cartoon The Misadventures of Maya and Miguel. She also voiced the character of Mirage in the Oscar-winning animated film The Incredibles (2004). She co-stars in the Spanish film Goal (2006) and is in pre-production on her feature directorial debut The Last Date Movie.
Elizabeth Pena Facts
Selected Filmography
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