Danielle Cormack (born 26 December 1970) is a New Zealand stage and screen actress. She was one of the original cast members of the long-running soap opera Shortland Street, though she is also known for her role as the Amazon Ephiny in the television series Xena: Warrior Princess, Cynthia Ross in The Cult, and Shota in Legend of the Seeker. Other works include the 2009 film, Separation City, and the Australian series Rake.

Career

Cormack also portrayed notorious Sydney underworld figure Kate Leigh in Underbelly: Razor, Doctor Rory Finch in Jack Irish. Cormack also starred as Bea Smith in the Foxtel prison drama Wentworth, in which she starred for four years before leaving the show in 2016. The role of Bea Smith was originally played by Val Lehman in Prisoner. Cormack has since appeared regularly at Wentworth related events in the US and the UK, and hosted the 2023 New Jersey Event. Cormack alongside fellow Wentworth cast member Nicole da Silva started the production company FourOneOne, and have produced the play 'Whose Afraid' in 2022 and in 2023 directed Short Film Why We Fight . Cormack has since appeared in numerous television productions including The Secrets She Keeps, Year Of, Erotic Stories and more. In 2022 Cormack narrated SBS documentary series Life on the Outside where the show showed what life is like for inmates of prison who have just been released and how they got their lives back on track. Cormack also went to provide humanitarian aid to children in Ukraine. In 2023, Cormack was named as part of the cast for New Zealand dramedy series Madam. Cormack served as executive producer for the short film Oi.

Personal life

Cormack has two children: Te Ahi Ka with fellow actor Pana Hema Taylor, born 19 March 2010 and Ethan (b. 1996), from a previous relationship. In an interview with LOTL Magazine, Cormack mentioned that she has had long-term relationships with both men and women, and indicated that she prefers to avoid applying labels to patterns of sexuality. Cormack is an ambassador for SHINE for Kids.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Awards