Leonor Magdalena Varela Palma (born 29 December 1972) is a Chilean born actress. She played the title role in the 1999 television film Cleopatra, and vampire princess Nyssa Damaskinos in the 2002 Marvel Comics film Blade II.

Early life

Varela was born in Santiago, Chile, the daughter of Leonor Palma-Keller, a massage therapist, and biologist and cognitive neuroscientist Francisco Varela García. She has a sister, Alejandra, and two brothers, Javier and Gabriel. When Varela was a child, her family fled Chile after the 1973 military coup d'état.

Career

Varela also had a short recurring role in the Fox Television series Arrested Development as the original Marta. She was nominated for the Ariel Award in 2005 in the category of Best Actress for Innocent Voices (2004). She also had a non-recurring role in Stargate: Atlantis. In 2012, she appeared as Marta Del Sol on the TNT television series Dallas.

Personal life

Varela was engaged to Billy Zane, her co-star in the 1999 television film Cleopatra, from 1999 to 2001. She began dating producer Lucas Akoskin in 2011, and they married in April 2013. In November 2012, Varela and Akoskin welcomed their first child together, a son named Matteo. Their daughter, Luna Mae, was born on 25 February 2015. Matteo was diagnosed with leukodystrophy (specifically an AGS) shortly after his birth. He died at the age of 5 on 16 November 2018. Varela, a vegetarian, is a marine life activist who is concerned with the welfare of whales, working with groups such as Save The Whales Again.

Filmography

Film

Television