Daughter of Leonor Palma, a massage therapist, and Francisco Varela (1946-2001), a famous biologist, neuroscientist, and philosopher.
Leonor Varela is a Chilean actress and model. She played the title character in the 1999 television film Cleopatra, and also starred in the films The Manchurian Candidate, Blade II, and Goal!. Varela was born in Santiago, Chile, the daughter of Leonor Palma-Keller, a massage therapist, and Francisco Varela (1946–2001), a biologist, neuroscientist, and philosopher. She has a sister, Alejandra, and two brothers, Javier and Gabriel. Varela’s parents divorced when she was three years old, and she was raised by her mother. Varela’s mother died of cancer when Varela was 14 years old. Varela has said that her father’s death also had a profound effect on her.
Varela was educated at the Catholic girls’ school Santiago College in Santiago. At the age of 17, she moved to New York City to study acting at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute. Varela’s first acting role was in the 1997 film The Man in the Iron Mask, in which she played Louise de la Valliere. She subsequently appeared in the television films Cleopatra (1999) and Frankenstein (2004). In 2002, Varela starred in the film Blade II as Nyssa, daughter of the vampire overlord Damaskinos. In 2005, she starred in the film Goal! as Santiago Munez’s girlfriend, Roz Harmison.
Varela has also appeared in episodes of the television series CSI: Miami and Nip/Tuck. In 2009, she starred in the film The Last Stand as Sarah Torrance. Varela is fluent in Spanish, English, and French.
General Info
Full Name
Leonor Varela
Height
1.69 m
Profession
Model, Spokesperson
Nationality
Chilean
Family
Spouse
Lucas Akoskin
Children
Matteo V. Akoskin, Luna Mae Akoskin
Parents
Francisco Varela, Leonor Palma-Keller
Siblings
Gabriel Varela, Javier Varela, Alejandra Varela
Accomplishments
Nominations
Ariel Award for Best Actress
Movies
Blade II, Hell Ride, Innocent Voices, The Tailor of Panama, Goal II: Living the Dream, Sleep Dealer, The Man in the Iron Mask, Ruby & Quentin, Where God Left His Shoes, Captive, The Curse of King Tut's Tomb, Wrong Turn at Tahoe, Balls Out: Gary The Tennis Coach, Texas Rangers, A Fine Step, Fuck My L...
TV Shows
Dallas, The Curse of King Tut's Tomb, Cleopatra, Tic Tac
I don't believe in nudity for nudity's sake, but it's really beautiful when it's done well, when it's within a story. I'm very comfortable with my body. I grew up mostly in France, where nudity is not taboo. It's not this hypocritical thing where we go, "No!" and then it's "Oh, yes!" When we strip away the clothes, the jewelry, that's who we really are. I walk around naked in my house.
2
I'm not good with limitations. I tend to like to find my own. It hurts sometimes, but it's good. I'm little extreme in that sense-the middle ground is not my forte.
3
I don't need jewels and cars. It's about the delicacy of the way I'm handled.
4
In this business, if you don't have the capacity to step back and have some sort of relativity about things, you're screwed.
Facts
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Fact
1
Gave birth to her 2nd child at age 42, a daughter named Luna Mae Akoskin on February 25, 2015 5 days overdue. Child's father is her boyfriend, Lucas Akoskin.
2
Gave birth to her 1st child at age 39, a son named Matteo V. Akoskin in November 2012. Child's father is her boyfriend, Lucas Akoskin.
3
Has been in a relationship with Lucas Akoskin since 2011. They have 2 children together.
4
Filming a documentary about Aysén and its natural beauty in Chile. [January 2009]
5
Led huge Anti-whaling Rally on the Eve of the 2008 Meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Santiago, Chile. [June 2008]
6
Her maternal grandfather Daniel Palma Robledo (born in the north of Chile in October 1915), a former Communist Party member until 1951, was kidnapped by DINA, Pinochet's political police, on August 4, 1976, and to this day is a missing person.
Support the candidate's campaign of Chilean president Michelle Bachelet.
9
Member of NGOs for the conservation of the environment like WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), Global Green USA, Oceana (Osean Conservation Group) and Centro Ballena Azúl (Chile).
10
Her favorite place in California is Carbon Beach, Malibu.
Has actively participated in various ecological causes like "Save the Whales Again!".
17
Was featured as #11 in Maxim Magazine's "Hot 100 of 2002" supplement. (2002)
18
Has 3 siblings, Alejandra, Javier and Gabriel.
19
She lived in Paris from the age of 14.
20
She is of Chilean (including Galician Spanish) ancestry. On her mother's side, she is also said to have some French, Hungarian, Syrian, and German roots.
21
Her stay in Chile was brief, and she soon found herself in Germany, then back in Chile, and finally in France in her late teens.
22
As a child, she got to see her homeland another time when her family returned to Chile.
23
Her family fled to Costa Rica, leaving behind the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
24
After graduating from the Ecole du Passage and the Conservatoire Superieur de Paris, she was ready for the big screen.
25
Daughter of Leonor Palma, a massage therapist, and Francisco Varela (1946-2001), a famous biologist, neuroscientist, and philosopher.
26
Appeared on the cover of thirteen separate editions of the Maxim magazine, each naming a different North American city as the greatest on Earth.
27
Beat out 35 other actresses to play the title role in Cleopatra (1999).
28
Formerly engaged to Billy Zane, her co-star from the miniseries Cleopatra (1999).
29
She is fluent in English, Spanish, French and Italian.
