What Nationality Is Leonor Varela From and How Old Is She?

Leonor Varela is a Chilean actress best known for the roles she played in film and television projects like Blade 11, Goal II: Living the Dream, The Tailor of Panama, and Odd Thomas. Varela made her acting debut as far back as 1995 and since then, she has recorded a total of 61 acting roles and one production gig. The Chilean actress is married to a movie producer, Lucas Akoskin and they share two kids, though one is already late.

When was Leonor Varela born?

Leonor Varela was born on December 29, 1972, which pegs her age at 51. She was born in Santiago, Chile, which makes her a Chilean by nationality. However, her ethnic background is best described as diverse with elements of French, Syrian, and Hungarian roots. Thanks to her ethnic roots, Varela has proficiency in multiple languages like Spanish, French, Italian, and of course English.

Her mother has been identified as Leonor Palma-Keller – a biologist who doubles as a massage therapist. Varela’s dad on the other hand was Francisco Varela García who earned a living as a biologist, neuroscientist, and philosopher. He made notable contributions to the field of biology-the concept of autopoiesis. Leonor Varela’s dad was a co-founder of the non-profit organization called the Mind and Life Institute which focuses on the promotion of the discourse between Buddhism and science. Francisco lost the battle to hepatitis C in Paris.

Far from being the only child of her parents, Leonor Varela spent her growing-up years alongside three siblings – two brothers, Gabriel and Javier, and a sister, Alejandra. Varela was still a minor when the Chilean 1973 military coup d’état happened and they had to flee from their country. The Varelas went to live in Paris but returned home in the early part of 1980. However, Leonor who was already an adult decided to stay back.

She went to school in France

Leonor Varela was still a little girl when her family fled Chile, thus, she accomplished all her academic qualifications in France. According to the actress, she attended public schools in the city of lights, Paris, where she practiced modeling and dance. Done with high school, Leonor went to study acting and drama at the Niels Arestrup Theater School, and at the same time, she was studying history at Paris Diderot University.

Leonor Varela is a prolific actress

A renowned actress, Leonor Varela started her acting career as far back as 1995 when she recorded her debut on the set of the TV series, Extrême limite as Maria and it was also the same year that she was featured in the movie, Pont Trek as Anette. She went on to make 12 other appearances on the big and small screens before the end of the 1990s.

As the 2000s were ushered in, Varela recorded her breakout role in The Tailor of Panama as Martha in 2001. Playing the role of Nyssa in Blade 11 in 2002 took her to another level of fame and in the same years, she appeared in Texas Rangers and Paraíso B. She would score her next best-known role in Goal II: Living the Dream as Jordana Garcia in 2007 and by 2010, she had already been featured in 18 other productions.

Between 2010 and 2011, Leonor Varela was part of the cast of the series, Human Target, and after a few gigs, she scored her latest known role in Odd Thomas. In recent times, the prolific actress was spotted in The Cow Who Sang a Song Into the Future, Miénteme, and Tell It Like a Woman – all in 2022. She is quite prolific with a total of 61 acting credits and one production credit.

Leonor Varela’s movies and TV shows

Movies

• Pony Trek as Anette – 1995
• Bouge! As La danseuse – 1997
• Shooting Stars as Vanessa – 1997
• Inca de Oro as Flor de l’Inca – 1997
• The Bible Collection: Jeremiah as Judith – 1998
• The Man in the Iron Mask s Ballroom Beauty – 1998
• Les parasites as Fidelia – 1999
• Les infortunes de la beauté as Annabella – 1999
• Texas Rangers as Perdita – 2001
• The Tailor of Panama as Marta – 2001
• Paraíso B as Gloria 2002
• Blade II as Nyssa 2002
• Ruby & Quentin as Katia – 2003
• Pas si grave as Angela – 2003
• Innocent Voices as Kella – 2004
• The Curse of King Tut’s Tomb as Dr. Azelia Barakat 2006
• Where God Left His Shoes as Angela Diaz – 2007
• Goal II: Living the Dream as Jordana Garcia 2007
• All Inclusive as Miranda – 2008
• Hindsight as Maria – 2008
• Hell Ride as Nada – 2008
• Sleep Dealer as Luz Martínez – 2008
• Wrong Turn at Tahoe as Anna – 2009
• Balls Out: Gary the Tennis Coach as Norma Sanchez – 2009
• Que Pena Tu Vida as Alma – 2010
• Monsterwolf as Maria – 2010
• Blind Alley as La Madre 2011
• Ripley: Pasarela NOW F/W 2011 as Leonor Varela 2011
• Inland Empire as Poopy – 2012
• Deseo as Muchacha -2013
• Odd Thomas as Odd’s Mother – 2013
• Ripley: Belleza 2013 as Leonor Varela – 2013
• Ripley: Vestidos & Blusas as Ripley Model – 2013
• Ripley: My Bra as Leonor Varela – 2013
• Ride ass Danielle – 2014
• A Fine Step as Liliana Bolívar – 2014
• Murder in Mexico: The Bruce Beresford-Redman Story as Monica Beresford-Redman – 2015
• Captive as Sgt. Carmen Sandoval – 2015
• All I Wish as Bianca – 2017
• Saving Flora as Isabella – 2018
• Alpha as Shaman Woman -2018
• American Cherry as Louise Stein 2021
• Tell It Like a Woman as Tala 2022
• Miénteme as Eva – 2022
• The Cow Who Sang a Song Into the Future as Cecilia 2022

TV series

• Extrême limite as Marie (as Leonore Varella) – 1995
• Sous le soleil as Jeanne – 1996
• Tic Tac as Pola Santa María – 1997
• A Legend to Ride as Anette – 1997
• Le juste as Jasmina – 1997
• Cleopatra as Cleopatra – 1999
• Arrested Development as Marta Estrella -2003
• Stargate: Atlantis as Chaya Sar – 2004
• Americano as Adela -2005
• E-Ring as Lt. Col. Cat Rodriguez – 2005
• Como ama una mujer as Sofia Marquez – 2007
• Feroz as Laura Palma – 2010
• Human Target as Maria Gallego – 2010 t0 2011
• Dallas as Marta Del Sol – 2012
• Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. as Camilla Reyes – 2013
• Lethal Weapon as Sofia – 2018

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Inside Leonor Varela’s personal life

Leonor Varela’s first known boyfriend was Billy Zane, whom she dated for two years between 1999 and 2001. Zane is also an actor and co-starred with Varela in the movie entitled, Cleopatra. She later dated movie producer Lucas Akoskin, the man who would become her husband. Two years down the line, the duo exchanged wedding vows in April 2013.

Even before their nuptials, the couple was already first-time parents to Matteo Akoskin who was born in November 2012. Unfortunately, Matteo died at age five after suffering from a rare medical condition called leukodystrophy. The duo had their only surviving child, Luna Mae on February 25, 2015. Luna is already of school age, though the details of her academic journey are not known.