Born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens, New York among eight siblings, including her twin sister Lorraine, Lauren Velez dreamed of becoming an actress ever since she played a groundhog in a school play in second grade. Immediately following high school, she received a scholarship from the Alvin Ailey Dance School which led to her first job performing in the national touring company of the musical "Dreamgirls". Later she became understudy for actress Phylicia Rashad in Broadway's "Into the Woods". Her most visible role was that of "Nina Moreno" on the cop drama New York Undercover (1994). With her varied performances and Afro-Latin background and appearance, Velez's success is considered -- by fans and critics alike -- a breakthrough for Latina actresses who do not fit the stereotypical "Europeanized Hollywood" version of Latin females. As a result, Velez deservedly has a large multi-ethnic following.

Luna Lauren Velez at an event for Dexter (2006)

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Luna Lauren Velez in Thicker Than Blood (1998)

Mickey Rourke and Luna Lauren Velez in Thicker Than Blood (1998)

Donnie Wahlberg, Marisa Ramirez, and Luna Lauren Velez in Blue Bloods (2010)

Téa Leoni and Luna Lauren Velez in Madam Secretary (2014)

Donnie Wahlberg and Luna Lauren Velez in Blue Bloods (2010)

Luna Lauren Velez and Chet Grissom in How to Get Away with Murder (2014)

Luna Lauren Velez in How to Get Away with Murder (2014)

Tobey Maguire, Elizabeth Perkins, Josh Keaton, Ziggy Marley, Jason Schwartzman, Rachel Dratch, Taran Killam, Yuri Lowenthal, Peggy Lu, Cliff Robertson, J.K. Simmons, Peter Sohn, Luna Lauren Velez, Shea Whigham, Mahershala Ali, Kathryn Hahn, Lorraine Velez, Oscar Isaac, Jorma Taccone, Andy Samberg, Andrew Garfield, Nic Novicki, Jake Johnson, Donald Glover, Daniel Kaluuya, Greta Lee, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Atsuko Okatsuka, Melissa Sturm, Nicole Delaney, Amandla Stenberg, Karan Soni, Shameik Moore, Jack Quaid, Kimiko Glenn, Issa Rae, Sofia Barclay, Nina Lentini, Danielle Perez, Jharrel Jerome, Ayo Edebiri, and Metro Boomin in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)

Patti D'Arbanville, Michael DeLorenzo, and Malik Yoba in New York Undercover (1994)

Luna Lauren Velez

Luna Lauren Velez

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