René Russo

Crafting performances rich with passion, caring, and emotional truth, Rene Russo continues to show her range and versatility as an actress with each of her roles. When Russo starred with Pierce Brosnan in United Artists’ remake of the classic 1968 film The Thomas Crown Affair, critics raved about her sultry and captivating performance. Russo has also shown her penchant for comedy, co-starring with Kevin Costner and Don Johnson in Warner Bros.’ Tin Cup, as well as her range as a dramatic actress, starring opposite Mel Gibson, Gary Sinise and Delroy Lindo as a mother whose son has been kidnapped in Touchstone's successful thriller Ransom, directed by Ron Howard.

Russo will soon begin filming the family comedy Yours, Mine and Ours, in which she will star opposite Dennis Quaid. The remake of the 1968 film, which originally starred Henry Fonda and Lucille Ball, is being directed by Raja Gosnell for MGM and Paramount, with an anticipated release in November 2005.

Russo recently completed filming Two For the Money, which also stars Al Pacino and Matthew McConaughey. The drama, directed by D.J. Caruso for Morgan Creek, involves a college football player (McConaughey) who is forced into another career following an injury. He is subsequently recruited by Pacino’s character into the world of sports gambling. Russo stars as ‘Toni,’ the wife of Pacino’s character.

Russo was last seen opposite Robert DeNiro and Eddie Murphy in Warner Bros.’ action comedy Showtime, as a driven reality-television producer who creates a hit show for an unlikely pair of cops (DeNiro and Murphy). She was also seen in Disney’s comedy Big Trouble. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and based on a novel by Pulitzer Prize winning newspaper columnist Dave Barry, the film features an ensemble cast that also includes Tom Sizemore, Tim Allen, Stanley Tucci, Zooey Deschanel and Janeane Garofalo.

In Lethal Weapon 3, Russo first starred opposite Mel Gibson and Danny Glover, garnering mass attention from moviegoers. Her portrayal of an Internal Affairs detective, the female counterpart of Gibson's character, received strong critical acclaim. In 1998, Russo reprised her role as Lorna, the character that first endeared her with audiences worldwide, in Lethal Weapon 4, which reunited her with Mel Gibson, Danny Glover and Joe Pesci.

Her subsequent movies have continued to draw audience and critical approval. In 1994, Russo starred with Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich in the box-office success In the Line of Fire, portraying the feisty Secret Service Agent who romances Eastwood. She followed that performance with a starring role opposite Dustin Hoffman and Morgan Freeman in the Warner Bros. thriller Outbreak, portraying a doctor on the trail of a deadly virus that threatens to wipe out the entire world.

Subsequently, she garnered critical praise in MGM's box-office success Get Shorty, portraying a B-movie actress opposite John Travolta, Gene Hackman and Danny DeVito. She starred as Gertrude Lintz in Buddy, a heart-warming true story set in the 1920s and 1930s about a wealthy socialite (Lintz) who raised exotic animals in her home. She was also seen alongside Robert DeNiro and Jason Alexander in Universal Pictures’ live-action/special effects feature Rocky and Bullwinkle, based on Jay Ward’s classic cartoon.

Since her film debut in 1989 in Major League, Russo's additional film credits include Mr. Destiny, One Good Cop with Anthony LaPaglia, and Freejack with Emilio Estevez.

A native Californian, Russo grew up in Burbank. At the age of 18, she was 'discovered' at a Rolling Stones' concert and encouraged to become a fashion model. Soon afterward, Russo moved to New York and became a top model for the Ford Agency. She graced the covers of every fashion magazine throughout her successful modeling career in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s.

She and her husband, screenwriter Danny Gilroy, live in Los Angeles with their daughter Rose.