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Malaya Drew

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Malaya Drew
Born
Malaya Rivera Drew

(1987-02-06) February 6, 1987 (age 39)
Alma materLondon Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
OccupationActress
Years active2002–present
SpouseDavid Kline

Malaya Rivera Drew (born February 6, 1987) is an American stage, film and television actress. Drew is best known for her role as Adele Channing on the cable television series The L Word (2008)[1] and for her role as Katey Alvaro on NBC's long-running ER (2006–2007).[2] She has had recurring roles on Entourage (2005), Las Vegas (2006–2007).[3] American Horror Story (2011), The Originals (2013), Mayans M.C. (2019) and Good Trouble (2021-2022), as well as notable roles on stage and in film. In film she has appeared in many independent films, as well as playing Gabriella Forester in the 2016 Academy Award nominated Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri. She also narrates the scripted podcast “The Don” for I Heart Radio, currently in its second season.

Early life

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Drew was born in Washington, D.C. and attended Woodrow Wilson High School (Washington, D.C.). She has two brothers, and her parents are both progressive lawyers. She attended Middlebury College where she studied English Literature and Spanish. After graduating college, she moved to London and trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. She left school a term early when she was cast in the world premiere of Neil LaBute's The Distance from Here directed by David Leveaux at the Almeida Theatre .[4]

Career

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She has appeared on television shows including Law and Order: SVU and CSI: Miami. On CSI she played a character who was originally named Colleen Mitchell but after the producers cast Drew, they changed the character's name to Colleen Mendoza, to reflect Drew's mixed heritage. She also played Angelica Sandoval on The Inside with Peter Coyote and Rachel Nichols, for the Fox network.

In 2005 she recurred on the HBO series Entourage and from 2006–2007 she starred on the NBC show Las Vegas, playing a new member of the Montecito Casino team with James Lesure, Josh Duhamel and James Caan. While she was still working on Las Vegas, she played new medical student Katey Alvaro on ER. Alvaro is doing her residency in the ER and has an affair with another doctor, played by Shane West. She was on ER during seasons 13 and 14.

In 2008, she played Adele Channing in the fifth season The L Word, a character modeled after Eve Harrington in the movie All About Eve (1950), starring Bette Davis . In 2010 she played Mia Sherman in the pilot True Blue for CBS, which was not picked up to series. In 2011, she recurred as Detective Barrios on American Horror Story opposite Jessica Lange.

In 2013, she was cast as the witch Jane-Anne Deveraux who is considered a martyr by her coven in the CW pilot, The Originals, a spin-off from another CW series, The Vampire Diaries. She first appeared as Jane- Anne on The Vampire Diaries and then continued the role on the series The Originals.

In 2014, she played Neera in the pilot Galyntine with Peter Fonda, Laura Harrier and Sterling K Brown. The pilot was not picked up to series.

In 2019 she recurred as Ileana in Mayans MC season 3, having auditioned for the role in both English and Spanish.

In 2021 she was cast on the third season of Good Trouble as Lucia Morales, playing a progressive freshman City Councilmember who is in a love triangle with Malika. She is currently filming season 4.

Alongside her TV work, she has appeared in many independent films. She played Gabriella Forrester in the Academy Award nominated Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, for which she was recognized with a SAG Award for Best Ensemble. She also narrates the scripted podcast “The Don” for I Heart Radio. The first season aired in 2021 and I Heart Radio has ordered two more seasons.

Personal life

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Drew is married to screenwriter David Kline. They live in Los Angeles.

In the media

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In 2008, Drew was voted one of Maxim's "100 Hottest Girls of Entourage" (No. 19). In 2009, she was voted one of ER's "Hottest Doctors of All Time" (No. 2).

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2013 Here Comes the Night Elena
2014 Girltrash: All Night Long Lauren
Audrey Nicki
2017 Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Gabriella
2019 Crypto Penelope Rushing

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2003 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Suzie Fleckner Episode: "Privilege"
2004 CSI: Miami Colleen Mendoza Episode: "Pirated"
2004 Entourage Carla Episodes: "The Boys Are Back in Town", "The Abyss"
2006 The Inside Angelica Sandavol Episode: "Gem"
2006-2007 Las Vegas Shannon 6 episodes
ER Katey Alvaro 11 episodes
2008 The L Word Adele Channing 11 episodes
Life Anna Episode: "Evil... and His Brother Ziggy"
2010 True Blue Mia Sherman Unsold television pilot
2011 American Horror Story: Murder House Detective Barrios Episodes: "Smoldering Children", "Afterbirth"
2013 The Vampire Diaries Jane-Anne Deveraux Episode: "The Originals"
The Glades Jojo Cabrillo Episode: "Shot Girls"
The Originals Jane-Anne Deveraux Episodes: "Always and Forever", "Sinners and Saints"
2014 Galyntine Neera Unsold television pilot
Married Eva Episode: "Halloween"
2018 The Resident Naomi Episode: "About Time"
2019 Charmed Cyd Episode: "You're Dead to Me"
Mayans M.C. Ileana 5 episodes
Credited as Malaya Rivera-Drew
S.W.A.T. Trisha Episode: "Sea Legs"
2021 All Rise Raea Figueroa Episode: "Hear My Voice"
2021-2024 Good Trouble Lucia Morales 16 episodes
2022 Fatal Fandom Colette Television film (Lifetime)

Other work

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Year Title Role Notes
2003 Midnight Club II Julie Video game
2019 Front Row Flynn Herself (voice) Episode: "CRYPTO Premiere and Q&A: Beau Knapp, Luke Hemsworth, Malaya Rivera Drew, John Stahlberg, David Frigerio, Carlyle Eubank, Zac Weinstein, Brian Berman, Nima Fakhrara, moderator FX Feeney"
2022 The Don: Don Simpson Narrator Podcast series
2024 10 Rules for the Perfect Murder Additional Voices

References

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  1. ^ Article about Malaya Drew on the L Word: http://lesbianlife.about.com/od/lesbiantravels/ig/Dinah-Shore-2011/Malaya-Rivera-Drew-.htm Archived 2015-09-07 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Celebrity Photobook page of Malaya Drew on ER". Archived from the original on 2011-09-12. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  3. ^ Dodd, Stacy (August 30, 2006). "Malaya Rivera Drew". Variety. Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
  4. ^ Malaya Drew's theatre, on Theatricalia: http://theatricalia.com/person/1am2/malaya-rivera-drew
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