Michelle Rodriguez

American actress Michelle Rodriguez is at once bold and beautiful, exemplified by her most well-known roles in Lost, The Fast and the Furious, and Resident Evil. She has been plagued, however, by legal troubles and a battle with alcohol that recently landed her in jail.

Mayte Michelle Rodriguez was born July 12, 1978 in San Antonio, Texas. Her parents were Carmen Milady and Rafael Rodriguez, of Dominican Republic and Puerto Rican descent respectively. Rodriguez grew up with ten siblings and half-siblings.

Initially raised by her grandmother, by the time she was eight, Rodriguez and her mother moved to the Dominican Republic. She subsequently moved to Puerto Rico and later Jersey City. Dropping out of high school when she was just seventeen, Rodriguez did go back to earn her GED.

In 2000, Rodriguez made her onscreen debut in a big way. She starred in the independent film Girlfight, beating out 350 other applicant despite the fact it was her first audition. Although the Oscar buzz did not result in a nomination, Rodriguez was honored with multiple awards including the Best Debut Performance at the Independent Spirit Awards.

With this success, her next role came with the crime mystery 3 A.M. alongside seasoned actor Danny Glover. 2001 was her commercial breakout year, however, with a supporting role in The Fast and the Furious starring Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, and Jordana Brewster.

She continued this commercial streak with Resident Evil in 2002 opposite Milla Jovovich, Blue Crush with Kate Bosworth, and S.W.A.T. with Samuel L Jackson, Colin Farrell, and LL Cool J.

Her next three projects were voice work for the video games True Crime: Streets of LA, Driv3r, and Halo 2. She lent her voice talents to the first with well-known actors Christopher Walken, Gary Oldman, and Michael Madsen.

She landed several more roles, although none of the films performed well in the box office or with the critics. In fact, Rodriguez earned a Razzie Award nomination for the 2005 flop BloodRayne with Meat Loaf, Billy Zane, and Ben Kingsley.

Seeing a slight resurgence in her career with 2005, she won a pivotal role in the wildly successful series Lost. Her role lasted from 2005 to 2006, spanning twenty-four episodes. Cast regulars included Terry O Quinn, Dominic Monaghan, Evangeline Lilly, Matthew Fox, Emilia de Ravin, and Naveen Andrews.

Her most recent project was entitled Battle in Seattle and was directed by sometimes actor Stuart Townsend. The film featured leads Charlize Theron, Woody Harrelson, Ray Liotta, Andre Benjamin, and Joshua Jackson.

She is currently filming the James Cameron film Avatar. The film is labeled in production, and cast is therefore liable to change. But as of now it is slated to star Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, and Giovanni Ribisi.

In her personal life, Rodriguez ended a serious relationship with her Muslim boyfriend in 2000 due to complications from religious differences. Her next relationship was with costar Diesel, and shortly after, she informed Cosmopolitan magazine she had romantically experimented with both genders. She has also been linked to Olivier Martinez, best known as Kylie Minogue’s former boyfriend.

Rodriguez has also had several run-ins with the law. In 2002, she was arrested for assault, but the victim (her roommate) did not press charges. The following year, she was charged with a DUI and hit and run violation. She ran into several more DUI incidents while in Hawaii filming Lost. After violating her parole, Rodriguez had tested the legal system to its limits. She was sentenced to serve 180 days in jail on October 10, 2007.