Catrinel Marlon

Catrinel Marlon (born Catrinel Menghia on 1 October 1985 in Iași, Romania) is a Romanian‑Italian model, actress, producer and director who has become a recognizable face in both European fashion campaigns and international cinema. Growing up as the daughter of an Olympic 400‑meter hurdler, she initially pursued athletics before being discovered at sixteen during a school trip to Bucharest, an encounter that launched her modelling career in the Romanian capital. By 2011 she was already securing high‑profile contracts, most notably becoming the lead model for the Fiat Abarth campaign, a role that earned her a spot in a Super Bowl commercial and cemented her status as a commercial icon. Her runway work extended to collaborations with brands such as Teller, Whirlwind Summer and El Palacio Del Hierro, showcasing her versatility across luxury and automotive advertising. Transitioning to screen acting, Marlon made a guest appearance as Elisabetta on the American series CSI in 2012, demonstrating her ability to navigate bilingual performances. She subsequently appeared in the fantasy‑horror film Tale of Tales (2015) alongside Salma Hayek and John C. Reilly, and took a leading role in the thriller The Ploy (2017). Her portrayal of the femme fatale Gilda in the Romanian‑Spanish production La Gomera (2018) debuted at Cannes, garnering critical attention for her magnetic presence. In 2020 she played the Zingara in an Italian adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’s novel, further expanding her repertoire. Expanding behind the camera, Marlon wrote, produced and directed the short drama Ossa (2022) and followed with the feature Girasole (2023), a personal story set in northern Italy that premiered at the 41st Torino Film Festival. In 2021 she published her autobiography Non Avevo Gli Occhi Azurri, offering insights into her multicultural upbringing and artistic journey. Today she continues to balance modeling, acting, and filmmaking while raising two children, embodying a dynamic career that bridges fashion, television, and cinema.