Natasha Lyonne

Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein is an American actress, director, comedian, producer, writer and tech executive whose career spans over three decades, beginning with a child‑model contract at the Ford Modeling Agency and a recurring role as Opal on Pee‑wee’s Playhouse at age seven. Born on April 4, 1979 in New York City, she grew up in a family of Orthodox Jewish descent, spending the first eight years of her life in Great Neck before a year‑and‑a‑half in Israel that sparked her first film role in the Israeli children’s movie April Fool (1989). After returning to Manhattan she attended the Ramaz School, where she excelled academically and was expelled in sophomore year for selling marijuana, a rebellion that foreshadowed the complex characters she would later portray. Her early Hollywood work includes an uncredited part in Heartburn (1986) and a supporting turn in Dennis the Menace (1993), but she truly broke through with teen‑oriented indie hits such as Everyone Says I Love You (1996), Slums of Beverly Hills (1998) and the cult classic But I'm a Cheerleader (1999), the latter cementing her status as a queer‑iconic figure and earning a devoted fanbase. Throughout the 2000s she appeared in a mix of mainstream comedies (e.g., American Pie series) and edgy independent projects, while simultaneously battling serious health and legal challenges, including hepatitis C, a collapsed lung, open‑heart surgery in 2012, and periods of addiction that she overcame by 2006. A career resurgence arrived with her Emmy‑nominated performance as Nicky Nichols on Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black (2013‑2019), where she also received two Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Ensemble. Leveraging that momentum, Lyonne co‑created, wrote, directed and executive‑produced the innovative time‑loop series Russian Doll (2019‑2022), garnering three additional Emmy nominations and solidifying her reputation as a multi‑talented auteur. In parallel she co‑founded the production company Animal Pictures with Maya Rudolph, producing projects such as Sarah Cooper: Everything's Fine (2020) and continuing to develop original content. In 2022 she launched the AI‑driven film studio Asteria with boyfriend Bryn Mooser, positioning herself at the forefront of responsible artificial‑intelligence filmmaking and publicly revealing the venture in 2025. Recent on‑screen work includes starring as lie‑detecting casino worker Charlie Cale in Peacock’s Poker Face (2023‑present) and being cast in the MCU film The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025). Known for her razor‑sharp wit, candid interviews, love of crossword puzzles, and a personal style that blends New York edge with theatrical flair, Lyonne remains a cultural touchstone who continually reshapes the boundaries of television, film and emerging media technology.