Monica Barbaro: Movies, Awards & Box Office

Monica Maria Barbaro is an American actress and trained dancer whose career has blossomed from viral short‑form comedy to high‑budget blockbuster and critically acclaimed biopic performances. Born on June 17, 1990 in San Francisco, California, she grew up in nearby Mill Valley and attended Tamalpais High School, graduating in 2007 before pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. After completing her degree in 2010 she returned to the Bay Area, secured her first commercial and short‑film work, and honed her craft at the Beverly Hills Playhouse, quickly transitioning from dance to on‑screen acting. Her breakout moment arrived in 2013 when the witty online short It’s Not About the Nail went viral, showcasing her comedic timing and leading to a recurring role as Yael on the second season of Lifetime’s UnREAL in 2016. Barbaro’s versatility became evident as she moved through the Dick Wolf universe, playing Anna Valdez on Chicago Justice (2017) and later appearing as Cora Vasquez on Netflix’s The Good Cop (2018), while also juggling a recurring part on the ABC sitcom Splitting Up Together (2018‑2019). In 2022 she entered the Hollywood A‑list by portraying Lieutenant Natasha “Phoenix” Trace in the blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick, a role that highlighted both her acting chops and her disciplined physicality. The following year she headlined the romantic comedy At Midnight (2023), earning praise for her effortless charm and even performing a salsa‑tango dance sequence that drew on her early ballet training. Her most celebrated work to date is the portrayal of folk‑singer activist Joan Baez in James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown (2024), a performance that earned her nominations for the Academy Award and SAG Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 2025 she announced her stage debut in a West End revival of Les Liaisons dangereuses, and she has been in a public relationship with actor Andrew Garfield since early 2025.