Maria Bello Bio

This Maria Bello biography contains information believed to be accurate as extracted from sources around the internet including Wikipedia. If you believe there are errors or omissions in this Maria Bello bio, please let us know so that we can correct any inaccuracies.

Maria Bello Pictures

Maria Elena Bello (born April 18, 1967) is an American actress and singer known for her appearances in the movies Coyote Ugly, The Jane Austen Book Club, Permanent Midnight, Thank You for Smoking, A History of Violence, The Cooler and Payback. In television, she is known for her role as Dr. Anna Del Amico on the NBC medical drama, ER.

Maria Bello: Early life

Bello was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Kathy, a teacher and school nurse, and Joe Bello, a contractor. Her father is Italian American and her mother is Polish American. She grew up in a working-class Roman Catholic family and graduated from Archbishop Carroll High School (Radnor, Pennsylvania). Later she attended Villanova University, majoring in political science. She intended to become a lawyer, but took an acting class during her senior year and was later cast in small off-Broadway plays, such as The Killer Inside Me, Small Town Gals With Big Problems and Urban Planning. She would guest star on episodes of The Commish (1991), Nowhere Man (1995), Misery Loves Company (1995) Due South (1994), and ER (1997-98).

Maria Bello: Career

Bello's breakthrough came when the producers Kerry Lenhart and John J. Sakmar cast her as Mrs. Smith in the spy show Mr. & Mrs. Smith. The show was cancelled after eight weeks on the air. Then came a guest stint on ER as the feisty pediatrician Dr. Anna Del Amico, in which she guest-starred in the final three episodes of the third season. Bello remained on the show for one season as a regular cast member, departing after the medical drama's 4th season. The actress went on into movies landing a role in Coyote Ugly. She was nominated for the Golden Globe award twice: for Best Supporting Actress in The Cooler (2003) and for Best Actress in A History of Violence (2005). She starred in The Jane Austen Book Club as Jocelyn.

In 2008, Bello starred in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor as Evy O'Connell. In December 2008, Bello began developing a drama for HBO. Besides starring in the new series, Bello will also serve as an executive producer.

She starred in the 2009 Sundance film The Yellow Handkerchief, which was released in theaters on February 26, 2010 by Samuel Goldwyn Films.

In 2010 Bello guest starred in two episodes of Law & Order: SVU. In 2011, Bello starred in the television series Prime Suspect, which was canceled after a half-season (13 episodes).

Maria Bello: Personal life

She has a son by her former boyfriend, Dan McDermott.

Maria Bello: Humanitarian efforts

In the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Bello, with Aleda Frishman, Alison Thompson, and Barbara Guillaume, founded WE ADVANCE, an organization which creates a grassroot movement empowering Haitian women to collaborate toward making healthcare a priority, and putting an end to GBV (Gender-based Violence) within their communities. The organization seeks to act as a central agency to network the organizations working on women's issues in Haiti, and to provide urgent care to women victimized by the disaster. Currently their programs are headquartered in one health clinic and one community outreach center in Cité Soleil, Haiti.

Maria Bello: Other

Bello sits on the board of The CQ Matrix Company.