Giovanna Mezzogiorno

Giovanna Mezzogiorno is an Italian actress, who has been famous in Europe since the mid-nineties. She’s just now making her cross-over to America, starring in Love in the Time of Cholera and The Palermo Shooting. She is incredibly attractive in addition to being incredibly talented, a winning combo.

Giovanna was born in Rome to actors Vittorio Mezzogiorno and Cecilia Sacchi. She studied acting in Italy before moving to Paris and spending two years in Peter Brook’s theater laboratory. Her first major career break came in 1995 when she played Ofielia in a French theater production of Hamlet.

In 1997, she made her feature film debut in Il Viaggio Della Sposa. For her role, she won the Premio Flaiano. European film roles poured in, and she worked alongside such actors as John Malkovich and Gerard Depardieu. In 2001, she worked with actor Stefano Accorsi, who became her romantic companion. Giovanna continued to land choice roles, and win international awards in the early 2000s.

In 2005, she starred in The Beast in the Heart, which garnered a nomination for Best Foreign Film at the 2006 Oscars, and brought her recognition in America. Since this time, she’s lined up Love in the Time of Cholera, starring opposite Benjamin Bratt and Javier Bardem, as well as The Palermo Shooting, starring opposite Dennis Hopper, Lou Reed, and Patti Smith. Hopefully, her transition will go smoothly, and we’ll have another Monica Bellucci on our hands!