Gia Carides (; born 7 June 1964) is an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

actress. She portrayed Liz Holt in ''

Strictly Ballroom ''Strictly Ballroom'' is a 1992 Australian romantic comedy film directed and co-written by Baz Luhrmann in his feature directorial debut. The film is the first in his '' Red Curtain Trilogy'' of theatre-motif-related films; it was followed by 1 ...

'' (1992), Susy Connor in '' Brilliant Lies'' (1996), and Cousin Nikki in the ''

My Big Fat Greek Wedding ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' is a 2002 romantic comedy film directed by Joel Zwick and written by Nia Vardalos. The film stars Vardalos, John Corbett, Lainie Kazan, Michael Constantine, Gia Carides, Louis Mandylor, Andrea Martin, and Joey Faton ...

'' franchise (2002–2023).

Early life

Carides was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia, to a Greek father and an English mother. Gia is sister to

Zoe Carides Zoe Carides (; born 19 February 1962) is an Australian actress of film and television, who is best known for her roles in '' Death in Brunswick'' as Sophie, '' G. P.'' as Dr. Sonia Kapek and '' Grass Roots'' as Liz Murray. Family Carides was ...

- also an actress - and Danielle Carides, a singer-songwriter. She began acting at the age of 12; her first film was the drama '' The Love Letters from Teralba Road.''

Career

Early in her career, Carides starred as Helena Angelopolous on the Australian television series ''

Police Rescue ''Police Rescue'' is an Australian television series which originally aired on ABC TV (Australian TV channel), ABC TV between 1989 and 1996. It was produced by Australian Broadcasting Corporation, ABC and Southern Star Entertainment, Southern ...

'', also receiving acclaim for her films ''

'' and '' Brilliant Lies'', with AFI Award nominations for each. She is also known for her roles as Robin Swallows (née Spitz) in '' Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' and as Cousin Nikki in ''

'', the sequel television show '' My Big Fat Greek Life'', and the two sequel films ('' My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2'' and '' My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3''). Carides works in both America and Australia, recognised for a host of film and television credits including ''Primary Colors'', ''

Year One The term "Year One" in political history usually refers to the institution of radical, revolutionary change. This usage dates from the time of the French Revolution. After the official abolition of the French monarchy on 21 September 1792, the ...

'' and ''

East of Everything East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that eas ...

''. She also appeared in a guest spot on husband Anthony LaPaglia's television series ''

Without a Trace ''Without a Trace'' is an American police procedural drama television series created by Hank Steinberg that aired on CBS from September 26, 2002, to May 19, 2009 with the total of seven seasons and 160 episodes. The series focuses the cases of ...

''. She has volunteered as an actress with the Young Storytellers Program. In 2024 Carides was named to appear in ABC series ''Austin,'' and was also named in the cast for Stan Australia feature film ''Nugget is Dead.''

Personal life

Carides was married to actor

Anthony LaPaglia Anthony LaPaglia (, ; born 31 January 1959) is an Australian actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen he has received several accolades including three AACTA Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Tony Award. For his starring role as Jac ...

, whom she met in

in 1992. A year later they starred together in the film ''Paperback Romance'' (a.k.a. ''Lucky Break''). She and LaPaglia are the parents of daughter Bridget, born in January 2003. In April 2015, newspapers reported that LaPaglia and Carides had ended their relationship after 17 years.

Filmography

Film

Television

Self appearances

References

External links

*
Gia Carides
�� Australian Film Commission * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carides, Gia 1964 births Actresses from Sydney Australian film actresses Australian television actresses Australian people of English descent Australian people of Greek descent Living people 20th-century Australian actresses 21st-century Australian actresses