Melissa De Sousa is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Shelby in the 1999 romantic comedy-drama film '' The Best Man'', its 2013 sequel ''

The Best Man Holiday ''The Best Man Holiday'' is a 2013 American comedy-drama film written, co-produced and directed by Malcolm D. Lee. A sequel to Lee's '' The Best Man'' (1999), it stars Morris Chestnut, Taye Diggs, Regina Hall, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan, Ni ...

'' and the 2022

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

series '' The Best Man: The Final Chapters'', Gabriella Jimenez in

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

's '' Reed Between the Lines'' (2011), and Ana Lopez in ''

Black Lightning Black Lightning (Jefferson Pierce) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character, created by writer Tony Isabella and artist Trevor Von Eeden, first appeared in ''Black Lightning'' #1 (April 1977), during ...

''.

Early life

Born and raised in New York City by Panamanian parents, Melissa De Sousa attended the High School of Performing Arts as a ballet major, and began her career as a principal dancer with The Alvin Ailey American Dance Company before transitioning into acting.

Career

De Sousa is best known for her performance as Shelby in the Universal Studios franchise '' The Best Man'' and ''

'' starring opposite

Terrence Howard Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor. Having his first major roles in the 1995 films ''Dead Presidents'' and '' Mr. Holland's Opus'', Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and cinema roles ...

, for which she earned an NAACP Image Award nomination. Currently recurring as Mirta Herrera on Showtime's ''

On Becoming a God in Central Florida ''On Becoming a God in Central Florida'' is an American dark comedy television series created by Robert Funke and Matt Lutsky that premiered on Showtime on August 25, 2019. The series stars Kirsten Dunst and is set in the early 1990s. In Septem ...

'', she also led the cult hit series '' Single Ladies'' for

. De Sousa also starred opposite

Matthew Perry Matthew Langford Perry (born August 19, 1969) is an American-Canadian actor. He is best known for his role as Chandler Bing on the NBC television sitcom ''Friends'' (1994–2004). As well as starring in the short-lived television series '' St ...

in the TNT original presentation of '' The Ron Clark Story'', which garnered an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Made For Television Movie. Other film work includes ''

Laurel Canyon Laurel Canyon is a mountainous neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills region of the Santa Monica Mountains, within the Hollywood Hills West district of Los Angeles, California. The main thoroughfare of Laurel Canyon Boulevard connects the neighb ...

'', '' Miss Congeniality'', and '' Constellation''. Her television credits include series regular roles on ''Reed Between The Lines'', ''Second Time Around'', ''One on One'', ''

The $treet ''The Street'' (stylized as ''The $treet'') is an American drama television series that aired on Fox from November 1 to December 13, 2000. Created by Jeff Rake and Darren Star, only 12 episodes were produced, and the series was pulled from U.S. ...

'', '' Valley of the Dolls'', and '' Damon''. Guest star credits include ''

Criminal Minds ''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created and produced by Jeff Davis. The series premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005, and originally concluded on February 19, 2020; it was revived in 2022. It ...

'', ''

Elementary Elementary may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''Elementary'' (Cindy Morgan album), 2001 * ''Elementary'' (The End album), 2007 * ''Elementary'', a Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Ragin album, 1977 Other uses in arts, entertainment, a ...

'', '' Shameless'', and countless others. In 2021, De Sousa appeared in the final season of ''

'' as

Police Chief The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and ...

Ana Lopez.

Personal life

De Sousa currently resides in New York.

Filmography

Film and TV Movies

Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:De Sousa, Melissa Actresses from New York City Panamanian actresses American film actresses American people of Panamanian descent American television actresses Hispanic and Latino American actresses Living people People from New York City Year of birth missing (living people)