Ana Marlene Forte Machado, better known as Marlene Forte, is a Cuban actress and producer. She is perhaps best known for her role as Carmen Ramos on the television soap opera ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

'' (2012–2014). Forte also had recurring roles in '' Fear the Walking Dead'', '' The Fosters'' and ''

Altered Carbon ''Altered Carbon'' is a 2002 cyberpunk novel by the English writer Richard K. Morgan. Set in a future in which interstellar travel and relative immortality is facilitated by transferring consciousnesses between bodies ("sleeves"), it follows t ...

''. Her notable film credits including ''

A Haunted House ''A Haunted House'' is a 2013 American horror satire film directed by Michael Tiddes, written by, produced by and starring Marlon Wayans. Although Wayans said the film was "not exactly a parody but rather a movie with funny characters doing th ...

'' (2013), ''

El Chicano El Chicano was an American brown-eyed soul group from Los Angeles, California, whose style incorporated various modern music genres including rock, funk, soul, blues, jazz, and salsa. The group's name was from Chicano, a term for United States ...

'' (2018), ''

Knives Out ''Knives Out'' is a 2019 American mystery film written and directed by Rian Johnson. Daniel Craig leads an eleven-actor ensemble cast as Benoit Blanc, famed private detective summoned to investigate the death of bestselling author Harlan Throm ...

'' (2019), and '' The Way Back'' (2020).

Life and career

Forte was born in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, Cuba. She studied English literature at

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and w ...

and education at

Montclair State University Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public university in New ...

. She has appeared in many independent films since the early 1990s. She received an Imagen Award nomination for performance in the 2008 film '' Little Girl Lost: The Delimar Vera Story''. On television, Forte appeared in recurring roles on ''

Tyler Perry's House of Payne ''House of Payne'' is an American sitcom television series created and produced by Tyler Perry that premiered in syndication on June 21, 2006. The series revolves around a multi-generational family living under one roof in Atlanta led by patriarc ...

'', ''

Crossing Jordan ''Crossing Jordan'' is an American crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its dete ...

'', and ''

The Secret Life of the American Teenager ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager'' (often shortened to ''Secret Life'') is an American teen drama television series created by Brenda Hampton. It aired on ABC Family from July 1, 2008 to June 3, 2013. The series received mixed to som ...

''. Her film appearances include the transporter chief in the 2009 '' Star Trek'' reboot and Mrs. Glass in ''

Real Women Have Curves ''Real Women Have Curves'' is a 2002 American comedy-drama film directed by Patricia Cardoso, based on the Real Women Have Curves (play), play of the same name by Josefina López, who co-authored the screenplay for the film with George LaVoo. Th ...

''. In 2012, Forte was cast on TNT's revamped ''

'', playing Carmen Ramos, longtime Ewing family housekeeper and mother to

Elena Elena may refer to: People * Elena (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name * Joan Ignasi Elena (born 1968), Catalan politician * Francine Elena (born 1986), British poet Geography * Elena (town), a town in Veliko ...

(played by

Jordana Brewster Jordana Brewster (born April 26, 1980) is a Panamanian-American actress. Best known for her role as Mia Toretto in the ''Fast & Furious'' franchise, she made her acting debut in an episode of ''All My Children'' in 1995 and next took on the recu ...

). She played another housekeeper in the 2013 comedy film, ''

'', and co-starred in the

Tyler Perry Tyler Perry (born Emmitt Perry Jr., September 13, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and playwright. He is the creator and performer of the Madea character, a tough elderly woman. Perry's films vary in style from orthodox filmma ...

's ''

The Single Moms Club ''The Single Moms Club'' is a 2014 American comedy-drama film produced, written, and directed by Tyler Perry. The film stars Nia Long, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Zulay Henao, Cocoa Brown, Amy Smart, Terry Crews, and Perry. The film was released on Marc ...

'' (2014). After ''Dallas'', Forte had recurring role as Elena Gutierrez in the ABC Family drama series, '' The Fosters'' from 2015 to 2017. In 2016, Forte played Celia Flores, the main antagonist during the first half of season 2 of the

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...

horror drama series, '' Fear the Walking Dead''. In 2018, she was cast as Alazne Ortega for the first season of the Netflix science fiction drama series, ''

''. Her other television credits include ''

Claws A claw is a curved, pointed appendage found at the end of a toe or finger in most amniotes (mammals, reptiles, birds). Some invertebrates such as beetles and spiders have somewhat similar fine, hooked structures at the end of the leg or tarsus ...

'', '' Mayans M.C.'', '' Runaways'', '' Superstore'' and ''

The Conners ''The Conners'' is an American television sitcom created for ABC as a renamed direct continuation of the sequel to the series ''Roseanne''. The series is produced by Werner Entertainment, with Bruce Helford serving as showrunner and features ...

''. Forte also played supporting roles in the 2018 superhero film ''

'' as Raúl Castillo's character' mother, 2019 mystery crime comedy ''

Knives Out ''Knives Out'' is a 2019 American mystery film written, directed, and co-produced by Rian Johnson. It follows a master detective, Benoit Blanc, investigating the death of the patriarch of a wealthy, dysfunctional family. The film stars an ensem ...

'' as

Ana de Armas Ana Celia de Armas Caso (; born 30 April 1988) is a Cuban and Spanish actress. She began her career in Cuba and had a leading role in the romantic drama '' Una rosa de Francia'' (2006). At age 18, she moved to Madrid, Spain, and starred in t ...

' mother, and 2020 drama film '' The Way Back''. In 2021, she appeared in the Netflix vampire film ''

Night Teeth ''Night Teeth'' is a 2021 American vampire thriller film directed by Adam Randall from a screenplay by Brent Dillon. The film stars Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Debby Ryan, Lucy Fry, Raul Castillo, Sydney Sweeney, Megan Fox, and Alfie Allen. ''Night Teet ...

''. In 2022, Forte starred and produced horror thriller film ''Hypochondriac'' that premiered at the South by Southwest festival.

Personal life

Forte married screenwriter

Oliver Mayer Oliver Mayer is an American playwright, professor, author, essayist and screenwriter currently residing in Los Angeles, California with his wife, the actress Marlene Forte. He is currently employed with the University of Southern California S ...

in 2006. They live in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. They have no children together, but Forte has daughter Giselle Rodriguez, who works as producer, from a previous relationship.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Forte, Marlene Living people American entertainers of Cuban descent American film actresses American soap opera actresses American television actresses Cuban emigrants to the United States People from Havana 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses 1961 births