Miranda Wilson
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Miranda Wilson, also known as Cheryl-Ann Wilson, (born September 10, 1960) is an American actress and dialect coach. She is best known for her role as the villainess Megan Hathaway DiMera on the NBC soap opera, ''
Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
''.


Early life

Cheryl-Ann Wilson was born in Omaha, Nebraska. In high school, Wilson had the opportunity to perform in nine stage productions. After high school, Miranda did a four-year Fine Arts degree at University of California, Santa Barbara, majoring in Theatre Arts with an Acting emphasis.


Career

Wilson, began her career in 1984, after she won the role of Megan Hathaway, the high-school sweetheart of
Bo Brady Bo Brady is a fictional character from the NBC daytime soap opera ''Days of Our Lives''. The role has been most notably portrayed by Peter Reckell, who originated the role on May 3, 1983. Creation and casting Created under head-writer Margare ...
, in the popular soap opera, ''
Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...
''. Megan gained notoriety when it was revealed that the character was actually Megan DiMera, the daughter of the supervillain,
Stefano DiMera Stefano DiMera is a fictional character from the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', played by Joseph Mascolo. Created by Pat Falken Smith, Stefano was introduced on January 18, 1982 as the father of Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis) looking to exp ...
. After Megan was killed off, Wilson was approached by
John Conboy John Conboy (March 1934 – January 2018) was an American soap opera producer until his death in January 2018. Life and career Conboy was born in 1934 in Binghamton, New York. After high school, he graduated from Carnegie Mellon University's Colle ...
the producer of '' Capitol'' and asked to audition for the contract role of Kate Wells, working mainly opposite the rugged hero of the 50's and 60's cinema, Richard Egan. Kate became a pivotal villainess bringing the show to one of its climatic cliffhangers at the time the show was cancelled. Wilson next appeared along with her ‘Capitol’ co-star
Debrah Farentino Debrah Farentino (born Deborah Mullowney) is an American actress, producer, and journalist. She began her career starring in the CBS daytime soap opera '' Capitol'' from 1982 to 1987, before moving to prime time with a female leading role in the ...
, in the 1987 horror film '' Cellar Dweller'' which has since become a cult classic. Next Wilson was cast as the psychic Sandra Mills on the beloved soap opera '' Santa Barbara''. She had the great good fortune of playing opposite A. Martinez while his main onscreen partner,
Marcy Walker Marcy Lynn Walker (born November 26, 1961), also known as Marcy Smith, is an American youth minister and former actress known for her television appearances on daytime soap operas. Her most famous roles are those of Liza Colby on ''All My Chi ...
, was on maternity leave. While Sandra was loathed by fans for pursuing Cruz, she was more deeply troubled and misunderstood than strictly a villainess. In-between her contract roles on the soaps Wilson had guest starring roles on several popular TV series. On ''
T. J. Hooker ''T. J. Hooker'' is an American police drama television program starring William Shatner in the title role as a 15-year veteran police sergeant. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement on March 13, 1982, on ABC and ran on the network unt ...
'' she worked with
William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1966 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...
. On '' Trapper John M.D.'' she had a role playing opposite with
Timothy Busfield Timothy Busfield (born June 12, 1957) is an American actor and director. He played Elliot Weston on the television series '' thirtysomething''; Mark, the brother-in-law of Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner), in '' Field of Dreams''; and Danny Concann ...
in a storyline as a new mother. On ''
Wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, includin ...
'', Wilson was again cast as the villainess who ended up chasing down
Jack Scalia Jack Scalia (born November 10, 1950) is an American actor. Scalia is perhaps best known for his frequent appearances in prime-time television series (both as a regular and as a guest-star) and television movies in the 1980s and 1990s, as well as ...
on horseback while murderously swinging a machete. On ''
Life Is Wild ''Life Is Wild'' is an American drama television series adapted by Michael Rauch, George Faber and Charlie Pattinson from the British drama '' Wild at Heart''. The show is about a New York veterinarian who moves his second wife and their two s ...
'', Wilson played the mother of the protagonist and was thrilled to spend two weeks filming on the savanna in South Africa, where she met some of the planet's coolest members of the animal kingdom - leopards, lions, giraffe, meerkats, hyenas and stripy zebras to name but a few. After leaving Hollywood to start a family, she moved to France. Before taking a child rearing hiatus Wilson was cast in a TV guest star role in ''Histories d’Amour'' which she performed in French. When Wilson was returning to her career post childrearing, the first film she was cast in was '' High Strung'', directed by fellow soap actor,
Michael Damian Michael Damian Weir (born April 26, 1962) is an American actor, singer, director, writer, and producer, best known for his role as Danny Romalotti on the soap opera ''The Young and the Restless'', which he played from 1981 to 1998, 2002 to 2004, ...
. In recent years Wilson starred in the acclaimed short film ''An American Attorney in London''. The film won a number of awards on the film festival circuit, both for the film and for Wilson as the lead actress. It was this film that led producer/director Otto Bathurst to cast Wilson in the recurring role of Penma in the television adaptation of the popular video game, ''
Halo HALO, halo, halos or haloes may refer to: Most common meanings * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head * ''Halo'' (franchise), a sci-fi video game series (2001–2021) Arts and en ...
''. In 2022, Wilson reprised her role as Megan Hathaway for the spin-off series, '' Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem'', in which she acted as the primary villain. In 2023, she reprised her role on the main series with a 33-episode run that ended with a cliffhanger, keeping the door open for her to return at some point in the future.


Personal life

In her late twenties, Cheryl-Ann changed her name to Miranda. In 1990, Wilson married Englishman and production designer, Richard Lassalle. The couple had two children and raised them in England. During this time, Wilson co-founded and project managed a holistic primary school in Lewes, East Sussex, along with a handful of like-minded friends and educators. The school was a great success with all of the children and families who attended over the 18 years it was open. Wilson has since divorced and lives a very full life in the south of England.


Filmography


Film


Television


Awards and nominations


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Miranda 1960 births Living people American film actresses American television actresses