Peta Gia Wilson (born 18 November 1970) is an Australian actress, lingerie designer, and model. She is best-known as Nikita in the television series '' La Femme Nikita''.

Biography

Early life

Wilson was born in Sydney on 18 November 1970. She is the daughter of the caterer Karlene White Wilson and Darcy Wilson, a former

Warrant Officer Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...

in the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

. She spent several years in

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an island country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean n ...

when her father was stationed there. Her parents divorced in 1982.

Career

Wilson worked first as a model in Australia and in Europe before moving to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1991. There she studied acting with

Arthur Mendoza Arthur Mendoza is an American acting coach. He has taught in Los Angeles for 10 years and has worked with such talents as Khandi Alexander, Sasha Barrese, and John Jopson. He has performed in film and '' Our House'' and the film ''Deep Cover''. ...

at the Actors Circle Theatre, and with

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

at the TomKat Repertory Group. After five years of study, she was hired for some small roles in independent films such as ''Naked Jane'' and '' Loser''. In 1996, she was preparing to continue her studies at an acting school in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, but decided to audition first for a new television show being produced for the USA cable TV channel in North America. Over 200 actresses auditioned for the starring role, and Wilson was chosen. The show was called '' La Femme Nikita'', based on the 1990 French action thriller movie of the same name. The hour-long series was produced by a combination of Canadian and American companies. It ran for five years and 96 episodes (22 episodes per season for four years, and another eight episodes in its fifth and final TV year). Most were filmed in and around

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. Wilson's co-stars were

Roy Dupuis Roy Michael Joseph Dupuis (; born April 21, 1963) is a Canadian actor best known in America for his role as counterterrorism operative Michael Samuelle in the television series '' La Femme Nikita''. In Canada, specifically Quebec, he's known for ...

Don Francks Don Harvey Francks (February 28, 1932 – April 3, 2016), also known by his stage name Iron Buffalo, was a Canadian actor, musician and singer. Early life Don Harvey Francks was born on February 28, 1932, and was adopted shortly after his bir ...

Alberta Watson Faith Susan Alberta Watson (March 6, 1955 – March 21, 2015), better known as Alberta Watson, was a Canadian film and television actress. Early life Watson was born in Toronto, Ontario, in 1955.Rita Zekas. , Toronto Star, August 5, 1994. She gr ...

and

Eugene Robert Glazer Eugene Robert Glazer (born December 16, 1942, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American actor best known for his portrayal of "Operations" on the USA Network series '' La Femme Nikita''. Glazer was raised in Brooklyn, New York, and worked at a variet ...

. Wilson was twice nominated for the annual

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's English-language television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in t ...

for "Best Performance by An Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role". Vladimir Putin 27 June 2001-2

In 2001, Wilson took part in the

Moscow International Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (, Transliteration, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is a film festival first held in Moscow in 1935 and became regular since 1959. From its inception to ...

, where she met Russian president

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

, who confessed to being a fan of hers. She portrayed real-life actress

Anny Ondra Anny Ondra (born Anna Sophie Ondráková; 15 May 1903 – 28 February 1987) was an Austrian (German) and Czech film actress. She began her career in 1920 and appeared in Czech, German, Austrian, French and English films. In 1933, she married ...

in the television movie ''

Joe and Max ''Joe and Max'' is a 2002 American-German boxing film directed by Steve James and based on the true story of the two boxing matches between American Joe Louis and German Max Schmeling. Plot In 1936, African American boxer Joe Louis (Leonard R ...

'' (2002). She also appeared as the vampire

Mina Harker Wilhelmina "Mina" Harker (née Murray) is a fictional character and the main female character in Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. In the novel She begins the story as Miss Mina Murray, a young schoolmistress who is engaged t ...

in the 2003 film ''

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'' (''LoEG'') is a multi-genre, cross-over comic book series co-created by writer Alan Moore and artist Kevin O'Neill which began in 1999. The comic book spans four volumes, an original graphic novel, and ...

''. During 2006 she appeared on an Australian TV mystery anthology drama ''

Two Twisted ''Two Twisted'' is an Australian TV mystery anthology drama which premiered on the Nine Network on 14 August 2006. Narrated by Bryan Brown, who also produced the series' predecessor, ''Twisted Tales'', each episode of the series contains two sho ...

'' and had a small role in the movie ''

Superman Returns ''Superman Returns'' is a 2006 American superhero film directed by Bryan Singer, and written by Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris from a story by Singer, Dougherty and Harris, based on the DC Comics character Superman. It serves as a homage ...

'' as the character Bobbie-Faye, a

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

spokeswoman. In 2009, Wilson starred in an Australian independent film ''

Beautiful Beautiful, an adjective used to describe things as possessing beauty, may refer to: Film and theater * ''Beautiful'' (2000 film), an American film directed by Sally Field * ''Beautiful'' (2008 film), a South Korean film directed by Juhn Jai-h ...

''. She guest starred on '' CSI: Miami'' (2010) and '' The Finder'' (2012). In 2012, she launched a lingerie label, Wylie Wilson, with a flagship store in Los Angeles. In 2013, Wilson received the Best Actress Award at the Cinerockom International Film Festival for her performance as CIA agent Marla Criswell in the short film ''Liberator''.

Personal life

Wilson lived with her longtime boyfriend, director

Damian Harris Damian David Harris (born 2 August 1958) is a British film director and screenwriter. He is the eldest son of the actor Richard Harris and socialite Elizabeth Rees-Williams. Career In 1968, Harris debuted on screen playing Miles in the film ' ...

, from 1997 until their separation in 2002. They have a son.

Filmography

Film

Television

Nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Peta 1970 births Australian film actresses Australian television actresses Living people Actresses from Sydney 20th-century Australian actresses 21st-century Australian actresses