Elizabeth Téa Pantaleoni (/ˈteɪ.ə pɑːntəleɪˈoʊni/; born February 25, 1966),[1]better known by her stage name Téa Leoni, is an American actress and producer.
In her early career, she starred in the television sitcoms Flying Blind (1992–93) and The Naked Truth (1995–98). Her breakthrough role was in the 1995 action comedy film Bad Boys. In later years, Leoni had the female lead roles in films including Deep Impact (1998), The Family Man (2000), Jurassic Park III (2001), Spanglish (2004) and Fun with Dick and Jane (2005). In 2014, she returned to television in the leading role in the CBS political drama series Madam Secretary.
Early life and family[]
Leoni was born in New York City.[1] Her mother, Emily Ann (Patterson),[2][3] was a dietitian and nutritionist, and her father, Anthony Pantaleoni, was a corporate lawyer with the firm Fulbright & Jaworski.[1][4] Her paternal grandfather was of Italian, English and Irish descent; he was a nephew of Italian economist and politician Maffeo Pantaleoni.[5][6][7] Leoni's paternal grandmother, Polish-American Helenka Adamowska Pantaleoni, a film and stage actress, was the daughter of musicians Józef Adamowski and Antonina Szumowska-Adamowska.[5][8] Leoni's mother is a native of Amarillo, Texas, and a niece of actor Hank Patterson.[9] Leoni grew up in Englewood, New Jersey, and New York City, and attended two private schools, Brearley School and The Putney Schoolin Vermont.[10] She attended but did not complete studies at Sarah Lawrence College.[10] In Series 4 Episode 8 Professor Louis B. Gates of the PBS program series Finding Your Roots was able to identify her maternal grandparents, previously unknown, to Vick Louisiana, Abilene Gindratt and her grandfather, Sumpter Daniel, whose ancestors originated in Ireland and settled in Virginia in the early 18th century and had a plantation in Fairfax County 7 miles from Geo. Washington.[11]
Career[]
In 1988, Leoni was cast as one of the stars of Angels 88, an updated version of the 1970s show Charlie's Angels.[12] After production delays, the show never aired. The following year, she was cast as Lisa DiNapoli in the NBC daytime soap opera Santa Barbara. In 1991, she made her film debut with a small role in the comedy Switch and later played another small part in A League of Their Own(1992).
From 1992 to 1993, Leoni starred with Corey Parker in the short-lived Fox sitcom Flying Blind. In February 1995, she appeared in the sitcom Frasier, a spinoff from Cheers, as the fiancée of Sam Malone (played by Ted Danson). Later in that year, she landed the lead role in the ABC/NBC sitcom The Naked Truth, playing Nora Wilde, a tabloid news journalist. The show ran through 1998. Leoni had the female lead role in the 1995 action comedy film Bad Boys, which was a box office success, grossing over $141 million worldwide.[13]
After leaving television, in 1998 Leoni had the leading role in Deep Impact, a big-budget disaster film about a comet menacing Earth. The film received mixed reviews from critics but was a success at the box office, grossing $349 million worldwide.[14] She later had main roles in two other big budget movies: romantic comedy The Family Man (2000), co-starring alongside Nicolas Cage, and science fiction film Jurassic Park III (2001) as William H. Macy's character's ex-wife. In 2002, she starred as a film studio executive in Hollywood Ending, directed by Woody Allen and had a supporting role in the box office bomb crime drama People I Know. In 2004, she appeared as the wife of Adam Sandler's character in the financially unsuccessful comedy-drama Spanglish. In 2005, Leoni starred alongside Jim Carrey in the comedy film Fun with Dick and Jane. The movie grossed $202 million at the box office worldwide.[15]
Leoni co-starred in a number of small films in the late 2000s, including You Kill Me and The Smell of Success. She co-starred opposite Ricky Gervais in the 2008 supernatural comedy-drama Ghost Town. In 2011, she had a supporting role in the heist comedy film, Tower Heist. In 2011, she was also cast alongside Hope Davis as leads in the HBO comedy pilot, Spring/Fall; however, the pilot was not picked up.[16] In 2014, she returned to broadcast television with the leading role in the CBS political drama series, Madam Secretary.[17]
Personal life[]
Leoni married Neil Joseph Tardio, Jr., a television commercial producer, on June 8, 1991, at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Hope, New Jersey.[18] They divorced in 1995.[19]
Leoni married actor David Duchovny on May 13, 1997, after an eight-week courtship.[20][21] They have two children: daughter Madelaine West Duchovny (born April 13, 1999)[22][23] and son Kyd Miller Duchovny (born June 15, 2002).[24][25] On October 15, 2008, Leoni and Duchovny confirmed that they had been separated for "several months". The media attributed the separation to Duchovny's much publicized sex addiction. The couple publicly reconciled and were seen frequently together as a family.[26] On June 29, 2011, CNN reported that Leoni and Duchovny had again split.[27] In 2012, Duchovny stated that he was still married but separated.[28] Duchovny filed for divorce in June 2014, and the couple had agreed to settlement terms by that August.[29][30]
Until their split, they lived on the Upper East Side. Afterwards, she moved to Riverside Drive on the Upper West Side.[31]
Leoni has been dating her Madam Secretary co-star Tim Daly, another alum of The Putney School, since December 2014.[32][33]
Humanitarian work[]
Leoni was named a UNICEF goodwill ambassador in 2001.[34] Helenka Pantaleoni, her paternal grandmother, was the president of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF for more than 25 years.[8]
Asteroid[]
Asteroid 8299 Téaleoni, discovered by Eric Elst at La Silla in 1993, was named after her.[35]
Filmography[]
Film[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Switch | Connie the Dream Girl | |
| 1992 | A League of Their Own | Racine 1st Base | |
| 1994 | Wyatt Earp | Sally | |
| 1995 | Bad Boys | Julie Mott | |
| 1996 | Flirting with Disaster | Tina Kalb | |
| 1998 | Deep Impact | Jenny Lerner | |
| 1998 | There's No Fish Food in Heaven[36] | Landeene | Also executive producer |
| 2000 | The Family Man | Kate Reynolds | |
| 2001 | Jurassic Park III | Amanda Kirby | |
| 2002 | People I Know | Jilli Hopper | |
| 2002 | Hollywood Ending | Ellie | |
| 2004 | House of D | Mrs. Warshaw | |
| 2004 | Spanglish | Deborah Clasky | |
| 2005 | Fun with Dick and Jane | Jane Harper | |
| 2007 | You Kill Me | Laurel Pearson | Also executive producer |
| 2008 | Ghost Town | Gwen | |
| 2009 | The Smell of Success | Rosemary Rose | |
| 2011 | Tower Heist | Special Agent Claire Denham | |
| 2021 | Misery, Inc. | Gabriela Weinstein | Voice role |
Television[]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Santa Barbara | Lisa DiNapoli | 6 episodes |
| 1992–1993 | Flying Blind | Alicia | 22 episodes |
| 1994 | The Counterfeit Contessa[37] | Gina Leonarda Nardino | Television film |
| 1995 | Frasier | Sheila | Episode: "The Show Where Sam Shows Up" |
| 1995–1998 | The Naked Truth | Nora Wilde | 55 episodes |
| 2000 | The X-Files | Herself | Episode: "Hollywood A.D." |
| 2011 | Spring/Fall | Margo | Unsold TV pilot |
| 2014–present | Madam Secretary | Elizabeth McCord | 94 episodes; also producer |
Awards and nominations[]
| Year | Nominated work | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Deep Impact | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Actress – Sci-Fi | Nominated |
| 2000 | The Family Man | Nominated | ||
| Saturn Awards | Best Actress | Won | ||
| 2006 | Herself | TV Land Awards | Little Screen/Big Screen Star – Female | Nominated |
| 2007 | You Kill Me | Alliance of Women Film Journalists Awards | EDA Special Mention – Most Egregious Age Difference Between Leading Man and Love Interest (with Ben Kingsley) | Nominated |
| 2014 | Madam Secretary | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Actress in a New TV Series | Nominated |
| 2016 | Madam Secretary | CBS MVP Awards | Best Motivational Speech | Nominated |