Actor / Director Profile

Valerie Cruz was most recently seen starring as Zee Alvarez in the ABC series Off The Map, created by Jenna Bans and produced by Grey's Anatomy's Shondaland Productions. Cruz plays Zee, a critical part of La Clinica Cruz del Sur, having worked there for many years as a resident expert. Cruz realized at a young age that her ability for crafting rich and diverse characters was a gift to be shared on stage and screen. Cruz was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and later attended Florida State University, where her passion for acting led her to pursue a BFA in theater. Cruz's inaugural leading role as Grace Santiago on the F/X hit series Nip/Tuck marked the start of her television career. Since then, she has been a chameleon in the TV and film world. In 2008, she pulled double duty on two different television series, as Maria Nolan on Kevin Williamson's drama Hidden Palms, and as Connie Murphy in Syfy and Saturn Film's hit series The Dresden Files. Her performance on The Dresden Files earned her a 2008 ALMA Award nomination for "Outstanding Female Lead Performance in a Drama Series." Cruz was also a part of Showtime's hit series Dexter, which led to another nomination for "Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series" at the 2009 SAG Awards. Immediately after, she joined the cast of HBO's hit series True Blood, as vampire Isabel in their second season. In addition to these powerful roles, she has made numerous guest and recurring appearances on many network heavyweight shows like: Law and Order SVU, Criminal Minds and Grey's Anatomy to name a few.Cruz has also started to make her mark on the independent film circuit with films like the action-drama The Line opposite Ray Liotta and Andy Garcia, as well as The Devil's Tomb opposite Cuba Gooding Jr., Ray Winstone and Ron Pearlman. This summer she will be filming the independent thriller The Loft opposite leading man James Marsden (X Men, Enchanted, Hairspray) and funny man Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family).Cruz currently resides in Los Angeles but basically lives out of her suitcase, traveling from location to location to film various projects. She recently lived in Hawaii while filming Off the Map and this summer will film in both New Orleans (The Loft) and Toronto (Alpha's).