Sharon Leal
Leal at the 36th Annual Gracie Awards Gala in 2011
Born
Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Occupation(s)Actress, singer
Years active1996–present
Spouse
Bev Land
​
​
(m. 2001; div. 2009)​
Children1

Sharon Ann Leal is an American actress and singer. She is known for her roles in movies such as Dreamgirls (2006), This Christmas (2007), Why Did I Get Married? (2007), Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010) and her roles on the television shows Legacy, Guiding Light and Boston Public.

Early life

Leal was born in Tucson, Arizona. Her mother, Angelita, is Filipina. Her father was an African-American military policeman who broke up with her mother before Sharon was born.[1][2] Shortly after, her mother married Jesse Leal, a Master Sergeant in the United States Air Force and a police officer at Clark Air Base, Philippines; he legally adopted Sharon.[3][4]

Career

Leal's career began with the role of Dahlia Crede in the CBS daytime serial Guiding Light. Later, she joined the Broadway company of Rent. Soon after, she was cast as Mimi for the San Francisco leg of the first national tour of Rent. Leal appeared on the 1999 original cast recording of the Off-Broadway musical Bright Lights, Big City alongside Patrick Wilson and Jesse L. Martin. She also appeared on the 2001 cast recording of Making Tracks.

From 2000 to 2004, Leal starred in the Fox prime time TV series Boston Public. She also had a role in the theatrical release Face the Music. She then appeared in a recurring role in the short-lived NBC series LAX, as the wife of airport co-director, Roger de Souza.

In 2006, she co-starred in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical Dreamgirls as Michelle Morris, Effie White's replacement in the pop group The Dreams, with Beyoncé Knowles, Jennifer Hudson, Eddie Murphy and Jamie Foxx. In 2007, Leal was cast in the Tyler Perry production Why Did I Get Married? and This Christmas. In 2010, she starred in Perry's sequel production Why Did I Get Married Too?. She also portrayed the character Vanessa Lodge in the series Hellcats, until it was cancelled in 2011. In 2013, Leal played the supporting role in the movie 1982, which tells a story of a drug addicted mother and a father's fight to protect his daughter.

Leal appears in seasons 2, 3, 5 and 6 of Supergirl as M'gann M'orzz (Megan in human form).

Personal life

In October 2001, Leal married Bev Land. Their son Kai Miles Land was born in September 2001.[3][5] The couple divorced in 2009.[6] Former Guiding Light co-star Yvonna Wright has said that she and Leal are close friends; the two starred together in a community production of Dreamgirls in their hometown.[7]

Filmography

Film and TV Movies

Year Title Role Notes
2001 Face the Music Tracie
2004 What Are the Odds Nikki Short
2006 Dreamgirls Michelle Morris
2007 Motives 2 Nina Video
Why Did I Get Married? Dianne Brock
This Christmas Kelli Whitfield
2008 Linewatch Angela Dixon
Soul Men Cleo Whitfield
2009 Limelight Nina TV movie
2010 Why Did I Get Married Too? Dianne Brock
2011 Little Murder Jennifer
2012 Woman Thou Art Loosed: On the 7th Day Kari Ames
2013 1982 Shenae Brown
The Last Letter Cathrine Wright
Guilty Sara Weston TV movie
2014 Freedom Vanessa
Addicted Zoe Reynard
2015 White Water Annie TV movie
2016 36 Hour Layover Sofia
2017 Shot Phoebe
2018 Amateur Nia
Bella's Story Kim
2019 Paper Friends London
2020 Blindfire Nika Wilkins
2021 A Holiday Chance Naomi Chance
Traces Claudia

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1996–99 Guiding Light Dahlia Crede Regular Cast
1998–99 Legacy Marita Peters Main cast
2000–04 Boston Public Marilyn Sudor Main cast
2004–05 LAX Monique DeSouza Recurring cast
2005 Las Vegas Nina Episode: "Sperm Whales and Spearmint Rhinos"
2007 CSI: Miami Lauren Sloan Episode: "Internal Affairs"
2009 Private Practice Dr. Sonya Nichols Recurring cast: Season 2
2010–11 Hellcats Vanessa Lodge Main cast
2011 Suits Lisa Parker Episode: "Dirty Little Secrets"
2012 Person of Interest Dr. Madeleine Enright Episode: "Critical"
2014 Perception Inspector Liza Brahms Episode: "Obsession"
Suits Lisa Parker Episode: "Yesterday's Gone"
2015 The Good Wife Nicole Rickter Episode: "Wanna Partner?"
Reed Between the Lines Lori Samuels Recurring cast: season 2
2014–16 Grimm Tyler "Zuri" Ellis Recurring cast: Season 3 & 5
2016 Recovery Road Charlotte Graham Main cast
Dead of Summer Renee Tyler Episode: "The Devil Inside" & "She Talks to Angels"
2016–21 Supergirl M'gann M'orzz/Miss Martian Recurring cast: Season 2 & 6, guest: Season 3 & 5
2018–19 Instinct Lt. Jasmine Gooden Main cast
The Good Doctor Breeze Browne Guest: season 1-2, recurring cast: season 3
2020 Council of Dads Michelle Recurring cast
2022–present Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin Sidney Haworthe Main cast

Awards and nominations

Year Nominated work Award Category Result Ref.
2007 Dreamgirls Asian Excellence Awards Asian Excellence Award for Outstanding Film Supporting Actress Nominated
Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Cast Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Acting Ensemble Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Awards Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated
2008 This Christmas Asian Excellence Awards Asian Excellence Award for Outstanding Film Actress Nominated

References

  1. ↑ Robison, Ken (1994-06-12). "THE CALL OF BROADWAY FRESNO ACTORS TREADING BIGGER BOARDS". The Fresno Bee. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
  2. ↑ "Sharon Leal as M'gann M'orzz on 'Supergirl': 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy.
  3. 1 2 "Extra Credit — Kids & Family Life, Boston Public : People.com". people.com. 2014. Retrieved October 2, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Sharon Leal Biography — Yahoo! Movies". Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  5. ↑ "News". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2013-06-30. 10.30.01 - The November 6th issue of Soap Opera Digest reports that Sharon Leal and fiancé Bev Land welcomed their first child, Kai Miles Land, into the world on September 13th.
  6. ↑ "Actress Sharon Leal". November 28, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Culture Club". Soap Opera Weekly. 2007-02-27. p. 22.
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