Renée Victor

Renée Victor is an actress best known for her role as Lupita on Weeds.

Beloved by many fans, Renee Victor remains one of the most delightful and enchanting unsung talents in entertainment. Critics and admirers alike have acknowledged her astonishing range and talent as an actress of the highest caliber with a gallery of indelible roles, equally adept handling every genre of drama and comedy.

The public best knows Renee Victor for her wisecracking role as “Lupita” in the landmark Showtime series “Weeds.” Her portrayal has earned her critical praise as a character that avoids the usual stereotype. Fast and feisty, Lupita is bursting with energy, shooting clever barbs at often clueless characters. Critics nationwide have joined thousands of fans who admire her spirit and wit.

“’Weeds’ Renee Victor, as Nancy’s maid, is the best lippy servant since Rosario on ‘Will & Grace’ wrote Terry Morrow of the Scripps Howard News Service.

New York Post TV critic Linda Staci wrote “Lastly and bestly there’s ‘Lupita’ (Renee Victor) the Botwin’s housekeeper (“I’m nobody’s maid”) who delivers some of the funniest lines on television in the last 10 years. And I mean that! Thank God Lupita (Renee Victor) – who had the best line in all of television last season (the one about the coffee table) – is back, and by episode two, she’s had two more potentially best lines. The woman’s a comic genius and I love her so.”

Referring to her classic “Weeds” line, costar Kevin Nealon — after her priceless delivery — asked her “What’s it like not only delivering the best line in the show, but probably one of the best classic lines in TV history?”

“On the heels of her second season on “Weeds” as Lupita, Ms. Victor was cast as “Mommie” in the indie feature Hollywood Familia which quickly earned her advance praise from Director-Producer Frank Aragon.

“We have a wonderful performance from Renee, whose portrayal of “Mommie” is one of those magical moments when actress and character fuse absolutely. She deftly balances the humor and drama in an astonishing tour de force. Renee unleashes a colorful, quirky persona that tickles the funny bone of anyone who recalls a grandmother steeped in cultural rites and practices white magic behind closed doors. Renee not only steals the show, but steals your heart”. Aragon decided from the beginning to submit Renee for Academy Award consideration.

Renee Victor has worked alongside many of Hollywood’s elite including Robert Duvall, Walter Matthau, Andy Garcia, Christopher Walken, William Hurt, Isai Morales, James Brolin, Gena Rowlands and Scarlett Johansson.

In Duvall’s The Apostle as the Hispanic Evangelical interpreter to his sermon, she holds her own side by side with one of America’s greatest actors. For her title role in the indie film Libertad she received the Best Actress Award at the Napa Valley Film Festival and is proud to have performed the English voice of Helena, in Ingmar Bergman’s Oscar winning film Fanny and Alexander as well as the voice of Ginger in Fellini’s Ginger and Fred and the Spanish-voiced Gargoyle in Disney’s The Huncback of Notre Dame among others.

She has also performed on public radio, KCRW, for the prestigious Los Angeles Theater Classics “The Play’s The Thing.” Television recurring roles besides “Weeds” include “ER” and “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne.” Other TV credits are “Children’s Hospital,” “Women’s Murder Club,” “All You’ve Got,” “Strong Medicine,” “Mister Sterling,” “Elian Gonzales” and many more. Ms. Victor has also had a wealth of theater experience.

On her performance at San Jose Repertory Theater’s production of “My Visits With MGM,” Victor opens the play singing the classic and heartfelt “Valentina.” Sung torch style — with a single spotlight and alone on stage — Victor’s rendition of this evergreen song is now considered a classic moment and sets the tone for the entire play. Judith Green of the Mercury News wrote: “Renee Victor a tiny, joyous, enchanting performer gives Grandmother Marta enough fizz for a magnum of champagne and has a special beauty appropriate to a play that takes place largely in the faded colors of the past. She is also an experienced dancer, which she puts to good use here and costumer Victoria Petrovich gives her a leafy dancing dress in gauze and gold for her after life.”

On her repeat performance of “My Visits With MGM” at Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Damien Jaques of The Journal wrote: “Renee Victor gives Marta Grande an amazing amalgam of warmth, humor, strength and sexiness.”

In “Our Lady of The Tortilla” at the Phoenix Theater, Julie Amparano of The Arizona Republic wrote: “Victor’s performance is a highlight. With a surprised naïveté Victor plays Dolores as a Hispanic version of Edith Bunker.”

In addition to starring in and choreographing a popular variety series in Australia, Ms. Victor has choreographed and/or been featured dancer in: “The Doctor,” “Salsa,” “The Barry Manilow Special,” “Suddenly Susan,” “The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit,” “Diagnosis Murder,” “Bob!,” “Land’s End,” “Veronica Claire,” “Men Behaving Badly,” “Parallel Lives,” “The Neon Bible,” “Everything’s George,” “Kiss Me A Killer,” “The Big City,” “Fear of Dancing and Other Diseases,” “The Summer of My Deflowering,” “30 Minutes at Gunsight,” “The Harry Belafonte Show,” “Perez Prado Review,” “The Afrison Cuban Concert at the L.A. Theater Center” and numerous Jerry Jackson Reviews (Mr. Jackson is the Artistic Director of The Folies Bergere in both Paris and Las Vegas.)

Having had the famed pianist Eddie Cano (“A Taste of Honey") as her accompanist for six months remains the highlight of her singing experience. But she also admits to having “great fun” singing jingles for RC Cola, Hoffy Hot Dogs and Twin Dragon Chinese Cookies.

After her very well received work and extended success in Australia and New Zealand she returned to L.A. She hosted KTLA’s “Pacesetters” for 3 years; was translator-interpreter at the ’84 L.A. Olympic International Broadcasting Center; translated and adapted a program for the California Museum of Science and Industry on AIDS, hosted by Edward James Olmos and she translated the “The Nutcracker Suite” into Spanish for the BBC of London.

She also wrote for and was Segment Producer for the “Paul Rodriguez Show,” narrated “The Art of the Pacific Rim-Meso American Art” for the L.A. County Museum of Art and “La Ofrenda - The Day of the Dead” (Women In Films entry at the Los Angeles Film Festival). Her work as Spanish language lyricist writing ten songs for pianist-composer Bill Baker and the radio special she produced and hosted on novelist Carlos Fuentes for Pacifica radio KPFK were accomplished because of her passionate commitment to extended performance study and training.

Victor believes her studies at the University of Texas, American Film Institute, Jackie Cowgill at AADA, Improv with Gary Austin, Shirley Prestia, Kip King and Lindsay Crouse—as well as studies at the Sydney Conservatory of Music, Columbia School of Broadcasting, Hollywood Scriptwriter’s Institute—further honed her craft as an actor and expanded her understanding and experience in the challenging and often unpredictable field she has chosen.

The multi-lingual Texas-born Renee is single, enjoys movies, theater, museums, poetry (especially Pablo Neruda), music, travel and cooking for small intimate gatherings with friends and family...especially daughters Margo and Raquel.

</gallery> Reps: Hervey/Grimes Talent Agency - T * 310-475-2010 Independent Artists Agency, Inc - C * 310-550-5000 William Morris-Endeavor - V.O. * 310-859-4085

External links

• Renee Victor at IMDb