Téa Leoni: what happened to the actress who starred in the movie hits in the 90s

Elizabeth Téa Pantaleoni or simply Téa Leoni was one of the actresses that we could see the most in the cinema during the 90s and 2000s.

He starred in films such as The Family Man, Jurassic Park III, Espanglish or the recently released on Netflix, Impacto Profundo, a film that lasted several weeks among the most viewed on the platform in our country.

His private life was also high-profile by maintaining a marriage with one of the most recognized figures of the North American show.

The actress maintained an active career in Hollywood, although at 56 she is far from the world of lights and entertainment, after a brake on her career, which although she tried, was never the same again.

Téa Leoni: the woman who charmed in the 90s

Téa Leoni is much more than a Hollywood actress, since this New Yorker daughter of a lawyer and a nutritionist also studied anthropology and psychology.

Her career awoke in the late 1980s, breaking into American television by starring as Lisa DiNapoli in the series Santa Barbara, taking her first steps in show business.

In the 1990s, Téa Leoni’s career skyrocketed, participating in projects such as Bad Boys, the Michael Bay film, starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence; and series like Frasier or The Naked Truth.

Her worldwide escalation came with the success Deep Impact, when she played Jenny Lerner, an ambitious reporter who revealed the worst world scenario: a comet is headed for earth and promises to end the world and where she also shared a set with Vanessa Redgrave and Morgan Freeman.

That role not only earned him worldwide fame, but also a comet named after him. It is the (8299) Tealeon, discovered at the La Silla observatory in our country, indicated Minor Planet Center.

Then came other successes such as The Family Man, a drama that he starred in at the beginning of the millennium with Nicolas Cage, Jurasic Park III, Spanglish and Dick and Jane’s Follies, among others, but always in the cinema and without returning to television.

told the magazine she in 1998 “I’m done with television. I don’t want to sound bitter. I thought we had something, and I also have to take responsibility. I have trouble being good enough. I always went home at night and wondered what could have happened if it had been better”, this on the subject of the cancellation of his series “The Naked Truth”.

His life with David Duchovny

While his career was developing in Hollywood, he was also starring in another story, one that was a little tastier even if it was off the set.

Tea Leoni was married to commercial producer Neil Joseph Tardio Jr., between 1991 and 1995, but the real relationship that the tabloids of the time took was the one she had with David Duchovny, the actor from The Secret X Experdientes.

It was in 1997 when the couple got married, becoming one of the most famous in the world and consolidating a relationship that lasted more than 17 years.

They formed a family with their children Madeleine West and Kyd. However, not everything was easy for the couple, since in 2014 they officially divorced, but since 2008 the problems between the two came.

It all started in 2008, when the actor reported that he would be admitted to a rehabilitation center. In the statement he stated “I have voluntarily entered a facility for the treatment of sex addiction.” I ask for respect and privacy for my wife and children as we deal with this situation as a family. People.

At that time they announced their separation, but they got back together until 2011 when they separated again, this time forever until they even signed the divorce.

Despite everything, they carry the relationship on good terms. Tea commented to For the: “Listen, David gave me the two greatest gifts on the planet. I don’t know how I could hate him. We have always loved each other and we adore these children.”

He added to his statement “I’m not playing dumb, I understand that feelings can get hurt and things can get gross. We’ve had our moments like that. But these kids are too important, and he feels the same way, I know. He’s a good guy “.

Return to television with Madam Secretary

Although her relationship with television had ended in 1998, it took 16 years for her to return, although this time as the protagonist of a political drama.

It was Barbara Hall, the executive producer of Homeland, one of the most praised political series on American television, who was in charge of bringing Téa Leoni back to the fore with “Madam Secretary”.

The actress stepped into the shoes of Elizabeth McCord, a former CIA adviser and college professor who is called to be US Secretary of State.

The series, which lasted 6 seasons on the air, showed Téa embodying in fiction one of the most powerful women in world politics, but who managed to combine her work life with family life.

The political drama even included the participation of some of the United States Secretaries of State, such as Hillary Clinton, Colin Powell or Madeleine Albright, who made more than one cameo in the series.

The latter was the one who, in Leoni’s opinion, gave the best compliment, in an interview with The countrynoted that Albright had commented that “we were helping to make foreign policy less foreign.”

Although “Madam Secretary” not only brought her back to television, but also gave Leoni a new relationship, this time with her television partner, Tim Daly, whose chemistry crossed the screen.

It was at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in 2015 that the couple confirmed they were together. According to U.S. Weeklythe couple’s chemistry was electric and they had an amazing time filming.

Tea Leoni and her work at Unicef

The CBS series was on the air until 2019 when they launched their last season and at that time, Téa Leoni completely moved away from projects related to acting, according to what her page on IMDB.

However, something she has never neglected is her work as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador, which she has been doing since 2001 and which connects her deeply with her family.

This is because the actress’s grandmother, Helenka Pantaleoni, co-founded UNICEF USA in 1947 and was its president for 25 years. In addition, her father, Anthony Pantaleoni, was president of the organization’s board of directors, he said. Variety.

Téa Leoni, who has also been a member of the UNICEF USA national board since 2006, is active in organizing events and spreading the word about Unicef’s mission.

It was in 2020, in the midst of the Covid pandemic, when together with his former partner as Madam Secretary, Erich Bergen, he organized the “Unicef ​​Won’t Stop” where they brought together stars such as Cher, Lucy Liu, Pablo Alborán, Jenna Bush Hager , Millie Bobby Brown, Lawrence O’Donnell, Salma Hayek Pinault, and Pink and Björn to help pool resources to help healthcare workers.

The actress remains active through Twitter, where she mainly shares part of her work as a UNICEF ambassador, such as the collection of resources she made on Father’s Day, in honor of her own father.

Thank you so much to everyone who has donated to @UNICEFUSA‘s Bridge Fund this Father’s Day. In honor of my Dad, our family will be matching donations made through the end of this week—to join the effort, click here: https://t.co/R5z5518iHb https://t.co/1MitVdJI07

— Tea Leoni (@TeaLeoni) June 20, 2022