Nia Vardalos
Biography
Nia Vardalos is a Canadian actress and screenwriter who started with the Second City comedy company in Chicago, writing and performing in more than ten sketch revues and winning a Joseph Jefferson award for Best Actress. She had small television roles and did voice work for a 1996 radio version of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi before turning her one-woman show into My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), which she wrote and starred in. That film earned her Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild nominations and became a commercial and critical success. She wrote and starred in Connie and Carla (2004), sang and danced in it, and made her directing debut with I Hate Valentine's Day (2009). She appeared in My Life in Ruins (2009) and co-wrote Larry Crowne with Tom Hanks, voicing a role in it. She wrote and starred in My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016) and adapted Tiny Beautiful Things for the stage.
64years old
Turns 65 on September 24in 346 days
- Born Winnipeg
- Star sign: LibraThe sign runs September 23 to October 22
- Also credited as Antonia Eugenia Vardalos
Movie Career
- Films
- 18
- Career span
- 24 years2002 to 2026
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Big break
Vardalos turned her one-woman show of the same name into My Big Fat Greek Wedding, the film that made her famous and earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Writing.
A first
Vardalos asked the Greek government herself for permission to shoot My Life in Ruins at the Acropolis of Athens, the first American production granted that access, and she says her years of Greek School made her fluent in the language.
Early training
Vardalos wrote and performed in more than ten sketch comedy revues with Second City, the Chicago comedy repertory company she belonged to, and she won Chicago's Joseph Jefferson award for Best Actress.
Beyond film
In 2016, Vardalos adapted Cheryl Strayed's book Tiny Beautiful Things into a play and acted in it at The Public Theater in New York, where Thomas Kail directed the sold out run.
Nia Vardalos movies on Netflix
Best known for
The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.
Most often with
Elissa Down directed two of these films. Two actors appear in four of them each. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.
Films together
John Corbett's page
Ian Gomez's page
Louis Mandylor's page
Andrea Martin's page
Lainie Kazan's page
Gia Carides's page
Elissa DownDirector, 2 films, 2022
All films by Elissa Down
Also three films together1 more actor
- Joey FatoneMy Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 (2023), My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016) and My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
When several people share the same number of films, the ones with the most films on Netflix are in the chart.
Box office
What Nia Vardalos's films earned in cinemas worldwide.
Combined worldwide box office
$563 million
9 of the 17 films have a worldwide figure.
Of the 17 films: 9 worldwide figure; 5 never in cinemas; 3 figure not found.
- 9Worldwide figure
- 5Never in cinemas
- 3Figure not found
Highest grossing
The eight biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.
- 1$369M65.5% of the total
- 2$91M16.1% of the total
- 3$35M6.2% of the total
- 4$22M4.0% of the total
- 5$20M3.6% of the total
- 6$11M2.0% of the total
- 7$8.8M1.6% of the total
- 8$4.2M0.8% of the total
$1.2 millionfrom the other 1 film with a worldwide figure, 0% of the total
Awards
One award and honor.
| Year | Award | Film | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other honors | |||
| Canadian Comedy Award for Best Performance by a Female – Film | Won | ||
Online
Official profiles and reference pages.