Kiele Sanchez

Bio:
Kiele Sanchez (born in Chicago, IL on October 13, 1977) is an American actress. Kiele is of Puerto Rican and French descent. She is one of four children. Kiele got the acting bug while attending Glenbard North High School in suburban Chicago, despite having to overcome initial stage fright. Kiele got her first shot at stardom when she auditioned for MTV’s “Wanna Be a VJ” contest in 2000. While she made the finals, she didn’t win. An agent who saw her on MTV took her on as a client and advised her to move to LA for more acting opportunities. After appearing on several short lived TV shows, she got her first film break in 2003 with Stuck on You. Kiele’s next big opportunity came when she joined the third season of ABC’s fantasy/drama Lost, playing Nikki Fernandez. Her character was killed off after only 6 episodes due to negative fan response. She then had a recurring role on the Christina Applegate comedy Samantha Who? which ABC cancelled after two seasons due to financial reasons. Kiele starred in the 2010 film 30 Days of Night: Dark Days. Kiele currently stars in the Direct TV drama series Kingdom as gym owner Lisa Prince alongside singer/actor Nick Jonas. The fighting drama premiered in fall of 2014 and is returning for a second season.

Best Known For:
Playing a villian on Lost, starring in Direct TV’s Kingdom.

Personal Life
Kiele’s first name is Hawaiian and means “fragrant blossom, especially gardenia.” Kiele’s first husband was writer and film director Zach Helm. The pair eventually divorced. In 2010 she began dating actor Zach Gilford after meeting him on the set of the 2009 ABC pilot The Matadors. The pair became engaged in Nov. 2011 and married  on Dec. 29, 2012. In Aug. 2014 Kiele announced she was pregnant after showing up with a visible baby bump at the TCA convention. She revealed the baby boy was due in November 2015. On October 9, the couple announced Kiele had suffered a tragic late-term miscarriage and lost the baby.