Eva Longoria

Eva Jacqueline Longoria Bastón ( Longoria; born March 15, 1975) is an American actress, producer, director and business woman.

Longoria was born in Corpus Christi, Texas, on March 15, 1975, the youngest of the four daughters of her Tejano parents Ella Eva (Mireles) and Enrique Longoria Jr.

One of her sisters had special needs.

At that time (1998), she also won the title of Miss Corpus Christi USA.

After completing college, she entered a talent contest that led her to Los Angeles; and shortly thereafter, was spotted and signed by a theatrical agent.

While auditioning for roles, she worked as a headhunter for four years.

Longoria has publicly credited Jennifer Lopez as being an inspiration to her early in her career.

“Jennifer broke down so many doors so that we could walk through them,” she told the magazine PEOPLE.

“And she kicked them down.

They were not easy doors.” She also described Tejana legend Selena as being "my idol, my inspiration" and "the reason I even dared to dream that a better life was possible."

In the 2000s, Longoria appeared in several high-profile advertising campaigns and numerous men's magazines, reaching No. 14 in the FHM "Sexiest Women 2008" poll.

She was also featured on the cover of various international women's magazines, including Vogue, Marie Claire and Harper's Bazaar.

After a number of guest roles on several television series, she was recognized for her portrayal of Isabella Braña on the CBS daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless, on which she starred from 2001 to 2003.

Another guest appearance on General Hospital the same year led to a contract role on the CBS Daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless, where she portrayed Isabella Braña from 2001 to 2003.

After leaving that show, she appeared in the 2003 revival of Jack Webb's long-running Dragnet media franchise.

She then starred in Señorita Justice, a poorly received direct-to-video film; and a television film, The Dead Will Tell.

In 2003, Longoria was cast as Gabrielle Solis in the ABC comedy-drama Desperate Housewives. She later commented, "I think it's funny when people say I'm an overnight sensation, because I've been working at it for 10 years."

Shortly after her debut on Desperate Housewives, she starred in a direct-to-video film, Carlita's Secret, for which she was also co-producer.

She is most known for her role as Gabrielle Solis on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives, which ran from 2004 to 2012, and for which she received a Golden Globe nomination and won two Screen Actors Guild Awards with the cast.

In 2005 Longoria founded UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, film and television production company acquired by Hyphenate Media Group, co-founded by Longoria herself and Cris Abrego, in 2023.

She was also an executive producer for the Lifetime television series Devious Maids, and for films Food Chains and The Harvest.

Thanks for her acting works she won three ALMA Awards, two People's Choice Awards a Teen Choice Awards; Longoria has also appeared in The Sentinel (2006), Over Her Dead Body (2008), For Greater Glory (2012), Frontera (2014), Lowriders (2016), and Overboard (2018), later winning the Imagen Awards for Best Actress Film.

In 2006, she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy, along with her co-stars in Desperate Housewives. That year, she received the ALMA Award, and was named entertainer of the year.

She also starred opposite Michael Douglas and Kiefer Sutherland in the thriller The Sentinel (2006)—her first major role in a theatrical feature film—and played Sylvia in Harsh Times, starring Freddy Rodríguez and Christian Bale.

She did not speak Spanish growing up, and did not learn the language until 2009.

While in high school, she worked at a Wendy's restaurant part-time for three years to help earn money for her quinceañera.

Longoria previously told the press how her years in fast food as a teen shaped her work ethic, saying "I couldn't wait to get to work and make my own money."

Longoria earned her Bachelor of Science degree in kinesiology at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.

After three years at California State University, Northridge, she received her master's degree in Chicano studies in May 2013.

Her thesis was "Success STEMS From Diversity: The Value of Latinas in STEM Careers".

Longoria guest-starred in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210.

Since 2014 she has been directing episodes of television series she appeared in.

In 2021 she was nominated at the 48th Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards for her direction of television series Ashley Garcia: Genius in Love.

In 2023 Longoria made her feature directorial debut with Flamin' Hot, which was nominated for Best Song at the 96th Academy Awards.

From 2015 to 2016, she starred and co-produced the short-lived NBC sitcom Telenovela.

Longoria told Redbook in 2016:

There was never any resentment, because I saw how hard my mother worked and all she did for my sister [with special needs], and I wanted to do whatever I could to help.

We all did.

She was raised Roman Catholic.

She appeared in several advertising campaigns, including with L'Oréal New York & Co, Pepsi and she has launched her own fashion and parfumes brand since 2017.