The bestNatalie Moralesmovies and TV shows feature several big movies and even more television series in which she became a popular actor and a familiar face. Morales got her start with a television guest role onCSI: Miami,and two years later, she had a lead role in the sci-fi comedy-drama calledThe Middleman. This allowed her to attract a lot of attention from casting agents, and she ended up picking up guest roles on several TV shows and then signed on to star in some of TV’s top shows.
Things started rolling for Morales when shepicked up a main role inWhite Collar, and then she moved on to regular roles on hit shows likeParks and Recreation, The Newsroom, Powerless, Santa Clarita Diet,andGrey’s Anatomy. While not as prolific, Morales also added some movie roles to her career,with appearances in some movies by Oliver Stone and John Lee Hancock, and even picked up some voice roles in a pair of popular animated films, showing she can do almost anything asked of her,
The Middleman
Cast
The Middleman is a television series following Wendy Watson, a struggling artist recruited by a secret agency. Under the guidance of a hero known as The Middleman, she tackles extraordinary threats beyond humanity’s readiness.
After some guest roles on two TV shows, Natalie Morales got her first major role in the comic book television seriesThe Middleman. Based on the Viper Comics series by Grillo-Marxuach and Les McClaine,Morales plays the main star, Wendy Watson, a struggling artist who is recruited by a secret agencyto help battle forces of evil. She works with The Middleman (Matt Keeslar), a fixer who deals with mad scientists, invading aliens, and other supernatural threats.
The series has a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes
They also have a robot named Ida who helps them.Morales received praise for her role as Wendy, a cool-under-pressure woman with photographic memory who helps save the world more than once.The series, which aired on ABC Family, only ran for one season and 12 episodes. Compared to colorful fantasy shows likePushing Daisies, the series has a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, receiving universal acclaim, despite very few audience ratings, flying under the radar.
Dead to Me
Dead to Me stars Christina Applegate (Jen Harding) and Linda Cardellini (Judy Hale), who form an unlikely friendship after Jen loses her husband in a tragic car accident. The black comedy was created by 2 Broke Girls writer Liz Feldman and came to a close after three seasons on Netflix.
In 2019, Natalie Morales took on a role in the Netflix dark comedy seriesDead to Me. The series stars Christina Applegate as Jen, a recently widowed real estate agent who deals with her loss through therapy. In a support group, she soon meets Linda Cardellini as Judy, who is lying about her husband dying (her fiancé actually left her). The twist is that Jen is mourning the death of her husband in a hit-and-run accident, but what she doesn’t know is that Judy was the hit-and-run driver.
Dead To Me Season 3 Ending Explained (In Detail)
Netflix’s Dead To Me series ends on a heartbreaking note, culminating in a major character death, a new relationship, and a final cliffhanger.
Natalie Morales has only a recurring role in the series.She appears in both the second and third seasons as Michelle, Judy’s new love interest and Ana’s (Diana-Maria Riva) ex-girlfriend. The series lasted for three seasons and 30 episodes, receiving universal acclaim and several awards nominations. Most of the praise went to Applegate for her performance, earning three Best Actress nominations, while the show also received an Outstanding Comedy Series nomination.
Grey’s Anatomy
Grey’s Anatomy is a medical drama series revolving around surgical interns, residents, and attendings at the fictional Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. The show features the professional and personal lives of these medical professionals, led initially by Dr. Meredith Grey, played by Ellen Pompeo. Created by Shonda Rhimes, the series highlights the complexities of medical cases while delving into the interpersonal relationships among the hospital staff.
The most successful TV show Natalie Morales starred in isGrey’s Anatomy. However, her role on the show came in 2024 as the recurring Dr. Monica Beltran. This was in the 20th season, which only had a limited 10-episode run thanks to the writer’s strike, although, on the bright side, it did see Ellen Pompeo return to the series in a regular role after stepping back in the previous season.
Morales returned for the 21season as well, albeit still in a recurring role and not yet promoted to a regular status.
Morales enters the series in the third episode as a new pediatric surgeon, and she is immediately in the middle of the drama as she comes into conflict with Dr. Amelia Shepherd (Catherine Scorsone), although they eventually come to terms and earn respect for each other. While Pompeo was back, the season still had the lowest rating of the entire series run, at only 5.1.Morales returned for the 21season as well, albeit still in a recurring role and not yet promoted to a regular status.
Santa Clarita Diet
Joel and Sheila Hammond live a typical life as real estate agents in Santa Clarita, California, but all that changes when Sheila becomes a zombie and starts craving human flesh. This horror comedy stars Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant and lasted for a total of three seasons before being canceled in April 2019.
Natalie Morales joined the cast of the Netflix zombie comedy seriesSanta Clarita Dietas a recurring character named Anne Garcia. The series stars Drew Barrymore asSheila Hammond, a suburban real estate agent who ends up becoming a zombie. However, she still has most of her brainpower and facilities, although she has an almost insatiable hunger for human flesh. Timothy Olyphant stars as her husband, Joel, who helps her cover up the murders and protect her from the outside world.
After Joel kills Dan with a shovel and Sheila eats him, Anne ends up becoming romantically involved with Lisa (Mary Elizabeth Ellis), Dan’s widow.
Morales stars asAnne Garcia, a religious sheriff’s deputy who is the partner of Dan Palmer, Sheila and Joel’s neighbor. After Joel kills Dan with a shovel and Sheila eats him, Anne ends up becoming romantically involved with Lisa (Mary Elizabeth Ellis), Dan’s widow. Eventually, she learns the truth and believes Sheila is a messenger from God. The series has a 78% Rotten Tomatoes score, although th third season finished with a 100% perfect rating.
White Collar
White Collar is a crime drama television series featuring Neal Caffrey, a skilled con artist and art thief, portrayed by Matt Bomer. After being captured by FBI agent Peter Burke, Neal agrees to help the FBI catch elusive white-collar criminals as a consultant, leveraging his unique skills. The series explores the evolving partnership and mutual trust between Neal and Peter, blending elements of crime-solving and personal redemption.
After getting attention fromThe Middleman, Natalie Morales signed on for a main role in the hit seriesWhite Collar. The series is about a renowned con artist, forger, and third named Neal Caffrey (Matt Bomer), who gets a deal from the FBI to help them bust white-collar criminals in exchange for an early release.Morales only appeared in the first season as FBI Special Agent Lauren Cruz. She briefly worked under Peter Burke (Tim DeKay) in the white-collar crime unit.
White Collar’s Revival Has One Story Big Advantage From A Potential Suits Season 10
White Collar has a big advantage over a potential Suits season 10 as the revival leaves an opening to explore one incomplete arc, enriching the story.
Cruz was moved to his team in the second episode (“Threads”) of the first season and was there until she left the team after the 14th episode (“Out of the Box”). She played a big role, as she was fascinated by Neal and actually wrote her thesis about him for her classes at Quantico. She left the series after the first season. The first season had a 96% Rotten Tomatoes rating.White Collaris also in talks to return for a new sequel that is supposed to pick up after the events of the season 6 finale.
No Hard Feelings
Facing the potential loss of her family home, a woman reluctantly agrees to go on dates with a wealthy couple’s shy and socially inept 19-year-old son. As she navigates this arrangement, she finds the young man to be more difficult than anticipated, all while racing against the clock to save her home.
In 2023, Natalie Morales took on a role in a movie that became one of the year’s most surprising hits.No Hard Feelingsstars Jennifer Lawrenceas Maddie Barker, a 32-year-old Uber driver whose car is repossessed. In danger of having their family home repossessed, she takes a job by two parents who want her to date and have sex with their 19-year-old son to help him break out of his shell before he heads off to college at Princeton University. She agrees but finds the job harder than she expected.
Morales makes sure the character works with a grounded performance.
Natalie Morales stars in the movie as Sara, one of Maddie’s close friendsin Montauk, who might have to leave with Jim (Scott McCarthur) because of high housing costs there. In the film, Sara and Jim are mostly the voice of reason, as Maddie is still trying to discover what she really wants in life. Morales makes sure the character works with a grounded performance. The film was a pretty solid box office success, but it also earned Lawrence a Golden Globes nomination for Brest Actress.
The Morning Show
The Morning Show is a drama series that explores the cutthroat world of morning news and the lives of the people who help America wake up in the morning. Told through the lens of two complicated women (Aniston and Witherspoon) working to navigate the minefield of high-octane jobs while facing crises in both their personal and professional lives, The Morning Show is an unapologetically candid drama that looks at the power dynamics between women and men, and women and women, in the workplace.
In 2023, Natalie Morales joined the cast ofThe Morning Showon Apple TV+. While the series had a lot of guests over its three-season run so far,Morales nabbed a recurring role in the third season as Kate Danton. The series follows the characters and culture at a morning talk show after a top male host is forced out following sexual misconduct allegations. Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon take on the lead roles, while the cast is an all-star group of actors.
The series will be back for a fourth season, and it is unclear if Morales will return at this time.
Morales stars as Kate, a friend of UBA news president Stella(Greta Lee), who was suspected of being a whistleblower trying to ruin a merger. The series has been a monster success for Apple TV+, with 27 Primetime Emmy nominations, 10 SAG Award nominations, and nine Golden Globes nominations. Jennifer Aniston won an Emmy for her performance. The series will be back for a fourth season, and it is unclear if Morales will return at this time.
The Newsroom
At the fictional Atlantis Cable News station, lead anchor Will McAvoy and his staff work to put out a news show in the face of each week’s corporate challenges, political tension, and personal conflicts.
In 2012, Natalie Morales got a chance to appear in the HBO political drama seriesThe Newsroom. Created by Aaron Sorkin, the series takes place on a fictional news network that wants to create a news show that tells the truth in the face of corporate and commercial obstacles. Jeff Daniels played the lead role in the series, a news anchor named Will who leads the news program.As for Morales, she only appeared in a few episodes of the first seasonas a supporting cast member named Kaylee.
She ended up written out of the show after the first season and never appeared in the series again.
Morales plays Neal’s (Dev Patel) girlfriend and someone whose dad died on 9/11. In the first season, she appeared in “I’ll attempt to Fix You” and “5/1” and was mostly there as a companion to Neal during two major events. She ended up written out of the show after the first season and never appeared in the series again. Critics were lukewarm on the series, but it won Daniels a Primetime Emmy Award while earning Jane Fonda a nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress.
Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse
In the first animated Spider-Man film released in theaters, Miles Morales, a teenager who idolizes Spider-Man, gains Spider-Man powers of his own. While learning to use his new abilities, Miles crosses parallel dimensions and teams up with the different versions of Spider-Man from those dimensions to stop a threat to all reality.
Natalie Morales has appeared in several animated voice roles. She had one-shot appearances inBoJack Horseman, made two appearances inHarley Quinn, and voiced a role in the 2024 animated movieThelma the Unicorn. However, the biggest animated release she appeared in was the 2018 movieSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. At the time of its release,Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Versewas considered one of the best Spider-Man moviesever released and introduced the movie world to Miles Morales.
Into The Spider-Verse: Every Alternate Spider-Man, Ranked By Bravery
Some alternate Spider-Men from the Spider-Verse, like hard-boiled detective Spider-Man Noir, are braver than others, like happy-go-lucky Spider-Ham.
In the film, Miles Morales becomes Spider-Man after the death of his world’s Peter Parker, only to learn the world is much bigger than he ever believed when he finds other spider-heroes from the multiverse. Natalie Morales voices a character known asMs. Calleros, a teacher at Miles' Brooklyn Visions Academy. She was the teacher who assigned Miles to write a personal essay about himself, the essay that played into Miles' final monologue in the movie. The Best Animated Feature winner has a 97% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Parks and Recreation
Parks and Recreation is a television series that premiered in 2009, focusing on Leslie Knope, a mid-level bureaucrat in Pawnee, Indiana. She encounters various challenges from bureaucrats and citizens while striving to beautify the town through her role in the Parks and Recreation Department.
In 2010, Natalie Morales picked up a recurring role in one of the most popular sitcoms on television at the time. She played the character Lucy inParks and Recreation,an NBC series about the employees working for the Parks Department of the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. The cast was a huge list of incredible names, including Amy Poehler, Rassida Jones, Nick Offerman, and Chris Pratt. Natalie Morales joined the cast in season 2 and was a recurring cast member in the third and seventh seasons.
Natalie Moralesplayed Lucy Santo Domingo, the on-again, off-again girlfriend of Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari). By the end of the series, she remained with Tom, giving both of them a happy ending.Parks and Recreationstarted off with a rough 68% Rotten Tomatoes score, but the third season was the first to hit 100% fresh, and it remained acclaimed to its end. The series was nominated for 16 Primetime Emmy Awards and won one Golden Globe and one Peabody Award during its run.
