- Born
- Height5′ 8″ (1.73 m)
- Named one of People Magazine's highly coveted 50 Most Beautiful, award nominated, Haitian-born actress Garcelle Beauvais immigrated to the United States at the age of seven with her mother and sisters and has since charmed audiences with her dramatic and comedic abilities. Balancing perfectly between the small screen and big screen, this cultural icon proudly became the first Black cast member on Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" (2020). Cementing her status as a media queen, she released a memoir titled Love Me as I Am (Harper Collins) about life, love, and the pursuit of true happiness. It quickly rose in the ranks, landing in the #1 spot on Amazon and garnering a great deal of press attention including Good Morning America, Nightline, and PEOPLE Magazine. Most recently she expanded her empire to include a home line with HSN called "Garcelle at Home." Garcelle has expanded her career with a Lifetime partnership to executive producer original titles, including most recently the award-winning film "Black Girl Missing" (2023) and it's second installment "Abducted at an HBCU: A Black Girl Missing Movie" (July 20, 2024) and "Terry McMillan Presents: Tempted By Love" (August 17, 2024).
A look back at Garcelle's career shows a hybrid of businesswoman and mother who has been a cherished face in Hollywood for over three decades. She got her start in 90s comedies "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and "The Jamie Foxx Show." She went on to appear in television on series such as SyFy's "The Magicians," NBC's "Chicago Med," "NYPD Blue," "Franklin & Bash," HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Arrested Development," "Power" on Starz and many others. In addition to scripted TV, she co-hosted on Fox's daytime talk-show "Hollywood Today Live," where she broke down the latest in entertainment, pop culture, and celebrity news, as well co-hosting for E!'s "Fashion Police," and "Access Hollywood Live" on NBC. On the voiceover side of work, Garcelle was heard in HBO Max's "The Prince" with Gary Janetti. Recently, she wrapped her final season on the multi-award-winning talk show Fox's "The Real" as co-host.
She could also recently be seen in Netflix's "Survival of the Thickest" and Hulu's "The Other Black Girl." Working in film has always been a passion for Garcelle. She has starred in box office hits "White House Down" with Jamie Foxx and Channing Tatum as the First Lady of the United States, "Flight" with Denzel Washington, "American Gun" with Forrest Whitaker, "Coming to America" (1988), and the sequel "Coming 2 America" (2021) where she worked once again with Eddie Murphy, "Bad Company" with Chris Rock, "Barbershop 2: Back in Business" with Queen Latifah, and "Spider-Man: Homecoming" with Tom Holland, among others.
Above all, Garcelle's most important job is being a mother. She was inspired by motherhood to write a children's book series entitled I AM, addressing identity issues relevant to many children today. There are three successful books in the series. The book series was re-released in April 2020 for its fifth anniversary. Garcelle is an ambassador for Cybersmile, a multi-award-winning nonprofit organization committed to digital well being and tackling all forms of bullying and abuse online and she also supports the Step Up Women's Network, a national non-profit that empowers women and girls to be strong and reach their full potential. She is also an active supporter of UNICEF and CORE, raising money for Haiti. Garcelle also supports the W.K. Kellogg Foundation "Pockets of Hope" campaign focused on the investment in locally led initiatives that are building a strong and equitable future for Haitian children, families and communities.
She resides in Los Angeles and has three sons; Oliver, her firstborn who has made her a proud grandmother and her twins, Jax and Jaid.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Conscious Hollywood
- SpousesMike Nilon(May 12, 2001 - April 1, 2011) (divorced, 2 children)Daniel Saunders(1991 - 2000) (divorced, 1 child)
- Children
- ParentsMarie-Claire BeauvaisAxel Jean Pierre
- RelativesOliver Saunders Jr.(Grandchild)Marie-Flore Beaubien(Niece or Nephew)
- Guest-starred on the TV show Family Matters (1989) on four separate occasions, each time playing a different character.
- Gave birth to her first child at age 24, a son Oliver Saunders on February 22, 1991. Child's father is her first husband, Daniel Saunders.
- Gave birth to twins (her second and third child) at age 40, sons Jax Joseph Nilon and Jaid Thomas Nilon on October 18, 2007. Children's father is her second husband, Mike Nilon.
- Is fluent in French.
- Best friend of Jamie Foxx.
- It only took one text message to change my life. That's when I discovered my loving husband had been unfaithful. His infidelities ended our marriage.
- Divorce isn't one-sided, and I am by no means perfect. Becoming accountable for my role in the relationship was very empowering.
- Conversations between parents and kids are important - about race issues, about all kinds of things, about heritage.
- Adultery is the ultimate deal-breaker for me. I would rather be alone than in a relationship that doesn't honor me.
- My parents split up when I was 3 years old, and I lived with my mother.
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