Justina Machado

Justina Milagros Machado (born September 6, 1972) is an American actress. She began her career playing secondary roles on television and film before starring as Vanessa Diaz in the HBO comedy-drama series, Six Feet Under (2001—05), for which she received Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. Machado later starred in the short-lived series Missing, Three Rivers and Welcome to the Family and was regular cast member in the first season of the USA Network crime drama Queen of the South. From 2017 to 2020, Machado starred as Penelope Alvarez in the Netflix/Pop TV comedy series, One Day at a Time, for which she received positive reviews from critics and two Imagen Awards for Best Actress - Television, and well as nomination for Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series. She also has appeared in films Final Destination 2 (2003), Torque (2004), Little Fugitive (2006), The Call (2013), The Purge: Anarchy (2014) and All Together Now (2020). In 2023, she played the leading role in the Amazon Prime Video black comedy-horror series, The Horror of Dolores Roach. Early life Machado was born in Chicago, Illinois, one of two children of Alicia Morales Ruiz and Ismael Machado. Her mother was born in Puerto Rico and her father was born to Puerto Rican parents. They subsequently divorced and her mother remarried and had three children. Her family roots are in Barceloneta, Puerto Rico and Barrio Jagual, Patillas, Puerto Rico, and her ancestry includes Afro-Latino. As Machado is of Hispanic descent, she had a traditional quinceañera, with chambelanes as well as damas. She said her family was poor, and she grew up in the Northwest Side of Chicago. Machado was raised Catholic. Machado was very active in drama, always participating in her school plays. She also took dance at Franklin Fine Arts Center. In 1986, Machado attended Lane Technical College Prep High School. During her spare time, she performed with the Latino Chicago Theater Company.