Biography - Natasha Lyonne

Who is Natasha Lyonne?

Natasha Lyonne is an American actress.

Natasha Lyonne – Age, Parents, Siblings

Natasha Lyonne was born on April 4, 1979, in New York City, U.S.A. as Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein. Her mother's name is Yvette Buchinger and her father Aaron Braunstein is a boxing promoter, race car driver, and radio host. She also has an older sibling - brother named Adam Braunstein. 

Lyonne lived with her family in Great Neck, New York for the first eight years of her life. After that, she moved with her parents and brother to Israel, where she lived for a year and a half. 

During her days in Israel, she participated in the Israeli children's film April Fool. The film very much affected Natasha Lyonne and she began her interest in acting. Her parents divorced while in Israel. So, her mother moved her and her brother back to America.

Natasha Lyonne has revealed that she is estranged from her father who lived on Upper West Side until his death in October 2014. She also added that she is not close to her mother and has lived independently since she was 16.

Education, Ethnicity

Back in New York, Natasha Lyonne attended The Rabbi Joseph H. Lookstein Upper School of Ramaz but was expelled from the school for selling marijuana at school. Her mother then moved the family to Miami where Lyonne enrolled at Miami Country Day School. But she never graduated high school, dropping out to attend New York University Tisch School of the Arts.

But this too did not work out for her. She had to leave the program after completing her first year because she could not pay her tuition fees. Natasha Lyonne then enrolled at New York University to study film and philosophy. There too, she did not complete her education.

Her ethnicity is French and Hungarian.

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Natasha Lyonne – Boyfriend, Husband, Children, Affair, Divorce

Lyonne dated fellow actor Edward Furlong from 1998 to 2000. After her breakup with Furlong, she dated actor/director Adam Goldberg in 2001. She and her boyfriend seemed to have a good relationship but the couple shockingly split in 2004.

She then went on to date Saturday Night Live alumnus Fred Armisen in 2014. Armisen is nearly a decade older than she is but the age gap does not seem to bother their relationship. 

The couple is happy and is seen attending events together and getting cozy. Armisen has been married and divorced twice before. Fans were hoping the lovey-dovey couple will soon marry and have kids. However, it was confirmed in April 2022 it was confirmed that they split up after 7 years of dating but have since remained friends.

She is currently dating filmmaker and entrepreneur Bryn Mooser. They often feature each other on social media as well as attend red carpet events.

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Natasha Lyonne – Career

Early career

Natasha Lyonne’s career began at a young age. She was signed by the Ford Modeling Agency and at the age of 6, she was cast in Pee-wee's Playhouse. Soon she had landed roles in Heartburn, A Man Called Sarge, and Dennis the Menace.

Reflecting on her career as a child actor, she said,  "I didn’t have the best parents. I don’t think they are bad people. Even if they were ready to have children, it is kind of a wacky idea to put your child in business at six years old."

Lyonne was cast in Woody Allen’s Everyone Says I Love You (1996). Since then she has appeared in over 50 films! She has starred in Slums of Beverly Hills (1998), American Pie (1999), Detroit Rock City (1999), and But I'm a Cheerleader (1999).

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Films, Series

Since 2001, she has portrayed roles in Scary Movie 2 (2001), American Pie 2 (2001), Blade: Trinity (2004), Goyband (2009), Night Club (2011), G.B.F. (2013), Sleeping with Other People (2015), Jack Goes Home (2016), Honey Boy (2019), among others.

Natasha Lyonne has made appearances in TV series as well including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2011), Portlandia (2015-2018), and Inside Amy Schumer (2015-2016), among others.

Currently, she portrays the character Nicky Nichols in the hit series Orange Is the New Black and has been doing so since 2013. Lyonne also stars as Gaz Digzy in Ballmastrz: 9009  since 2018.

Co-stars

On the set of Orange Is the New Black, Lyonne has starred alongside Danielle Brooks, Yael Stone, Kimiko Glenn, Catherine Curtin.

Also read: Christopher Meyer - Actor of All Day and a Night 

Natasha Lyonne – Awards, Nominations

For her versatile roles, she has received numerous nominations, namely, Chicago Film Critics Association Awards (1999), Teen Choice Awards (1999), Primetime Emmy Awards (2014), and Fangoria Chainsaw Awards (2017).

Among all nominations, she won Young Hollywood Awards in 2000 for American Pie and Monaco International Film Festival in 2008 for Tricks of Love. 

Natasha Lyonne – Net Worth

The net worth of Lyonne is estimated to be around $5 million while the figure on her annual salary is under review.

Natasha Lyonne – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

On social media sites including Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, Natasha Lyonne is followed by millions of followers and counting.

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