Portia de Rossi Biography

Australian-born actress Portia de Rossi is best known for her romantic relationship with Ellen DeGeneres and for her role as Lindsay, the shallower-than-shallow Bluth daughter from the television sitcom Arrested Development. A model in her teenage years, de Rossi spent a year in law school in Melbourne before pursuing acting. After a start in Australia, including a role in 1993’s Sirens (starring Hugh Grant), de Rossi moved to California in the mid-1990s. After several small roles in films and TV shows, de Rossi landed the recurring guest role of Nelle Porter on the hit series Ally McBeal (1998-2002). Her next big role came as part of the ensemble cast of Arrested Development, a comedy series from 2003 to 2006 that grew loyal fans despite battling low ratings (the show also starred Jason Bateman and Michael Cera). While on that show, de Rossi began a relationship with Ellen DeGeneres, and in 2005 she went public as a gay woman (she had been previously married to a man between 1996 and 1999). Since then DeGeneres and de Rossi have been a high-profile lesbian couple — they were married in 2008 — as well as successful TV stars. De Rossi’s other shows include Nip/Tuck (2007-09) and the short-lived sitcom Better Off Ted (2010-11).