Morena Baccarin was born on June 2, 1979 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She studied at the La Guardia High School for the Performing Arts in New York and attended the prestigious Juilliard School, where she starred in a number of plays including Mary Stuart, The Seagull, The Importance of Being Ernest and Love's Labours Lost. During her time on the independent film, Rodger Dodger, Baccarin's interaction with film stars Campbell Scott and Isabella Rosellini inspired her to head to Los Angeles. This turned out to be a fruitful move for her when writer/director Joss Whedon, who created
Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its offshoot,
Angel , cast her as a regular on his show Firefly and its ensuing film, Serenity.
Inara Serra, played by Morena Baccarin on Firefly, is a licensed Companion who is trained and skilled in various forms of love-making. She struck a deal with Serenity captain, Malcolm Reynolds, to rent one of the cargo ship shuttles as her home and center of business. Inara, who left the Companion House on Sinhon to become independent, has blended well the most of the crew although she constantly struggles with her love-hate relationship with Malcolm.
(Photo courtesy of FOX)