Laila Garin

Laila Garin, honestly, is kind of a force of nature. Born in Salvador, Bahia, she’s French-Brazilian and pretty much owns the stage, screen—whatever you throw her way. If you’ve binged “3%” on Netflix, you’ve probably caught her; same with “Sob Pressão” and “Rock Story.” Lately, she’s jumped into “Dom,” that Amazon Prime series everyone’s talking about, plus a couple of films—“Deserto Particular” by Aly Muritiba and the musical “Meu álbum de Amores” packed with songs from Odair José and Arnaldo Antunes. In Brazil, she really blew up thanks to her wild, electric take on Elis Regina in a hit musical. Critics, audiences, everyone lost it, and she scooped up some heavy awards for that and for “Gota D’água a Seco,” a Chico Buarque classic. She’s popped up all over TV Globo—played Clara Nunes in “Chacrinha, o velho Guerreiro,” took on Edith Piaf in “Hebe,” and you’ll spot her in “Malhação,” “Babilônia,” “A Grande Família,” and more. As a singer, she’s done her thing on “Criança Esperança,” “Som Brasil,” and even lent her voice to the “Amorteamo” soundtrack. On the film side, she’s in “Divaldo, o mensageiro da paz,” “Macabro,” and “Chacrinha, o velho Guerreiro.” She snagged best actress titles for “Um Outro Ensaio,” and as a singer, she pops up in documentaries about Chico Buarque and Ferreira Gullar. Her album “Laila Garin e a Roda” is out there for streaming, and she’s starring in the musical “A Hora da Estrela ou o Canto de Macabea,” bringing Clarice Lispector’s words to life with Chico César’s music. Wildly versatile, deeply talented—she’s everywhere, and honestly, it’s hard not to root for her.