The best Vanessa Marano movies and TV shows include some very popular television series as well as a handful of smaller movies showing the actor’s versatility. Marano was born in Los Angeles, and her mother owned the Agoura Children’s Theatre, Marano and her sister got their start in acting from a very young age. Marano got her first professional acting role when she was only seven, and she has picked up several roles over her young career on television and in theatre productions.
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Marano enjoyed her breakout role on the police procedural series Without a Trace, where she and her sister play Jack Malone’s (Anthony LaPaglia) daughters, and her career only skyrocketed from there. She had an important recurring role on Gilmore Girls that garnered her a lot of attention, and she even won a year-long role on the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless. Marano has since become best known for her starring role in Switched at Birth and continues to impress every time she appears in something new.
10 This Game’s Called Murder (2021)
Vanessa Marano Plays Jennifer Wallendoft
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One of Vanessa Marano’s more recent movie appearances came in 2021 in the thriller comedy, This Game’s Called Murder. In the film, Ron Perlman plays Mr. Wallendorf, a shoe magnate who is actually a brutal serial killer who murders women in the commercials for his red lady’s high-heeled shoes. While most people think it is just good special effects, he is really a murderer, and Marano plays his daughter, Jennifer, who is caught in the middle.
Natasha Henstridge also stars as Mrs. Wallendoft. While her parents are a murderer and a brutal woman who will do anything to get ahead, Jennifer is just a social media expert who is trying to figure out love … and world dominance. This Game’s Called Murder received almost no attention from critics when it came out on VOD, but the audience score is a slightly above average 53%, with fans calling it “bizarre” and praise going to Marano and the rest of the cast for their over-the-top performances.
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9 The Comeback (2005)
Vanessa Marano Plays Franchesca
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The Comeback TV-MAComedySatire
The Comeback is an HBO television series created by Michael Patrick King and Lisa Kudrow. Kudrow stars as Valerie Cherish, a faded television star attempting to revive her career by participating in a reality show documenting her return to the industry. The series offers a satirical look at the entertainment industry, exploring themes of fame, vanity, and resilience.
Cast Lisa Kudrow , Damian Young , Robert Michael Morris , Laura Silverman , Malin Akerman , Lance Barber Release Date June 5, 2005 Seasons 2 Showrunner Comedy , Satire
Released in 2005 on HBO, The Comeback is a mockumentary starring Lisa Kudrow in her first big television series following Friends. She plays a sitcom actress named Valerie Cherish and the mockumentary aspects allowed The Comeback to show the ridiculous nature behind big Hollywood television shows and the colorful cast of characters involved in front of and behind the cameras. HBO canceled the series after just one season, but it was popular enough to get a second season nine years later.
Vanessa Marano appeared in the first season as Francesca Berman, Valerie’s preteen stepdaughter and Mark Berman’s (Damian Young) daughter. While Valerie invites the cameras into her home to follow her life, Francesca had done everything to avoid her stepmother until the cameras showed up and then wanted to use them to get noticed. She doesn’t appear as much as other characters, as she mostly lives with her mother, but Marano received positive reviews for her limited appearances on the series.
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8 How To Deter A Robber (2020)
Vanessa Marano Plays Madison Williams
In 2020, Vanessa Marano took a role in the small independent crime comedy How to Deter a Robber in the main lead role. She plays Madison Williams, a teenage girl who has to face off against a pair of burglars with only her boyfriend (Benjamin Papac) and uncle (Chris Mulkey). The film sees a neighbor’s house ransacked and robbed, and when the police think Madison and co. are suspects, they force them to remain at their home, and then the burglars return.
How to Deter a Robber
premiered at Fantastic Fest in 2020.
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The film has a lot of similarities to Home Alone, with Madison and her boyfriend Jimmy setting up a lot of similar traps to stop the burglars (Sonny Valicenti and Abbie Cobb), but things do not go quite the same way as they did for young Kevin. How to Deter a Robber premiered at Fantastic Fest in 2020 and has a nice 73% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with Maria Bissell praised as a first-time filmmaker and Marano praised for her leading role, helping to carry the movie.
7 The Young And The Restless (2008-2010)
Vanessa Marano Plays Eden Baldwin
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The Young And The Restless
The Young and the Restless, a long-running daytime soap opera, debuted in 1973 and chronicles the lives, loves, and business dealings of families in the fictional Genoa City. The series focuses primarily on the rivalry between the Newman and Abbott families, featuring a mix of romantic entanglements, corporate intrigue, and personal conflicts.
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*Availability in US Cast Eric Braeden , Sharon Case , Melody Thomas Scott , Peter Bergman , Joshua Morrow , Melissa Claire Egan , Melissa Ordway , Tricia Cast , Michelle Stafford , Doug Davidson , Amelia Heinle Release Date March 26, 1973 Seasons 51 Creator(s) William J. Bell , Lee Phillip Bell
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Soap operas have a habit of recasting characters, often more than once. The Young And The Restless is no different. In 2008, the daytime soap opera cast Erin Sanders as Eden Baldwin, the half-sister of Michael Baldwin (Christian LeBlanc) and the “defiant teenage daughter” of River Baldwin (Michael Gross). However, fan reaction to the character was negative, so the soap opera let Sanders go after just two months and recast the role with Vanessa Marano, who played Eden for just over one year.
Related The Young And The Restless: 10 Hidden Details About The Main Characters Everyone Missed
A fan-favorite soap opera, The Young And The Restless has a long and rich history, however, some details about the series have been forgotten.
Eden was in several running storylines during Marano’s time on the soap opera, including her introduction, where she showed up in Genoa City using an assumed name and pretending to be someone else. Marano held the role from December 2008 until January 2010, and the character left the soap opera completely until 2011 when Jessica Heap took over the role upon her return.
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6 Without A Trace (2002-2009)
Vanessa Marano Plays Hanna Malone
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Without a Trace CrimeMysteryActionAdventureDrama
Without a Trace is a procedural drama series that aired from 2002 to 2009. The show follows the FBI’s Missing Persons Unit in New York City, led by Agent Jack Malone (Anthony LaPaglia). Each episode focuses on the team’s efforts to find missing individuals by reconstructing their last known steps, exploring their relationships, and uncovering motives. The series also delves into the personal lives of the team members, balancing professional and personal challenges.
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*Availability in US Cast Anthony LaPaglia , Poppy Montgomery , Marianne Jean-Baptiste , Enrique Murciano , Eric Close , Roselyn Sanchez Release Date September 26, 2002 Seasons 7 Creator(s) Hank Steinberg
Without a Trace was the Vanessa Marano’s very first credited acting role. At just 10 years old, Marano played Hanna Malone, the oldest daughter of Jack Malone (Anthony LaPaglia), the lead agent for the New York City FBI missing persons case squad. This was a tough part for the child actor as she was playing the daughter of recently divorced parents who refused to accept their separation. She was in season 1 and then left after the first season when her mother moved.
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However, Malone returned to the series later in season 7 when the character was 16 to live with her father after she got in trouble back home for smoking pot and dating a guy who was “bad for her.” This caused a lot more stress as Jack and Hanna struggled to get along at first, but they soon began to accept each other and built a nice relationship in that season. It was fascinating to see the changes here between the newcomer in season 1 and the more experienced actor in season 7.
5 This Is The Year (2020)
Vanessa Marano Plays Molly
This is the Year is a romantic coming-of-age drama released in 2020. The film stars Lorenzo James Henrie as Josh, a nerdy high school senior who wants to win over the girl of his dreams. To do so, he and his friends set out to see their favorite band (the real-life alt-rock group Lovely the Band) playing at a huge music festival, and this is when he finally finds love in a surprising place. This is the Year has a positive 71% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and a slightly lower 53% from the audience Popcornmeter.
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The critics praised both Henrie and Marano, citing their great chemistry.
The film doesn’t offer a lot of new ideas to the coming-of-age romantic comedies, as it is clear from the start that Josh will never get with the girl of his dreams, since his fate is clearly to end up with his best friend Molly (Vanessa Marano). The critics praised both Henrie and Marano, citing their great chemistry, and they make it easy to cheer for them to end up together, even if that was never in doubt from the start.
4 Dexter (2009-2011)
Vanessa Marano Plays Rebecca Mitchell
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12 9.3/10 Dexter CrimeMysteryDrama
Based on the character created by author Jeff Lindsay, Showtime’s Dexter follows Miami Metro Police Department’s most skilled blood spatter analyst, Dexter Morgan, as he attempts to satisfy his Dark Passenger’s need to kill by hunting down criminals who have escaped justice. However, using the rules his adoptive father taught him to remain undiscovered, Dexter must walk the fine line of seemingly blending into society while continuously feeding his dark urges. Dexter faces several serial killers as his facade slowly crumbles around him; with every problem solved by his Dark Passenger, another one arises for his suburban fatherly life. When Dexter takes things personally or feels that the law is failing, he takes matters into his own hands and even compromises the investigations of his co-workers. Dexter aired on Showtime for eight seasons before receiving a mini-sequel series called Dexter: New Blood, which picked up ten years after the show’s events. You can buy each season for just $9.99 for Prime Day.
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*Availability in US Cast David Zayas , Michael C. Hall , Lauren Velez , C. S. Lee , James Remar , Jennifer Carpenter , Desmond Harrington , Julie Benz Release Date October 31, 2010 Seasons 8 Showrunner Clyde Phillips
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In 2009, Vanessa Marano joined the popular crime drama series Dexter, and she took on a very difficult role in the series’ fourth season. Marano played Rebecca Mitchell is the daughter of Arthur and Sally. Of course, Arthur (John Lithgow) is the Trinity Killer and the main villain of the season, and Sally (Julia Campbell) is his wife, a woman who refuses to believe that her husband could be this serial killer and actually blames her children for their family’s problems.
This makes Rebecca Mitchell one of Dexter’s most heartbreaking deaths and tragic characters. Her death came because her mother blamed her for their father’s murders, and Rebecca took her own life as a result. It was heartbreaking, and Marano did an incredible job showing the tragic demise as she went from a daughter abused by her dad to one abused by her mom, reaching the point where she felt she couldn’t go on with her life anymore.
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3 Dear Lemon Lima (2009)
Vanessa Marano Plays Samantha Cobbs
Released in 2009, 17-year-old Vanessa Marano joined the cast of the family comedy Dear Lemon Lima. The film follows a 13-year-old Yup’ik girl named Vanessa (Savanah Wiltfong), who is dumped by her boyfriend and spends the summer in Alaska heartbroken. She sets out to win him back by attending his close-minded prep school, which she gets into thanks to a minority scholarship. However, her life becomes a nightmare thanks to the treatment she receives.
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However, she soon becomes friends with the other outcasts (known as FUBARs), which include a socially inept boy named Hercules, a girl who calls herself Nothing, whose parents own a funeral parlor, and a girl named Samantha (Marano), who claims her father is a rapper. While the story seems to be about finding true love, it is more about finding one’s true self and pride as an Indigenous person. The film received a 75% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, praised for its talented young cast.
2 Gilmore Girls (2005-2007)
Vanessa Marano Plays April Nardini
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10 9.4/10 Gilmore Girls ComedyDrama
In the fictional town of Star’s Hollow, single mother Lorelai Gilmore raises her high-achieving teenage daughter Rory. Mother and daughter rely on each other throughout their own life changes, romantic entanglements, and friendships.
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*Availability in US Cast Lauren Graham , Scott Patterson , Sean Gunn , Keiko Agena , Matt Czuchry , Alexis Bledel , Yanic Truesdale , Kelly Bishop , Melissa McCarthy , Edward Herrmann , Liza Weil , Jared Padalecki , Milo Ventimiglia Release Date October 5, 2000 Seasons 7
Vanessa Marano was a late addition to the cast, but was an important character on Gilmore Girls when she joined the series. Gilmore Girls tells the story of Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and Rory (Alexis Bledel) Gilmore, a mother and daughter both seeking to find not only love but their place in the world. Marano joined the cast in season 6 as April Nardini, Luke’s previously unknown daughter who brings a wedge into his relationship with Lorelai when she becomes part of his life.
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Related Gilmore Girls: 5 Times Fans Hated April Nardini (& 5 Times She Wasn’t That Bad)
Luke’s daughter, April, is a controversial character on Gilmore Girls. But is she a terrible addition to the show, or actually a sweetheart?
The role was a tough one, as Marano had to play a girl whose dad didn’t even know she existed until she was 12 and showed up to meet him. She ended up in a recurring role, adding a lot of development to Luke’s character and eventually strengthening his relationship with Lorelai in the end. Marano also returned for Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life in 2020, where it was revealed that she was attending MIT and moving on to a successful adult life.
1 Switched At Birth (2011-2017)
Vanessa Marano Plays Bay Kennish
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The television show and role that made Vanessa Marano a star came in 2011 when she signed on as a lead in the drama series Switched at Birth. In this series, two 15-year-olds named Bay Kennish (Marano) and Daphne Vasquez (Katie Leclerc) learn that they were switched at birth when Bay learns in science class that her blood is not compatible with her parents and learns the hospital where they were born accidentally switched the babies up to the wrong parents.
This leads each girl to set out to meet their birth parents, and the show then has them understand the lives they could have had and how that affects their relationship with the parents who raised them. The series lasted for five seasons and 103 episodes, and it helped Marano become an in-demand television actress. For her part in the series, Vanessa Marano received two Teen Choice Award nominations (2011 and 2013), the only award recognition she has received so far in her career.
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