# Cara Buono

Cara Buono (born March 1, 1971) is an American actress. Emmy-nominated for her role as Dr. Faye Miller in Mad Men, she has played Karen Wheeler in the horror sci-fi series Stranger Things since its premiere in 2016. She also portrayed Kelli Moltisanti in the sixth season of The Sopranos.

## Early life and education

Buono was born and raised in the Bronx, a borough of New York City, in a blue-collar family of Italian descent. She has two brothers and a sister.
She attended Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School and graduated from Columbia University with a double major in English and political science, which she completed in three years. She made her acting debut in Harvey Fierstein's play Spookhouse at the age of 12.

## Career

Buono continued stage work both on Broadway and Off Broadway, and started her film career opposite Ethan Hawke and Jeremy Irons in Waterland (1992). Much of her work has been in indie films such as Chutney Popcorn (1999), Happy Accidents (2000), Next Stop Wonderland (1998) and Two Ninas (1999), which she co-produced. In 1999, she had a small role as a young Gerry Cummins in the TV movie, Deep in My Heart (1999).
She starred in the final season of the NBC drama Third Watch (1999) as paramedic Grace Foster, and Ang Lee's feature film of Marvel Comics' Hulk in 2003 as the mother of the title character's alter ego, Bruce Banner.
She also appeared as Kelli, the wife of Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli), in the two-part final season of the HBO drama series The Sopranos, which aired in 2006 and 2007. She appeared as Dr. Faye Miller in the fourth season of the AMC drama series Mad Men, for which she received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series in 2011.

## Personal life

Buono lives in New York City's Greenwich Village with her husband Peter Thum, founder of Ethos Water, and their daughter.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1992 | Gladiator | Dawn | |
| 1992 | Waterland | Judy Dobson | |
| 1994 | The Cowboy Way | Teresa Salazar | |
| 1995 | Killer: A Journal of Murder | Esther Lesser | |
| 1995 | Kicking and Screaming | Kate | |
| 1997 | Made Men | Toni-Ann Antonelli | |
| 1998 | Next Stop Wonderland | Julie | |
| 1998 | River Red | Rachel | |
| 1999 | Man of the Century | Virginia Clemens | |
| 1999 | Two Ninas | Nina Cohen | |
| 1999 | Chutney Popcorn | Janis | |
| 2000 | Happy Accidents | Bette | |
| 2000 | Takedown | Christina Painter | |
| 2000 | Attention Shoppers | Claire Suarez | |
| 2003 | Hulk | Edith Banner | |
| 2004 | From Other Worlds | Joanne Schwartzbaum | |
| 2006 | Artie Lange's Beer League | Linda Salvo | |
| 2007 | Cthulhu | Dannie Marsh | |
| 2010 | Betrayed | Amy Waite | Short film |
| 2010 | Stuff | Madeline | Short film |
| 2010 | Let Me In | Owen's mother | |
| 2012 | The Discoverers | Nell | |
| 2014 | A Good Marriage | Betty Pike | |
| 2015 | Paper Towns | Connie Jacobsen | |
| 2015 | Emily & Tim | Emily Hanratty | Segment: "Betrayal" |
| 2016 | Half the Perfect World | Sonia | |
| 2017 | All Saints | Aimee Spurlock | |
| 2018 | Monsters and Men | Stacey | |
| 2022 | She Came from the Woods | Heather McCalister | |
| 2024 | Queen of the Ring | Bertha | |
| 2024 | In Fidelity | Holly Ayker | |
| TBA | Things Like This | Margie Kitlin | Post-production |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1989 | Dream Street | Joann | 2 episodes |
| 1991 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Abby Morris | Episode: "Abby, My Love" Nominated – Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Special |
| 1992 | I'll Fly Away | Diane | 3 episodes |
| 1993 | Tribeca | Rose Polito | Episode: "The Hopeless Romantic" |
| 1993 | Victim of Love: The Shannon Mohr Story | Tracey Lien | Television film |
| 1995 | The Single Guy | Christie | Episode: "Tennis" |
| 1996 | New York Undercover | Connie | Episode: "A Time to Kill" |
| 1996 | Law & Order | Shelly Taggert | Episode: "Girlfriends" |
| 1998 | Law & Order | Alice Simonelli | Episode: "Punk" |
| 1999 | Deep in My Heart | Young Gerry Cummins | Television film |
| 2001 | Family Law | Carly Hanson | Episode: "Intentions" |
| 2002 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Charlotte Fielding | Episode: "Phantom" |
| 2002 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Tracy Logan | Episode: "Chasing the Bus" |
| 2003 | Miss Match | Michelle Schiff | Episode: "The Love Bandit" |
| 2004 | Six Months to Live | Alice | Episode: "1.1" |
| 2004–05 | Third Watch | Grace Foster | 22 episodes |
| 2006–07 | The Sopranos | Kelli Moltisanti | 7 episodes |
| 2007 | Law & Order | Attorney Shannon | Episode: "Melting Pot" |
| 2007 | Queens Supreme | Bettina Martinelli | Episode: "That Voodoo That You Do" |
| 2007 | The Dead Zone | Sheriff Anna Turner | 6 episodes |
| 2008 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Rachel Zelinsky | Episode: "Unorthodox" |
| 2008 | The Unquiet | Julie Bishop | Television film |
| 2009 | ER | Lisa Salamunovich | Episode: "And in the End..." |
| 2009 | NCIS | Navy Cdr. Sarah Resnik | Episode: "Power Down" |
| 2010 | Mad Men | Faye Miller | 10 episodes Nominated – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series |
| 2011 | Brothers & Sisters | Rose | 3 episodes |
| 2011 | Hawaii Five-0 | Agent Allison Marsh | Episode: "Ho'opa'i" |
| 2011 | A Gifted Man | Carol Gordan | Episode: "In Case of Discomfort" |
| 2012 | Drew Peterson: Untouchable | Kathleen Savio | Television film |
| 2013 | Castle | Siobhan O'Doul | Episode: "The Wild Rover" |
| 2013 | The Good Wife | Charlene Peterson | Episode: "A More Perfect Union" |
| 2014 | The Carrie Diaries | Penny | Episode: "Hungry Like the Wolf" |
| 2014 | Elementary | Sarah Cushing | Episode: "Ears to You" |
| 2014–15 | Person of Interest | Martine Rousseau | 8 episodes |
| 2015 | The Mysteries of Laura | Julia Davis | Episode: "The Mystery of the Taken Boy" |
| 2016–present | Stranger Things | Karen Wheeler | Main role Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2016) Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2017, 2019) |
| 2017 | The Blacklist: Redemption | Anna Copeland | Episode: "Leland Bray" |
| 2017 | Bull | Amaya Andrews | Episode: "The Illusion of Control" |
| 2018 | The Bad Seed | Angela Grossman | Television film |
| 2018 | The Romanoffs | Debbie Newman | Episode: "Bright and High Circle" |
| 2019–21 | Supergirl | Gamemnae | Recurring role; 9 episodes |
| 2019 | God Friended Me | Karen | Episode: "Return to Sender" |
| 2022 | The Girl from Plainville | Gail Carter | 8 episodes |
| 2023 | The Girl Who Escaped: The Kara Robinson Story | Debra Robinson | Television film |
| 2024 | Law & Order | Lisa Dumont | Episode: "Time Will Tell" |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Voice role | Notes |
| 2002 | Mafia | Sarah Angelo | |