AnnaLynne McCord


AnnaLynne McCord is an American actress and model. Known for playing vixen-type roles, she first gained prominence in 2007 as the scheming Eden Lord on Nip/Tuck, and as the pampered Loren Wakefield on American Heiress. From 2008 to 2013, she was on 90210 as Naomi Clark. In 2024, she joined the cast of Days of Our Lives, receiving a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series.

Early life

McCord was born July 16, 1987, in Atlanta, the daughter of David McCord, a Christian pastor. She was raised in Buford, and Monroe in Georgia, where she grew up of modest means, living in a trailer park. Her parents believed in "strict discipline", in which she was not allowed to watch Harry Potter because it had witches in it. She has two sisters, Rachel and Angel. McCord was home schooled by her mother Shari McCord, and graduated from high school at the age of 15.

Career

After graduating, McCord joined the Wilhelmina Modeling Agency in Miami.
McCord attended a drama school in New York City by the age of 17. A year later, she moved to Los Angeles to audition for roles. She appeared in the 2005 Italian film Natale a Miami and the 2008 horror film remake Day of the Dead. In addition to appearances on Close to Home and The O.C., she played rebellious Loren Wakefield on the MyNetworkTV limited-run serial American Heiress. She was also cast as the star in another MyNetworkTV telenovela, Rules of Deception, but the show never aired, due to a change in the network's programming strategy away from telenovelas.
McCord portrayed Eden Lord in the fifth season of the FX series Nip/Tuck. McCord said in an interview with fearnet.com that it was "fun to play a bad girl."
In 2008, McCord was cast in the series 90210 as Naomi Clark. Initially, the part of Clark was conceived as a supporting role; by the end of the first season, however, media outlets had begun referring to McCord as the series' lead. Throughout the show's run, McCord's character vies for social power and love.
She accepted a role in the Off Broadway play Love, Loss, and What I Wore for an April 27 through May 29, 2011, run with Conchata Ferrell, Minka Kelly, Anne Meara, and B. Smith.
McCord's role in the 2012 film Excision was critically praised. In 2014, McCord joined the cast of the TNT series Dallas for its third season, in the recurring role of Heather. She played the lead role in the 2015 Lifetime film Watch Your Back. In 2018, she starred in First We Take Brooklyn along with Danny A. Abeckaser. In December 2023, it was announced McCord would join the cast of Days of Our Lives.

Personal life

McCord is a supporter of the St. Bernard Project, a rebuilding organization dedicated to assisting victims of Hurricane Katrina.
In 2011, McCord began dating actor Dominic Purcell. The couple announced an amicable split in 2014, but rekindled their romance a year later. McCord was with Purcell when he suffered a near-fatal accident on the set of Prison Break in Morocco on June 1, 2016, after an iron bar used as a set piece fell onto his head. The couple split in 2018 and stated they were on good terms. On September 25, 2020, Purcell confirmed they had rekindled their relationship with an Instagram post. Their relationship came to an end by November 2022 when Purcell was confirmed to be dating Tish Cyrus.
McCord is now dating former England rugby international Danny Cipriani.
In 2014, McCord revealed that a male acquaintance sexually assaulted her when she was 18, and as a result broke down while filming a rape scene in 90210.
In March 2015, while speaking at the United Nations in support of UN Women for Peace Association, McCord announced her alignment with the anti-sexual-assault and domestic abuse project, the No More Campaign. McCord has stated that she has been practicing meditation to help cope with her trauma, and has created a global meditation tour known as the "Love Storm Tour" to help raise awareness of human trafficking. In 2018, McCord was in treatment for PTSD and memories of child sexual abuse, back to the age of 11. In April 2021, she revealed that she had been diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder.
In February 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, McCord released a video of herself reading a poem on her Twitter postulating that if she had loved Vladimir Putin as a mother, perhaps an invasion of Ukraine could have been avoided. The video was met with derision by observers and critics, who likened it to Gal Gadot's cover of "Imagine", which was similarly criticized for its perceived tone-deaf message. In an interview with Buzzfeed News, McCord defended the video, claiming that she could have easily become a dictator under different circumstances.

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2002Cassandra
2005Transporter 2Car jacking girl
2005Natale a MiamiSusy
2007Sirens of the CaribbeanBritt
2008Day of the DeadNina
2008The Haunting of Molly HartleySuzie Woods
2009Fired Up!Gwyneth
2010AmexicaWomanShort film
2010GunGabriella
2011Blood OutAnya
2012ExcisionPauline
2013Officer DownZhanna Dronov
2013ScornedSadie
2014Gutshot StraightMay
2015Santa's Little HelperBillie
2016Trash FirePearl
2016AmerigeddonSam
201768 KillLiza
2018First We Take Brooklyn aka Brooklyn GunsEsther
2019Nightmare In ParadiseLiz
2019Tone-DeafBlaire
2019American SkinAllison Randall
2020A Soldier's RevengeHeather
2021Feral StateDetective Ellis
2022Titanic 666Mia Stone
2023The WeaponIris
2023Condition of ReturnEve Sullivan
2023Dante's HotelGoldie Stanton

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2006Hot girlEpisode: "The Party Favor"
2006Close to HomeSaraEpisode: "Hot Grrrl"
2007American HeiressLoren WakefieldMain role; 65 episodes
2007Cold CaseBecca Abrams Episode: "Stand Up and Holler"
2007Ugly BettyPetra2 episodes
2007CSI: MiamiSherry WilliamsonEpisode: "Kill Switch"
2007GreekDestiny/PattyEpisode: "Friday Night Frights"
2007–2009Nip/TuckEden LordRecurring role ; 12 episodes
2008Head CaseTard's dateEpisode: "A Tard for All Seasons"
2008–201390210Naomi ClarkSeries regular; 114 episodes
Nominated - Teen Choice Award for Choice TV: Breakout Star Female
2014DallasHeatherRecurring role
2014StalkerNina PrestonEpisode: "Fanatic"
2014The Christmas ParadeHailee AndersonTelevision movie
2015Not So UnionMarilynEpisode: "We're Best Friends"
2015Watch Your BackSarah MillerTelevision movie
2016Secrets and LiesMelanie WarnerRecurring role
2016LuciferDelilahEpisode: "Pilot"
2016The Night ShiftJessica SandersRecurring role
2016Beauty & the BeastDiane VaughnEpisode: "Love Is a Battlefield"
2018Let's Get PhysicalClaudiaRecurring role
2019Anniversary NightmareLizTV movie aka Wrongfully Accused
2020Feliz NaviDADSophieTV movie
2021Legends of TomorrowIrma RoseEpisode: "Stressed Western"
2021–2022Power Book III: Raising KananToni DeepRecurring role
2024–presentDays of Our LivesCat GreeneContract role
Nominated - Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series

Music videos

YearTitleArtist
2003"Baby, I'm in Love"Thalía
2016"Below"White Lung
2020"Ass Like Mine"Morgan McMichaels