Vanessa Marshall

Actress Vanessa Marshall voiced an array of enduring heroines, including Wonder Woman, Black Widow and others, for a dizzying list of animated series, features and video games. Born October 19, 1969 in New York City, Marshall was the daughter of actress Joan Van Ark and reporter John Marshall. She received her bachelor's degree in English from Princeton University before earning a master's degree in acting from New York University. Her acting career began with minor on-screen roles on television series, prompting Marshall to create her own showcase with a one-woman stage show in 1998. A casting agent saw her performance, which comprised 15 different characters, and suggested that she explore voice acting, which led to work in numerous video and online games, including "Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty" (Konami Computer Entertainment, 2001) and "EverQuest II" (Sony Online Entertainment, 2004). By the midpoint of the 2000s, Marshall was voicing characters for popular animated series like "Ben 10" (Cartoon Network, 2005-2008), "The Spectacular Spider-Man" (The CW, 2008-2009) and "The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy" (Cartoon Network, 2003-2007). She continued to lend her talents to animated series in the ensuing decade, providing the voice for such enduring characters as Poison Ivy on "Batman: The Brave and the Bold" (Cartoon Network, 2008-2011), Black Widow on "The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes" (Disney XD, 2010-2013) and Wonder Woman in the feature-length "Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox" (2013). In 2015, she added two more wildy popular series to her list of credits: she voiced the alien warrior Gamora in "Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy" (Disney XD, 2015- ) and Hera Syndulla, the pilot of the Ghost freighter on "Star Wars Rebels" (Disney XD, 2015- ).