Cara Buono — Movies, TV Shows & Roles

Actor

1971-03-01 · New York City, New York, USA · Female

23 series in the catalog

Cara Buono (born March 1, 1971) is an American actress. She made her film debut in Gladiator (1992) and received recognition for her roles in various television shows including CBS Schoolbreak Special (1991), Law & Order (1996–2024), Mad Men (2010), and starred as Karen Wheeler in the Netflix series Stranger Things (2016–2025). Her roles earned her nominations for both a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series and a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming.
On film, Buono has appeared in a number of projects since her 1992 debut, with her most notable credits including Hulk (2003), in which she portrayed Edith Banner, Let Me In (2010), A Good Marriage (2014), Paper Towns (2015), All Saints (2017), Monsters and Men (2018), and She Came from the Woods (2022).
Early life and education
Buono was born to Rosemary (née Desiderioscioli; 1930–2023) and Anthony Buono (1927–2021) 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.