Sabrina Impacciatore biography, photos, personal life, height and weight 2025

Sabrina Impacciatore Biography

Sabrina Impacciatore is an Italian actress who achieved international recognition for her role as Valentina in the second season of HBO's "The White Lotus" (2022), which earned her an Emmy nomination. In 2025, she starred in one of the lead roles in the comedy series "The Newspaper."

Sabrina Impacciatore in a pink dress against a white background — Sabrina Impacciatore

Childhood and Family

Sabrina Impacciatore was born on March 29, 1968, in Rome. Her father, Enea, hails from Abruzzo; her mother, Pacita, who owns a jewelry shop, is from Sardinia.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, the actress spoke about her strict upbringing: "I thank my parents for giving me freedom drop by drop, teaching me respect for myself and others."

Her parents didn't approve of her career aspirations for a long time, but at the premiere of Gabriele Muccino's "The Last Kiss," they finally understood she was born for this profession.

Young Sabrina Impacciatore in glasses and a white blouse sits at a desk — Sabrina Impacciatore in her early years

Losing her father was a devastating tragedy in Sabrina's life. Just one month later, she had her audition for "The White Lotus." "Can you imagine? For me, this role is connected to my dad too," she recalled.

First Steps

Impacciatore studied acting at the Actors Studio in New York and took several acting courses in Rome.

When she was 25, TV producer Gianni Boncompagni spotted her. Charmed by her vibrant charisma, he gave her a role in the cult TV program of the early '90s, "Non è la Rai." In this daily show where young women sang, danced, and performed sketches, Impacciatore hosted a segment where she read and responded to funny fan letters.

Sabrina Impacciatore on "Non è la Rai"

She also became memorable to viewers for her parody of Lara Croft from the "Tomb Raider" video game on the TV show "Ciro."

Acting Career

Impacciatore made her film debut in 1999 in Francesco Maselli's "The Companion." Her first major role came in "The Last Kiss" (2001) directed by Gabriele Muccino, with whom she continued collaborating on "Kiss Me Again" (2010) and "Everybody's Fine" (2018).

In 2007, she was nominated for a David di Donatello Award for Best Supporting Actress for her work in Paolo Virzì's "Napoleon and Me" (2006), and received a second nomination for the same award the following year for Wilma Labate's "Miss F" (2007).

For American audiences, her most significant role before "The White Lotus" was playing Seraphia in Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" (2004). She portrayed Saint Veronica, the widow who offers Jesus her veil to wipe his face.

Sabrina Impacciatore offers a veil to the bloodied Jesus wearing a crown of thorns — Sabrina Impacciatore in "The Passion of the Christ"

In Italy, she's also known for the 2013 black comedy "Friends Till Death," where the actress played Olivia, one of three Sicilian friends who kills her worthless husband.

"The White Lotus"

The period before landing her role in "The White Lotus" was incredibly tough. Interesting parts were scarce, and the pandemic only made finding work that much harder:

I can only work when I'm inspired, and nothing interesting was coming my way. So I decided to say 'no' to everything I didn't like. I spent an entire year eating only eggs because I had no money.

Sabrina admitted that when she was called to audition for "The White Lotus" season two, she hadn't even seen the first season.

I actually don't watch TV series. I just don't have time. My agent called and said: 'This is an important audition; they've been searching for an actress for four months and can't find one.' I was shooting another film, so I initially said no.

But her agent insisted: "He suggested I watch the first season of 'The White Lotus,' and that same night I couldn't sleep: I binge-watched every episode. I swear, it was love at first sight!"

Sabrina Impacciatore in a beige blazer holding a pen and paper — Sabrina Impacciatore in "The White Lotus"

Sabrina transformed into Valentina, the manager of the luxury White Lotus hotel in Sicily. According to Impacciatore herself, "Valentina is cold, bitchy. She's a master at denying her own needs." This is the complete opposite of the actress's cheerful and open personality.

After appearing in the HBO hit, Sabrina's career shot straight up. The role earned Impacciatore her first-ever Emmy nomination. This came as a complete shock to the actress:

I was screaming and crying... I couldn't believe it because for me it was just impossible. I didn't expect this to happen.

Sabrina Impacciatore's Personal Life

Sabrina is a person of extremes, and when she loves, she gives her whole self to that love. She's had relationships in the past that interfered with her career, so now she prefers to call herself "free" rather than "single."

In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel, the actress mentioned that she dated a man from California for three years, but they broke up – their personalities just didn't mesh.

About family and motherhood, she reflects:

I would completely dedicate myself to children, and since I dream big, I'd want ten kids. But it's time to stop considering a woman complete only if she becomes a mother. You can leave your mark without necessarily bringing children into the world, you can be a creator in other ways and express your maternal instinct in unexpected forms.

Sabrina Impacciatore Now

In 2025, Impacciatore landed the lead role in the new American comedy series "The Paper," a spin-off of the cult hit "The Office." She plays Esmeralda Grand, editor of the Toledo Truth Teller newspaper and TTT Online.

The series was created by Greg Daniels and Michael Koman, who worked on the American version of "The Office." It premiered on the streaming service Peacock on September 4th.

Sabrina Impacciatore stands at a whiteboard, with Domhnall Gleeson standing beside her with his arms crossed — Sabrina Impacciatore in the series "The Paper"

On the first day of filming, "The Office" stars Steve Carell and John Krasinski unexpectedly dropped by the set to wish everyone luck. Impacciatore recalls: "I wasn't wearing makeup. We were all so nervous. And suddenly we hear knock-knock. Someone walks into the trailer, and it's Steve Carell and John Krasinski! We're basically fainting."

In 2025, Impacciatore also played Elena Romano in the film "G20" and worked on the set of "In Dante's Hand," which premiered in September at the Venice Film Festival.