Eva Marcille Pigford (born October 30, 1984) is an American actress, fashion model and television personality.[2] She rose to prominence after she won the third cycle of America's Next Top Model. Afterwards, she starred as Tracie Evans in Tyler Perry's House of Payne (2007–2012), and landed the role of Tyra Hamilton on the CBS daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless (2008–2009). Marcille later returned to reality television as a cast member on the Bravo television series The Real Housewives of Atlanta (2018–2021).
Eva Marcille | |
|---|---|
 Marcille in 2012 | |
| Born | Eva Marcille Pigford October 30, 1984 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, model, Television Personality |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Spouse |
Michael Sterling
(m. 2018; div. 2023) |
| Children | 3 |
| Modeling information | |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[1] |
| Hair color | Light brown |
| Eye color | Hazel/Green |
| Agency | L.A. Models Ford Models, Uber-Warning Models |
Early life
editEva was born in Los Angeles, California as Eva Pigford. Her middle name, Marcille, is an amalgam of her grandmothers' names "Marjorie" and "Lucille". Her parents are both African American.[3] She attended Raymond Avenue Elementary School, Marina Del Rey Middle School, and Washington Preparatory High School (2002). She attended Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia; however, she left the school shortly after winning the third season of America's Next Top Model at the age of 19.[4]
Career
editModeling
editIn 2004, Marcille was the last finalist selected for the top fourteen to compete on the UPN reality television show America's Next Top Model Cycle 3. Over her stay, Marcille received two first call-outs and won two challenges. Marcille was crowned the winner of the third cycle of America's Next Top Model,[5] beating fellow contestant Yaya DaCosta. Her prizes included a CoverGirl cosmetics contract, a spread in Elle, and a modeling contract with Ford Models.
Marcille has appeared on the cover of Brides Noir, Women's Health and Fitness (May 2005), King (June 2005), IONA (November 2005), and Essence.[6] Her other modeling credits include CoverGirl, DKNY, Samsung, Red by Marc Ecko, Jewel, In Touch Weekly (June 2005), King (November 2005), WeTheUrban, IONA, UNleashed, Star Magazine, Elle, Elle Girl, Apple Bottoms, Lerner Catalog, Avon Campaign 4 and Rolling Out.
Marcille's runway shows include the Marc Bouwer Fall 2005, Elle Girl presents Dare to Be You: Wal-Mart Meets America's Next Top Model 2005, Gharani Strok Fall 2005, Deborah Lindquist Spring 2006, Naqada Spring 2006, 8th Annual 'Models of Perfection' Show 2006, and L.A. Fashion Week's Monarchy Collection Fall 2007.[7]
On November 15, 2006, Marcille left her managers Benny Medina and Tyra Banks. After leaving Banks and Medina for new management, she officially dropped "Pigford" from her name, now going by Eva Marcille (her middle name). She has stated she did this in order to not use her modeling fame to get into acting but earn her acting roles.[3]
Marcille is now signed to L.A. Models. She has been featured on America's Next Top Model: Exposed on the CW. She has also been featured as one of CoverGirl's Top Models in Action.[citation needed]
Television work
editMarcille has guest-starred on several series on UPN and The CW Network. Her guest-star credits include two episodes of Kevin Hill, one episode of Smallville, one episode of Everybody Hates Chris, and one episode of The Game as herself. Marcille has also appeared on Tyler Perry's House of Payne.
In addition, Marcille hosted BET J's reality show My Model Looks Better Than Your Model, as well as Rip the Runway on BET. Furthermore, she has appeared in several music videos, including "Baby" by Angie Stone (featuring Betty Wright), 50 Cent's "I Get Money" and Jamie Foxx's "DJ Play a Love Song".[8]
Marcille was cast as a regular on a FOX show called The Wedding Album in 2006, but FOX canceled it before it aired.
In 2005, Marcille appeared in a first-season episode of the MTV improv show Nick Cannon Presents Wild 'N Out.[9] In December 2007, Marcille played a featured role in an episode of Smallville.
In 2008, she joined the cast of The Young and the Restless as a young mother named Tyra Hamilton.[10] After a few months, her character, who was planned to be temporary was made permanent. In 2009, Marcille was nominated for two NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series for her Y&R role.
In film, her credits include The Walk, Crossover, and I Think I Love My Wife.
She appeared in a June 2009 episode of the BET prank show Played by Fame, where contestants have nightmarish dates with celebrities.[11]
She hosted the first season of the Oxygen reality series Hair Battle Spectacular in 2010.
In August 2013, Marcille appeared in the video clip "J'accélère (I accelerate)" by French rapper Rohff.
On August 5, 2015, Marcille was in the main cast as the role of Tara in the TV One series Born Again Virgin. In February 2016, she was in a reality series titled About the Business.
In August 2017, Marcille competed in the first season of VH1's Scared Famous, which premiered on October 23, 2017.[12] She joined the tenth season of The Real Housewives of Atlanta as a friend of NeNe Leakes and was promoted to a full-time cast member in 2018 for the eleventh season. She departed the series after two seasons in 2020.
Personal life
editIn July 2006, Marcille began dating actor Lance Gross. The couple became engaged on December 24, 2008 and split up in March 2010.[13] She dated rapper Flo Rida from 2010 to 2012.[14] Marcille has a daughter from her previous relationship with singer Kevin McCall.[15] She and McCall split in spring 2014,[16] with Marcille stating she has custody of their daughter.[17] In August 2019, she revealed that her daughter's last name has been legally changed from McCall to Sterling.[18][19]
Eva became engaged to Atlanta-based attorney Michael Sterling in December 2017.[20] They married on October 7, 2018.[21] They have two sons, born in April 2018[22] and September 2019.[23] In 2019, she also founded cEVAd,[24] a CBD oil company. The company launched during the birth of her son Maverick.[25] In March 2023, Eva filed for divorce from Sterling. On August 3, 2023, their divorce was finalized.[26]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | The Walk | Sydney Lee | Video |
| 2006 | Premium | Farrah | |
| Crossover | Vanessa | ||
| The Wedding Album | Gretchen | TV movie | |
| 2007 | I Think I Love My Wife | Hope | |
| 2009 | Super Capers | News Reporter | |
| 2011 | The Boys and Girls Guide to Getting Down | Jasmine | TV movie |
| 2012 | If You Really Love Me | ||
| Note to Self | Karen Wells | ||
| 2013 | 24 Hour Love | Leah | |
| 2014 | The Fright Night Files | Marla Peters | TV movie |
| For the Love of Lockwood | |||
| 2015 | For the Love of Lockwood Too | ||
| Sister Code | Sheila | ||
| 2017 | The Cheaters Club | Olive | |
| Miss Me This Christmas | Trish McDonald | ||
| 2021 | Adventures in Christmasing | VH1 original movie | |
| 2022 | Hello | Alicia Gregory | TV movie |
| 2022 | A Christmas Fumble | Nicole Barnes | BET Plus movie |
| 2022 | A New Diva’s Christmas Carol | Zero | VH1 original movie |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | America's Next Top Model | Herself/Contestant | Main cast: Season 3 |
| 2005 | Best Week Ever | Herself | Episode: "Michael Jackson trial, the OC and More" |
| Wild 'n Out | Herself | 2 episodes | |
| Kevin Hill | Sandra Clark | 2 episodes | |
| 2007 | The Hills | Herself | Episode: "When You Least Expect It" |
| The Game | Herself | Episode: "Out of Bounds" | |
| Smallville | Tyler Crenshaw | Episode: "Fierce" | |
| Everybody Hates Chris | Ms. Crabtree | Episode: "Everybody Hates Minimum Wage" | |
| 2007–12 | Tyler Perry's House of Payne | Tracie Evans | Recurring cast: Seasons 1–2, 5–7 & 10 |
| 2008–09 | The Young and the Restless | Tyra Hamilton | Regular role |
| 2009 | The Assistants | Alicia James | Episode: "The Break Up" |
| 2011 | Let's Stay Together | Raynelle | Episode: "Your Arm's Too Short to Box with Grandparents" |
| 2012 | Girlfriend Confidential: LA | Herself | Main cast |
| 2013–15 | Real Husbands of Hollywood | Herself | 4 episodes |
| 2015–16 | Born Again Virgin | Tara | Main cast |
| 2017 | Scared Famous | Herself/Contestant | Main cast |
| 2018–21 | The Real Housewives of Atlanta | Herself | Recurring cast: Season 10; Main cast: Seasons 11-12; Guest: Season 13 |
| 2021–present | All the Queen's Men | Marilyn 'Madam' DeVille | Lead role |
| 2022–24 | The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip | Herself | Main cast: Seasons 2 & 5[27][28] |
Music Videos
edit| Year | Song | Artist | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | "DJ Play a Love Song" | Jamie Foxx | |
| 2012 | "Best of Me" | Tyrese | |
| 2013 | "Live It Up" | Jennifer Lopez | |
| "J'accélère" | Rohff |
References
edit- ^ Eva Marcille at Fashion Model Directory
- ^ "Eva Marcille". Bravo TV Official Site. October 1, 2018. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
- ^ a b Eva Marcille interview at B. Scott. YouTube.
- ^ "Eva Marcille: Reinvention of a Top Model".
- ^ "Eva Pigford wins UPN America's Next Top Model". Reality TV world. Retrieved December 26, 2006.
- ^ "Profile: Eva Pigford". Fashion Model Directory. Archived from the original on August 12, 2011.
- ^ "Fall 2005 Designers Marc Bouwer". Olympus Fashion Week. Archived from the original on August 21, 2006.
- ^ "Eva Pigford and Jamie Foxx". Reality TV Stars in the News. About.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2006.
- ^ "Nick Cannon Presents Wild N Out: Episode Guide". TV.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved August 29, 2006.
- ^ "Top Model Eva Marcille Cast on The Young and the Restless!". The Young and the Restless News. Soaps.com. June 6, 2008. Archived from the original on May 9, 2012. Retrieved June 14, 2008.
- ^ "Eva Marcille, Lamman Rucker Book New Reality Show on BET".
- ^ Bellino, Damian. "VH1 Announces Scared Famous Starring Tiffany Pollard, Drita D'Avanzo, Alaska Thunderf-uck, and More!". VH1 News. Viacom International. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
- ^ "Eva Marcille and Lance Gross Breakup EXCLUSIVE". Essence.com. March 24, 2010. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ "Eva Marcille talks heartbreak". S2SMagazine. September 11, 2012. Archived from the original on December 8, 2013. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Blumm, K.C. (February 1, 2014). "Eva Marcille Welcomes Daughter Marley Rae". People.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2018. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
- ^ "America's Next Top Model Eva Marcille Restraining Order". TMZ.com. April 30, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
- ^ Porter, Lauren (January 23, 2018). "Eva Marcille On Her Daughter and Letting Go Of The Past". Essence.com. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
- ^ Grant, Jasmine (August 20, 2019). "Eva Marcille On Why She Changed Her Daughter's Name". Essence.com. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
- ^ "EVA MARCILLE SAYS HER DAUGHTER DOESN'T KNOW THAT KEVIN MCCALL IS HER BIOLOGICAL FATHER". BCK Online. January 20, 2020. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
- ^ "Eva Marcille Engaged". Nydailynews.com. December 25, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2017.
- ^ Guglielmi, Jodi and Leon, Anya (October 8, 2018). "Eva Marcille Marries Michael Sterling in Atlanta Wedding". People.com. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Juneau, Jen and Leon, Anya (April 13, 2018). "Eva Marcille Welcomes Son Michael Jr". People.com. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Cardoza, Riley (September 28, 2019). "Eva Marcille Welcomes Son Maverick With Husband Michael Sterling". Usmagazine.com. Retrieved September 28, 2019.
- ^ Marcille Pigford, Eva (October 31, 2019). "So Much to Celebrate". cEVAd. Archived from the original on October 23, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- ^ "Eva Marcille Sterling is a Model, Actress... and CBD Entrepreneur". Magazine - CannaCurious Magazine. pp. 32–34.
- ^ Segarra, Edward (March 28, 2023). "'RHOA' star Eva Marcille files for divorce from Michael Sterling after 4 years of marriage". USA TODAY.
- ^ @BravoTV (January 9, 2023). "#RHUGT S4 Cast confirmed" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Franklin, McKinley (August 2, 2023). "'Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: RHONY Legacy' Swaps Dates With 'Ex-Wives Club'". Variety. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
