Nicole Ari Parker Kodjoe (born October 7, 1970) is an American actress and model. Early in her career she appeared in several critically-acclaimed independent films including The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love (1995), Boogie Nights (1997), 200 Cigarettes (1999), and the 1999 Sundance Film Festival winner The Adventures of Sebastian Cole. She has starred in several television shows including Second Time Around, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and The Deep End; but her breakthrough television role was on Showtime6 drama Soul Food, which she starred in from 2000-2004. Her big screen credits include such popular films as Blue Streak (1999), Brown Sugar (2002) and Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (2008). She is married to fellow model turned actor, Boris Kodjoe, and they have two children.