Cara Buono

Cara Buono is an American actress who achieved widespread recognition for her performances across television and film. She is particularly well known for portraying Karen Wheeler on the Netflix series Stranger Things, as well as her notable roles in acclaimed television dramas like Mad Men, Third Watch, and The Sopranos.

Born on March 1, 1971, Buono was raised in a working-class family of Italian heritage in the Bronx, New York. She grew up alongside two brothers and a sister as the daughter of Rosemary and Anthony Buono. She made her initial acting debut at twelve years old in the stage production Spookhouse, written by Harvey Fierstein. She attended Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School and subsequently completed a double major in English and political science at Columbia University within three years.

Buono maintained her theatrical work on and off Broadway while expanding into screen roles. In 1991, she appeared in CBS Schoolbreak Special, earning a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming. She launched her cinematic career in 1992 with appearances in Waterland and Gladiator. Throughout the late 1990s, she built her screen resume through independent films, including Next Stop Wonderland, Chutney Popcorn, Happy Accidents, and Two Ninas, the latter of which she also co-produced.

Over the following decades, Buono featured in major television programs and feature films. On television, she joined the final season of Third Watch as paramedic Grace Foster, played Kelli Moltisanti in the concluding season of The Sopranos, and appeared across multiple years in Law & Order. Her portrayal of Dr. Faye Miller in the fourth season of Mad Men gained critical recognition, yielding a 2011 Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series. Starting in 2016, she began starring as Karen Wheeler in the hit drama Stranger Things.

Her feature film work spans a variety of prominent projects. She played Edith Banner, the mother of the lead character's alter ego, in Ang Lee's 2003 adaptation Hulk. Her additional film roles include Let Me In, A Good Marriage, Paper Towns, All Saints, Monsters and Men, and She Came from the Woods.

Buono resides in Greenwich Village in New York City. She is married to Peter Thum, who established Ethos Water, and the couple has one daughter.