Rena Riffel

Rena Riffel (born March 5, 1969) is an American actress, singer, dancer, model, writer, producer, and director. She is known for her supporting roles in films such as Showgirls, Striptease, and Mulholland Drive. Riffel achieved her breakthrough role in the 1995 film Showgirls, starring Elizabeth Berkley, Gina Gershon, and Kyle MacLachlan. Originally reading for the lead role of Cristal Connors, director Paul Verhoeven cast her as Penny/Hope after deciding she was too young for the lead. While working on the set, Riffel shared a song she had recorded, "Deep Kiss," which Verhoeven subsequently selected to play during a lap dance scene at the Cheetah strip club.

Although Showgirls was an initial box office failure, it became a major commercial success in the home video market, generating over $100 million in video rentals and ranking among MGM's top 20 all-time best sellers. For the 2004 DVD release, Riffel had her handprints placed in cement outside the Hollywood Vista Theater. In 2008, she participated as a special guest at Peaches Christ's Midnight Mass screening of the film in San Francisco. Riffel has remained actively involved in celebrating the film's cult status alongside its fanbase.

Following Showgirls, Riffel was cast in the film Striptease alongside Demi Moore and Burt Reynolds. In 2001, she appeared in David Lynch's film Mulholland Drive. Her television and feature work includes minor roles in Married... with Children, Clueless, and the HBO movie Breast Men. She later starred in a series of films by European director Lloyd Simandl, including Dark Confessions, Bound Cargo, Caligula's Spawn, and No Escape. Her filmography also includes erotic thrillers like The Pornographer and Scandalous Behavior, the 1999 film Citizens of Perpetual Indulgence, and horror titles such as Candyman 3: Day of the Dead, Unstable Minds, and Dark Reel.

In 2008, Riffel wrote, directed, produced, edited, and starred in Trasharella, a satire of B-movie horror films released on DVD through her production company, Rena Riffel Films. She later wrote, directed, and starred in the sequel Showgirls 2: Penny's from Heaven. The film premiered in West Hollywood, California, in October 2011 and was screened in art-house theaters nationally. Riffel also developed a stage project titled Showgirls! The Musical.

In addition to acting and filmmaking, Riffel has engaged in musical endeavors. Her song "Geisha Girl" was featured in the 2004 film Wild Roomies, and she sang the theme song "Livin' in the Fast Lane" for the 2007 series Billionaire Heiresses. In 2008, she starred as Judy Feathers in the music video for Coheed and Cambria's song "Feathers," which won Best Video at the Kerrang! Awards in the United Kingdom and led to a performance appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. She is also featured on the Velvet Revolver album Contraband.