It's fair to say that after 20 years and over 50 film appearances, Mimi Rogers should be praised for her variety of roles and acting capabilities, not for a brief marriage to a Hollywood star. In the early 1980s she began to carve a niche for herself in Hollywood, appearing on television and in films. It was her role in Der Mann im Hintergrund (1987) that got her noticed and was her springboard to stardom. Cemented by a marriage to Tom Cruise, an already established young actor, Mimi went on to appear in Tödliches Versteck (1989), 24 Stunden in seiner Gewalt (1990), and The Doors (1991). She appeared in a controversial movie analyzing religion in America, Dunkle Erleuchtung (1991), which proved a hit and delighted audiences, creating many a debate over the film's
subject material. She played a bored telephone exchange operator who
swaps a sinful life of sex and swinging with other couples for a devout
religious one, ending unexpectedly in disaster. Despite her successes,
few meaty, interesting roles came her way in the '90s. Trennung mit Hindernissen (1992), opposite Jeff Goldblum, the family movie
Immer Ärger um Dojo (1994), Gefährliche Wildnis (1995), and Full Body Massage (1995) were just a few of the films that she appeared in. Working consistently, she rejuvenated her career in the unexpected hit Austin Powers - Das Schärfste, was Ihre Majestät zu bieten hat (1997), playing Miss Kensington, an attractive female agent of 1960s London and the mother of Elizabeth Hurley's character. Next, Mimi was seen in the big-screen remake of the '60s sci-fi TV series Lost in Space (1998) and several guest appearances on the hugely popular television series Akte X: Die unheimlichen Fälle des FBI (1993), playing a scheming FBI agent. A role in the Canadian indie-horror Ginger Snaps (2000) did her career
no harm. Soon, she was opposite Geena Davis in
Geena Davis (2000) from 2000-01 and playing an extremely rich Manhattan socialite in the direct-to-video
Eiskalte Engel 2 (2000).
More recently Mimi has appeared on cable television, including leading
roles in Charms for the Easy Life (2002) (which she also executive produced) and Deep Down - Kein Entkommen (2003) (a true-life
disaster drama in which she played the Chief Superintendent of a mine).
In 2004, she gave a revealing performance in The Door in the Floor - Tür der Versuchung (2004), a critical success. The Loop (2006), a Chicago-based sitcom, will soon be airing in America, featuring Mimi as a flirtatious office worker. Also in 2006, Mimi will be appearing in an original horror film,
Penny Dreadful - Per Anhalter in den Tod (2006), playing a psychiatrist in peril. In 2003, she married her longtime boyfriend Chris Ciaffa, with whom she has a son and a daughter. A poker novice, Mimi also travels around competing in tournaments, some televised.
