Why Cruz Manuelos From Lioness Looks So Familiar

"Lioness" has returned for Season 3 on Paramount+, and Cruz Manuelos will be thrown back into the fire as the squad takes on new threats. Played by Laysla De Oliveira, Cruz has balanced high-stakes missions with her complicated personal life and romantic interests since first joining the CIA's Lioness Engagement Team in Season 1. "Lioness" viewers may recognize De Oliveira from several other projects, as she's been acting for over a decade.

The Toronto native started out with a guest role in a Season 3 episode of "Covert Affairs" and went on to establish herself as a capable young performer in the years that followed, with 2018 being a particularly notable year for De Oliveira: She appeared as the villainous Zoe Ward in the "iZombie" Season 4 episode "Don't Hate the Player, Hate the Brain," and she debuted as the super-powered mutant known as Glow in Season 2 of Fox's Marvel show "The Gifted."

De Oliveira returned to the role of Glow twice in 2019, and she took her talents to another superhero project that same year, playing Maddy in the acclaimed indie movie "Code 8." She was singled out for special praise in some reviews, with The Re-Employed Critic noting that she made "a memorable impression." Her turn as Maddy in "Code 8" has also received some love on Reddit since fans of "Lioness" discovered the movie.

The up-and-coming Canadian plied her trade in two other movies in 2019: Netflix's Stephen King adaptation "In the Tall Grass" and the psychological drama "Guest of Honour." In the latter, she plays the daughter of a restaurant inspector over three different time periods. It was hailed as a breakout performance by Streets of Toronto after a screening at the Toronto International Film Festival. Speaking to the outlet, De Oliveira called the TIFF screening "a full circle moment" for her.

The 2020s is when Laysla De Oliveira's career really began to take off thanks to her role as the demonic Dodge in the Netflix series "Locke & Key," based on the comics of the same name. De Oliveira portrayed Dodge throughout the show's three seasons from 2020 to 2022, featuring as the main antagonist of the first season. Dodge relentlessly pursued the keys that would allow her and other demons to take over the world.

Returning to "Locke & Key" Season 2 on a recurring basis, De Oliveira reprised her role as Dodge after Ellie Whedon accidentally unleashed her. De Oliveira then came back in Season 3 to play Dodge in a few more episodes before "Locke & Key" ended its run on Netflix. "I love playing a villain," she said of her sinister "Locke & Key" character during a 2020 interview with People. "It's so special to play a role where you get to be completely unapologetic for your behavior."

De Oliveira's work as Dodge was praised by critics, who loved the nuance she brought to the role. "There were moments when Oliveira was perfect! There was genuine menace, unpredictability, and you really felt her presence," said X-Geeks in a review. Nightmare on Film Street called her "magnetic," while Diandra Reviews it All dubbed her performance "phenomenal."

As "Lioness" Season 3 ramps up the tension, it's well worth revisiting the cast members' past roles while waiting for new episodes to drop. Some viewers are already calling it the best season yet, with one fan on Reddit writing: "Season 1 was good, Season 2 was even better and now the first 2 episodes of Season 3 has elevated it even further and I'm beyond hooked." Here's where TVLine ranks "Lioness" among Taylor Sheridan's other shows.