10 Surprising Early Roles Of Orange Is The New Black Stars
3. Selenis Leyva - Law & Order
Selenis Leyva's main television role before playing Mendoza on Orange Is The New Black was on Law & Order, but not just as one character. Leyva played a total of seven different characters across three Law & Order shows: the original, SVU and Criminal Intent.
Her first ever role was as Louisa in a 1999 episode of the show, but she’d go on to become more well known for playing Mariluz Rivera, a detective who appeared in 18 episodes starting early in Season 15. She even ended up reprising the same role on Law & Order Criminal Intent.
Her other unrelated characters on Law & Order have included Lorinda Gutierrez, DeeDee Salazar, Isabella Costas and even just the warden's secretary.
Levya has also guest starred on shows like The Sopranos, where she played Jill Dibiaso, as well as The Good Wife, Person of Interest and Elementary. She's even dabbled in some voice acting work as well, providing additional voices in the Ice Age franchise.