Early life

Bonet was born in San Francisco, California. Her African-American father, Allen Bonet, was an opera singer and was born in Texas; her Jewish mother, Arlene (née Litman), was a teacher. She has several younger half-siblings. Bonet attended Birmingham High School in Van Nuys, California. She also attended the Celluloid Actor's Studio in North Hollywood where she majored in acting.

Career

After being in beauty pageants and appearing in guest spots on television series as a child, Bonet landed the role of Denise Huxtable on The Cosby Show alongside Bill Cosby and Phylicia Rashad. In 1987, she briefly left The Cosby Show to star in the spin-off series A Different World, which focused on Denise Huxtable's life at college. That year, Bonet, then 19, accepted the role of 17-year-old Epiphany Proudfoot in the movie Angel Heart opposite Mickey Rourke, directed by Alan Parker. In the film, several seconds of an explicit scene she shared with Rourke were edited to ensure an R-rating. It was followed by a topless centerspread in Interview magazine. After announcing her pregnancy during the run of A Different World, Bonet left the series. The following year, she returned to The Cosby Show, but was fired in 1991 because of "creative differences".

After The Cosby Show, Bonet began to accept jobs on straight-to-video releases and made-for-TV movies. In 1998 she had a supporting role in Enemy of the State with Will Smith. In 2000, she appeared in the movie High Fidelity. In 2003, she played the role of Queenie in Biker Boyz, which reunited her with former co-star Kadeem Hardison of A Different World.

Bonet also co-starred in the 2006 film Whitepaddy alongside Sherilyn Fenn, Hill Harper, Debra Wilson, Karen Black, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Two years later she appeared in the US adaptation of the British television series, Life on Mars.

Personal life

On November 16, 1987, her 20th birthday, she eloped with singer Lenny Kravitz in Las Vegas, Nevada. Bonet recalled of their relationship:

“

It was interesting when we were first finding out about each other, that our backgrounds were so similar. When I first told him my mom was Jewish, and he said 'So's my dad,' I thought that was both unusual and enchanting. I felt like, 'Okay, here's someone who really knows how it is.' And I think I trusted him a little more with my feelings and let him inside a little more than I ordinarily would have.

”

She gave birth to daughter Zoë Isabella on December 1, 1988. She and Kravitz separated in 1993. In 1995, Bonet legally changed her name to Lilakoi Moon, although she still uses the name Lisa Bonet professionally. In 2005, she began a relationship with actor Jason Momoa, and they married in 2007. On July 23, 2007, Bonet gave birth to her second child, Lola Iolani Momoa, her first with Momoa. On December 15, 2008, they had a son named Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakaeha Momoa.

Filmography

Film

Years	Title	Role
1987	Angel Heart	Epiphany Proudfoot
1993	Bank Robber	Priscilla
1994	Final Combination	Catherine Briggs
1998	Enemy of the State	Rachel Banks
2000	High Fidelity	Marie De Salle
2003	Biker Boyz	Queenie
2005	Whitepaddy	Mae Evans
2013	Road to Paloma	Magdalena

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1983	St. Elsewhere	Carla	Episode: "Entrapment"
1984-91	The Cosby Show	Denise Huxtable	103 episodes
1985	Tales from the Darkside	Justine	Episode: "The Satanic Piano"
	ABC Afterschool Special	Carrie	1 episode
1987-89	A Different World	Denise Huxtable	22 episodes
1990	The Earth Day Special	Denise Huxtable
1994	New Eden	Lily	Television movie
2002	Lathe of Heaven	Heather Lelache	Television movie
2008-09	Life on Mars	Maya Daniels	5 episodes
2013-14	Drunk History	Mary Ellen Pleasant and Rosa Parks	2 episodes
2014-15	The Red Road	Sky Van Der Veen	7 episodes
2014	New Girl	Brenda Brown	Episode: "Teachers"
2016	Girls	Tandice Moncrief	Episodes: "Homeward Bound", "Love Stories"
2016	Ray Donovan	Marisol	1 episode

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Result	Category	Film or series
1985	Young Artist Award	Nominated	Best Young Supporting Actress in a Television Comedy Series	The Cosby Show
1986			Best Young Actress Starring in a Television Series	The Cosby Show
1988			Best Young Actress Starring in a New Television Comedy Series	The Cosby Show
		Won	Best Young Female Superstar in Motion Pictures	Angel Heart
1989		Nominated	Best Young Actor/Actress Ensemble in a Television Comedy, Drama Series or Special	The Cosby Show
1988	Emmy Award		Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series	The Cosby Show
1988	Saturn Award		Best Supporting Actress	Angel Heart
2001	Black Reel Awards		Theatrical - Best Supporting Actress	High Fidelity
2006	TV Land Awards		Favorite Singing Siblings	The Cosby Show

[ Source: Wikipedia ]