Nine years later, audiences are finally getting the chance to get reacquainted with one Mr. Christian Wolff, aka The Accountant. After all this time, Ben Affleck and director Gavin O’Conner have finally reunited for “The Accountant 2,” which originally entered development way back in 2017. Fortunately for fans of the original, the sequel didn’t get abandoned along the way and Affleck is returning as Wolff to solve a new, complex case. He’s also got some fresh faces along for the ride including Daniella Pineda, who plays the assassin Anaïs.
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The sequel once again centers on Christian Wolff (Affleck), a man with a talent for solving complex problems. An old acquaintance is murdered, one who leaves behind a cryptic message to “find the accountant.” As the complex nature of the case reveals itself, Wolff decides to bring in his estranged hitman brother Brax (Jon Bernthal) to help. Working with U.S. Treasury Deputy Director Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson), they uncover a deadly conspiracy with Pineda’s Anaïs at the center of it all.
While we won’t get into spoilers about her character arc here, viewers may have felt as though she looked familiar. There’s a very good reason for that, as Pineda has been working steadily in Hollywood for well over a decade now. She’s appeared in big movies as well as popular TV shows, in addition to popping up in smaller projects, not to mention some voice acting. So, where might you recognize Pineda from? Let’s break that down, starting with her work on the silver screen.
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Daniella Pineda has been a part of some big movies in the past
Pineda has appeared in quite a few movies over the years, with her first credit coming in the 2011 Edward Burns joint “Newlyweds.” When it comes to the movie side of her career, though, odds are most people are going to recognize Pineda from her work in the “Jurassic World” franchise as Zia Rodriguez, having appeared in both 2018’s “Fallen Kingdom” and 2022’s “Dominion.”
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Pineda’s Zia was part of the Dinosaur Protection Group in “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” working alongside Bryce Dallas Howard’s Claire. Zia had a much bigger role in that movie, but did return for a couple of scenes in “Dominion” as well. Given that both movies were massive hits, quite a few viewers are likely to recognize her as Zia.
Pineda also appeared in a small, uncredited role in the comedy “Sleeping With Other People,” which stars Allison Brie and Jason Sudeikis. She had a role in the Netflix horror flick “Mercy Black,” and more recently, Pineda starred alongside Gerard Butler in the throwback action flick “Plane” in early 2023. That movie is getting a sequel, amusingly titled “Ship,” but it’s unlikely her character would return, given that she was a flight attendant in the first one. Some of her other movie credits include “Mr. Roosevelt” and “Modern Persuasion.”
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Daniella Pineda took on some major franchise roles on the small screen
Overall, Pineda has worked more in TV over the years than she has in movies, having appeared in one-off roles on several popular shows, in addition to having leading roles in other major projects. It’s very possible that if anyone had that “she looks familiar” ping going on in their heads while watching “The Accountant 2,” it’s because you’ve seen her on a TV show at some point in the past.
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The first TV show one might know Pineda from is “The Vampire Diaries” – more specifically, one of the short-lived “Vampire Diaries” spin-offs titled “The Originals,” in which she played Sophie Deveraux. That character also appeared in one episode of the flagship show, for those who might not have watched the spin-off in question.
Another show viewers might know her from is Netflix’s live-action “Cowboy Bebop,” which featured Pineda as the fan-favorite Faye Valentine. Again, that series had its run cut short, lasting just one season. Still, given the popularity of the franchise and the high-profile nature of this show, it would be easy to recognize her as Faye.
Outside of that, Pineda did star in an episode of the anthology series “Tales of the Walking Dead.” That was just a single episode, but again, we’re talking about a very popular franchise, so that’s going to come with some recognition. Additionally, the actress appeared in episodes of shows like “Homeland,” “Inside Amy Schumer,” “High Maintenance,” “Home Economics,” and even “Robot Chicken.” Some of her other longer-lasting roles were in the miniseries “What/If” (no, not the Marvel one) and the TBS series “The Detour” as Vanessa.
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Pineda has had a varied career appearing in all sorts of different TV shows and movies, meaning anyone could have recognized her from any one of these projects. This isn’t a situation where someone is known very distinctly for one role they did, such as Paul Hogan in “Crocodile Dundee.” Pineda has embodied many people and will presumably continue to do so for years to come.
“The Accountant 2” is in theaters now.
