Mira Sorvino contains multitudes: She's a Harvard grad, an Oscar winner, a U.N. ambassador, a onetime muse of the late Giorgio Armani and a protective mom of four. (She and her husband of 21 years, Christopher Backus, are parents to Mattea, 20, Johnny, 19, Holden, 16, and Lucia, 13.) We're only half-kidding when we ask: Has her hair color put her on top? Known for iconically blond roles in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, Norma Jean & Marilyn and Mighty Aphrodite, she is actually a natural brunette. "As a child, I was super-serious: I was the dark-haired intellectual girl, very studious, quiet and introspective," the actress, 58, tells Us. "Being blond, for some reason, unlocks the lighter side of my personality and allows me to be kooky or enjoy life a bit more." She continues: "So weird, right?" Now she's singing and dancing on Broadway (and "elated wearing my wig") as Roxie Hart in Chicago. "I went to Broadway shows all the time with my parents," she recalls (dad is the late actor Paul Sorvino). "Some of the incredible performances we saw made me decide to be an actor." At the beginning of her second act, Sorvino looks back at where she's been. 'Swans Crossing' (1992) Courtesy of Everett Sorvino scored her first major role on this daytime soap, a high school drama that also helped launch the careers of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Brittany Daniel. "I was by far the oldest person in [the main cast] - I was in my 20s, and most of the other people were teens," Sorvino tells Us. "I play a character who's half Italian, half Chinese. I don't think that would fly today." YouTube has given the "silly" Swans new life: "It's achieved a kind of cult status." Connie Britton Takes Us Back to Her Biggest On and Off-Screen Moments With Dad Paul Sorvino (1993) She was known as Paul Sorvino's daughter when she first arrived on the entertainment scene, but soon enough, he was happy to be known as Mira Sorvino's father. "Me and dad were so close," says Mira of the late Goodfellas and Law & Order actor, who passed away at 83 in 2022. She still feels his paternal presence. "Sometimes, lights flicker," she explains. "That happened this morning, and it only happens once in a while. I really felt like it was Dad telling me that he was proud." 'Quiz Show' (1994) Buena Vista/courtesy Everett Collection The late Robert Redford - "so kind and intelligent and a perfectionist," Sorvino says - directed this Oscar-nominated drama about real-life TV scandals of the 1950s. "He was one of the first people who believed in me," she recalls. Being cast in a small but important role "was like an early sign that I actually was good enough to be in his film. That was very, very heady, because I was super-unknown." 'The 68th Academy Awards' (March 25, 1996) Decked out in Armani, Sorvino was shocked to take home the best supporting actress trophy for her portrayal of a foul-mouthed, warm-hearted sex worker in Woody Allen's 1995 comedy Mighty Aphrodite. "This was a fairy-tale, dream-come-true night," she remembers. "I was just preparing myself to be happy for whoever else won. I heard my name, and I kissed my then boyfriend [Quentin Tarantino], I kissed my parents, and then I felt like I floated up to the stage." 'Norma Jean & Marilyn' (1996) Doug Hyun / (C)HBO / courtesy Everett Collection Starring as idol Marilyn Monroe? "What a thrill and a scary challenge!" (Ashley Judd, left, on the red carpet, was young Norma Jean in the HBO biopic.) Sorvino even had a panic attack in her trailer as she put on a dress the icon had worn in her last film: "I basically said, 'Who am I to play Marilyn Monroe?'" Later, she learned Monroe's ex Arthur Miller had praised her performance. Mira Sorvino Blames 'Emily in Paris' for 'Romy and Michele' Sequel Delay 'Romy and Michele's High School Reunion' (1997) Buena Vista/courtesy Everett Collection They may not have invented Post-It Notes, but Lisa Kudrow and Sorvino's kooky, quotable characters have become pop culture royalty and go-to BFF Halloween costumes. "[The movie is] about being yourself and loving your best friends, no matter what other people think of you - just being your authentic self," Sorvino tells Us. "We had so much fun. I love Lisa. We're dear friends to this day." The two actresses - in fact, the "whole gang" - start filming a sequel in the spring. Romy and Michele are "still the same kind of the same people, living in a slightly frozen-in-time way, best friends doing everything together, you know?" Sorvino teases. "And then they're like, Have we missed out on anything?" 'Summer of Sam' (1999) Buena Vista/courtesy Everett Collection In a thriller about a Bronx neighborhood terrorized by the "Son of Sam" serial murders in 1977... Sorvino managed to hit the dance floor with John Leguizamo. "We rehearsed for a month doing the Hustle, which is a very specific social dance with lots of twirls and dips and spins," she recounts. "That was so much fun." The disco scenes also added some lightness to director