20 Amazing Bodies of Iconic TV Drama Stars

In a world of spies, scandals, and law and order, one thing remains consistent on TV's most popular dramatic shows: The iconic stars who star in them stay fit. After all, what's more fun than seeing courtroom showdowns, medical emergencies and family meltdowns through the eyes of good-looking celebs? Here we've collected the best wellness tips from stars like Kerry Washington, Keri Russell, Viola Davis and more.

1. Kerry Washington

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Kerry Washington played Olivia Pope on Scandal. She tells The Cut that she likes to exercise first thing in the morning. "It depends on what I’m working on at the moment, but generally I start my day between 5 and 6 a.m. with a workout. I do a combination of Pilates, weight training, and cardio. I also love to be outdoors, whether it is swimming or hiking."

2. Mariska Hargitay

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Mariska Hargitay plays Olivia Benson on Law & Order: SVU, being the longest running TV character of all time. She talked about what she loves about the role to People. “We’ve been on a parallel journey,” she says. “There’s a thing WWOBD, what would Olivia Benson do? The fans would always talk about it, and one day it hit me. I also have those moments where I’ve sort of slipped into her. If there’s a crisis, I just take over and lead like that. Being strong and fearless. It’s sort of this perfect feminist story.”

3. Priyanka Chopra

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One of Priyanka Chopra’s roles was as Alex Parrish on the ABC drama, Quantico. She tells Into The Gloss that she uses a lot of organic products to take care of her skin. “Lemon or lime in water is really great for skin. Coconut water, too. I had troubled skin, but I never had acne. My skin just didn’t glow much, so I learned early that what I eat really matters. In India, people love turmeric. They make turmeric milk, and sometimes I mix it with some cream or yogurt and turn it into a scrub. You’d be amazed at what it can take off your skin.”

4. Mandy Moore

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Mandy Moore played Rebecca Pearson on This Is Us. She opened up about having to make changes to her diet to Women’s Health. “I found out that I don’t actually have celiac, but I have a severe gluten intolerance,” Moore says. “So I try to stick to a mostly gluten-free diet. Not super strict, like I’ll have soy sauce and stuff like that, but I’ll stay away from bread and other big culprits.”

5. Sarah Michelle Gellar

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Sarah Michelle Gellar played Buffy Summers on Buffy The Vampire Slayer. She shared some of her skincare secrets with Shape Magazine. "I treat my skin nicely, and it's not necessarily this specific product per se...But it's about making sure that every night, I wash my face. And it's not just wash it and go to bed. I wash it, I rub it, I prep it, I give it minerals, you know, the same way you would treat the rest of your body."

6. Alyson Hannigan

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Alyson Hannigan played Willow Rosenberg on Buffy The Vampire Slayer. She competed on the recent season of Dancing With The Stars, and shared how the show changed her body to Life & Style. “It’s insane. First of all, I lost 20 pounds – and I’m all muscle, which is incredible. My healthy eating’s gone out the window, and now I’m just, like, eating whatever I can. I think it’s more a testament to how out of shape I was when I started. Dancing for four hours a day.”

7. Keri Russell

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Keri Russell played Elizabeth Jennings on The Americans. She shared her skincare routine with Shape. "I have dry skin, so I use super-creamy Eve Lom Cleanser (Buy It, $80, sephora.com). Two years ago, my makeup artist—who gets me ready for the fancy things—said, 'You know, you should do this facial before an awards show.' So I went to the Joanna Vargas spa, and after I did it I was like, 'Oh, this is what they've all been doing.' You know what really works, actually, which I just was telling my girlfriends about? That weird mechanical [microcurrent] device called the NuFace. I do notice a difference. Beyond that, I try to wash my face at night."

8. Gabrielle Union

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One of Gabrielle Union’s many roles was as Mary Jane Paul on Being Mary Jane. She shared her approach to beauty and living in the public eye with WhoWhatWear. “People are going to have a lot of say about everything for your whole life. You’re never going to make 100% of people happy. Start with yourself—start and end there. Don’t make excuses for it. Don’t explain it. Do what makes you happy. If you want thin eyebrows, bitch, you better go for it! It’s no one else’s business.”

9. Viola Davis

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Viola Davis won an Emmy for her role as Annelise Keating on How To Get Away With Murder. Davis shared her skincare routine with Allure. “I'm a product [fanatic]. I'm not necessarily into clothes and the only shoes I love are my sneakers, of course, but [I love beauty products]. I have my acids, my peel pads. I use those, and then I have my essential oils. After I shower, I slather on lemongrass, lavender, or frankincense essential oils. I love perfume. I love my Hermès perfume. I love my Creed perfume — I spray that on even at night, 'cause it makes me feel pretty.”

10. Sandra Oh

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Sandra Oh played Cristina Yang on Grey’s Anatomy and Eve Polastri on Killing Eve. Her trainer, Dove Rose, shared Oh’s approach to fitness with Us Weekly. “What’s so beautiful about someone like Sandra and most of my clients staying so consistent is that they stay strong enough w​​here, regardless of our ages, we continue to kick ass. She works hard. That’s why she looks so damn good.”

11. Jodie Comer

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Jodie Comer is best known for her role as Villanelle on the hit series, Killing Eve. She revealed her skincare secrets to W Magazine. “In the morning, I always like to use a toner—either a rose toner or some sort of mist moisturizer—and I cleanse and tone. I use the Radiance Resilience Moisturizer which works incredibly on me. It has a really nice, almost perfect consistency; a little goes a long way and I like the smart individual packaging. My friend asked me, ‘Don’t you miss sticking your finger in a pot of cream?’ and I was like, ‘Not really, no.’ I love that it’s compact and kind of laid out for me. My favorite product of the whole line is the Overnight Recharge Cream because I feel that once I wake up and see what it’s done overnight, it gets your morning off to a nice head start. My skin is hydrated, and I would say it’s my initial go-to.”

12. Alyssa Milano

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Alyssa Milano played Phoebe Halliwell on Charmed and Savi Davis on Mistresses. In an interview with The Huffington Post, she talked about her approach to work-life balance. “There are no tips that I can give because every day is something different, you know? It’s a very hard balance for sure. But I do find that the most important thing in being a working mother is to just try, no matter how hard it is to find time for yourself and to do the things that make you happy. And do whatever it takes to help yourself relax.”

13. January Jones

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January Jones is best known for her role as Betty Draper on Mad Men. She revealed to Into The Gloss that she makes sure to take vitamins. “I am very good about taking my vitamins. [Laughs] I think my dad instilled that in me. I take vitamin C, vitamin B, turmeric, and I take probiotics and enzymes. I make sure my son takes his vitamin C and allergy serum in the morning, too. And I do take Biotin—I'm not sure if it does anything or not, but I started taking it for my nails because I had to wear acrylics for nine years for Mad Men. After we wrapped, I didn't touch them. I just let them breathe for over a year. And I literally got a gel manicure for the first time a month or so ago. I'll either do a classic red or a pinky nude—just something simple."

14. Eva Longoria

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Eva Longoria’s most well-known role was as Gabrielle Solis on Desperate Housewives. She shared her approach to fitness in an interview with ELLE. “We tend to overthink our workout routine—‘I don’t have a gym membership, I don’t have equipment at home,’—you don’t need anything to be active. Moving your body is a start. I would run five minutes a day and I couldn’t even last five minutes. Every day just built up more and more.”

15. Katherine Heigl

US actress Katherine Heigl attends the 75th Emmy Awards Governors Gala at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles on January 15, 2024. (Photo by)VALERIE MACON / AFP via Getty Images

Katherine Heigl played Izzie Stevens on Grey’s Anatomy. After having her son, she revealed on Instagram that she turned to the BBG Sweat app to lose the pregnancy weight. “The progress I’ve made in only 5 short weeks has kept me motivated and inspired to keep going! I am so grateful I’ve had a full year to find those ab muscles and get my butt back up where it belongs and wasn’t forced by work to snap back into shape, but it is time to make the strength, fitness and overall health of my body a priority.”

16. Laverne Cox

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Laverne Cox played Sophia Burset on Orange Is The New Black. Cox has amazing skin, and she revealed her routine to Allure. “I try to keep it simple: I just moisturize and I have a really puffy undereye area so I just do different depuffers and eye creams. That's it. Sometimes doing too many things can make your skin just kind of go crazy.”

17. Alexandra Breckenridge

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Alexandra Breckenridge played Sophie Inman on This Is Us. She shared her skincare secrets with New Beauty. “I am definitely doing a lot more now though to try to keep up with my skin, my fine lines and everything else—nothing crazy, but I want to keep my skin looking healthy and whatnot. I use the NuFace at home and I use it a lot while I’m working. I also have one of those LED lamps. I try to use that more frequently now. I’m basically just trying to take better care of my skin. I’m also very interested in lasers. I guess I’m looking forward to the point where I am not as concerned about aging, and I just kind of embrace it. I’m getting there; I don’t I have any other choice!”

18. Halle Berry

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One of Halle Berry’s many roles was as Molly Woods on the CBS series, Extant. She shared her fitness secrets with Marie Claire. “My fitness routine changes. Some days it's more cardiovascular-heavy. Some days it's working with light weights. Sometimes it's calisthenics, sometimes it's yoga, sometimes it's Pilates. I just recently got a Pilate machine at home, which I love, love, love. Sometimes it's that. I just try to mix it up. I think our bodies get used to the same exercises. So for me, it's always been important to do different things all the time.”

19. Gina Torres

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Gina Torres played Jessica Pearson on Suits and the spin-off, Pearson. She talked about her approach to fitness in an interview with Health Magazine. “With working out, it’s about strength — being able to run up the stairs and just feeling like I can get myself out of a situation,” she said. “I always want to come from a place of power, and of knowing my body. The fringe benefit of that is that I look great in some clothes … and am fit for life.”

20. Susan Kalechi Watson

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Susan Kalechi Watson played Beth Clarke Pearson on This Is Us. She revealed to People that like her character, she loves to dance. “Dance is so important to me because it’s a way of expression without speaking. I think for me it’s a more thorough way of expression. I can dance something and people will know exactly how I feel. Things that I can’t even find the words for.”