FBI: Most Wanted Star Wendy Moniz Shares Swimsuit Photo of “End of Summer Blues”

1. Skiing In Vail

Wendy Moniz/Instagram

Moniz loves skiing in Vail, Colorado. “I went skiing & brought my bestie⛷️⛷️Thank you @paramountnetwork @paramountplus for an amazing weekend…such a GREAT group of people. I’m very grateful to be part of the family!” she captioned an Instagram post of herself posing with a friend on the slopes.

2. Strong Role Model

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Moniz is excited to represent strong women on screen. “From an actor's point of view, it's a thrill to be playing a powerful woman in a world of men and to be able to hold your ground, stand on your own, and then to be strong,” she says. “I don't think you see a lot of that on television. Hats off to Taylor because he has created a world with really strong women and even more so this season as we see a bunch of new faces. I mean, earlier it was Beth and Monica and myself, but there this year, there are several others.”

3. Soap Opera Roots

Wendy Moniz/Instagram

Moniz is proud of her soap opera roots [Guiding Light] as it taught her a lot. “Being on a soap opera could be considered low on the totem pole and starting out, for me, it was just a great place to train and work every day,” she says. “I loved every minute of it. And I’ll tell you, I learned a lot… to be disciplined and when you have to turn out an episode a day, or whatever it was, it’s been a long time, we’re going back to the early nineties, but you had to turn out a lot. And, God bless the writers for those shows. The writing was always tricky. So what I learned was to really take some time with the writing that was not as strong as it is now, when you go into primetime TV and working with other writers.”

4. Learning New Language

Wendy Moniz/Instagram

Moniz says auditioning for Yellowstone was very challenging. “It was like another language, like the way the laws are with the livestock commission and what was going on with the reservations,” she says. “My audition was not huge, but I just felt like I needed to really research what was going on. I did Google the region’s governors to get a sense…mostly I just looked up what it was, what goes on in that part of the country. It felt like I was so not versed in any of it and felt kind of ignorant about it. And I thought it was fictional. And then I started researching it and like, ‘Oh, no, wait a minute.’ There are stories [and] this is happening now, or this has happened in the past, with these stories of people…”

5. Love For Costner

Wendy Moniz/Instagram

Moniz plays Senator Lynelle Perry on Yellowstone and loves working with Kevin Costner. “We definitely had a natural ease with each other out of the gate and it came across on screen it seems,” she says. “I think sometimes people have chemistry naturally and sometimes they don’t, and they have to fake it and it still works. It’s that intangible thing. Working with him has just been really easy and a pleasure and we find humor in our scenes together and playfulness and I think that helps with the dynamic too.”

1. Strength From Mom

Frye is inspired by her mother to follow her dreams. “My mom is a strong woman herself, a constant inspiration and a great motivator,” she says. “She gave my brothers and me the confidence to go after what we want in life. When my own confidence wavers, I call and ask her to tell me a few magic stories from our life. I call them ‘magic stories’ because they tend to be situations where fate has played a heavy hand. She’s a wonderful storyteller and they always lift my spirits and remind me that what is meant to be will be. I attribute my ability to go after what I want completely to my mom. I surround myself with like-minded people and they motivate me every day in their pursuit of their dreams. It’s never easy, but nothing worth having ever is.”

2. Healthy Habits

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Frye credits her beautiful complexion to healthy habits. “I hope I don’t sound like a broken record, but this is something else I attribute to my mom,” she says. “She’s a redhead as well and has wonderful skin. She told me as a young woman to never smoke, drink much, or spend a lot of time in the sun. I don’t smoke, drink much, or spend a lot of time in the sun, or if I am in the sun, I’m slathered in SPF 50+. I also eat plenty of vegetables, drink an inordinate amount of water, and go for long walks with my pup, Coco.”

3. Family Business

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Frye comes from a family of entertainers, which made it easier to gather the courage to tackle the entertainment industry. “I come from a family filled with storytellers,” she says. “My mom is one of the best, and my oldest brother is actually a playwright, theater director, and founder of the Catastrophic Theatre in Houston. But, I’ve always performed. I was a figure skater, too. In the back of my mind, I had always wanted to do this. The sensible part of my brain thought I needed to be a lawyer, so I went to school for business. Then I had a conversation with myself and my family and asked them what they thought. They agreed with me and told me that I only have one life, so I might as well try it. Thankfully, it’s worked out, and I knew if it didn’t, I could go back and still be fine. I love it, though. It’s really fun to inhabit another person.”

4. Outdoorsy Life

Frye loves her outdoor lifestyle in Austin, Texas. “Austin’s energy is palpable,” she says. “I love how Austin very much feels like Texas but also has a sprinkling of East Coast and West Coast mentality, with its trademark quirky undertone. I love a long run on Town Lake, taking my pup, Monty, to one of the many dog parks around town, and catching a movie at one of the Blue Starlite Drive-In locations. I really enjoy boating with friends who live on Lake Travis, and I loved boating to Ski Shores Cafe with friends, so I look forward to it reopening. A fun afternoon activity is checking out the sculpture garden at the Contemporary at Laguna Gloria or swimming at Barton Springs like my mom did when she was a little girl.”

5. Sunblock Year Round

Frye never skips skin protection, and keeps her skin moisturized—which she found easier in Hawaii . “I wear sunblock year round,” she says. “It’s the one product I can’t do without. Wintertime usually has me moisturizing a bit more to keep the dryness away… I LOVED living on Oahu. I must have been Hawaiian in a past life, because I take to Hawaii like a fish takes to water. It is what I imagine Heaven is like. I’d love to end up back there at some point.”