One of Fox's newest dramas, The Cleaning Lady, will officially be back this Fall for its second season. The crime drama created by Miranda Kwok is based on the Argentine series La Chica que Limpia. The American adaption shares the same premise as the original series focusing on a struggling mother who works hard as a cleaning lady to take care of her son who has an immunodeficiency disorder. Only when she crosses paths with gangsters, she takes on another job as their crime scene cleaner to acquire more money for her son's treatment. The thrilling story explores intriguing circumstances of gray morality and that all the characters' actions or motives aren't always definitive good or evil. It also highlights the socially relevant plight of undocumented immigrants and their treatment in America.
The show premiered in January 2022 with its first season airing for 10 episodes. By April, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on September 19. With Season 2 now airing, here's a guide to the characters of The Cleaning Lady and the brilliant cast that portrays them.
Élodie Yung as Thony De La Rosa
The show's fearless protagonist is Thony De La Rosa who is a Cambodian doctor based in Manila, Philippines. Upon the discovery of her son, Luca (Sebastien LaSalle and Valentino LaSalle), has a rare autoimmune disease, Thony goes to the US to get him the extensive medical treatment he needs. She moves in with her sister-in-law, Fiona, in Las Vegas where they work for a cleaning service. Thony prioritizes her son's health and continues to live on a dangerous edge when her visa is close to expiring. Living and working as an undocumented immigrant, Thony learns how to survive and get what she needs by any means necessary especially when she stumbles into the underground world of crime where Arman works. Thony is a dedicated mother and very caring towards her extended family. She's also highly intelligent and resourceful when it comes to her work and motivations.
Élodie Yung is a French actress whose film and TV roles have mainly been in action stories. She starred in the films G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Gods of Egypt, The Hitman's Bodyguard, and Secret Society of Second-Born Royals. Her most popular role is playing Elektra Natchios in the second season of Daredevil and The Defenders.
Adan Canto as Arman Morales
Arman is a mobster who works for a notable crime cartel led by his boss, Hayak Barsamian (Navid Negahban). He has a long history with Hayak for whom his parents worked under as cleaners and gardeners. Arman was eventually brought into Hayak's business and became his trusted right-hand man who helps run one of his money-laundering clubs in an exclusive Las Vegas hotel. In a chance encounter when he and Thony first meet, Arman hires her as a cleaner for any mob-related business that he conducts. Arman holds a heart of gold despite his vicious field of work. His humble origins while growing up feed into his inclination to help Thony. Despite him being married to Nadia, he and Thony share a deep connection that borders on romantic feelings and attraction. He also faces other complications like the FBI trying to seek his arrest and stop Hayak while his own loyalty to his boss starts to waver.
Adan Canto is a Mexican actor who has built a steady list of TV roles after first starring in The Following and the sitcom Mixology. His breakout role in television was as Aaron Shore in Designated Survivor. He also starred in X-Men: Days of Future Past as Sunspot and in Halle Berry's directorial debut Bruised.
Oliver Hudson as Garrett Miller
The other side of the law that Thony brushes with is FBI Agent Garrett Miller. He's a gruff and impulsive agent who is hellbent on trying to bring down Hayak and his crime ring. Thony and Arman become his targets in an effort to complete the mission but to questionable and even dangerous lengths that Thony doesn't agree with. His struggling personal life feeds into his irritable attitude at work since he's separated from his wife and can only see his own kid a few times. Garrett's character is a prime example of gray morality when the juxtaposition of him and Arman exposes how he uses Thony for his own intentions of stopping this crime ring while Arman genuinely helps her despite his profession.
Oliver Hudson comes from a family of actors with his mother being Goldie Hawn (The First Wives Club) and his sister being Kate Hudson (Almost Famous). He has been part of several TV shows where his most prominent roles are Adam Rhodes in Rules of Engagement, Jeff Fordham in Nashville, and Wes Gardner in Scream Queens. His previous gig before The Cleaning Lady was the TV sitcom Splitting Up Together. He has appeared in films like Grown Ups 2 and Walk of Shame.
Martha Millan as Fiona De La Rosa
Fiona is the sister-in-law and coworker of Thony. She helped Thony and Luca settle in America for his treatment where they live in the same house with Fiona's teenage children, Chris (Sean Lew) and Jaz (Faith Bryant). The two sisters-in-law are extremely close and rely on each other as a tight-knit family since Fiona is a single mother. She and Thony can often make each other laugh or comfort each other when they're troubled. She serves as the mediator between Thony and her husband, Marco, who is Fiona's brother.
Martha Millan is an Australian-Filipino actress who started out on the daytime soap opera As the World Turns. Before The Cleaning Lady, she previously appeared in other series like Entourage, The OA, and Succession. She also starred in the Danny Glover film The Drummer.
Eva De Dominici as Nadia Morales
Nadia Morales is the beautiful wife of Arman who is well versed in operating the cigar club in the hotel that Hayak has allocated to them. She and Arman are well in tune with each other when it comes to running the business and making sure that their positions are protected. Nadia encourages him to be more ambitious and tries to persuade Hayak to make him a partner of the hotel. She interacts occasionally with Thony and is aware of Arman helping her with her son's medical bills. Of course, Nadia grows suspicious of the bond between Arman and Thony.
Eva De Dominici is an Argentine actress and model. She is a popular telenovela actress, especially in the series Los ricos no piden permiso. She has appeared in some American projects like Hawaii Five-O and the film Cosmic Sin, but The Cleaning Lady has been her most notable role so far.
Ivan Shaw as Marco De La Rosa
Marco is Thony's husband and the brother of Fiona. He remains in touch with Thony and Luca while being in the Philippines. He and Thony's marriage is revealed to be under strain due to Luca's health and Marco's own struggles with gambling. He tries to redeem himself in Thony's eyes while being a caring father to Luca, but she still sees him as a liability after all the stress that caused her to distance herself from him on the other side of the world.
Ivan Shaw is an American actor who started out in television after starring in the soap opera All My Children. He was part of other TV series like The Book of Daniel and That Dirty Black Bag. He also appeared in small roles in Pearson, Insecure, and On the Verge before landing The Cleaning Lady.