Why The CarShield Commercial Actress Looks So Familiar

CarShield offers its members protection from the high costs of auto repairs. In the pursuit of spreading that message, the company has tapped a number of celebrity sponsors, including "Ghostbusters" star Ernie Hudson, sports commentator Chris Berman, and wrestler Ric Flair. For its latest suite of ads, CarShield doubled down on the star power by pairing up two of the company's spokespersons: Ice-T and Vivica A. Fox.

One two-minute ad is completely in Ice-T's wheelhouse. Titled "The Perp Who Paid Too Much On Repairs," the commercial plays like an episode of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" in miniature. Fox and Ice-T grill a car owner at a repair shop as moody procedural music plays in the background. "I guess I should've called CarShield," he admits after they barrage him with money-saving tips.

In another ad, Fox lists off her areas of expertise. "After all these years, I've become an expert at acting, producing, writing, and, yes, great hair. But one thing I'm not an expert at? Car repairs." Indeed, Fox is recognizable from some of her many acting roles. Here are the ones that made her a household name.

Vivica A. Fox got her start in entertainment in the 1980s when she moved to California from Indiana and worked as a dancer on "Soul Train." Acting roles followed, and in 1988, Fox joined the cast of "Days of Our Lives." Soon after, she appeared in other soaps like "Generations" and "The Young and the Restless." At the same time, she made single-episode appearances in shows like "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" and "Family Matters."

Fox's big break came in 1996 when she appeared as Jasmine, the love interest to Will Smith's Captain Steven Hiller, in "Independence Day." The sci-fi action film was the highest-grossing movie of the year, beating out titles like "Twister" and "Mission: Impossible." "Independence Day" earned Fox an MTV Movie Awards nomination for best breakthrough performance (she and Smith did nab an award that night for best kiss).

In 2016, she reprised the role of Jasmine for "Independence Day: Resurgence," though she later lamented Smith's absence from the sequel. "They didn't want to pay [Will Smith], unfortunately, and the movie sucked," Fox told VladTV. "I just wish that they had paid Will his money, and we would have done two more."

"Independence Day" wasn't Fox's only box office hit of 1996. She also starred in the heist film "Set It Off," alongside Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett, and Kimberly Elise.

If Vivica A. Fox broke through in 1996, then she spent 1997 confirming her star power. That year, she starred in the ensemble drama "Soul Food." The film follows an extended family in Chicago that meets weekly for Sunday dinners despite their many interpersonal issues and the death of the family matriarch, Mother Joe (Irma P. Hall). Fox plays the maternal middle sister, Maxine, and was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for the role.

Fox stars alongside Vanessa Williams, Nia Long, Michael Beach, and Mekhi Phifer. "The work of all the actors in these sequences," wrote Roger Ebert, "is a reminder of how rich the African-American acting community has grown in recent years, with the renaissance in Black-themed films." Despite the film's meager budget, "Soul Food" was a sleeper hit.

That same year, Fox also starred in the romantic comedy "Booty Call" opposite Jamie Foxx. Additionally, she made her superhero film debut in "Batman & Robin" as Ms. B. Haven, the flirty assistant to Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger). "Batman & Robin" is considered one of the worst Batman films, but Fox stands by George Clooney's performance. "It's sad, because he tried! He did a good job," Fox told ComicBook.com. "I don't know, maybe just toward the end, they were tired of the franchise. But I had a great time filming it with him and Arnold. It was awesome."

By the millennium, Vivica A. Fox had proven to be a staple in thrillers and comedies alike. However, she hadn't dabbled in martial arts. That changed with "Kill Bill: Volume 1," Quentin Tarantino's 2003 bloody tale of revenge and swordplay. Fox plays Vernita Green, also known as Copperhead, a former member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad. After the group's failed attempt to murder one of their own, Beatrix (Uma Thurman) goes on a vengeful killing rampage, starring with Vernita in her suburban home.

According to an excerpt from Fox's memoir, "Every Day I'm Hustling," Tarantino first thought of casting Fox when he saw her face on the DVD cover of the 2001 rom-com "Two Can Play At That Game." "We discussed favorite movies, of course," Fox recalled (via Time). "I talked about Pam Grier and how much I loved her, and Richard Roundtree, who'd played my dad on 'Generations.' 'Yeah, I'm Shaft's daughter,' I joked." Tarantino had previously directed Pam Grier in "Jackie Brown."

After landing the part, Fox endured rigorous training — so rigorous that she snapped at Tarantino one day. "I lost it on him. 'Is this a 'beat us up' contest?' I asked. 'Are we f***ing doing anything right? Goddamn.' Everyone gasped." Fox credits Thurman for encouraging her to advocate for herself on set. Despite the rocky training period, Fox looks back at "Kill Bill" fondly. In early 2023, she even appeared in the SZA music video for her song "Kill Bill."

Leon Black (J.B. Smoove) has become such an integral part of "Curb Your Enthusiasm," it's easy to forget that his involvement stems back to Vivica A. Fox. In the Season 6 premiere of the Larry David-starring series, Larry and Cheryl take in a family — led by Fox's Loretta Black — that has been displaced due to Hurricane Edna. In Episode 2, Leon moves in, despite already living in Los Angeles. Loretta and Larry initially have a platonic relationship, but when his and Cheryl's marriage falls apart, the pair get involved in the Season 6 finale.

However, the romance is short-lived. Loretta receives a cancer diagnosis at the beginning of Season 7; in typical "Curb" fashion, a series of escalating misunderstandings leads to their break-up. Fox ultimately appeared in 11 episodes between 2007 and 2009.

For Fox, "Curb Your Enthusiasm" was a masterclass in improvisation, a form of comedy in which she was inexperienced. "You have to have on your big-girl boots when you work with Larry David," the actress said in an interview for BUILD Series, noting that David has exacting standards when it comes to comedy. "You would come to work, and they would give you a little piece of paper with the synopsis on the scene," she continued. "Then [the actors] had to write jokes about it ... you'd come in and pitch your joke and pitch your line and how your line would come in ... totally improv." Fox added, "I should have got a writing credit."

Vivica A. Fox has an extensive resume, but it was "Celebrity Apprentice," of all things, that landed her a spot on "Empire." When her longtime friend Lee Daniels saw her compete on the reality series, he knew he wanted her to be a part of his musical drama series. In 2015, she joined the cast as Candace, the snobby older sister of Cookie Lyon (Taraji P. Henson).

"I love working with Taraji," Fox told the Detroit Free Press in 2015, confirming that the pair knew each other for over two decades before finally getting to collaborate. "She gave me the hugest compliment during a press conference in New York. She said, 'I grew up watching Vivica. Vivica inspired me. I just consider [it] a huge honor that she's gonna play my sister.' That really touched my heart."

After being a recurring cast member for Seasons 2 through 5, Fox was bumped up to the main cast in Season 6. She ultimately appeared in 25 episodes between 2015 and 2020. Still, the actress stayed busy elsewhere, appearing in countless TV movies, among other projects. From 2016 to 2021, Fox produced and starred in a thriller series of over 25 TV movies with titles like "The Wrong Roommate" and "The Wrong Stepmother."