# Alexandra Metz
**Alexandra Metz** is an American actress and producer, known for playing Dr. Yolanda Garcia, a trauma surgeon, in the medical drama *The Pitt* (2025–2026). She trained in [Brown University](https://www.edgepedia.org/brown-university)'s eight-year medical program before leaving medicine for acting, and her screen career includes recurring and guest roles on *Chicago Fire*, *Once Upon a Time*, *Frequency*, *Grey's Anatomy*, and *Tracker*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Signature role | Dr. Yolanda Garcia, a trauma surgeon in *The Pitt*, 24 episodes across seasons 1 and 2 (2025–2026)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/) |
| Education | Accepted into Brown University's Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME), an eight-year medical track; graduated with a degree in Human Biology[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) • [1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/) |
| Casting | Audition tape sent at the end of May 2024; callback on Zoom with executive producer John Wells and showrunner Scott Gemmill[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) |
| Early recurring role | Elise Mills in *Chicago Fire*, 6 episodes (2012–2015)[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz) |
| Notable guest roles | Rapunzel in *Once Upon a Time* (2014); Maya Gowan in *Frequency* (2016); Carmen Alvarez in *Grey's Anatomy* (2023); Tracy Thompson in *Tracker* (2024)[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz) |
| Background | Born in Manhattan, New York City; raised by a single mother from Panama[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/) • [2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) |
## Early life and education
Metz was born in Manhattan, New York City.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/) In interviews she has described growing up between New York City and upstate New York, raised by a Panamanian mother of Caribbean and Colombian descent.[4](https://ebbymagazine.com/alexandra-metz-the-pitt-dr-yolanda-garcia-interview/) Her mother, a single immigrant from Panama, steered her three daughters toward secure professions; her eldest sister became a lawyer and her middle sister a doctor.[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz)
Metz applied as a high school student to Brown University's Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME), an eight-year combined bachelor's and medical degree track, and was accepted while her sister was already in the program.[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) She has said she did not set out to become a doctor; she excelled in science and math and considered actuarial work. The program's liberal-arts component let her take courses outside the sciences, and exposure to acting there led her to change direction toward performance.[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) She graduated from Brown with a degree in Human Biology.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/)
## Career
**Television work.** Metz's screen credits begin with guest parts on New York–based procedurals, including *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit*, *Law & Order: Criminal Intent*, *The Good Wife*, and *Blue Bloods*.[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz) Her first substantial recurring role was Elise Mills on *Chicago Fire*, appearing in six episodes between 2012 and 2015.[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz) In 2014 she played Rapunzel in the *Once Upon a Time* episode "The Tower."[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz) Later guest roles include Maya Gowan in *Frequency* (2016), Ora in *The Magicians* (2018), Dr. Melanie Dalton in *How to Get Away with Murder* (2016), Carmen Alvarez in *Grey's Anatomy* (2023), and Tracy Thompson in *Tracker* (2024).[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz)
Her film work includes the rowing drama *Backwards* (2012), in which she played Hannah, the title listed in the American Film Institute Catalog.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Person/347671-Alexandra-Metz) AlloCiné also credits her as a screenwriter on one episode of *Kevin Can Wait* (2017).[6](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-501350/filmographie/)
## The Pitt and Dr. Yolanda Garcia
Metz's audition for *The Pitt* arrived at the end of May 2024, with the character described to her as confident to the point of slight arrogance, but competent and effective. After taping herself, she received a callback over Zoom with John Wells, who directed the first episode, and showrunner Scott Gemmill; she learned she was the creative team's preferred choice within an hour of the call, pending network and studio approval.[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz)
*The Pitt* is a medical drama set in real time across a 15-hour emergency department shift, made with the stated aim of realism and attention to the strains on healthcare systems.[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) Metz plays Dr. Yolanda Garcia, a trauma surgeon who mentors the intern Dr. Santos (played by [Isa Briones](https://www.edgepedia.org/isa-briones)) and treats patients in the aftermath of a mass shooting in the season's twelfth episode.[7](https://popcultureunplugged.com/blog/alexandra-metz-on-playing-dr-garcia-in-the-pitt-shes-a-boss) • [8](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/pitt/max-original-drama-series-pitt-debuts-january) Metz has said her Brown medical training and her friendships with practicing physicians informed her portrayal, and that she borrowed from doctors' accounts of how they change in the workplace.[2](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz) She has also credited on-set consultations with doctors and medical advisors for the show's accuracy.[7](https://popcultureunplugged.com/blog/alexandra-metz-on-playing-dr-garcia-in-the-pitt-shes-a-boss)
The role is her largest to date: 24 episodes across the show's first two seasons.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/) In an April 2025 interview she confirmed that season 2 would begin filming in June of that year.[7](https://popcultureunplugged.com/blog/alexandra-metz-on-playing-dr-garcia-in-the-pitt-shes-a-boss)
## Upcoming work
Metz is cast as Birdie Palmer in a 2027 episode of *Will Trent* and appears in the short film *Halfway Apart*, in post-production, as Keisha Simms.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/)
## References
1. [Alexandra Metz, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3880032/)
2. [Zak Ahmed (April 26, 2025). "'The Pitt' Interview: Alexandra Metz dives into Dr. Garcia." Zak's Film and Fashion, Substack.](https://zakfilm.substack.com/p/the-pitt-interview-alexandra-metz)
3. [Alexandra Metz, TVmaze credits](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/3321/alexandra-metz)
4. ["Alexandra Metz Interview: The Pitt and Dr. Yolanda García." Ebby Magazine.](https://ebbymagazine.com/alexandra-metz-the-pitt-dr-yolanda-garcia-interview/)
5. [Alexandra Metz, AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Person/347671-Alexandra-Metz)
6. [Alexandra Metz : Filmographie, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-501350/filmographie/)
7. ["Alexandra Metz on Playing Dr. Garcia in The Pitt – 'She's a Boss'." Pop Culture Unplugged, April 3, 2025.](https://popcultureunplugged.com/blog/alexandra-metz-on-playing-dr-garcia-in-the-pitt-shes-a-boss)
8. [Max Original Drama Series THE PITT Debuts This January, Pressroom](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/pitt/max-original-drama-series-pitt-debuts-january)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames Mc to Mi*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license