The Moment That Changed Everything For NCIS Star Maria Bello

Maria Bello has captivated fans on the small screen and silver screen for years, but her impressive acting career was nearly derailed before it truly started. Speaking to Flare in 2006, the actor recalled a time when she was trying to make it in the industry. Bello had been rejected for a role, which led to her being fired by her agent. A despondent Bello ran down the streets of New York until she came upon a gaudy, high-heeled shoe. "I took off my army boot and put the pump on — and it fit! I felt like Cinderella in that moment," Bello told Flare. She took it as a sign and continued pursuing acting. Eventually, she landed roles on "E.R.," "Coyote Ugly," "A History of Violence," and portrayed Dr. Jaqueline "Jack" Sloane on "NCIS" for three years, per IMDb.

When the actor left the beloved franchise, she had a tearful farewell on and off-camera, per Deadline. After Sloane shared a touching final moment with Mark Harmon's Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Bello uploaded an Instagram photo of her and Harmon embracing. "Though in our business, like many, there are quite a few a**holes – there is not one on the set of NCIS," she wrote.

Throughout the years, Bello has been unafraid to bare her soul on social media and in her writing. Keep reading to learn about the time she revealed how a moment with her son changed her life.

In 2013, Maria Bello penned an essay for The New York Times titled "Coming Out as a Modern Family." The actor detailed how a conversation with her son Jackson Blue McDermott, who was 12-years-old at the time, changed her outlook on love. The actor told her son about her relationship with her close friend, Clare Munn. "I didn't think of it as romantic or sexual," Bello wrote. "She was one of the most beautiful, charming, brilliant, and funny people I had ever met, but it didn't occur to me that we could perhaps choose to love each other romantically," Bello actor wrote.

This conversation helped Bello realize her feelings for Munn. "I had become involved with a woman who was my best friend," she recalled in the Times piece. This altered how Bello viewed romantic relationships. "I would like to consider myself a 'whatever,' ... Whomever I love, however I love them," she wrote. A couple of years later, she wrote a memoir about the experience, "Whatever...Love Is Love: Questioning the Labels We Give Ourselves."

Bello would define her sexual identity as "W" in the book, which stood for "Whatever." Her main focus was not defining herself but helping others embrace openness. "I felt like it was my responsibility to continue that conversation," she told the Advocate in 2015. "Give me any label you want to help advance human rights," Bell added. She would end up falling in love with another person who was passionate about women's rights.

While attending Elton John's Oscars party in 2020, Maria Bello announced to the media that she was engaged to French chef Dominique Crenn, per People. Bello shared how excited she was to bring Crenn to Hollywood events. The proprietor of renowned restaurant Atelier Crenn uploaded a photo of the two on Instagram on Feb. 10, 2020 to share the news. "How beautiful and powerful when love comes your way. She said oui!!!!" she wrote. "We are free because we live and speak the truth and believe in the divine rights of freedom for others."

Bello, a US Global Ambassador for Women of Haiti, had long been a champion for women's rights. This is a topic the two bond over. "We believe that women are claiming their rightful place at the table," Crenn wrote in her Instagram post.

During a Q&A in 2017, one male audience member asked Crenn if she felt guilty for missing out on "the very important role of being a mother to children" to pursue a career as a chef. The restauranteur deftly answered the question by pointing out that she was the mother of twin daughters, but that was beside the point. "If you have kids, I hope you stay home with them, so that your wife can go out and be a bad-a** woman," Crenn responded (via Eater). Bello and her partner certainly make one terrific combo.