Career
She is well known for her roles in Wentworth as Franky Doyle and in Southern Star’s American Film Institute award winning drama Rush as Senior Constable Stella Dagostino, for which she received continuous critical acclaim over the show"s four-season run. Other television roles include East West 101 and All Saints. Nicole da Silva is also known for her theatre work, including Blood Wedding (Malthouse Theatre) and Behanding in Spokane (Management and Training Corporation).
Other theatre work includes Queen C at Belvoir Street Theatre, British Columbia for The Hayloft Project, and This is Our Youth.
She attended Parramatta West Public School, Girraween High School and studied dramatic arts at Theatre Nepean. Her fellow Theatre Nepean graduates include Joel Edgerton, David Wenham, and Yvonne Strahovski.
Da Silva commenced her acting career in 2005 when she received a recurring role in the medical drama series All Saints, as Sasha Fernandez. In 2007 and 2009, she appeared in leading roles in the short-lived drama series" Dangerous with Khan Chittenden and Brooke Satchwell, and in Carla Cametti Privatdozent , both of which consisted of one season.
Da Silva was recognized for her role in the police drama series Rush as Senior Constable Stella Dagostino, which played in all four seasons from 2008 until the show"s cancellation in 2011.
Her television guest roles include Home and Away {2006} and East West 101. Da Silva is perhaps best known for her role in the SoHo television drama series Wentworth, a reimagining of the classic Network Ten series Prisoner (Prisoner: Cell Block H), which ran from 1979 to 1986. Da Silva portrays Franky Doyle (initially played by Carol Burns in Prisoner), a tough lesbian inmate of Wentworth Correctional Facility fighting for the position of top dog, until fellow inmate Bea Smith (Danielle Cormack) takes her on in a fight in season two, forcing Franky to step down and proudly announce Bea as the new top dog.
Da Silva earned an Astra Award for Most Outstanding Performance by an Actor - Female in 2013 for her portrayal of Franky.
In 2014, da Silva appeared in the feature film Drama. In February 2014 she was announced as the first National Champion of United Nations Women North Carolina Australia.