Tania Ribalow is an American film and television makeup artist best known publicly as the wife of Power actor Joseph Sikora, but her own career extends far beyond that relationship. She is a two-time Primetime Emmy nominee and an award-winning makeup professional whose credits include Boardwalk Empire, Joker, The Irishman, The Greatest Showman, Vinyl and The Knick.
Ribalow has spent decades working behind the scenes on major productions, progressing from makeup-artist assignments to key artist, department-head and star-request roles. Her marriage to Sikora brought wider public attention, yet her strongest professional credentials come from a long résumé in film and prestige television.
Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Tania Ribalow |
| Known For | Film and television makeup work |
| Occupation | Makeup artist, key makeup artist and department-head makeup artist |
| Professional Affiliation | Local 798 |
| Spouse | Joseph Sikora |
| Major TV Credits | Boardwalk Empire, Nurse Jackie, The Knick, Vinyl, Tommy |
| Major Film Credits | Joker, The Irishman, The Greatest Showman, The Many Saints of Newark, Sharper, Nonnas |
| Emmy Recognition | Two Primetime Emmy nominations in 2016 |
| Major Award | Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild Award for Joker |
Who Is Tania Ribalow?
Tania Ribalow is a professional makeup artist whose career has largely unfolded behind the camera. While many people discover her through searches about Joseph Sikora’s wife, she had already developed a substantial entertainment-industry résumé before their relationship became publicly known.
Her work spans studio films, independent productions and high-profile television dramas. Depending on the production, she has been credited as a makeup artist, key makeup artist, co-department head, department head or personal makeup artist for individual performers.
Those distinctions matter. A department head oversees the makeup operation for a production, while a key makeup artist generally occupies a senior role within that team. Ribalow’s progression into those positions reflects the experience she accumulated across years of film and television work.
Her Makeup Career Began Years Before She Met Joseph Sikora
Ribalow’s professional credits reach back to the late 1990s. One of her early documented assignments was as an assistant makeup artist on the 1999 romantic comedy Trick.
Her résumé expanded during the 2000s with work on films including The Secret Lives of Dentists, She Hate Me, Trust the Man, P.S. I Love You and Get Smart. Some assignments involved working directly with major performers, including Ellen Barkin and Anne Hathaway.
By this stage, Ribalow was no longer simply building experience on smaller productions. Her credits increasingly included key makeup and star-request responsibilities, signaling greater trust within professional makeup departments.
Boardwalk Empire Became an Important Professional and Personal Turning Point
One of the most consequential projects in Ribalow’s career was HBO’s Boardwalk Empire. She worked as a key makeup artist on the show’s pilot, which was directed by Martin Scorsese.
The production also marked the beginning of her relationship with Joseph Sikora.
Sikora appeared in the series and has publicly recalled that he met the woman who would become his wife while working on Boardwalk Empire. That account aligns with Ribalow’s professional résumé, which places both of them on the pilot.
The connection makes Boardwalk Empire notable for two separate reasons: it was another major prestige television credit for Ribalow and the project on which she and Sikora first crossed paths.
Nurse Jackie and The Knick Strengthened Her Television Career
Ribalow continued moving into senior makeup positions during the early 2010s.
She worked as department head makeup on Nurse Jackie, the Showtime medical comedy-drama starring Edie Falco. Her responsibilities there demonstrated the level of seniority she had reached within television production.
Her work on Cinemax’s The Knick later brought major awards recognition. The period medical drama, directed by Steven Soderbergh, required detailed makeup work suited to its early-20th-century setting.
For the episode “Whiplash,” Ribalow was part of the makeup team nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series in 2016.
It was the first of two Emmy nominations she received that year.
Vinyl Earned Her a Second Emmy Nomination
Ribalow also worked on HBO’s Vinyl, the music-industry drama created with involvement from Martin Scorsese, Mick Jagger, Rich Cohen and Terence Winter.
Her professional credits identify her as a key makeup artist and co-department head on the series.
The Vinyl pilot earned Ribalow her second Primetime Emmy nomination in 2016, again in the non-prosthetic makeup category.
The two nominations are often simplified in online biographies, sometimes incorrectly suggesting that she won an Emmy. The more accurate description is that Ribalow is a two-time Primetime Emmy nominee.
That distinction still places her among professionals whose work has received formal recognition from the Television Academy.
The Greatest Showman Added Another Major Film Credit
Ribalow later worked as a key makeup artist on the 2017 musical The Greatest Showman, starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, Rebecca Ferguson and Zendaya.
Her work on the film contributed to another period in which she was associated with large-scale studio productions requiring distinctive character styling.
The makeup team received recognition from the Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild, adding to Ribalow’s growing list of industry honors and nominations.
The project also demonstrated the range of her résumé. Her work was no longer concentrated in television drama; she was equally active on major feature films.
Joker Brought Her a Major Guild Award
One of Ribalow’s most important career achievements came through Todd Phillips’ 2019 film Joker.
She worked as a key makeup artist on the production alongside department head Nicki Ledermann and makeup artist Sunday Englis. The film’s visual presentation depended heavily on character makeup, particularly in transforming Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck into the Joker.
Ribalow, Ledermann and Englis won the Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild Award for Best Period and/or Character Makeup in a Feature-Length Motion Picture.
That award is one of the strongest professional distinctions on Ribalow’s résumé and supports describing her as an award-winning makeup artist.
It is also more precise than labeling her an “Emmy winner,” which would be inaccurate.
She Also Worked on The Irishman
The same general period included another major Martin Scorsese project: The Irishman.
Ribalow is credited as a key makeup artist on the 2019 crime drama, which starred Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci.
The film was notable for its extensive aging and de-aging work, though Ribalow’s credited role was part of the broader makeup department rather than the visual-effects process that received much of the publicity.
Her participation added another major Scorsese production to a résumé that had already included Boardwalk Empire.
Later Projects Included Tommy, The Many Saints of Newark and Sharper
Ribalow remained active in both television and film during the 2020s.
She served as makeup department head on the CBS drama Tommy, which starred Edie Falco as a Los Angeles police chief.
She later worked as a key makeup artist on The Many Saints of Newark, the 2021 prequel film connected to HBO’s The Sopranos.
Her subsequent credits included Sharper, the 2023 psychological thriller starring Julianne Moore, Sebastian Stan, Justice Smith and John Lithgow.
These projects reinforce a consistent career pattern: Ribalow has continued to work in senior makeup positions rather than becoming publicly known primarily through celebrity appearances or media exposure.
Nonnas and Goosebumps Continued Her Recent Work
Her more recent professional résumé includes work on Nonnas, with Ribalow credited in connection with Susan Sarandon’s makeup.
The Netflix film, released in 2025, starred Vince Vaughn alongside Susan Sarandon, Lorraine Bracco, Talia Shire and Brenda Vaccaro.
Ribalow’s résumé also lists work connected with David Schwimmer on the second season of Goosebumps.
These personal or star-request assignments are significant because they show another side of her professional career. Rather than only working within large makeup departments, she has also been trusted to handle makeup directly for established performers.
Industry databases additionally list her on the 2026 series American Classic, indicating that her professional activity has continued well beyond the projects for which she is most commonly recognized.
Tania Ribalow and Joseph Sikora Met While Working on Boardwalk Empire
Ribalow’s marriage to Joseph Sikora is the main reason many readers search for her.
Sikora is best known for playing Tommy Egan in Starz’s Power franchise, including Power and Power Book IV: Force. His character became one of the most recognizable figures in the franchise.
Their relationship began away from the publicity surrounding Power.
Sikora has said that he first met his future wife while working on Boardwalk Empire. Ribalow’s presence on the pilot’s makeup team independently supports that timeline.
The couple has generally kept their marriage outside the celebrity-news cycle. Sikora occasionally refers to his wife in interviews, but Ribalow herself has maintained a considerably lower public profile.
When Did Tania Ribalow and Joseph Sikora Get Married?
The year 2014 has been widely reported as the year Ribalow and Sikora married.
That date, however, should be treated carefully.
The couple has not publicly disclosed an exact wedding date, and reliable mainstream coverage has acknowledged that the precise timing of their marriage has not been confirmed directly.
For that reason, it is more accurate to say that they are widely reported to have married in 2014 rather than presenting the year as an independently verified personal record.
The distinction is especially important because many biography websites repeat dates from one another without tracing them to the couple or an original source.
What Has Joseph Sikora Said About His Wife?
Although Ribalow rarely gives public interviews about their relationship, Sikora has spoken warmly about his wife on several occasions.
During a 2020 interview, he discussed how his relationship changed his perspective on what mattered to him beyond acting. He described finding his wife as one of the most important developments in his personal life.
He has also credited her with encouraging him to seek therapy, something he said helped him become more accountable for his behavior and improve his approach to relationships.
In a later GQ appearance, Sikora referred casually to his wife while discussing everyday parts of his routine, including skincare and sunscreen.
These comments provide a more reliable picture of their relationship than the unsourced personal-life details often repeated by celebrity biography sites.
Do Tania Ribalow and Joseph Sikora Have Children?
There is no sufficiently reliable public confirmation establishing whether Ribalow and Sikora have children.
Some online biographies state that the couple has no children, but those claims generally do not cite direct statements from either of them or strong primary evidence.
The absence of public information should not be treated as confirmation that they are childless.
The most accurate conclusion is simply that details about children have not been publicly confirmed.
How Old Is Tania Ribalow?
Ribalow’s age is another area where online sources require caution.
IMDb lists her date of birth as February 7, 1973, with Linden, New Jersey, given as her birthplace. If that date is accurate, she would be 53 years old in 2026.
A strong primary source confirming the date has not been publicly identified, though, and other established entertainment databases do not provide the same information.
For editorial accuracy, her birth date and age are best treated as publicly reported rather than definitively confirmed.
Her education, childhood and detailed family background are similarly not well documented in authoritative public sources.
Is Tania Ribalow on Social Media?
Ribalow does not maintain a clearly verified, widely recognized public social-media presence.
No authenticated Instagram, X or Facebook account could be reliably identified as an official personal profile.
That fits with the broader pattern of her public life. Her professional presence is primarily visible through film credits, industry awards and representation rather than through personal branding or social media.
Her professional résumé is publicly available through Schneider Entertainment, which represents makeup artists working in film and television.
What Is Tania Ribalow’s Net Worth?
Tania Ribalow’s net worth has not been reliably established.
Celebrity biography websites publish dramatically different estimates, ranging from relatively modest figures to more than $10 million. None of those numbers is supported by public financial records, verified salary information or transparent calculations.
Her income would logically derive primarily from her long career as a film and television makeup professional, but individual compensation figures for her projects are not publicly available.
For that reason, presenting any specific net-worth figure as fact would be misleading.
Why Tania Ribalow’s Career Deserves More Attention
Ribalow is frequently introduced online only as Joseph Sikora’s wife, but that framing leaves out the most substantial part of her public record.
She worked in the entertainment industry for years before meeting Sikora and has held senior makeup positions on productions involving directors such as Martin Scorsese, Steven Soderbergh and Todd Phillips.
Her résumé includes two Emmy nominations, a major guild award for Joker and work across television series and feature films spanning several decades.
That professional history explains why she is better understood as an established makeup artist who happens to be married to a prominent actor, rather than simply as a celebrity spouse.
Conclusion
Tania Ribalow has built a long career as a film and television makeup artist, earning two Emmy nominations and a major Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild Award for Joker. Her résumé includes work on acclaimed productions such as Boardwalk Empire, The Knick, Vinyl, The Irishman and The Greatest Showman.
Although her marriage to Joseph Sikora drives much of the public interest around her name, her professional record gives her an established identity within the entertainment industry in her own right.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Tania Ribalow?
Tania Ribalow is a film and television makeup artist known for work on Joker, The Irishman, The Greatest Showman, Vinyl and The Knick. She is also the wife of actor Joseph Sikora.
Is Tania Ribalow an Emmy winner?
No. She is a two-time Primetime Emmy nominee. Both nominations came in 2016 for her work on The Knick and Vinyl.
What award did Tania Ribalow win for Joker?
She shared a Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild Award for Best Period and/or Character Makeup in a Feature-Length Motion Picture for Joker.
How did Tania Ribalow meet Joseph Sikora?
They met while working on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire. Ribalow worked on the makeup team, while Sikora appeared in the series.
When did Joseph Sikora and Tania Ribalow get married?
They are widely reported to have married in 2014, although the couple has not publicly confirmed an exact wedding date.
What is Tania Ribalow’s net worth?
Her net worth is not publicly verified. Figures published on celebrity biography websites should be treated as speculative estimates rather than confirmed financial information.
