<Ul> <Li> Justina Machado as Penelope Riera Alvarez , a United States Army Nurse Corps and mother of Alex and Elena . She works as a nurse for Dr. Leslie Berkowitz . After coming back from army service , she joins a therapy group to help her with her depression and anxiety . In the first season she separates from her husband Victor and starts dating Ben . Later she breaks up with Ben after Victor 's visit for Elena 's quinceañera . In season two Penelope decides to go back to school to become a nurse practitioner . She begins dating an Army Veteran , now EMT Max Ferraro , but breaks up with him after finding out he wanted children of his own , and decides to let him find that chance with someone else , as she believes that she is too old for another child , and has two children of her own . </Li> <Li> Todd Grinnell as Dwayne Schneider , the rich landlord of the building . He is a close friend of the family and Penelope 's best friend . Schneider is frequently having one - night stands with different women . Often in the series he talks about having multiple stepmothers and how dysfunctional his family was , while also occasionally discussing his history of addictions . He is Canadian and after years of having a green card decides to become a US citizen . </Li> <Li> Isabella Gomez as Elena Maria Alvarez Riera Calderón Leytevidal Inclán , the activist and feminist teenage daughter of Penelope . After dating Josh , a classmate , and watching gay porn , she discovers that she is a lesbian and comes out to her family . The news does n't sit well with her father , which upsets Elena . In season two she finds a love interest and founds a Gay - Straight Alliance club at her Catholic School . </Li> <Li> Marcel Ruiz as Alejandro `` Alex '' Alberto Alvarez Riera Calderon Leytevidal Inclan , the son of Penelope . He wants to gain popularity at school and is part of the baseball team . He starts a school project about Cuba . In season two he begins working during the summer at Dr. Berkowitz 's office . </Li> <Li> Rita Moreno as Lydia Riera , a faithful Cuban , Penelope 's mother and grandmother of Elena and Alex. She fled Cuba after Castro seized power . She was a dancer and a performer back in the day . Over the course of the season , she develops a relationship with Dr. Berkowitz . </Li> <Li> Stephen Tobolowsky as Dr. Leslie Berkowitz , Penelope 's boss and Lydia 's love interest . </Li> </Ul>
<Ul> <Li> Justina Machado as Penelope Riera Alvarez , a United States Army Nurse Corps and mother of Alex and Elena . She works as a nurse for Dr. Leslie Berkowitz . After coming back from army service , she joins a therapy group to help her with her depression and anxiety . In the first season she separates from her husband Victor and starts dating Ben . Later she breaks up with Ben after Victor 's visit for Elena 's quinceañera . In season two Penelope decides to go back to school to become a nurse practitioner . She begins dating an Army Veteran , now EMT Max Ferraro , but breaks up with him after finding out he wanted children of his own , and decides to let him find that chance with someone else , as she believes that she is too old for another child , and has two children of her own . </Li> <Li> Todd Grinnell as Dwayne Schneider , the rich landlord of the building . He is a close friend of the family and Penelope 's best friend . Schneider is frequently having one - night stands with different women . Often in the series he talks about having multiple stepmothers and how dysfunctional his family was , while also occasionally discussing his history of addictions . He is Canadian and after years of having a green card decides to become a US citizen . </Li> <Li> Isabella Gomez as Elena Maria Alvarez Riera Calderón Leytevidal Inclán , the activist and feminist teenage daughter of Penelope . After dating Josh , a classmate , and watching gay porn , she discovers that she is a lesbian and comes out to her family . The news does n't sit well with her father , which upsets Elena . In season two she finds a love interest and founds a Gay - Straight Alliance club at her Catholic School . </Li> <Li> Marcel Ruiz as Alejandro `` Alex '' Alberto Alvarez Riera Calderon Leytevidal Inclan , the son of Penelope . He wants to gain popularity at school and is part of the baseball team . He starts a school project about Cuba . In season two he begins working during the summer at Dr. Berkowitz 's office . </Li> <Li> Rita Moreno as Lydia Riera , a faithful Cuban , Penelope 's mother and grandmother of Elena and Alex. She fled Cuba after Castro seized power . She was a dancer and a performer back in the day . Over the course of the season , she develops a relationship with Dr. Berkowitz . </Li> <Li> Stephen Tobolowsky as Dr. Leslie Berkowitz , Penelope 's boss and Lydia 's love interest . </Li> </Ul>
who plays penelope on one day at a time
who plays penelope on one day at a time
Justina Machado
Justina Machado