Santino Rafael Lopez entered the public eye through a family announcement rather than a television role. When Mario Lopez introduced his youngest son in July 2019, fans saw a familiar entertainer celebrating a deeply personal milestone: becoming a father for the third time. Since then, Santino has appeared in family photographs, joined celebrations for his father, and developed an interest in youth sports. By 2026, his public story also included a screen credit alongside his family. His biography is therefore a story still taking shape, with childhood, close family connections, and a few documented milestones providing the clearest picture of who he is today.
Who Is Santino Rafael Lopez?
Santino Rafael Lopez is the youngest child of television host and actor Mario Lopez and actress and radio personality Courtney Lopez, formerly Courtney Mazza. He has two older siblings, Gia Francesca Lopez and Dominic Luciano Lopez. Readers may also encounter the shorter name Santino Lopez or his family nickname, Sonny. These names refer to the same child. His parents’ public careers explain much of the interest surrounding him, although his own activities have begun attracting attention too. The most useful way to understand his biography is through that family setting: two parents with entertainment backgrounds, an older sister and brother, and a childhood occasionally shared with their audience.
Santino Rafael Lopez’s Birthday and Age
Santino Rafael Lopez was born on July 7, 2019, according to updated family coverage from PEOPLE. He is seven years old as of November 5, 2026, having celebrated his seventh birthday in July. Some early articles associated his arrival with July 8, the day Mario publicly announced the birth. Keeping the birthday separate from the announcement date helps explain that difference. His age also provides context for every later milestone: he was four during the March 2024 tournament highlighted by his father and five when he attended Mario’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony that October. Those dates show how recently his earliest public appearances occurred.
Why His Family Called Him a Miracle
Before Santino Rafael Lopez was born, Mario spoke openly about how much a third child would mean to the family. In a January 2019 PEOPLE interview, he described the pregnancy as “a bit of a Christmas miracle.” The couple had been hoping to expand their family and were delighted by the news. They also chose to wait until the birth to discover whether they were having a boy or a girl. Mario described Gia and Dominic becoming excited about the new baby and showing affection toward their mother. These comments capture the anticipation surrounding Santino’s arrival and explain why his birth announcement carried such warmth.
The Story Behind His Name and Nickname
The name Santino Rafael Lopez has a connection to one of Mario’s favorite film characters. In 2022, Mario explained that he named his son after Santino “Sonny” Corleone, the character played by James Caan in The Godfather. Family and friends also call the younger Lopez Sonny, making the nickname part of the same naming story. Mario has separately explained that Santino means “little saint” in Italian. The film connection offers a specific, documented answer to a question many readers ask about his name. It also reveals a small piece of his father’s personal taste, linking an affectionate family nickname with a memorable character from cinema.
His Father, Mario Lopez
Mario Lopez became widely recognized for playing A.C. Slater in Saved by the Bell. His later career expanded into entertainment reporting, television presenting, radio, producing, and writing. The Hollywood Walk of Fame’s official biography highlights work including Access Hollywood, Access Daily, and On with Mario Lopez. This broad career helps explain why Santino Rafael Lopez has been familiar to entertainment audiences from an early age. His father’s work reaches viewers who first knew him as a sitcom actor and listeners who follow his radio conversations. For Santino’s biography, Mario’s career supplies the public background, while their shared family appearances provide glimpses of their relationship beyond those professional roles.
His Mother, Courtney Lopez
Courtney Lopez brings her own performing experience to the family. Her official professional biography lists stage work in A Chorus Line, The Little Mermaid, and Cry Baby, along with the national tour of Thoroughly Modern Millie. Pittsburgh CLO records that she began performing with the organization at six and later spent years with its Mini Stars program. She also joined Mario as a cohost of On with Mario Lopez in 2014. Understanding this background gives Santino Rafael Lopez’s family story greater depth: both parents have worked as performers, and Courtney’s experience stretches from childhood theater to Broadway and broadcasting. Her career forms an important part of the family’s creative history.
His Parents’ Broadway Love Story
The relationship at the center of Santino Rafael Lopez’s family began on Broadway. Mario and Courtney met in 2008 while working on the revival of A Chorus Line. They later married on December 1, 2012, in Mexico, with their daughter Gia serving as the flower girl. Their wedding also became the subject of the TLC special Mario and Courtney’s Wedding Fiesta. The timeline gives readers a helpful overview of how the family grew: Gia arrived in 2010, the wedding followed in 2012, Dominic was born in 2013, and Santino joined them in 2019. By his arrival, Mario and Courtney already had several years of experience raising children together.
Gia and Dominic: Santino’s Older Siblings
Gia Francesca Lopez and Dominic Luciano Lopez are an essential part of Santino Rafael Lopez’s biography. Gia, born in 2010, is the eldest of the three children, while Dominic, born in 2013, is the middle child. Their arrival years make the family’s age differences easy to understand: Santino came nearly nine years after his sister and almost six years after his brother. Mario’s early interviews described both older children becoming enthusiastic about their new sibling after the pregnancy announcement. Later public coverage has shown another connection between the brothers through their involvement in martial arts. Together, the siblings form the younger generation of a family regularly seen supporting one another at public events.
Santino Rafael Lopez and His Interest in Sports
Youth sports provide one of the clearest documented interests in Santino Rafael Lopez’s childhood. The family’s radio website highlighted his first wrestling tournament in November 2023. PEOPLE later reported that Mario shared videos in March 2024 celebrating both Santino and Dominic winning gold at a jiu-jitsu tournament. These are distinct activities, so wrestling and jiu-jitsu should be identified accurately when discussing his participation. The reports show Santino taking part in organized competition while still very young. They add something concrete to his biography beyond his parents’ careers: a record of childhood involvement in sport. A tournament result marks that particular achievement without predicting what role athletics may play in his future.
A Childhood Shared Through Family Moments
Some of the earliest glimpses of Santino Rafael Lopez came through Mario’s descriptions of life with a newborn. In a July 2019 PEOPLE interview, Mario affectionately called him “the most chilled out baby so far.” He also said Gia and Dominic were delighted with their little brother. Years later, Mario described parenting to Us Weekly as a shared effort involving Courtney, their mothers, and other relatives who helped the family. Together, these interviews offer a picture of Santino’s early family setting across different stages of childhood. They emphasize the practical support behind the photographs: parents with demanding work, older children adjusting to a younger sibling, and relatives contributing to family life.
Supporting Mario at the Hollywood Walk of Fame
A particularly memorable public appearance came on October 10, 2024, when Santino Rafael Lopez joined his family at Mario’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony. Mario received the Walk’s 2,792nd star, in the television category, on his fifty-first birthday. Photographs from the event showed Courtney, Gia, Dominic, and Santino celebrating with him. Santino and Dominic wore black suits, making their appearance a recognizable part of the family photographs from that day. For readers tracing Santino’s public milestones, the ceremony provides a clearly dated event with reliable coverage. It also illustrates how the Lopez children have participated in major family celebrations connected to their father’s long career in television and entertainment.
Santino Rafael Lopez’s 2026 Screen Appearance
By 2026, Santino Rafael Lopez’s public biography included an acting credit. IMDb lists him, credited as Santino Lopez, in Honey, I Think Our House Is Haunted. Reporting on the series described it as an aTwist microseries featuring Mario, Courtney, and their children, with an announced launch date of October 8, 2026. The horror comedy follows a family moving into an inherited house where unsettling events begin to occur. This credit is a meaningful update for readers who have previously seen Santino described only through his family relationship. It documents participation in a screen production, while leaving future roles, career ambitions, and any longer acting plans open until further work is publicly confirmed.
Conclusion
Santino Rafael Lopez’s biography brings together several well documented parts of a young life: his arrival in 2019, his place as Mario and Courtney’s youngest child, the story behind the nickname Sonny, his participation in youth sports, and a family screen project in 2026. His parents’ professional histories explain the public interest, while the details of his own activities give the story a more personal shape. At seven years old in November 2026, Santino is still at the beginning of that story. The milestones already available provide an engaging introduction to him, with future birthdays, interests, and confirmed projects able to add new chapters as he grows.
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Santino Rafael Lopez in 2026?
Santino Rafael Lopez is seven years old as of November 5, 2026. His birthday is July 7, 2019, which means he turned seven on July 7, 2026. Readers may see younger ages in older interviews because those reports describe the family at the time they were published. For example, an article written before his birthday in 2024 would describe him as four, while coverage from October 2024 would describe him as five. Using the birth date and the date of the event resolves those differences. For an article being updated later, both the stated age and its reference date should move forward together.
Who are Santino Rafael Lopez’s parents?
His parents are Mario Lopez and Courtney Lopez. Mario is an actor, television presenter, and radio host whose credits include Saved by the Bell and Access Hollywood. Courtney is an actress and broadcaster with a background in musical theater and Broadway. The couple also work together on On with Mario Lopez, giving audiences a setting where their professional lives and family conversations overlap. Their son therefore has two parents with established entertainment experience. Mario has described raising their children as a team effort supported by relatives, which adds useful context to the family’s public image and the work involved in balancing careers with parenting.
Does Santino Rafael Lopez have brothers or sisters?
Yes. Santino Rafael Lopez has an older sister, Gia Francesca Lopez, and an older brother, Dominic Luciano Lopez. Gia was born in 2010, Dominic in 2013, and Santino in 2019, making him the youngest of Mario and Courtney’s three children. These birth years establish the sibling order clearly and help readers follow family interviews published at different times. Gia was already part of the family when her parents married, and Dominic arrived the following year. Santino’s birth later expanded the household to five. Public appearances such as Mario’s Walk of Fame ceremony have brought all three siblings together in photographs, offering a straightforward view of the immediate family.
Why is Santino Rafael Lopez called Sonny?
Sonny is a family nickname connected to Santino’s first name and its film inspiration. Mario has explained that he named his youngest son after Santino “Sonny” Corleone, portrayed by James Caan in The Godfather. PEOPLE reported Mario’s explanation in 2022 and noted that family and friends also use Sonny. Consequently, an interview mentioning Sonny Lopez may be referring to the same child identified elsewhere by his full name. The connection is particularly helpful when reading family updates, where affectionate nicknames often replace formal names. His middle
What has Santino Rafael Lopez appeared in?
Santino Rafael Lopez is listed by IMDb in the 2026 series Honey, I Think Our House Is Haunted, with the credit appearing under Santino Lopez. Entertainment reporting identifies the production as an aTwist horror comedy featuring Mario, Courtney, and their children. Its announced release date was October 8, 2026. This provides a specific title readers can associate with his screen work. It should also be kept separate from his public appearances at family celebrations, which serve a different purpose. A listed acting role documents participation in that production; further films, series, or professional commitments would need their own confirmation before becoming part of an updated filmography
