Gina Rodriguez

Gina Rodriguez (born July 30, 1984) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Majo Tenorio in musical-drama film Filly Brown, as Beverly in the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful, and as Jane Villanueva in the CW comedy-drama series Jane the Virgin, for which she has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy, winning in 2015. Early years Rodriguez was born in Chicago, Illinois, the youngest daughter of Puerto Rican parents Genaro Rodriguez, a boxing referee, and Magali. She is the youngest of three sisters. She was raised in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood on Chicago's Northwest Side. At the age of seven, Rodriguez performed at the salsa dance company Fantasia Juvenil. Rodriguez was raised Catholic, and attended high school at St. Ignatius College Prep. She continued dancing salsa until age 17. At the age of 16, she was among thirteen teenagers to be accepted into Columbia University's Theatrical Collaboration. She attended NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. She had four years of training at the Atlantic Theater Company and Experimental Theatre Wing, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2006. She portrayed Frida Kahlo in the world premiere of Casa Blue in the United Kingdom in the play called The Last Moments in the Life of Frida Kahlo at the American Stage Theatre. Career On October 19, 2011, Rodriguez landed the recurring role, Beverly, in the soap opera series The Bold and the Beautiful. She received a role in the musical film Go for It!, for which she received a 2011 Imagen Awards nomination. She appeared in Filly Brown, for which she won an Imagen Award. She also was the recipient of the Best Actor Award at the First Run Film Festival in New York. On June 9, 2013, Gina won the Inaugural Lupe Award. On April 16, 2013, during an interview, she revealed she was offered a role in the Lifetime television series Devious Maids, but had turned it down. On October 16, 2013, she joined the cast of the upcoming movie Sleeping With The Fishes. She is also working on an album. On February 23, 2014, Entertainment Weekly announced that Rodriguez would play the titular role of Jane Villanueva in Jane the Virgin. On June 4, 2014, Rodriguez joined the cast of the upcoming drama film Sticky Notes. In August 2015, she co-hosted the 2015 Teen Choice Awards with Ludacris and Josh Peck. Her older sister, Ivelisse Rodriguez Simon, is an investment banker, and her middle sister, Rebecca, is a doctor.  In an interview, Rodriguez revealed that she had suffered from a thyroid condition since the age of 19. In a 2014 interview, she said, "I grew up Catholic. I have Jewish in my family and I attend a Christian church in Hollywood. I am basically all over the place."