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America Ferrera          

Award-Winning Actress, Producer & Humanitarian

America Ferrera is an award-winning actress and producer known for her breakthrough role as 'Betty Suarez' on ABC’s hit comedy, "Ugly Betty." For her performance, Ferrera was recognized with a Golden Globe®, Emmy® and Screen Actors Guild Award®, as well as ALMA and Imagen Awards.

She can be seen in the TV Mini-Series "WeCrashed," which details the rise and fall of WeWork, and as part of the star-studded cast for the upcoming Barbie movie.

Ferrera was the producer and star of the long-running NBC workplace comedy, "Superstore." Additionally, she directed several episodes such as 218 “Mateo’s Last Day” and episode 313 “Video Game Release” for the series. "Superstore" received nominations for the 2018 GLAAD Media Awards, the 2017 Imagen Awards, and the 2017 Gracie Awards. Ferrera is an executive producer of "Gentefied," described as a badass Spanglish series about family, community, brown love, and the displacement that disrupts it all. "Gentefied" follows three Mexican-American cousins and their struggle to chase the American Dream, even while that same dream threatens the things they hold most dear.

In September 2018, Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, published "American Like Me: Reflections on Life Between Cultures" edited by Ferrera. New York Times Bestseller, "American Like Me" is a vibrant and varied collection of first person accounts from prominent figures about the experience of growing up between cultures in America. Curated and edited by Ferrera, the anthology also includes essays by Ferrera, sharing her own perspective of growing up the daughter of Honduran immigrants in Los Angeles. Contributors to the book include Lin-Manuel Miranda, Roxane Gay, Issa Rae, Kumail Nanjiani, Congressman Joaquin Castro, Kal Penn, Uzo Aduba, Jenny Zhang, Michelle Kwan, Padma Lakshmi, and many others.

In 2019, Ferrera lent her vocal talents as “Astrid” in the third installment of the How To Train Your Dragon franchise, How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.

In 2017, Ferrera worked as one of the driving forces alongside other powerful women in Hollywood to establish the TIME’S UP movement which addresses the systemic inequality and injustice in the workplace that has kept underrepresented groups from reaching their full potential. Powered by women, the organization has partnered with leading advocates for equality and safety to improve laws, employment agreements, and corporate policies.

In 2016, alongside her husband Ryan Piers Williams and Wilmer Valderrama, Ferrera founded the organization, HARNESS, which connects communities through conversation to inspire action and power change. HARNESS is a community of artists, influencers, and grassroots leaders that provides education and engagement opportunities to amplify the work of organizations and individuals working on behalf of social justice. HARNESS has partnered with multi-platform content companies such as Hearst Media and NBC Entertainment to amplify stories of activism and social justice.

In July 2016, Ferrera spoke at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on behalf of women’s rights and immigration in support of Hillary Clinton. She was a chair of the Artists’ Committee for the Women’s March on Washington and spoke at the historic Women’s March the day after the 2017 Presidential Inauguration.

Ferrera has extended her activism on screen in several television documentaries including the EPIX TV mini-series, "America Divided," Showtime’s groundbreaking documentary, The Years of Living Dangerously, and Nicholas Kristof’s series for PBS "Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide."

Some of Ferrera's television and film credits include a memorable arc on the CBS hit "The Good Wife;" Ricky Gervais’ "Special Correspondents;" Ryan Piers Williams’ drama "X/Y," which she co-produced and starred in; Diego Luna’s biopic, Cesar Chavez, (ALMA Award Special achievement in Film); David Ayer’s crime thriller End of Watch; Ryan Piers Williams' The Dry Land, (Best International Film Edinburgh Film Festival); It’s a Disaster; Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (parts 1 and 2); Real Women Have Curves; Lords of Dogtown; How the Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer, among many others. She lends her vocal talents to the Oscar® nominated franchise film How to Train Your Dragon.

On stage, she has appeared off-Broadway in Terrence McNally’s Lips Together, Teeth Apart; Laura Marks’ Bethany; and Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, directed by Trip Cullman. She graced the stage as Roxie Hart in the West End production of the hit musical, Chicago.

In 2006, Ferrera founded her own television and film production company, Take Fountain.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, Ferrera is the youngest of six children. As a graduate of the University of Southern California, Ferrera studied International Relations while pursuing her career in film and television.

Speech Topics


Women's Leadership

Lunch with America Ferrera

An Evening with America Ferrera

News


America Ferrera, Pitbull bring Latinx representation to B.PHL Fest
Only in its second year, the 2020 B.PHL Fest is tackling the most important issues of today with a star-studded lineup.
How a Triathlon Helped America Ferrera Defy Her Inner Critic
It wasn’t a dream. I was standing onstage holding an Emmy. I’d imagined being in this room, clutching this statue ever since watching my first Emmy broadcast at 7 years old. Now, I was actually at the podium and accepting the award on national television. It was 2007, and I was 23. I had worked very hard to get this far, I was shooting 16-hour days to make “Ugly Betty,” and I was loving every minute of it.
Latino Celebrities Speak Out Against Anti-Immigrant Fear-Mongering
Today, celebrities including Benjamin Bratt, Ivonne Coll, America Ferrera, Dolores Huerta, George Lopez, Aubrey Plaza, Zoe Saldana, Carlos Santana, and others released an open letter calling on Latino communities to stand up to the anti-immigrant fear mongering of the 2016 GOP presidential candidates.
America Ferrera: Other Women Are Life Partners, Not Competition
America Ferrera knows just how valuable it can be to forge bonds between women. In conversation with feminist icon Gloria Steinem at the MAKERS conference on Monday night, Ferrera spoke about how she has been influenced by women over the course of her life. She was raised primarily by her mother, who she described as "an incredible force of nature," in a house of six children -- five of whom were girls. "There were so many women in my life," said Ferrera. "Strong women -- not always mentally sane women -- but strong women."
Why America Ferrera Is Saying 'Thank You!' to Donald Trump - ABC ...
Actress and activist America Ferrera joined the growing ranks of Donald Trump opponents today, arguing in an online missive that the real estate mogul's recent  ...
America Ferrera Eyes TV Comeback On ABC
America Ferrera may return to ABC. The former "Ugly Betty" actress' telenovela project "Pedro & Maria" is in development at the broadcast network as a potential  ...
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America Ferrera Graduating From College After 10 Years ...
"It's finally happening! Took me 10 years, but it feels great," the Ugly Betty star tweeted of her imminent graduation from the University of Southern California.
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