Panamanian-American celebrities
Celebrities with Panamanian ancestry.
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- Raven-haired beauty Jordana Brewster was born on April 26, 1980 in Panama City, Panama. Her mother, Maria João Leal de Sousa, is a Brazilian-born model who appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated in 1978. Her father, Alden Brewster, is an American-born investment banker, who has English, Scottish, and Irish ancestry. Her paternal grandfather, Mayflower descendant Kingman Brewster, Jr., was president of Yale University from 1963 to 1977. Jordana was raised in London, England up until the age of six. At this time, her family decided to move back to her mother's native Rio de Janeiro. Here, they would stay for the next 4 years. Jordana learned to speak fluent Portuguese during her 4 year stay in Rio de Janeiro. At the age of ten, Jordana's family decided to move again, only this time they would relocate to Manhattan. It was here where Jordana studied at Sacred Heart, an all-girl Catholic school before moving on to the New York Professional Children's School. It was in her teens that Jordana began to make a name for herself by appearing in two of daytime television's longest-running soap operas, All My Children (1970) and in 1996 As the World Turns (1956), where she played the role of "Nikki Munson" for three years. Jordana also went on to co-star in the NBC mini-series The '60s (1999). The year 1998 marked her big-screen debut as "Delilah Profitt" in the teen-driven film, The Faculty (1998). However, it was her role as "Mia Toretto" in the blockbuster hit The Fast and the Furious (2001) that led her to reach Hollywood stardom. Despite her success, Jordana continued to attend Yale University, in the class of 2003. She played the lead in the prequel The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006), and reprised her role, Mia, in the sequels Fast & Furious (2009), Fast Five (2011), Fast & Furious 6 (2013), and Furious 7 (2015).
Brewster was married to producer Andrew Form in 2007, and they have two sons. - Born and raised in New York City by Panamanian parents, Melissa De Sousa attended the renowned High School of Performing Arts as a ballet major, and began her career as a principle dancer with The Alvin Ailey American Dance Company before transitioning into acting.
Melissa is best known for her performance as the infamous "Shelby" in the Universal Studio franchise The Best Man and The Best Man Holiday starring opposite Terrence Howard, for which she earned an NAACP Image Award nomination. Currently recurring as "Alex Rivera" in Our Kind Of People on FOX , and recently as "Chief Ana Lopez" on the CW's Black Lightning. Melissa also had a standout role as the pill popping journalist "Mirta Herrera" on Showtime's On Becoming A God In Central Florida opposite Kirsten Dunst. She led the cult hit series Single Ladies for BET Networks where she played Austin Aguilera, described as the Latin Kim Kardashian. A sexy, single socialite turned club owner, who liked to party.
De Sousa also starred opposite Matthew Perry in the TNT original presentation of The Ron Clark Story, which garnered an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Made For Television Movie. Other film work includes Lisa Cholodenko's Laurel Canyon with Frances McDormand, Donald Petrie's Miss Congeniality opposite Sandra Bullock, and the indie hit Constellation alongside Zoe Saldana. Her television credits include series regular roles on Reed Between The Lines, Second Time Around, One on One, Darren Star's drama The $treet for FOX, Valley Of The Dolls, and Damon, with Damon Wayans produced by Carsey- Werner, also for FOX. Guest Star credits include Criminal Minds, Elementary, Shameless, and countless others. De Sousa currently resides in New York. - Actor
- Producer
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Jeremy Lee Renner was born in Modesto, California, the son of Valerie (Tague) and Lee Renner, who managed a bowling alley. After a tumultuous yet happy childhood with his four younger siblings, Renner graduated from Beyer High School and attended Modesto Junior College. He explored several areas of study, including computer science, criminology, and psychology, before the theater department, with its freedom of emotional expression, drew him in.
However, Renner recognized the potential in acting as much through the local police academy as through drama classes. During his second year at Modesto Junior College, Renner role-played a domestic disturbance perpetrator as part of a police-training exercise for an easy $50. Deciding to shift his focus away from schoolwork, Renner left college and moved to San Francisco to study at the American Conservatory Theater. From there he moved to Hawaii and, in 1993, to Los Angeles.
In Los Angeles, Renner devoted himself to theater, most notably starring in and co-directing the critically acclaimed "Search and Destroy." He pursued other projects during this time as well, landing his first film role in 1995's National Lampoon's Senior Trip (1995). After several commercials and supporting roles in television movies and series, Renner captured the attention of critics with his gripping, complex portrayal of the infamous serial killer in the 2002 film Dahmer (2002). Renner's performance, which earned him an Independent Spirit Award nomination, is especially remarkable for painting a humane and sympathetic, yet deeply disturbing, portrait of the title character.
In 2003, Renner took a break from small indie films to work on his first commercially successful movie, S.W.A.T. (2003), with Colin Farrell. In 2005, he played the leading role in Neo Ned (2005) as an institutionalized white supremacist in love with a black girl, winning the Palm Beach International Film Festival's best actor award. Renner's pivotal supporting roles in 2005's 12 and Holding (2005) and North Country (2005) earned him accolades from critics, and his 2007 turn in Take (2007) garnered him the best actor award at California's Independent Film Festival. Also in 2007, Renner played a leading role in the horror film 28 Weeks Later (2007) as well as a supporting role in the underrated Western epic The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), with Casey Affleck, Brad Pitt, and Sam Rockwell.
Renner's depiction of Jeffrey Dahmer in 2002 caught the attention of director Kathryn Bigelow, and, in 2008, she cast him in his most famous role as Sergeant First Class William James in The Hurt Locker (2008). Renner's performance as a single-minded bomb specialist scored him an Academy Award nomination for best actor. He also earned best actor nominations from the Independent Spirit Awards, the Screen Actors Guild, and the BAFTA Awards, as well as wins in this category from several film critics groups.
In 2009, Renner starred in the short-lived TV series, The Unusuals (2009), and in 2010 he played the chilling but loyal criminal Jem in Ben Affleck bank-heist thriller The Town (2010). In the fall of 2010, Renner began filming Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011). He has also since starred in The Avengers (2012), American Hustle (2013), and Kill the Messenger (2014).
Renner's strengths as an actor derive not only from his expressive eyes but also from his ability to thoroughly embody the characters he portrays. His visceral depiction of these individuals captivates audiences and empowers him to steal scenes in many of his films, even when playing a minor role. Renner gravitates toward flawed, complicated, three-dimensional characters that allow him to explore new territory within himself.
In addition to his work as an actor, Renner continues to cultivate his lifelong love of music. A singer, songwriter, and musician, he performed with the band Sons of Ben early in his career. Scenes in Love Comes to the Executioner (2006), North Country (2005), and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) briefly showcase Renner's singing talents.
Despite traveling the world for film roles and, recently, as a United Nations Goodwill Peace Ambassador to raise awareness for mine-clearing efforts in Afghanistan, Renner remains close to his roots. In 2010, Modesto Junior College presented him the Distinguished Alumnus award in recognition of his body of work as an actor. He also headlined at a benefit for Modesto's Gallo Center for the Arts in the fall of 2010.
Renner maintains a sense of humility and gratitude, even in the wake of his recent successes and recognition. He keeps himself grounded by renovating and restoring old and rundown iconic Hollywood homes, an enterprise he began back in his early days in Los Angeles. He values loyalty and a sense of both age and history, and enjoys the opportunity to help conserve these qualities in a town that favors the young and the new.- Actress
- Producer
Leticia Jimenez was born in San Antonio, Texas. At an early age, Leticia became enamored with performing, specifically dancing. It was this love of expression that eventually lead her to discover acting. She landed her first on screen role as Orlando Jones's doomed wife in Seconds Apart. Among her most notable roles, Leticia appeared on the hit drama The Fosters as Maria Theresa Sinfuego and in Bronx SIU as the diligent Internal Affairs Officer, Miriam. These days, she splits her time between Los Angeles, New Orleans and Atlanta working in film and TV.- Palo Jimenez was born on 23 December 1998 in Slidell, Louisiana, USA. Palo is an actor, known for Dark Side of Football (2021), Thirst Trap (2024) and Voices (2022).
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Adam Samuel Quintero Young was born in Roehampton, London, to an English mother and a Spanish father. He speaks English, French, and Spanish natively. He is a graduate of The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts (NYCDA) and currently resides in Madrid Spain, where he is continuing to film for TV and cinema.- Actor
- Location Management
- Additional Crew
Matthew F. Rios was born on July 4, 1989 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA as Fernando Matthew Rios. He is an actor, known for Beautiful Something (2015), The Nail: The Story of Joey Nardone (2009) and The Counterparts (2014). Rios holds over a decade of experience in acting, and is currently expanding his experience with other production companies in the Independent scene.. Currently; Matthew F. Rios finds himself preparing himself for other film projects. He is also currently involved in co-starring in an upcoming short film titled Unexpected (2020).- Actress
- Writer
Taylor Ortega was born on 26 May 1989 in Cranbury, New Jersey, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Kim Possible (2019) and Succession (2018).- Armando Guerra is known for Gullah, Gullah Island (1994), Share the Wealth (2006) and Gullah Gullah Island: Sing Along with Binyah Binyah (1995).
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Born in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Sergio Duque came to the US at the age of 4 with his family. He started as a model shortly after high school and began his acting career in college where he appeared in the stage play "The Tempest".
His first break happened in 1995 when he landed a lead role opposite that of Ron Palillo "Horshak from the 70's TV show - Welcome Back Kotter" in The Premier Theater Company's production of "Guy's and Dolls". He also acted alongside Jesse Eisenberg "The Social Network, Zombieland, Justice League" for the same theater companies productions of "Oliver " and "Peter Pan".
Before moving to California to pursue his film and TV acting career, Sergio appeared in the leading roles for over 50 musicals throughout New York, New Jersey, and PA. His roles included Jekyll and Hyde, Jesus Christ Superstar, Man of La Mancha, and Godspell, to name a few. He also wrote, directed, and starred in on an original production entitled "Broadway Good and Evil" which performed to sold out audiences Off Broadway and is currently displayed as one of his articles of work at the Library of Congress.
Once arriving in California he immediately booked a 10 day movie shoot for the movie "Zombie Strippers" starring Robert Englund "Nightmare on Elm Street". He then went on to act in over 20 non union films and commercials including a lead in the nationwide commercial for "Rexona Deoderant", as well as the lead actor "Judas" for the TV show entitled "Biblical Mysteries Explained" - The Lost Gospels of Judas which traditionally airs every Easter week.
Sergio started writing back in 1992 and his work generated a lot of interest in Hollywood, so much so that he was signed on by the "Jerry Pace Agency" in Beverly Hills CA which currently represent him. His current full length movie projects include "Godlins" and "Visions Evilutions", both scheduled to start shooting this coming year.
Currently Sergio has completed the first 2 of 10 episodes for season 1 of "The Paraseekers" which features a team of Paranormal Researchers who have concrete evidence of the afterlife. The series is receiving tremendous positive response nationwide due to their raw, emotional, and unedited footage that proves that there is an afterlife.- Geraldine Moreno was born on 9 July 1992 in California, USA. She is an actress, known for The Traitors (2023), Trayizon (2019) and Chosen Kin (2015).
- Daniel A. Lopez was born on 21 August 1967 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. He is an actor, known for The Middle (2009), Shadow Bringers (2012) and The Bold and the Beautiful (1987).
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In 2019, Gabriel placed on The Latinx List sponsored by The Black List with his feature script ABEL. In 2022, his genre-bending comic pilot BEN'S ALCHEMY became #1 on The Red List, hit the Top 10 on Launch Pad's Pilot Competition, and Top 25 on the ScreenCraft Pilot Competition out of 3400 pilots. Gabriel was also a quarter-finalist for the WeScreenplay Diverse Voices Lab, Inroads Fellowship, Final Draft Big Break, and semi-finalist at the Academy Nicholl Fellowship.
As a cinematographer his films have screened at the Chicago International Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival, New York Film Festival and DGA to name a few. Gabriel won "Best Cinematography" at the Umbria Film Festival in Italy and was considered for the Gerald Hirschfeld ASC Award at the Ashland Independent Film Festival.
Gabriel received his BFA in Film from the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts. Gabriel resides in Los Angeles and is represented by Echo Lake Entertainment.- Writer
- Director
- Actor
Armando Valdes-Kennedy was born on 18 August 1971 in the USA. He is a writer and director, known for Get the Gringo (2012), The Way (2010) and Table 19 (2017).