Jenna Dewan
Born: December 3, 1980
Age: 44
Birthplace: Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Jenna Dewan Tatum (/dəˈwɑːn ˈteɪtəm/; born Jenna Lee Dewan; December 3, 1980) is an American actress and dancer. She began her career as a backup dancer for Janet Jackson, and later worked with artists including Pink, Missy Elliott, and Christina Aguilera. She is known for her role as Nora in the 2006 film Step Up. She has also starred on the short-lived NBC series The Playboy Club and had a recurring role on the FX series American Horror Story: Asylum. She was Freya Beauchamp on the Lifetime series Witches of East End and as of 2016 was playing the recurring role of Lucy Lane in Supergirl. Dewan has been married to actor Channing Tatum since 2009.
Early life
Dewan was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the daughter of Nancy Smith (née Bursch) and Darryll Dewan, who was a running back on the 1972 Notre Dame football team. Her father is of Lebanese and Polish descent and her mother is of German and English ancestry. Her parents divorced when she was young and her mother remarried Claude Brooks Smith. While attending high school at Notre Dame Preparatory School in Towson, Maryland, Dewan was a varsity cheerleader. She transferred to Grapevine High School in Grapevine, Texas. She was also a varsity cheerleader there and graduated in 1999 from Grapevine High School and was voted prom queen during her senior year. She went to University of Southern California and was a member of the California Gamma Chapter of Pi Beta Phi.
Career
Dancing
Dewan first appeared in Janet Jackson's "Doesn't Really Matter" video, and later in "All for You" and the All for You Tour. Dewan credits working with Jackson for aiding her career, allowing her to later work with many other artists and giving her the experience necessary to co-star in the dance film Step Up.
Acting
2006 co-starred in Take The Lead and Step Up.
In August 2008, Dewan starred in the Lifetime made-for-television film Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal which follows five rule-breaking teens. She portrayed the role of disciplinarian Coach Emma Carr. In November 2009, she appeared in the straight-to-DVD comedy American Virgin alongside Rob Schneider.
In March 2011, Dewan was cast in the NBC pilot of The Playboy Club. In May 2011, NBC picked up the series for a full season. She portrayed the role of Bunny Janie, a provocative Playboy bunny who works at a Playboy Club in Chicago in 1961. The series premiered on September 19 to 5.2 million viewers with mixed reviews from critics. Due to low ratings, NBC cancelled the series after just three episodes in October 2011.
In November 2011, Dewan starred in the film The Jerk Theory. This was first released in Germany in 2009. It was later released in the US in November 2011.
Dewan appeared in the romantic-comedy film 10 Years, produced by her husband Channing Tatum. The film was released on September 14, 2012. That same year, she appeared in American Horror Story: Asylum, the second season of the horror television series, as Teresa Morrison.
In 2013, Dewan began starring in the Lifetime series Witches of East End as Freya Beauchamp, one of the lead characters. In the fall of 2015 she began a recurring role in the CBS series Supergirl playing Lucy Lane, the sister of Lois Lane and girlfriend of James Olsen.
33andOut Productions
Along with friends Reid Carolin, Adam Martingano, Brett Rodriguez and husband Channing Tatum, Dewan started a production company called 33andOut Productions. Their first production is a documentary called Earth Made of Glass that follows Rwandan President Paul Kagame and genocide survivor Jean-Pierre Sagahutu. It premiered at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival.
Personal life
In 2006, Dewan met actor Channing Tatum on the set of their film Step Up. They began dating shortly after filming had finished. The couple became engaged in early September 2008 in Maui, and married on July 11, 2009, at Church Estates Vineyards in Malibu, California. Their daughter, Everly Elizabeth Maiselle Tatum, was born in May 2013 in London, England.
Dewan is an animal rights activist and a vegan.
Dewan is raising her daughter as a vegetarian but says she will let her decide what to eat when she gets old enough.
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2005 | Waterborne | Devi | |
2005 | Tamara | Tamara Riley | |
2006 | Step Up | Nora | |
2006 | Take the Lead | Sasha | |
2006 | The Grudge 2 | Sally Johnson | |
2008 | Love Lies Bleeding | Amber | Direct-to-video |
2009 | Falling Awake | Alessandra | |
2009 | Six Wives of Henry Lefay, TheThe Six Wives of Henry Lefay | Sarah Jane | |
2009 | Jerk Theory, TheThe Jerk Theory | Molly Taylor | |
2009 | American Virgin | Priscilla White | |
2011 | Legend of Hell's Gate: An American Conspiracy, TheThe Legend of Hell's Gate: An American Conspiracy | Katherine Prescott | |
2011 | Balls to the Wall | Rachel Matthews | |
2011 | 10 Years | Jess | |
2011 | Setup | Mia | |
2012 | Slightly Single in L.A. | Hallie |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | Quintuplets | Haley | Episode: "Little Man on Campus" |
2004 | Young and the Restless, TheThe Young and the Restless | Donna | 2 episodes |
2005 | Joey | Tanya | Episode: "Joey and the Break-up" |
2008 | Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal | Emma Carr | Television film |
2009 | Melrose Place | Kendra Wilson | 2 episodes |
2011 | Playboy Club, TheThe Playboy Club | Bunny Janie | Main cast; 3 episodes |
2012-13 | American Horror Story: Asylum | Teresa Morrison | 6 episodes (2 uncredited) |
2013 | She Made Them Do It | Sarah Pender | Television film |
2013-14 | Witches of East End | Freya Beauchamp | Main cast; 23 episodes |
2014 | Mindy Project, TheThe Mindy Project | Brooke | Episode: "Be Cool" |
2014 | So You Think You Can Dance | Herself | Guest judge; 3 episodes |
2015-present | Supergirl | Lucy Lane | Recurring Role (13 episodes) |
2016 | Lip Sync Battle | Herself | Episode: "Channing Tatum vs. Jenna Dewan-Tatum" |
Year | Title | Artist | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1999 | "So Real" | Mandy Moore | |
2000 | "He Wasn't Man Enough" | Toni Braxton | |
2000 | "Upside Down" | A*Teens | |
2000 | "Doesn't Really Matter" | Janet Jackson | |
2000 | "Honey Bee" | Belle Perez | |
2001 | "All for You" | Janet Jackson | |
2001 | "You're No Good" | Ellie Campbell | |
2002 | "Gossip Folks" | Missy Elliott | |
2003 | "One Heart" | Celine Dion | |
2003 | "Juramento" | Ricky Martin | |
2006 | "(When You Gonna) Give It Up to Me" | Sean Paul featuring Keyshia Cole | |
2006 | "Get Up" | Ciara featuring Chamillionaire | |
2010 | "Not Myself Tonight" | Christina Aguilera |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2007 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Movie: Dance Scene | Step Up | Won |
Charities
Jenna Dewan supports the following charitable cause: Animals.