Rosario Dawson | |
|---|---|
 Dawson in 2024 | |
| Born | (1979-05-09)May 9, 1979 (age 46)[1] New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress • activist |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | Full list |
Rosario Isabel Dawson[2] (born May 9, 1979)[3] is an American actress and activist. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent dramaKids. Her subsequent film roles includeHe Got Game (1998),Josie and the Pussycats(2001),25th Hour(2001),Men in Black II (2002),The Rundown (2003),Rent (2005),Sin City (2005),Clerks II (2006),Death Proof (2007),Seven Pounds (2008),Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010),Unstoppable (2010),Zookeeper (2011),Trance (2013),Top Five (2014),Zombieland: Double Tap (2019),Clerks 3 (2022), andHaunted Mansion (2023). Dawson has provided voice-over work forDisney/Marvel,Warner Bros./DC Comics, andViacomCBS'sNickelodeon unit. She is also recognized for her portrayal of the live-actionAhsoka Tano in theStar Wars franchise.
Dawson had several roles in film and television adaptations of comic books. These include Gail inSin City (2005) andSin City: A Dame to Kill For (2014),Claire Temple in five of theMarvel Netflix series (2015–2018), and providing the voices ofDiana Prince / Wonder Woman in theDC Animated Movie Universe andSpace Jam: A New Legacy andBarbara Gordon /Batgirl inThe Lego Batman Movie. In 2021, she had a recurring role in theDwayne Johnson autobiographical comedy seriesYoung Rock and a main role in theHulu miniseriesDopesick.
Rosario Dawson was born on May 9, 1979, in New York City. Her mother, Isabel Celeste, is of Puerto Rican, Cuban, and African ancestry.[4] Isabel was 17 years old when Rosario was born; she never married Rosario's biological father, Patrick C. Harris.[5] When Dawson was a year old, Isabel married Greg Dawson, a construction worker.[4] Isabel and Greg moved into a reclaimed building on East 13th Street after being approved as members of an affordable housing plan. The family later moved toGarland, Texas.[6]
As a child, Dawson made a brief appearance onSesame Street. At the age of 15, she was discovered on her front-porch step by photographerLarry Clark andHarmony Korine, with Korine deciding that she was perfect for a part he had written in his screenplay for the controversial 1995 filmKids. She went on to star in varied roles inindependent films andblockbusters, such asHe Got Game,Men in Black II, andRent.[7][8][9][10][11]
In 1998, Dawson provided an introductory voice-over for the remixed version ofPrince's single "1999".[12] The voice-over was a commentary on the state of the world in the next to last year before the newmillennium.[13] The following year, she appeared inThe Chemical Brothers' video for the song "Out of Control" from the albumSurrender.[14] She is also featured on the track "She Lives in My Lap" from the second disc of theOutKast albumSpeakerboxxx/The Love Below,[15] in which she speaks the introduction and a brief interlude towards the end.
In 2001, she appeared in the filmJosie and the Pussycats as band member Valerie Brown, and had a role inChelsea Walls, the directorial debut ofEthan Hawke.
Dawson starred oppositeEdward Norton in theSpike Lee drama25th Hour (2002). In the same year, her role of Laura Vasquez in the blockbusterMen in Black II proved to be a turning point in her career.[16]
She played a supporting role in 2003 action comedyThe Rundown, also known asWelcome to the Jungle, oppositeDwayne Johnson,Sean William Scott, andChristopher Walken, which was received well, but failed commercially.[17] InOliver Stone's 2004 filmAlexander, she portrayedRoxana, the wife ofAlexander the Great. The film had a mixed reception and underperformed financially. A controversial nude scene depicted Alexander's attempted rape of Roxana, her resistance, and a subsequent sexual encounter after a gift offering.[18] In 2005, Dawson made her stage debut[19] as Julia in thePublic Theater's "Shakespeare in the Park" revival of the musicalTwo Gentlemen of Verona.[20]
In the film adaptation of the popular musicalRent in 2005, she played exotic dancer Mimi Marquez, replacingDaphne Rubin-Vega, who was pregnant and unable to play the part. For her role inRent, Dawson won theSatellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture. She also appeared in the adaptation of the graphic novelSin City, co-directed byRobert Rodriguez andFrank Miller, portraying Gail, a prostitute-dominatrix. Also that year, she appeared in a deleted scene in theRob Zombie filmThe Devil's Rejects. The scene was included in the deleted scenes on theDVD release.
She starred as Becky inClerks II (2006). InBack to the Well, documentary about the making of the series, she stated that the donkey show sequence was what made her decide to take the role. In May of the same year, Dawson co-created and co-wrote the comic-book miniseriesOccult Crimes Taskforce.[21] She was at the 2007San Diego Comic-Con to promote the comic. She co-starred with formerRent alumnaTracie Thoms in theQuentin Tarantino throwback filmDeath Proof in 2007, part of the Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez double featureGrindhouse. She produced and starred inDescent alongside friendTalia Lugacy, whom she met at theLee Strasberg Academy.[22] On July 7, 2007, Dawson presented at theAmerican leg ofLive Earth.
In 2008, Dawson starred withWill Smith inSeven Pounds and inEagle Eye, produced bySteven Spielberg. Beginning in August, she starred inGemini Division, an online science-fiction series. In the animated seriesAfterworld, she voiced Officer Delondre Baines.[23] On January 17, 2009, Dawson hostedSaturday Night Live. Later in the year, she voicedArtemis of Bana-Mighdall in the animated filmWonder Woman.[24]
In 2009, Dawson performed inThe People Speak, a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historianHoward Zinn'sA People's History of the United States.[25] In 2009, Dawson also voiced the character of Velvet Von Black in Rob Zombie's animated feature,The Haunted World of El Superbeasto. For theKasabian albumWest Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, she is featured singing on the track "West Ryder Silver Bullet".
In 2010, she starred in the filmsPercy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief asPersephone, andUnstoppable as railway yardmaster Connie Hooper. In 2013, she appeared in the independent filmGimme Shelter. Also in 2013, Dawson appeared inDanny Boyle's critically acclaimed psychological thrillerTrance oppositeJames McAvoy.[26] In the film, Dawson's full nudity, including a shaved vulva, was, according to her, crucial for the role and generated considerable attention and discussion.[27][28][29]
She appeared inTop Five in 2014, for which she was nominated for theCritics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress in a Comedy. The following year, she reprised her role as Gail inSin City: A Dame to Kill For.
In 2015, she playedClaire Temple in theNetflix web television seriesDaredevil, a role she reprised inJessica Jones andLuke Cage.[30] Dawson's likeness was also used in theJessica Jones tie-in comic as her character on both shows. Dawson has continued this role in 2017 inIron Fist andThe Defenders.[30]
Between 2015 and 2017, she consistently lent her voice to six animated films. This included voicing Nyx inTinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast (2015),Wonder Woman inJustice League: Throne of Atlantis (2015),Justice League vs. Teen Titans (2016), andJustice League Dark (2017), Elaris inRatchet & Clank (2016), andBatgirl in the commercial hitThe Lego Batman Movie (2017). In 2018, she played the female lead role in the filmKrystal.
In 2020, she was cast as theStar Wars characterAhsoka Tano in the second season ofThe Mandalorian onDisney+, and reprised the role inThe Book of Boba Fett[31] and the spinoff miniseries,Ahsoka. She wrote the foreword for the 2024DK reference book,Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy.[32]
In 2022, she reprised her role as Becky forClerks III (2022).
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Dawson was arrested in 2004, while protesting against PresidentGeorge W. Bush.[33]
Dawson endorsedBarack Obama for re-election in2012,[34] andBernie Sanders for the Democratic nomination in the2016 Democratic Party primaries.[35] On April 15, 2016, Dawson was among the protesters arrested duringDemocracy Spring in Washington, DC.[36]
In mid-2019, Dawson endorsed her then-boyfriend Cory Booker in the2020 presidential election. Booker endedhis campaign for president on January 13, 2020.[37][38] Had she becomeFirst Lady of the United States, Dawson said she would have advocated for solutions toyouth homelessness.[39] On March 9, 2020, Dawson endorsed the presidential campaign ofBernie Sanders, whom she had also previously endorsed in his 2016 bid.[40]
Dawson is involved with the Lower East Side Girls Club[41] and supports othercharities such asenvironmental groupGlobal Cool,One Campaign,Oxfam,Operation USA,Amnesty International,Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), theInternational Rescue Committee,Voto Latino,[42] and Stay Close.org, a poster andpublic service advertising campaign for PFLAG, where she is featured with her uncle[43]Frank Jump.[44] She has participated in theVagina Monologues[45] and serves on the board forV-Day, a global non-profit movement that raises funds for women'santi-violence groups through benefits of this play.[46]
In October 2008, Dawson became a spokeswoman forTripAdvisor.com's philanthropy program, More Than Footprints,Conservation International,Doctors Without Borders,National Geographic Society,The Nature Conservancy, andSave the Children. Also in October 2008, she lent her voice to the RESPECT! Campaign,[47] a movement aimed at preventing domestic violence. She recorded a voice message for the Giverespect.org Web site, stressing the importance of respect in helping stop domestic violence. In 2012, Dawson partnered withSodaStream International in launching the first annual Unbottle the World Day, a campaign conceived in an effort to raise awareness to the impact of cans and plastic bottles on the environment.[48]
Dawson is a self-professedTrekkie, who mentioned both her brothers' and her love ofStar Trek in an interview withConan O'Brien.[49]
Dawson adopted a 12-year-old girl, Isabella, in 2014.[50] In December 2023, Dawson announced that Isabella was pregnant and her first grandchild was scheduled to be born in 2024.[51]
From December 2018 until February 2022, Dawson was in a relationship with US SenatorCory Booker.[52][53][54]
In 2018, Dawson made a post toInstagram that was widely perceived as hercoming out as queer; when asked about this in a 2020 interview, she stated that this had not been her intention, and further specified that although "People kept saying that I [came out]... I didn't do that, ... I mean, it's not inaccurate, but I never did come out. I mean, I guess I am now ... I've never had a relationship in that space, so it's never felt like an authentic calling to me." A representative of Dawson later clarified toThe Daily Beast that she meant to say she came out as an ally of the LGBTQ community.[55][56][57]
In October 2019, Dedrek Finley filed a case in Los Angeles against Dawson and her family for alleged incidents involving discrimination, verbal abuse,misgendering, and physical assault. Finley had been employed as a handyman, living with the family, and had known them for decades.[58][59] In August 2020, 18 of the 20 accusations were dropped by the plaintiff, leaving two claims related to the alleged assault.[60] The remaining claims were dismissed by a Los Angeles Superior Court in May 2021, after requests for documentation, answers to questions, and a medical examination went unanswered.[61]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Punk'd | Herself | Episode #1.8 |
| 2007 | Robot Chicken | Various | Voice, episode: "More Blood, More Chocolate" |
| 2008 | Gemini Division | Anna Diaz | Web series; 50 episodes Also executive producer |
| 2009 | Saturday Night Live | Herself | Episode: "Rosario Dawson/Fleet Foxes" |
| SpongeBob SquarePants | Herself | Episode: "SpongeBob's Truth or Square" | |
| 2011 | Five | Lili | Television film |
| 2015–2016 | Daredevil | Claire Temple | Series regular; 8 episodes |
| 2015 | Jessica Jones | Episode: "AKA Smile" | |
| 2016–2018 | Luke Cage | Series regular; 11 episodes | |
| 2017 | Iron Fist | Series regular; 6 episodes | |
| The Defenders | |||
| Waves for Water | Herself | Documentary | |
| 2018–2019 | Jane the Virgin | Jane "J.R." Ramos | 17 episodes |
| 2018 | Elena of Avalor | Daria | Voice, 2 episodes[62] |
| 2019 | Weird City | Delt | Episode: "A Family" |
| 2020 | The Last Kids on Earth | Rezzoch | Voice, 7 episodes[63][62] |
| 2020 | Briarpatch | Allegra "Pick" Dill | Main role; 10 episodes |
| Make It Work! | Herself | Television special | |
| The Mandalorian | Ahsoka Tano | Episode: "Chapter 13: The Jedi" | |
| 2020–2022 | It's Pony | Penny Ramiro | Recurring role; 4 episodes |
| 2021 | Calls | Katherine | Voice, episode: "It's All In Your Head" |
| Young Rock | General Monica Jackson | 2 episodes | |
| Eden | A37 | Voice, English dub[64] | |
| Dopesick | Bridget Meyer | Miniseries[65] | |
| AEW Dynamite | Herself | Episode #2.50[66] | |
| 2021–2022 | Go-Big Show | Herself (judge) | 16 episodes |
| 2022 | The Book of Boba Fett | Ahsoka Tano | Episode: "Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger" |
| DMZ | Alma "Zee" Ortega | Miniseries | |
| Love, Death & Robots | Dr. Mirny | Voice, episode: "Swarm"[62] | |
| 2023–present | Ahsoka | Ahsoka Tano | Main role; 8 episodes |
| 2024 | Ghosts of Ruin | Prism | Voice[62] |
| Terminator Zero | Kokoro | Voice[67][62] | |
| 2025 | Charlotte's Web | Edith Zuckerman | Voice[62] |
| Year | Title | Artist(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | "Out of Control" | The Chemical Brothers | |
| 2002 | "Miss You" | Aaliyah | Cameo |
| 2010 | "California Run"[68] | Neil Nathan | Cameo |
| 2012 | "Supercool" | The Bullitts | |
| 2016 | "Where's the Love?" | The Black Eyed Peas featuring The World | |
| 2017 | "Family Feud" | Jay Z featuringBeyoncé | Promo video for Tidal |
| 2018 | "Earth Girls" | Jesse Boykins III | Cameo |
| "10,000 Hours"[69] | Fat Tony | Cameo | |
| 2018 | "The Space Program" | A Tribe Called Quest | Cameo[70] |
| Year | Title | Voice role(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Marc Eckō's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure | Tina | [62] |
| 2012 | Syndicate | Lily Drawl | [62] |
| 2016 | Ratchet & Clank | Elaris | [62] |
| Dishonored 2 | Meagan Foster / Billie Lurk | [62] | |
| Lego Dimensions | Barbara Gordon / Batgirl | Credited as Rasario Dawson | |
| 2017 | Wilson's Heart | Elsa Wolcott | |
| Dishonored: Death of the Outsider | Billie Lurk | ||
| 2019 | NBA 2K20 | Isa | MyCAREER Story |
| 2022 | Dying Light 2 Stay Human | Lawan | [62] |
| Year | Title | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Artemis | Andy Weir |
| Year | Title | Role | Author | Production company |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Batman: The Audio Adventures[71] | Selina Kyle / Catwoman | Dennis McNicholas | Blue Ribbon Content |
