Diane Guerrero

Diane Guerrero is an American actress and singer born on July 21, 1986, in Passaic, New Jersey. She is best known for her television roles as inmate Maritza Ramos in the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black and Lina in Jane the Virgin. Additionally, she has portrayed Kay Challis / Crazy Jane in the action-drama series Doom Patrol and contributed voice work to notable animated projects, including voicing Isabela Madrigal in the 2021 Disney film Encanto.

Guerrero was raised in Boston, Massachusetts, specifically in the Jamaica Plain and Roxbury neighborhoods, after being taken in by other Colombian families. Her parents and older half-brother had emigrated from Palmira, Colombia, in 1981. When Guerrero was fourteen, her parents and brother were deported to Colombia after unsuccessfully seeking legal citizenship. As the only member of her immediate family with U.S. citizenship, she remained in the country, relying on the support of friends' parents. She attended Boston Arts Academy, participating in the music department and singing with a jazz group. She later studied political science and communications at Regis College, studying abroad at Regent's University London, and initially worked in a law office.

In 2010, at age twenty-four, Guerrero decided to pursue acting, appearing in the music video for Louie Bello's song "Faces." She moved to New York City in 2011 to study acting at Susan Batson Studios. In 2012, she landed her breakout role as Maritza Ramos in Orange Is the New Black, remaining with the show through season 5 and returning for its final season in 2019. In 2014, she secured a recurring role on Jane the Virgin. She was later cast in the television pilot Super Clyde in 2015 and joined the regular cast of Superior Donuts in 2017. Her film appearances include Emoticon ;), Peter and John, Happy Yummy Chicken, Beyond Control, and The Godmother.

In addition to her live-action roles, Guerrero joined the DC Universe series Doom Patrol as Jane in 2018, becoming the first actress to play Crazy Jane onscreen. Her voice work includes playing Jessica Cruz / Green Lantern in Justice League vs. the Fatal Five and Isabela Madrigal in Encanto. Beyond screen acting, she hosted the first two seasons of the Hello Sunshine podcast, How It Is.

Guerrero is also an author and advocate. In 2016, she published her memoir, In the Country We Love: My Family Divided, written with Michelle Burford, detailing her family's deportation. She later published a version for younger audiences titled My Family Divided. Following her personal experiences, she became an advocate for immigration reform, volunteering as an ambassador for the Immigration Legal Resource Center and serving as a board member for Mi Familia Vota. In 2015, President Barack Obama named her a Presidential Ambassador for Citizenship and Naturalization.

Her contributions to television and advocacy have earned her several recognitions. As part of the cast of Orange Is the New Black, she contributed to three consecutive Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series at the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd ceremonies. In 2018, she received the Lupe Ontiveros Indomitable Spirit Award from the National Hispanic Media Coalition and was recognized at the Phillip Burton Immigration & Civil Rights Awards.