Lauren Ridloff Biography
Lauren Ridloff is an American actress and teacher who has once held the position for Miss Deaf America. She has also starred in a number of movies which have also helped to put her in the limelight.
She has also appeared in John Legend’s music video for “Love Me Now.” As mentioned earlier, Lauren Ridloff is the first Miss Deaf America of African-American and Mexican origin. She was cast in The Walking Dead series for its ninth season.
Lauren is expected to play a deaf superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film Eternals, scheduled to be released in 2021.
She is a Chicago native who now lives in Brooklyn.
Lauren Ridloff Quick Facts
Name | Lauren Ridloff nee. Teruel |
Date of Birth | 6th April 1978 |
Spouse/Husband | Douglas Ridloff |
Nationality | American |
Gender | Female |
Ethnicity | Mexican/African-American |
Hair Colour | Black |
Occupation | Actress Teacher |
Education | Model Secondary School for the Deaf, Washington, D.C. California State University Northridge ’00 (BA) Hunter College ’05 (MEd) |
Movies | Eternals Wonderstruck Legacies (2018–present) New Amsterdam (2018–present) Sound of Metal The Walking Dead (2010–present) Children of a Lesser God Sign Gene |
Lauren Ridloff Early Life and Background
Lauren Ridloff was born on April 6, 1978 in Chicago to a Mexican-American father and an African-American mother. Her parents believed their infant had a developmental delay, but at the age of two, they discovered Lauren was deaf.
However, her disability did not stop her from performing well in school. She started using her voice when she was 13 years old so that people would stop questioning her intellect based on her vocal intelligibility. She attended the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, D.C., before moving to the West Coast to attend California State University.
Hugo, her father, worked as a counselor at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Ridloff’s father was also a guitarist, and his mother was an artist. Ridloff grew up in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago.
Lauren Ridloff Education
As mentioned earlier, she first attended the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, D.C., before moving to the West Coast to attend California State University.
Because of the National Center on Deafness, the institution had a sizable deaf and hard-of-hearing school community. She studied English with a focus on creative writing. She joined a local deaf performing group and began hip-hop dancing whilst in college.
She started working at the NCOD (National Center on Deafness) after graduating in May 2000, where she was interested in a campaign to enhance post-secondary school schooling for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.
Lauren Ridloff Winning Miss Deaf America
Later in the year 2000, encouraged by the competition she saw two years before, she chose to participate in the National Association of the Deaf’s Miss Deaf America pageant. She won Miss Deaf Illinois’ preliminary competition and went on to win Miss Deaf America.
She was the second consecutive CSUN graduate to win the title, and she was also the pageant’s first contestant of African-American or Mexican-American origin.
Since winning Miss Deaf America, she started a two-year career as a NAD spokeswoman, attending luncheons and graduation ceremonies.
Lauren Ridloff Movie Career
Lauren Ridloff worked as a consultant on the 2017 film Wonderstruck before being cast in a minor role. She has starred in the lyric video for John Legend’s single “Love Me Now.”
Ridloff was employed to mentor him in American Sign Language when director Kenny Leon began making a revival of the 1980 play Children of a Lesser God.
Lauren Ridloff will play a deaf superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero film Eternals, scheduled to be released in November, 2021. Lauren Ridloff starred as Makkari in the Eternals movie.
Is Lauren Ridloff Deaf?
Yes, Lauren Ridloff is deaf and was born deaf.
Lauren Ridloff Husband and Children
Lauren Ridloff is married to her husband, Douglas Ridloff. Douglas Ridloff is a successful entrepreneur and artistic artist. He is also an artist and multimedia storyteller, doing original compositions in Sign Language. He is also the owner of ASL SLAM and the executive director-host of the open mic show organized by his organization.
Lauren Ridloff Net worth
Lauren is worth more than $5 million