Skai Jackson

Skai Jackson (born April 8, 2002)[1] is an American actress, YouTuber, and author, who was included in Time's list of Most Influential Teens in 2016.[2] Jackson first began acting at the age of 5, making her debut in the film Liberty Kid (2007). She later came to international prominence for her portrayal of Zuri Ross in the Disney Channel series Jessie (2011–2015), and in the sequel, Bunk'd (2015–2018). She has also voiced Glory Grant across the Marvel Rising series, and voiced Summer in the animated series DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders (2019–2020). In 2019, Jackson released her debut novel, Reach for the Skai: How to Inspire, Empower, and Clapback. Jackson was a semi-finalist on the 29th season of Dancing with the Stars in 2020.

Skai Jackson
Jackson in 2011
Born (2002-04-08) April 8, 2002
New York City, U.S.
Occupation
  • Actress
  • YouTuber
  • author
Years active2007–present
TelevisionJessie
Bunk'd

Early life

Jackson was born in the Staten Island borough of New York City, New York.[3] She began her career as a child model appearing in numerous national commercials, including for Band-Aid bandages, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Old Navy.[4]

Career

Jackson’s first major acting role was in the independent film Liberty Kid (2007), which was followed by a guest appearance in an episode of Rescue Me (2008). In 2009, Jackson made a cameo in the film The Rebound, and in the same year was cast as a member of the Nickelodeon pre-school animated series Bubble Guppies, playing the role of Little Fish. She continued to make cameo and guest appearances in the television series Team Umizoomi, Royal Pains, and Boardwalk Empire, and in the 2011 films Arthur and The Smurfs.

The cast of Jessie in 2011

In 2011, she was cast as Zuri Ross in the Disney Channel sitcom Jessie, which aired from September 30, 2011 to October 16, 2015.[5][6] For the role, Jackson received an Image Award nomination.[7] In 2013, she appeared as Joetta Watson in the Hallmark Channel television film The Watsons Go To Birmingham[8] and in the year following guest-starred in an episode of Disney XD's animated series Ultimate Spider-Man.[9] In 2015, after Jessie ended, it was announced that Jackson would reprise her role as Zuri Ross in the Disney Channel series Bunk'd, a spin-off series.[10] Bunk'd premiered on July 31, 2015, and she departed from the series after its third season in 2018. In 2016, Jackson was included on Time's list of Most Influential Teens,[2] and in 2017, she received a nomination from the Shorty Awards for Best Influencer.[11]

Following her success with the shows, Jackson promptly made a guest appearance in K.C. Undercover.[12] In 2018, Jackson made a guest appearance in Marvel Rising: Initiation as Glory Grant, a role she reprised in Marvel Rising: Chasing Ghosts, and Marvel Rising: Battle of the Bands. In 2019, Jackson was cast in the music video for Lil Nas X's "Panini".[13] The video gained worldwide popularity, and spawned a variety of memes due to her character being unable to escape the rapper.[14] In the same year, Jackson made her writing debut with the book Reach for the Skai: How to Inspire, Empower, and Clapback,[15][16] and began voicing Summer on the Netflix animated series DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders, which ended in 2020.

On September 2, 2020, Jackson was announced as one of the celebrities competing on the 29th season of Dancing with the Stars, which premiered on September 14, 2020. Her partner was Alan Bersten. The pair made it the semi-finals but was eliminated 10th on November 16, 2020.[17]

Personal life

In March 2020, Jackson filled court papers for a restraining order against rapper Bhad Bhabie claiming that Bhabie had harassed her. The petition was temporarily granted, and later dropped by Jackson.[18]

On June 6, 2020, Jackson faced criticism after tweeting an image of fans doxing an alleged minor over the use of a racial slur on an Instagram post.[19]

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
2007 Liberty Kid Destiny – age 3 Independent film
2008 Rescue Me Little Girl Short film
2009 The Rebound Museum Little Girl #1
2011 Arthur Little Girl
2011 The Smurfs Kicking Girl
2013 G.I. Joe: Retaliation Roadblock's daughter
2014 My Dad's a Soccer Mom Lacy Casey

Television
Year Title Role Notes
2010 Team Umizoomi Kayla Voice role; episode: "The Rolling Toy Parade"
2010 Royal Pains Maddie Phillips Episode: "Big Whoop"
2010-2012 Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil Madison Recurring voice role
2011 Boardwalk Empire Aneisha Episode: "What Does the Bee Do?"
2011–2013 Bubble Guppies Little Fish Main voice role (seasons 1–2)
2011–2015 Jessie Zuri Ross Main role
2012 Austin & Ally Zuri Ross Episode: "Austin & Jessie & Ally All Star New Year"
2012–2014 Dora the Explorer Isa the Iguana Recurring voice role
2013 Good Luck Charlie Zuri Ross Episode: "Good Luck Jessie: NYC Christmas"
2013 The Watsons Go to Birmingham Joetta Watson Television film (Hallmark)
2014 Ultimate Spider-Man Zuri Ross Voice role; episode: "Halloween Night at the Museum"
2015–2018 Bunk'd Zuri Ross Main role (season 1-3)
2015 K.C. Undercover Zuri Ross Episode: "All Howl's Eve"[12]
2018 Marvel Rising: Initiation Glory Grant Voice role; Episodes: "Floor Toms and Spider Webs", "Ghost Hunter"
2019 Marvel Rising: Chasing Ghosts Glory Grant Voice role
2019 Marvel Rising: Battle of the Bands Glory Grant Voice role
2019–2020 DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders Summer Voice role
2019 Marvel Rising: Operation Shuri Glory Grant Voice role
2020 Dancing with the Stars Herself

Music videos
Year Title Artist
2019 "Panini"[20] Lil Nas X

Bibliography

Books
  • Reach for the Skai: How to Inspire, Empower, and Clapback (2019)

Awards and nominations
Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2016 Image Awards Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Mini-series) Jessie Nominated [7]
2017 Shorty Awards Best Influencer and Celebrity Herself Nominated [11]

References
  1. "UPI Almanac for Wednesday, April 8, 2020". United Press International. April 8, 2020. Archived from the original on August 29, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020. …actor Skai Jackson in 2002 (age 18)
  2. Staff. "The 30 Most Influential Teens of 2016". Time. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  3. Houlis, AnnaMarie (June 30, 2020). "The stunning transformation of Skai Jackson". The List. Archived from the original on September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  4. "Skai Jackson TV Commercials". iSpot.tv. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  5. "Show bios - Skai Jackson" (Press release). Disney Channel. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  6. "Skai Jackson, from Disney's "Jessie", crowned Queen of Lip Sync at Premiere Event". Premiere Event. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
  7. "Skai Jackson". IMDb. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  8. The Watsons Go to Birmingham (TV Movie 2013) - IMDb, retrieved August 7, 2019
  9. Ge, Linda. "'Jessie' Stars Get Animated for 'Ultimate Spider-Man' Crossover (Exclusive Photos)". The Wrap. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
  10. Andreeva, Nellie (February 25, 2015). "Disney Channel's 'Jessie' Ending Run, But Spinoff Series Set With Stars Peyton List, Karan Brar & Skai Jackson". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  11. "The Shorty Awards - Honoring the best of social media". shortyawards.com. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  12. "All Howl's Eve". Disney Channel Press. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  13. "Skai Jackson Can't Escape From Lil Nas X in New Panini Music Video". E! Online. September 5, 2019. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  14. "Complex".
  15. "SKAI JACKSON 'REACHES FOR THE SKAI' WITH NEW BOOK". BCK Online. November 19, 2018. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  16. "Skai Jackson Writing Book About Life Lessons & Clapping Back". theJasmineBRAND. November 21, 2018. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  17. ""Dancing with the Stars" 2020 Celebrity Cast Announced!". ABC.com. September 2, 2020.
  18. Bonner, Mehera (June 16, 2020). "Skai Jackson Just Dropped Her Restraining Order Against Bhad Bhabie". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  19. Samuels, Alexandra (June 21, 2020). "Some people want to cancel Skai Jackson after she 'doxed' a 13-year-old". The Daily Dot. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
  20. Lil Nas X - Panini (Official Video), retrieved September 7, 2019
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