Laura Marie Marano (born November 29, 1995) is an American actress and singer. She starred in the Disney Channel series Austin & Ally as Ally Dawson. Marano was one of the five original classmates in Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?. She starred in Without a Trace for three seasons and also Back to You, in both instances playing the daughter of the main characters. Marano starred in the indie film A Sort of Homecoming. Marano also starred in the 2015 Disney Channel Original Movie Bad Hair Day. In 2019 Marano starred in the Netflix original movie The Perfect Date.
In 2015, she signed with Big Machine Records and released her debut single “Boombox” on March 11, 2016 and “La La” later that year. On October 5, 2018, Laura Marano released the single “Me” as an independent artist.
Early life
Marano was born in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of college professor Damiano Marano and former actress Ellen Marano, who owns the Agoura Children’s Theatre. Her father is of Italian descent. Marano was first introduced to acting at her mother’s theatre. At age five, Marano began expressing interest in acting professionally to her parents along with her older sister Vanessa, who is also an actress. However, her mother had trepidation about the idea of her daughters working in the tough industry of acting. She took them to one of the strictest talent agents in Abrams Talent Agency in hopes that they would be rejected and then lose interest. To her surprise, the agency wanted both Laura and Vanessa. From there, Marano began her career.
Marano attended traditional school while she worked, even when she booked a full-time job on Austin & Ally, instead of doing school on set. “I go to an actual high school and my friends and everybody there have been so supportive,” said Marano. “It’s nice when I’m not working to go to that school and be surrounded by really supportive friends.” In 2015 Marano enrolled at the University of Southern California majoring in Philosophy, Politics and Law.
Career
2003–2010: Without a Trace and Back to You
Marano’s first acting role was when she was five years old. Since then, she worked for multiple productions at the Stage Door Theater. She has appeared in numerous commercials and had small roles on Ghost Whisperer, Medical Investigation, Huff and Joan of Arcadia. Her bigger roles in television have been in Without a Trace and other shows. She played the child role of Keira Knightley’s character in the film The Jacket and had a small flashback role in the film Superbad. She was a regular cast member on the Fox game show, Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? and played the role of Gracie Carr on FOX’s sitcom Back to You. Marano has since appeared in several episodes of The Sarah Silverman Program. Initially she was cast in the pilot episode, “Batteries”, as the child version of Sarah Silverman, and the writers liked her so much they brought her back for a larger role as a girl Sarah coaches to win a beauty pageant (“Not Without My Daughter”). On the DVD commentary track, co-star Brian Posehn notes that Marano knew everyone else’s lines better than they did. She also appeared in Dexter as the child version of Debra Morgan. She also played the child version of a character played by Diana Scarwid, Alice Shaw, sister of Angela Petrelli, on Heroes.
2011–2016: Austin & Ally and radio
In 2011, Marano starred as Ally Dawson on the Disney Channel series Austin & Ally. In 2013, Marano recorded four solo songs and one duet with Ross Lynch for the soundtrack album Austin & Ally: Turn It Up. “Me and You” debuted within the U.S. Billboard Kid Digital Songs chart at number thirteen before rising to the sixth spot, spending eleven weeks on the chart. “Redial” debuted at number nineteen before peaking at number eighteen, spending four weeks on the chart. Also in 2013, Marano recorded a duet with her Austin & Ally co-star Ross Lynch entitled “I Love Christmas” for Disney Channel’s third holiday compilation album, Holidays Unwrapped. On November 25, 2013, the song was released as a promotional single. On December 14, “I Love Christmas” debuted within the U.S. Billboard Holiday Digital Songs chart peaking at number fifty. Marano sings, dances, and writes songs. She hopes to perform in stage musicals in the future.
In 2014, Marano voiced as Rachel in four episodes of Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja. She also appeared as Hammu in Fish Hooks and as Fangs in Liv and Maddie. Also in 2014, she appeared in a music video produced for British pop-rock group The Vamps and American singer Demi Lovato called “Somebody to You”. In March 2015, Marano stated that she had signed a record deal with Universal’s Big Machine Records. In the same year, Marano starred in Disney Channel’s Original Movie, Bad Hair Day. The film was first released on February 6, 2015 on Disney Channel and had its premiere broadcast in the US on February 13. She also starring as the young version of Amy in A Sort of Homecoming, which tells the story of a girl who returns to her home town in Louisiana from her career in New York City upon request of her high school debate coach. In flashbacks, she recalls her senior year, the politics surrounding debate competitions. On January 10, 2016, Austin and Ally ended after four seasons.
On January 13, 2016, Marano debuted her own radio talk show on Radio Disney entitled For the Record with Laura Marano. The weekly one-hour show chronicles Marano’s journey as she launches her music career, featuring interviews with a guest star in each episode. The show also provides listeners tips on how one can pursue a career in music. The show has featured various guest stars including Nick Jonas, Ariana Grande, Meghan Trainor, OneRepublic, and Troye Sivan. The first episode of the show, which aired January 12, 2016, guest starred her co-stars of Austin & Ally.
2016–present: Films and music
On March 11, 2016, Marano released her debut single called “Boombox”. The music video for the single released on April 4, 2016 and accumulated over 6 million views in a week. The video currently holds over 50 million views. It guest stars actor and comedian Ken Jeong, along with his daughter Zooey, and was directed by Cole Walliser. On April 30, 2016, Marano performed the single at the 2016 Radio Disney Music Awards, which aired on Disney Channel on May 1. Marano also performed the song on Today as Elvis Duran’s Artist of the Month on May 31, 2016. Marano released her second single, “La La”, on August 25, 2016. At the end of 2016, Big Machine Records made the decision to drop all of their pop artists, except for Taylor Swift. On May 18, 2017, it was announced that Marano had signed to Warner Bros. Records in 2017. In 2018, they parted ways, because the people who had signed her left Warner Bros.
On October 1, 2018, Marano announced in a Q&A video posted on her YouTube channel that she would be releasing new music as an independent artist. She named her own label Flip Phone Records, as Marano is known for not owning a smartphone and still using a flip phone. On October 5, 2018, she released the single “Me” . In January 2019, she released the single “Let Me Cry” along with its music video. In February 2019, Marano performed at the Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles and released the single “F.E.O.U.”. On March 8, 2019, she released her debut EP, Me, featuring two unheard tracks and a new remix to “F.E.O.U.”.
On April 12, 2019, Marano released “A Little Closer”, as part of the soundtrack of the Netflix original movie “The Perfect Date”, which also sees Marano playing the role of Celia. In June 2019, the Lie To Me music video came out, followed by the F.E.O.U. music video in October of the same year. On November 22, 2019, Marano released both “Me and the Mistletoe” featuring Kurt Hugo Schneider, her first original Christmas single, and the soundtrack of “A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish”, which sees Marano starring in the movie along with Gregg Sulkin.
On April 10, 2020, Marano made her comeback with the brand new single “When You Wake Up”, followed by “Can’t Hold On Forever” in May of the same year. In June 2020, Marano released the remixes to these past two singles, respectively featuring Mark Diamond and PLTO. In August 2020, the singer released a new single, titled “Honest With You”, and during the same month, it was announced that her sophomore EP, titled You, would be coming out in fall of the same year, aiming for an October release. On September 18, 2020 the singer released a fourth single, “Can’t Help Myself”, along with the announcement of the release date of the EP, “YOU”. On September 21, the singer announced her first virtual tour, The YOU Tour, which would take place during the month of October, with four unique live-stream shows every week, from October 3 to 24, with each concert being unique and with a different formulation.
Philanthropy
In August 2013, Marano was named the 2013 UNICEF’s Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF Ambassador, which encouraged children to raise money on Halloween to help children around the world. About the campaign, Laura said “I’m so excited to celebrate Halloween this year by encouraging kids to support UNICEF’s lifesaving work. The Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign is a fun, easy way for kids to learn about world issues and to help other kids who are less fortunate.” In August 2014, Marano was ambassador for the Disney and Birds Eye Vegetables campaign ‘Step up to the plate’. The campaign’s goal is to encourage children in the United States to explore healthy foods such as vegetables. In April 2019, Laura Marano hosted a fashion show for Childhelp during National Child Abuse Prevention Month. The campaign raised money to help abused and neglected children.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Finding Nemo | Additional voices | |
| 2005 | The Jacket | Young Jackie | |
| 2006 | Ice Age: The Meltdown | Additional voices | |
| 2007 | Superbad | Young Becca | |
| 2015 | A Sort of Homecoming | Young Amy | |
| 2015 | Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip | Hotel Babysitter | |
| 2017 | Lady Bird | Diana Greenway | |
| 2019 | The Perfect Date | Celia Lieberman | Direct-to-video film |
| 2019 | Saving Zoë | Echo | |
| 2019 | A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish | Kat Decker | Direct-to-video film |
| 2020 | The Night House | Relative | |
| 2020 | The War with Grandpa | Mia Decker | |
| TBA | The Royal Treatment | Isabelle | Filming |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–2006 | Without a Trace | Kate Malone | Recurring role (seasons 2–4) |
| 2004 | Joan of Arcadia | Emily | Episode: “Night Without Stars” |
| 2005 | Medical Investigation | Brooke Beck | Episode: “Tribe” |
| 2005–2006 | The X’s | Scout Y | Main voice role |
| 2006 | Ghost Whisperer | Audrey | Episode: “Friendly Neighborhood Ghost” |
| 2006 | Huff | Amelia | Episode: “Black Shadows” |
| 2006 | Dexter | Young Debra | Episodes: “Let’s Give the Boy a Hand”, “Father Knows Best” |
| 2007 | Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? | Herself | Judge/Mentor (season 1) |
| 2007–2008 | Back to You | Gracie Carr | Main role |
| 2007–2010 | The Sarah Silverman Program | Heather Silverman / Young Sarah Silverman | Recurring role |
| 2008 | Ni Hao, Kai-Lan | Mei Mei | Voice role; episode: “Kai-Lan’s Trip to China” |
| 2008 | Gary Unmarried | Louise Brooks | Episodes: “Pilot”, “Gary Gets Boundaries” |
| 2009 | Heroes | Young Alice Shaw | Episode: “1961” |
| 2009 | Little Monk | Cousin Lauren | Episode: “Little Monk and the Monk Cousin” |
| 2010 | True Jackson, VP | Molly | Episode: “Little Buddies” |
| 2010 | FlashForward | Young Tracy | Episode: “Blowback” |
| 2010 | Childrens Hospital | Haley | Episode: “Frankfurthers, Allman Brothers, Death, Frankfurters” |
| 2011–2016 | Austin & Ally | Ally Dawson | Main role |
| 2014 | Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja | Rachel | Recurring voice role (season 2) |
| 2014 | Fish Hooks | Girl Hamster #2 | Voice role; episode: “Algae Day” |
| 2014 | Liv and Maddie | Fangs | Special guest star; episode: “Howl-A-Rooney” |
| 2015 | Bad Hair Day | Monica Reeves | Television film |
| 2015 | Pickle and Peanut | Veronica | Voice role; episodes: “Gory Agnes”, “Haunted Couch” |
| 2015 | Girl Meets World | Ally Dawson | Special guest star; episode: “Girl Meets World of Terror 2” |
| 2016 | Mère et Fille, California Dream | Herself | Television film |
| 2018 | Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir | Clara Nightingale | Voice role; episode: “Frightningale” |
| 2019 | Super Simple Love Story | Nellie | Unsold television pilot (CBS) |
| 2020 | Day by Day | Ellie | Voice role; episode: “Ghost Light” |
| 2020 | Robot Chicken | Evie, Linda, Titanic Waitress | Voice role; episode: “Sundancer Craig in: 30% of the Way to Crying” |
Radio
- For the Record with Laura Marano (2016), as Host, for Radio Disney
Discography
Soundtrack albums
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions |
||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US |
US OST |
|||||||||||||
| Austin & Ally: Turn It Up |
|
89 | 6 | |||||||||||
| Austin & Ally: Take It from the Top |
|
— | 23 | |||||||||||
| A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish |
|
— | — | |||||||||||
| “—” denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||
EPs
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Me |
|
| You |
|
Singles
As main artist
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| “Boombox” | 2016 | Non-album singles |
| “La La” | ||
| “Me” | 2018 | Me |
| “Let Me Cry” | 2019 | |
| “F.E.O.U.” | ||
| “Not Like Me” | ||
| “A Little Closer | Non-album single | |
| “Lie to Me” | Me | |
| “Everybody Loves Christmas” | A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish | |
| “Me and the Mistletoe” (featuring Kurt Hugo Schneider) |
Non-album single | |
| “When You Wake Up” | 2020 | You |
| “Can’t Hold On Forever” | ||
| “Honest With You” | ||
| “Can’t Help Myself” | ||
| “Something To Believe In” | 2021 |
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| “Weekend” (BoTalks featuring Laura Marano) |
2018 | Non-album single |
Promotional singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions |
Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Words” | 2010 | — | Non-album single |
| “I Love Christmas” (with Ross Lynch) |
2013 | 50 | Holidays Unwrapped |
| “Perfect Christmas” (with Ross Lynch) |
2015 | — | Non-album single |
Other charted songs
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions |
Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Me and You” | 2013 | 6 | Austin & Ally: Turn It Up |
| “Parachute” | 6 | ||
| “Redial” | 18 | ||
| “You Can Come To Me” (with Ross Lynch) |
2014 | 12 | Disney Channel Play It Loud |
| “The Me That You Don’t You See” | 18 | ||
| “Austin & Ally Glee Club Mash Up” (with Ross Lynch, Raini Rodriguez, Calum Worthy) |
10 |
Other appearances
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Shine” | 2012 | N/A | Disney Fairies: Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust |
| “The Me That You Don’t See” | 2014 | Disney Channel: Play It Loud | |
| “Austin & Ally Glee Club Mash Up” | Ross Lynch, Calum Worthy, Raini Rodriguez | ||
| “You Can Come to Me” | Ross Lynch |
Music videos
| Title | Year | Director(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| “Words” | 2010 | Waldman Entertainment | |
| “The Me That You Don’t See” | 2013 | Unknown | |
| “For The Ride” | 2015 | ||
| “Boombox” | 2016 | Cole Walliser | |
| “Miraculous (Theme Song)” | |||
| “Me” | 2018 | ||
| “Let Me Cry” | 2019 | Noah Kentis | |
| “Lie to Me” | Cole Walliser | ||
| “F.E.O.U.” | Izac Rappaport | ||
| ” Me and the Mistletoe” | Paul Khoury & Wesley Quinn | ||
| “Can’t Hold On Forever (Live At Home Performance)” | 2020 | Laura Marano & Housecat Sessions | |
| “Something To Believe In” | 2021 | Izak Rappaport | |
| “Honest With You (Remix)” | Cole Walliser |
Guest appearances
| Title | Year | Artist(s) | Director(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| “Heard It on the Radio” | 2012 | Ross Lynch | Matt Stawski | |
| “Somebody to You” | 2014 | The Vamps and Demi Lovato | Emil Nava | |
| “Freya vs. Ravenna” | 2016 | Princess Rap Battle | Whitney Avalon |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actress: Comedy | Austin & Ally | Nominated | |
| 2015 | Kids’ Choice Awards | Favorite TV Actress | Austin & Ally | Won | |
| Remi Awards | Rising Actress | A Sort of Homecoming | Won | ||
| Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer TV Star: Female | Austin & Ally | Nominated | ||
| Choice TV: Chemistry (with Ross Lynch) | Austin & Ally | Nominated | |||
| 2016 | Kids’ Choice Awards | Favorite Female TV Star | Austin & Ally | Nominated | |
| Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actress: Comedy | Austin & Ally | Nominated | ||
| Streamy Awards | Original Song | Boombox | Nominated | ||
| 2017 | Detroit Film Critics Society | Miglior Ensemble | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | |
| San Diego Film Critics Society | Best Cast | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | ||
| Seattle Film Critics Society | Best Ensemble | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | ||
| Florida Film Critics Circle | Best Cast | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | ||
| Online Film Critics Society | Best Ensemble | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | ||
| 2018 | Critics’ Choice Movie Awards | Best Acting Ensemble | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | |
| Georgia Film Critics Association | Best Ensemble | The cast of Lady Bird | Nominated | ||
| 2019 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Comedy Movie Actress | The Perfect Date | Won | |
| Choice Movie Ship (with Noah Centineo) | The Perfect Date | Nominated |