The American model and actress Willa Holland is probably most famous for her roles as Thea Queen in the series “Arrow,” Agnes in The CW drama “Gossip Girl,” and Kaitlin in the Fox series “The O.C.”
Age, Early Life, and Education Background
Willa Joannachance Holland was born under the Gemini zodiac sign on 18 June 1991, in Los Angeles, California, so is 31 years old as of 2022. She was born to Keith Holland, a cinematographer, and actress Darnell Gregorio De Palma, but Holland was still very young when her parents divorced; her mother went on to marry American film director Brian De Palmer, famous for his works on the 1983 classic, “Scarface,” (starring Al Pacino), but they divorced two years later in 1997. She was brought up together with her sisters Piper De Palma and Brianna Holland, and started expressing an interest in acting at the age of seven.
Holland went to Kenter Canyon Elementary School, and then joined Paul Revere Middle School and was actively involved in acting. She later attended Palisades Charter High School but left to launch her acting career after just a month and a half, so finally sat for her GED exams in 2009 but didn’t then join a college.
Hobbies
Willa loves traveling, and her modeling and acting careers have seen her touring many US, Asian, and European destinations. Her favorite travel spot is Miami, Florida.
She’s a big fan of films and TV series – favorites are “Notting Hill” and the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise, while her best-loved entertainers are Julia Roberts, Dick Van Dyke, Johnny Depp, and ‘Mary Poppins’ aka Julie Andrews.
Willa thinks of modeling as a hobby rather than a profession, as she was seven when she landed her first modeling job. She had created a name for herself in the US by the time she turned 11 years old and she has now modeled for several reputable brands such as Ralph Lauren, Guess, and Abercrombie & Fitch.
She is interested in politics and revealed that she voted for Bernie Sanders in the 2016 US Presidential poll.
She is a huge lover of dogs and has two pets named Bill and Cruz – she’s fond of posting Bill’s photos on her Instagram.
Career Beginnings and Film Roles
Willa’s parents were encouraged to take her for modeling and acting training by the billionaire film director Steven Spielberg, after he noticed her talent. She later signed with the famed Ford Modeling Agency in 1998, and subsequently did a shoot for the British luxury fashion house Burberry. In 1999, her step-father, Brian De Palma, took her to a theatrical agency, and she’s since appeared in numerous national commercials. In 2001, she played Young Faye in the film “Ordinary Mess”, sharing the screen with her father. in 2006, she was the narrator of the documentary “Making the Video Game: Scarface – The World Is Yours”, and two years later, she was selected to portray April in the Jason Freeland-written and directed drama “Garden Party.” In the same year, Willa appeared as Taylor Elizabeth Berry in the romantic comedy “Middle of Nowhere,” Kelly in the 2 drama “A Summer in Genoa,” and Jamie in the sports film “Chasing 3000.”
In 2011, she was cast as Janice in the Rod Lurie-directed action drama “Straw Dogs”, appearing together with Alexander Skarsgard, Kate Bosworth and James Marsden, and in the year that followed, she starred as Davey Wexler in the Jury Award-winning drama “Tiger Eyes,” which is based on an eponymous teen novel by Judy Blume.
Her recent roles have been in the 2016 crime-drama “Blood in the Water,” in which she played Veronica, and in the 2020 short drama, “Pure Immersion.”
(Video) "Pure Immersion" Short Film + Screen Captures https://t.co/hf4ZRrBMUt #WillaHolland pic.twitter.com/JVpIIZf7hH
— WILLA-HOLLAND•ORG (@whollandorg) November 26, 2020
TV Roles
Willa played Kalla in the episode “Valerie Hangs with the Cool Kids” of the series “The Comeback” in 2005, before she portrayed Kaitlin in 22 episodes of Josh Schwartz’s romantic drama “The O.C.” in 2006 and ‘07. The series, which stars Adam Brody, Peter Gallagher and Mischa Barton, was nominated for 36 awards, and won 15 including 12 Teen Choice Awards.
She landed her next recurring role as Agnes Andrews in five episodes of the hit drama “Gossip Girl” between 2008-2012 – the show was nominated for 57 awards and won 21, including 18 Teen Choice Awards. She also played Speedy, aka Thea Queen, in the episodes “Legends of Today” and “Invasion!” of the action-drama “The Flash” in 2015 and 2016.
Most noticeably, between 2012 and 2020, Willa played Speedy/Thea Queen in over 130 episodes of the acclaimed action-adventure series “Arrow,” created by Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Andrew Kreisberg and stars Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, and Katie Cassidy. It’s about the billionaire Oliver Queen, who is presumed dead for five years, only to return as a hooded vigilante who fights criminals in his town using a bow.
Other Works and Awards
Willa appeared in the documentary “Humanity’s Last Line of Defense” in 2010 and three years later, she appeared in the reality TV show “Fashion Police.” She has also voiced several characters, such as Aqua in the video game “Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep” in 2010, “Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance” two years later, and “Kingdom Hearts III” in 2019.
Holland bagged the Boston International Film Festival Jury Award in the category of Best Actress in 2012, for her works in “Tiger Eyes.”
Social Media Presence
Willa is highly active on Instagram under her username @willaholland, and has amassed close to 1.6 million followers. She launched her Twitter account – @willaaah – in March 2012, and has since gained more than 326,000 followers. She is also active on Facebook with over 94,000 fans.
Personal Life
Willa started dating the British actor, Toby Hemingway, in 2009. Toby has over 30 acting credits to his name, and is perhaps best known for playing Reid Garwin in the action film, “The Covenant” in 2006. The duo parted ways after dating for around two years, after which it’s rumored that Holland was in a brief relationship with the American actor, Calton Lee Haynes, in 2013. In September 2015, she began seeing the photographer Nate Walton, who is based in New York, and they’ve shared numerous photos featuring themselves together on Instagram. Willa is unmarried without children as of 2022.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUDX0dulas9/
Height, Weight, and Physical Appearance
Holland is of white ethnicity and has light brown hair and green eyes. She weighs approximately 123lbs (56kgs), is 5ft 7ins (1.70m) tall with vital statistics of 32-25-33, and wears shoe size 9(US)
Net Worth
Holland began her career at the age of seven and has appeared in many high-grossing projects. She has also earned a decent sum from her modeling career, and as of 2022 has a net worth of approximately $5 million .
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