Amanda Renee Jelks (born October 9, 1986) is an American actress. She was born in

Hammond, Louisiana Hammond is the largest city in Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana, United States, located east of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge and northwest of New Orleans. Its population was 20,019 in the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, and 21 ...

to Rodney Jelks Sr. and Melissa Miller.

Early life

Jelks was the second born child of Rodney Jelks Sr and Melissa Miller. Her father is of French and British descent and works as a linesman for

Entergy Entergy Corporation is a Fortune 500 integrated energy company engaged in electric power production and retail distribution operations in the Deep South of the United States. Entergy is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and generates and ...

. Her mother is of Scottish, English, and German descent and works as a registered nurse. She has three siblings and three step-siblings. Jelks started taking ballet lessons at the age of 2. When she was 10, she won the lead in a church play at Old Zion Hill Baptist in Tickfaw, Louisiana. She enjoyed it so much she started auditioning for roles in the Hammond Community Theater and won the lead in '' You Can't Take It With You''. In 1998, she worked with Missoula's Children Theater as a singer and dancer for the production of ''

Cinderella "Cinderella", or "The Little Glass Slipper", is a Folklore, folk tale with thousands of variants that are told throughout the world.Dundes, Alan. Cinderella, a Casebook. Madison, Wis: University of Wisconsin Press, 1988. The protagonist is a you ...

'' and ''

The Pied Piper The Pied Piper of Hamelin (, also known as the Pan Piper or the Rat-Catcher of Hamelin) is the title character of a legend from the town of Hamelin (Hameln), Lower Saxony, Germany. The legend dates back to the Middle Ages. The earliest refere ...

''. In 2005, she was awarded a scholarship to attend New Orleans Center for Creative Art NOCCA where she was trained in theater, dance, and voice. After graduating from Hammond High School, she attended the

University of New Orleans The University of New Orleans (UNO) is a Public university, public research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. First opened in 1958 as Louisiana State University in New Orleans, it is the largest public university and one of t ...

, where she was a theater and education major.

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

flooded the university which resulted in UNO closing the theater department. Afterwards, she stayed in New Orleans for four months working as a personal assistant on '' Glory at Sea'', which was directed by

Benh Zeitlin Benjamin Harold Zeitlin (; born October 14, 1982) is an American filmmaker, best known for directing and co-writing the 2012 film ''Beasts of the Southern Wild'', for which he received two Academy Award nominations. Early life Zeitlin was born i ...

Career

Jelks' first feature film was as Frederika in '' Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever''. She has stated in interviews her inspirations are

Kathy Bates Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress. Kathy Bates filmography, Her work spans over five decades, and List of awards and nominations received by Kathy Bates, her accolades include an Academy Awards, Academy Award, t ...

and

Melissa McCarthy Melissa Ann McCarthy (born August 26, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Melissa McCarthy, numerous accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Award ...

because both women have opened the door for plus sized actresses to work in roles typically reserved for "normal sized" women.Get To Know Amanda Jelks: My Chat With The Star Of “Crazy Fat Ethel” 2012
2012-09-08 In October 2011, she filmed a new drama, ''Untouched'', which was released in 2017 on

Amazon Prime Amazon Prime (styled as prime) is a paid subscription service of Amazon which is available in many countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services inclu ...

. She was given a brief cameo in ''

Scary Movie 5 ''Scary Movie 5'' (stylized as ''Scary MoVie'') is a 2013 American parody film directed by Malcolm D. Lee, written by David Zucker and Pat Proft, and produced by Zucker and Phil Dornfeld. It is the standalone sequel to ''Scary Movie 4'' (2006) ...

'', which was released in theaters April 2013. She played a supporting role in the

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...

miniseries ''

Mr Mercedes ''Mr. Mercedes'' is a crime novel by American writer Stephen King. He calls it his first hard-boiled detective book. It was published on June 3, 2014. It is the first volume in a trilogy, followed in 2015 by ''Finders Keepers'', the first draft ...

''.

References

External links

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Costal Talent resume
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jelks, Amanda 1986 births Actresses from Louisiana American people of British descent American people of English descent American people of French descent American people of German descent American people of Scottish descent Living people People from Hammond, Louisiana University of New Orleans alumni 21st-century American women