Rosa Salazar (; born July 16, 1985) is an American actress. She had roles in the NBC series Parenthood (2011–2012) and the FX anthology series American Horror Story: Murder House (2011). She made her breakthrough as the title character of the film Alita: Battle Angel (2019) and starred in the series Brand New Cherry Flavor (2021), which she also co-produced.
Salazar appeared in The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015), Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015), and Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018) and also appeared in the Netflix films The Kindergarten Teacher (2018) and Bird Box (2018). She starred in the Amazon series Undone (2019–2022).
Early life Salazar was born on July 16, 1985, in Washington, D.C. to Luis and Marilynne Salazar. Her father is Peruvian and her mother is French-Canadian. She grew up in Washington, D.C. and nearby Greenbelt, Maryland. She attended Greenbelt Middle School and Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, where she was active in the theatre program.
Career Salazar enjoyed entertaining others from the age of fifteen and became serious about becoming an actress after moving to New York City as a young adult. There she appeared in several CollegeHumor sketches. Shortly after relocating to Los Angeles in 2009, she made her film debut playing the character Crystal in Jamesy Boy, written and directed by Trevor White. She then landed recurring roles on two hit TV series: American Horror Story: Murder House and Parenthood. In 2015, she co-starred in various sequels: The Divergent Series: Insurgent as Lynn, and Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials as Brenda.
In 2016, Salazar directed and starred in the short film Good Crazy, a story of a social crusader. It was nominated for a Short Film Grand Jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival.
In 2018, she reprised her role as Brenda in Maze Runner: The Death Cure.
In 2019, she made her major studio lead debut with the film Alita: Battle Angel, an adaptation of the manga Gunnm directed by Robert Rodriguez. It brought Salazar numerous awards, including "Best Visual Effects or Animated Performance" from the Hollywood Critics Association and "Best Voice or Motion Capture Performance" from the Association of Latin Entertainment Critics. That year, it was announced that Salazar would have a main role on the Netflix horror drama miniseries Brand New Cherry Flavor. It was released on August 13, 2021.
In 2023, Salazar was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
In 2025, Salazar signed on to CBS series Einstein, but dropped out shortly after.
In 2026, she performed on stage as Helen Ramirez in High Noon.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2013 Epic Roller derby girl Voice2014 Jamesy Boy Crystal Search Party Pocahontas2015 The Divergent Series: Insurgent Lynn Night Owls Madeline Nominated – Hill Country Film Festival Award for Best ActressWon – Twin Cities Film Fest Breakthrough Achievement Award for Performance Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials Brenda2016 Good Crazy Rosa Short film; also director and writerNominated – Sundance Film Festival Short Film Grand Jury Prize Submerged Amanda 2017 CHiPs Ava Perez2018 Maze Runner: The Death Cure Brenda The Kindergarten Teacher Becca Bird Box Lucy 2019 Alita: Battle Angel Alita Nominated – Imagen Award for Best Actress - Feature Film 2020 Pink Skies Ahead Addie 2021 No Future Becca Marcel the Shell with Shoes On Larissa 2022 Chariot Maria Deschaines 2023 A Million Miles Away Adela Hernandez2025 Captain America: Brave New World Diamondback Deleted scenes Play Dirty Zen 2026 Vampires of the Velvet Lounge Alexis
Television Year Title Role Notes 2010 Old Friends Dog walker Web series; episode: "Cleaning Up" 2010–2012 CollegeHumor Various characters Web series; 13 episodes2011 Law & Order: LA Yolanda Episode: "Zuma Canyon" American Horror Story: Murder House Nurse Maria 4 episodes Little Brother Odetta Television film 2011–2012 Parenthood Zoe DeHaven Recurring role (season 3)2012 Stevie TV Various characters Unknown episodes Car-Jumper Agent Mindy Web series short; episode #1.1 Ben and Kate Molly Episode: "21st Birthday"2013 Sketchy Web series; episode: "Birth Control on the Bottom" Hello Ladies Heaven Episode: "Pool Party" Boomerang Olive Chatsworth Television film Body of Proof Ramona Delgado Episode: "Eye for an Eye" Nuclear Family Rebecca Web series short 2014 The Pro Jamie Schoonmaker Unaired pilot2015 Wrestling Isn't Wrestling Girl watching GoT Video documentary short China, IL Barb Voice; episode: "Magical Pet" Hunt the Truth Bostwick Podcast series Tim & Eric's Bedtime Stories Lucy Episode: "Tornado"2016 Man Seeking Woman Rosa/Bosa Recurring role Comedy Bang! Bang! Camper Episode: "Gillian Jacobs Wears a Gray Checkered Suit and a Red Bow Tie" 2017–2019 Big Mouth Ms. Benitez Voice; 4 episodes2019–2022 Undone Alma Winograd-Diaz Main role2019 Star Trek: Short Treks Captain Lynne Lucero Episode: "The Trouble with Edward"2021 B Positive Adriana 2 episodes Brand New Cherry Flavor Lisa Nova Main role; limited series2022 Wedding Season Katie Main role2025 Win or Lose Vanessa Voice
Video games Year Title Voice role Notes 2013 Batman: Arkham Origins Copperhead / train hostage Only video game roles
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