Isa Briones
Birth nameIsabella Camille Briones
Birth dateJanuary 17, 1999 (age 27)
Birth placeLondon, England
CitizenshipUnited States · United Kingdom
OccupationActor · singer
Years active2008–present
FatherJon Jon Briones
RelativesTeo Briones (brother)

Isabella Camille Briones[1] (/iːsənbspbriːˈoʊnɛs/ EE-suh bree-OH-nes; born January 17, 1999)[2][3] is an American actor and singer, born in London and raised in Los Angeles.[4][3] She rose to prominence for her starring roles in the CBS / Paramount+ series Star Trek: Picard (2020–2022), including Soji, an android "daughter" of Data. She also starred as Margot Stokes in the first season of the Disney+/Hulu series Goosebumps (2023) and as Dr. Trinity Santos in the HBO Max medical drama The Pitt (2025–present).

Briones began her career as a model in New York City at age three, and started acting in feature films and stage productions in 2008. She won the Ovation Award for Featured Actress In a Musical for Next to Normal (2018) in Los Angeles. Afterward, she returned to New York and became the youngest performer in the first touring company of Hamilton, and made her Broadway debut, playing Eurydice in Hadestown (2024).

Early life

Briones was born in London, England to Jon Jon Briones and Megan Briones ( Johnson) and she has a younger brother, Teo Briones. Her family members are all musical theater actors.[1][5] She is Filipino on her father's side and Swedish and Irish on her mother's.[6]

Her parents met in Stuttgart while auditioning for Miss Saigon;[7] her father was closing its West End theatre production when Briones was born.[1] She was ten months old when her family moved from London to New York City, where she began work as a model at age three. In 2006, when Briones was seven, her family moved to Los Angeles.[3]

Briones learned acting and singing at home from her parents. She majored in theatre and musical theatre at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts.[8]

Career

Film and television

Briones began her acting career as a child in 2008. She appeared in television commercials and played supporting roles in feature films including Brown Soup Thing,[9] Takers and Lonely Boy.[10]

For a television pilot in 2010, Briones played one of three children of a single mother moonlighting as a drug kingpin in Beverly Hills.[11]

In 2018, she appeared along with her father in an episode of The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.[3]

In 2019, Briones was cast in Star Trek: Picard as two sets of synthetic twins: Dahj and Soji, and Jana and Sutra.[12][13] Briones sent tapes of herself to audition for the web television series while she was playing multiple roles on stage in Hamilton, and learned during the process that she would portray twins in the series.[14] She made her debut as both Dahj and Soji during the season premiere in January 2020.[15] Sutra is introduced in episode nine.[13]

In his review of the series' debut episode, Entertainment Weekly's Darren Franich called its plot developments "shock tactics" and Dahj "vacant".[16] Scott Collura of IGN wrote that Soji is effectively a plot device, but Briones "gives it her all week after week, reacting best she can to Soji's changing status quo".[17] Keith DeCandido from Tor.com said her performance improved with each episode; "her confused post-activation Soji is her best work".[18][19] in which she added a new character, Kore, genetically engineered "daughter" of 21st century geneticist Adam Soong (Brent Spiner).[20][21] In July 2020, Briones took part in the Star Trek Universe Virtual Panel for Comic-Con@Home, the virtual event that replaced San Diego Comic-Con in 2020.[22] Briones did not return for the series' third season.[23]

In October of 2022, Briones was added to the cast of the Disney+ series Goosebumps (2023), based on the novels by R. L. Stine. Briones played Margot, a bookworm thought by her high-school classmates to be a snob.[24]

Briones joined the cast of the medical drama The Pitt in 2024 as Dr. Trinity Santos, a self-assured and abrasive intern.[25] The Pitt became a major critical and ratings success upon its debut in April 2025.[26] The Santos character was controversial among audiences for her role in interpersonal conflicts, while Briones herself said she enjoyed the role of a "complicated" character. She also cited the importance of the series' work in representing Filipino contributions to the American healthcare system, saying it had "never really been addressed before in this way. We haven't seen a lot of Filipino actors in medical shows before, and now we finally have that chance."[27] As part of the series' primary cast, she received the award for Ensemble in a Drama Series at the 32nd Actor Awards.[28]

Theatre

Briones has performed in numerous stage musicals since childhood. She played Susan in a Los Angeles production of Miracle on 34th Street, in which Megan Briones appeared as her mother.[29]

In 2018, Briones earned three Ovation Award nominations for Featured Actress In a Musical from the LA STAGE Alliance. She was nominated for her portrayal of Perón's mistress in Evita, and won for her performance in one of two discrete productions of Next to Normal.[30] In his review of Next to Normal in August 2016, Cary Ginell of BroadwayWorld wrote, "Briones gives a disquietingly effective, achingly nuanced portrayal" of her character, Natalie;[31] in October, Ginell called her song in Evita "one of the most quietly exquisite moments in the entire musical."[32] Margaret Gray of the Los Angeles Times called Briones the "breakout star" of Next to Normal in May 2017: "Briones played the role before ... and she has a lock on it."[33] Erin Conley of OnStage Los Angeles praised Briones's "beautiful, crystal clear voice."[34]

Briones joined her father when he moved back to New York in January 2018.[30] She was cast in Hamilton following a seven-month audition process, becoming at age 19 the youngest person to join the first national touring company. Over the course of its one-year run, she played both Peggy Schuyler and Maria Reynolds,[35] and understudied for the role of Eliza Hamilton.[8] Her performances brought praise from Judith Newmark of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: she "effectively plays Peggy Schuyler as a cupcake and Maria Reynolds as a flambé."[36] Cincinnati CityBeat's Rick Pender wrote, "Briones brings a sultry alto to her second role as Maria Reynolds," Hamilton's mistress.[37] She toured with the company until March 2019,[38] and was cast in Star Trek: Picard in April.[12]

After production wrapped in Los Angeles on the series' first season, Briones returned to the stage. She appeared in AJ Rafael's Crazy Talented Asians, and #Hash(tag) America by Anthony Fedorov and Raye Zaragoza.[39] In May 2020, Briones and the cast of Crazy Talented Asians began producing a monthly online performance series.[40]

Briones returned to the stage in Los Angeles in April 2022 for a reading of Graves, a play written by Ellie Pyle and directed by Bola Ogun.[41] In July, she joined the cast of Grease as staged by Musical Theatre West. Sean McMullen of The Press-Enterprise called her presence as Betty Rizzo "tough, seasoned, and visceral."[42] Steven Stanley of Stage Scene LA wrote, "Briones gives Rizzo both power pipes and tough-girl swagger".[43] In March 2024, Briones joined the cast of Hadestown on Broadway as Eurydice. Her father joined the cast as Hermes.[44][26]

Briones plays Connie Francis in the musical Just in Time in a limited run that began on 1 April 2026.[45]

Music

Briones has recorded several video duets with fellow Filipino-American performer AJ Rafael.[46] Their version of "Rewrite the Stars" from The Greatest Showman was released as a single.[47]

For the Star Trek: Picard season one finale, "Et In Arcadia Ego, Part 2", Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies" was set to play during Data's final scene as a bookend to his performance in Star Trek: Nemesis. Composer Jeff Russo wrote a new arrangement for the episode, and series co-creator Alex Kurtzman suggested they ask Briones to perform the vocals.[48] Briones said, "it's so right that this is the song" playing at the end of Data's journey.[49] Her rendition was released as a single in 2020.[47]

Personal life

As of 2020, Briones lived in Los Angeles.[3]

Activism

In April 2020, Briones joined her Star Trek: Picard castmates, including Jonathan Frakes, Jeri Ryan and Brent Spiner, in a video message of hope to viewers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.[50]

In 2021, she participated in a video campaign addressing hate crimes against Asian Americans.[51]

Upon being cast in The Pitt, Briones advocated for a change in her character's name to represent her Filipino heritage, reflecting the strong Filipino representation in the medical industry.[52][53] Her character delivers a line in Tagalog to two gossiping Filipina nurses in the first-season episode "5:00 P.M.", confirming their own suspicions about her Filipina ancestry.[54]

Acting credits

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2008Brown Soup ThingCousin Isa
2010TakersSunday Welles
2013Lonely BoyMia
2016CarpoolCarmenShort film

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2018The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime StoryElena CunananEpisode: "Creator/Destroyer"; also starring Jon Jon Briones
2020The Ready RoomHerselfWeb television aftershow: "S1 E9"
2020–2022Star Trek: PicardDahj/Soji/Jana/Sutra/Kore14 episodes
2023GoosebumpsMargotMain role; Season 1 (10 episodes)
2025–presentThe PittDr. Trinity SantosMain role; 30 episodes

Theatre

YearProductionRoleVenueNotes
2016EvitaMistress/ensembleFred Kalvi Theatre, Cabrillo Music TheatreAugust 14–23, 2016
2016–2017Next to NormalNataliePico Playhouse, Los AngelesAugust 19 – October 8, 2016
East West Players, David Henry Hwang Theatre, Los AngelesMay 11 – June 11, 2017
2018–2019HamiltonPeggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds
u/s Eliza Hamilton (replacement)		U.S. National TourMarch 2018 – March 2019
2022GreaseBetty RizzoRichard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts CenterJuly 8–24, 2022
2024HadestownEurydice (replacement)Walter Kerr Theatre, BroadwayMarch 19 – June 30, 2024
2025All NighterLizzy (replacement)The Newman Mills Theater, Off-BroadwayApril 30 – May 18, 2025
2026Just in TimeConnie Francis (replacement)Circle in the Square Theatre, BroadwayApril 1 — May 29, 2026

Discography

Singles
YearTitleArtistLabel
2018"Rewrite the Stars"AJ Rafael ft. Isa BrionesAtlantic
2020"Blue Skies"Isa BrionesLakeshore

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult
2018Ovation Awards[30]Featured Actress in a MusicalEvita
Next to Normal (East West Players)
Next to Normal (Triage Productions; Standing Room Only Productions)
2026Actor AwardsOutstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama SeriesThe Pitt

References

Footnotes

  1. ^ Grigware, Don (August 19, 2016). "BWW Interview: Isa Briones Opens Up About Next to Normal". BroadwayWorld. Archived March 20, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 9, 2020. Cites full name.
  2. ^ "WATCH: Jude Hosts a Paint-Date With Isa Briones". startrek.com. March 11, 2020. pp. 0:06. Retrieved October 6, 2020. Cites pronunciation.
  3. ^ Nepales, Ruben V. (January 30, 2020). "Fil-Am Isa Briones went from Hamilton to a female lead role in Picard—and she's just 21". Philippine Daily Inquirer. p. 1. Retrieved April 6, 2020. Cites birth place and date, American Crime Story.    "Dahj/Soji: Isa Briones". cbs.com. Archived September 28, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 15, 2021. Actor and singer Isa Briones ... most recent credits include ... the First National Touring Company of Hamilton, and Next to Normal ... for which she won an L.A. Ovation Award. Cites actor and singer.    Moreland, Alex (January 22, 2020). "Exclusive Interview—Isa Briones and Jonathan Del Arco on Star Trek: Picard, their characters Dahj and Hugh, and more". South Shields: Flickering Myth. Archived September 7, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 15, 2021. [Jonathan Del Arco:] She's also an incredibly confident actor and performer, a great singer as well." "[Moreland:] It's pretty good going for an actor who only turned 21 the day after our interview. Cites actor and singer.
  4. ^ Domingo, Jay & Writer, PDM Staff (2026-04-17). "UK-Born Star Isa Briones Says Filipino Representation Is “Finally Moving Beyond Stereotypes”". Philippine Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2026-04-27.
  5. ^ "Teo Briones". IMDb. Archived August 20, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
  6. ^ Spelling & Stobie 2020, p. 28.
  7. ^ "Fans and actors will miss Saigon". Evening Standard. October 25, 1999. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  8. ^ Nepales (January 30, 2020), p. 2 Archived April 6, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  9. ^ Floorwalker, Mike (January 30, 2020). "Why Dahj/Soji From Star Trek: Picard Looks So Familiar". Looper. Archived May 16, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  10. ^ Spelling & Stobie 2020, p. 26.
  11. ^ Terrace 2014, 226.
  12. ^ Porter, Rick (April 17, 2019). "Patrick Stewart's Star Trek Series Adds Newsroom, Penny Dreadful Actors". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived February 24, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 3, 2020. Cites casting.
  13. ^ Pirrello, Phil (March 19, 2020). "11 Star Trek: Picard Easter Eggs as Season 1 Nears the End". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived March 24, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 10, 2020. Cites characters. Jana is presented in a drawing during season one; she was killed prior to those events.
  14. ^ Miller, Liz Shannon (March 26, 2020). "Star Trek: Picard Star Isa Briones on the Finale, Confirms Patrick Stewart Is 'Just the Coolest Dude'". Paste. Retrieved October 5, 2020. "[The producers wanted] a distinct look ... and I was like, 'let's just go for it with this one—she can have the long hair, she can have the eyes.' ... I definitely feel, as a theatre actor, that ... once you're in costume, and the lights are on, everything is happening, you naturally fall into the character. And I feel like that's exactly what happened with Sutra". Cites theatre actor, audition process, Sutra.
  15. ^ Schager, Nick (January 23, 2020). "Star Trek: Picard premiere recap: The past, reborn". Entertainment Weekly. Archived January 23, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  16. ^ Franich, Darren (January 23, 2020). "Can Star Trek: Picard recover from its bafflingly bad premiere?". Entertainment Weekly. Archived April 10, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  17. ^ Collura, Scott (March 28, 2020). "Star Trek: Picard Episode 9 Recap / Review – 'Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 1'". IGN. Archived March 20, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  18. ^ DeCandido, Keith R. A. (April 3, 2020). "Regrets, I've Had a Few — Star Trek: Picard First Season Overview". Tor.com. Archived April 6, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  19. ^ Del Rosario, Alexandra (April 5, 2021). "Star Trek: Picard Season 2 Teaser: Patrick Stewart Ponders The Final Frontier, Hints At A Familiar Character's Return". Deadline Hollywood. Archived April 5, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  20. ^ Roman, Julian (April 8, 2022). "Star Trek: Picard Mid-Season Two Recap & Review: Q's Dangerous Gambit". MovieWeb. Archived June 27, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  21. ^ DeCandido, Keith R. A. (May 5, 2022). ""Must it always have galactic import?" — Star Trek: Picard's "Farewell"". Tor.com. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  22. ^ "Star Trek Universe Virtual Panel Comic-Con@Home 2020". YouTube. Comic-Con International. July 23, 2020. pp. 1:00:00–1:17:46. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  23. ^ Trestrall, jack (May 6, 2022). "Star Trek: Picard Cast Confirm their Departure!". Trek Central. Archived May 6, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  24. ^ Otterson, Joe (October 11, 2022). "'Goosebumps' Disney+ Series Casts Zack Morris, Isa Briones (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived October 11, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  25. ^ Petski, Denise (12 July 2024). "'The Pitt' Adds 9 To Cast Of Max Series Including Tracy Ifeachor, Taylor Dearden, Fiona Dourif, Isa Briones, Gerran Howell". Deadline Hollywood. Archived January 9, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  26. ^ Davidow, Sylvia (March 2, 2026). "Dancing Through Life and Around a Gurney with Isa Briones". V Magazine. Retrieved March 8, 2026.
  27. ^ Tonic, Gina. "Isa Briones on In The Heights, Advocating For Herself and Playing a Controversial Character". Polyester. Retrieved March 8, 2026.
  28. ^ Jackson, Hannah (March 2, 2026). "The Pitt’s Isa Briones Trades Her Scrubs for Vintage at the 2026 SAG Actor Awards". Vogue. Retrieved March 8, 2026.
  29. ^ Nepales, Ruben V. (October 7, 2016). "Jon Jon Briones' daughter also rises". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
  30. ^ Gelt, Jessica (January 30, 2018). "Ovation Awards 2018: Wins for Actors Co-op's 33 Variations, East West Players' Next to Normal". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 10, 2020. Cites award/nominations, commercials.    Ginell, Cary (October 20, 2016). "BWW Interview: Isa Briones of Evita at Cabrillo Music Theatre". BroadwayWorld. Archived February 25, 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 10, 2020. Cites Evita, move to New York.
  31. ^ Ginell, Cary (August 24, 2016). "BWW Review: Next To Normal at Pico Playhouse". BroadwayWorld. Archived August 27, 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  32. ^ Ginell, Cary (October 19, 2016). "Evita Teen Star Isa Briones On The Energy Of Acting". Ventura County Theatre News. Archived January 19, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 28, 2020. [Briones:] I don't want to go all method ... but on the other hand, I know that I am Natalie, I know what she is going through, although I'm only an actor.
  33. ^ Gray, Margaret (May 25, 2017). "Review: At East West Players, the gut-wrenching emotion of Next to Normal transcends race". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 6, 2020. Gray called Briones "the lovely, impressive newcomer" in her review the year before.
  34. ^ Conley, Erin (August 22, 2016). "Review: Next to Normal at the Pico Playhouse". Onstage Los Angeles. Archived May 5, 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  35. ^ Ang, Walter (April 19, 2018). "Fil-Am Isa Briones is youngest actor in Hamilton nat'l tour". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived April 19, 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
  36. ^ Newmark, Judith (April 5, 2018). "Hamilton rises up to the highest reaches at the Fox Theatre". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  37. ^ Pender, Rick (February 22, 2019). "The Hamilton Cincinnati Staging is on Par with Broadway's Original". Cincinnati CityBeat. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  38. ^ "Isa Briones". About the Artists. Retrieved December 29, 2020. Also cites understudy.
  39. ^ Bronson, Fred (October 15, 2019). "#Hash(tag) America Brings Together Talent From American Idol, Star Trek: Picard & More". Billboard. Archived May 3, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 17, 2020. [Crazy Talented Asians] was one of my first opportunities to interact one-on-one with fans of Star Trek.
  40. ^ "East West Players Announces Virtual Gala and Weekly Streaming Content Featuring Randall Park & More". BroadwayWorld. April 30, 2020. Archived May 16, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  41. ^ Rabinowitz, Chloe (April 19, 2022). "Bola Ogun to Direct Isa Briones in GRAVES by Ellie Pyle". BroadwayWorld. Archived May 6, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  42. ^ McMullen, Sean (July 13, 2022). "The Showbuzz: Musical Theatre West's Grease offers new look at nostalgia". The Press-Enterprise. Archived July 14, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  43. ^ Stanley, Steven (July 9, 2022). "Grease". StageSceneLA. Archived November 4, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
  44. ^ Jon Jon Briones and Daughter Isa Briones to Join Cast of Broadway's Hadestown
  45. ^ Huston, Caitlin (2026-03-11). "‘The Pitt’s Isa Briones Joins ‘Just In Time’ on Broadway (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2026-03-11.
  46. ^ Briong, Ian (February 1, 2020). "YouTube star AJ Rafael thanks 'fans since middle school' in open letter ...". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved April 3, 2020. Cites Filipino-American.    "AJ Rafael (official channel)". YouTube. Archived May 16, 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 3, 2020. Cites videos.
  47. ^ "Search: Isa Briones". Apple Music. Archived April 4, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  48. ^ 'Star Trek: Picard – The Return of 'Blue Skies (television production). YouTube (CBS official). March 27, 2020. pp. 0:58–1:13. Retrieved October 14, 2022. [Russo: I told Kurtzman it was a great idea to record our own version], 'and we'll find a singer' ... and he was like, 'well, you know, Isa is a singer.'
  49. ^ 'Star Trek: Picard – The Return of 'Blue Skies (television production). YouTube (CBS official). March 27, 2020. pp. 0:37–0:49 and 3:30–3:47. Retrieved October 14, 2022. [Briones:] This is obviously a bit of a throwback to ... when Data sang 'Blue Skies', so it's really cool that Data's 'daughter' kind of gets to sing it as well. ... It's so right that this is the song that is playing during this moment ... in Nemesis, it's the beginning of something. As we sing it this time, it's the end of this chapter; it's a good-bye.
  50. ^ "No matter where you are in the galaxy, we're #InThisTogether". No. 1247917116147335169. April 8, 2020. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  51. ^ Davenport, Emily (March 29, 2021). "Asian American figures launch video campaign as part of #StopAsianHate National Day of Action and Healing". AM New York Metro. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  52. ^ "Medical drama 'The Pitt' offers an authentic look at hospital life—and at last, Filipino nurses are part of the story". Tatler Asia. 19 March 2025. Archived April 28, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  53. ^ Parungao, Adrian (13 June 2024). "One in seven immigrant healthcare workers in US are Filipinos". Philippine Daily Inquirer
  54. ^ Quah, Nicholas (10 April 2025). "'She Just Needs Therapy and a Hug.' The Pitt's Isa Briones doesn't need you to like Dr. Santos but hopes you can empathize with her.". Vulture. Archived April 16, 2025 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 22, 2025.

Bibliography

  • Spelling, Ian (2020). "Star Trek: Picard: Double Trouble". Star Trek: The Official Magazine. Vol. 1, no. 75. Titan Magazines. ISSN 1357-3888
  • Spelling, Ian & Stobie, Jay (2020). Star Trek: Picard – Official Collector's Edition. Jones, Nick (ed.). Titan Magazines. ISBN 9781787732438.
  • Terrace, Vincent (2014). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010. 2nd ed. McFarland & Company. ISBN 9780786486410.