Diane Guerrero

**Diane Guerrero** (born July 21, 1986) is an American actress and author. She is known for her roles as inmate Maritza Ramos on the Netflix series *Orange Is the New Black* and Lina on *Jane the Virgin*. Guerrero grew up in Boston and remained there after the rest of her family was deported to Colombia. She is an advocate for immigration reform. Her role on *Orange Is the New Black* has contributed to three consecutive wins for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series. Guerrero is the author of *In the Country We Love: My Family Divided*, a memoir about her parents being detained and deported when she was fourteen. She usually played as Sofia in the CBS sitcom *Superior Donuts* from 2017 to 2018. She current played as Crazy Jane in DC Universe series *Doom Patrol*.

## Early life

Guerrero was born in New Jersey to Colombian parents and raised in Boston, Massachusetts. As the only member of her immediate family with United States citizenship, she remained in the U.S. when her parents and older brother were deported back to Colombia when she was 14 after unsuccessfully pursuing legal citizenship. Guerrero has since become a strong advocate for immigration reform.

Guerrero was raised in the Jamaica Plain and Roxbury neighborhoods of Boston after being taken in by other Colombian families. She attended Boston Arts Academy, a performing arts high school, where she was in the music department. Among her high school activities was singing with a jazz group, but she anticipated pursuing political science and communications in college. Her first job after college was in a law office.

In 2010, at age 24, Guerrero decided to pursue a career in acting. That same year, she appeared in the music video for Boston-based R&B singer Louie Bello's song "Faces". In 2011, she moved to New York City and studied acting at the Susan Batson Studios, where she met her manager Josh Taylor.

## Career

In 2012, Guerrero was cast in *Orange is the New Black* in the role of Maritza Ramos, a Bronx-bred character with Colombian roots. For season 2, she was part of the cast that earned recognition for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series at the 21st Screen Actors Guild Awards. The cast earned recognition for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series again at the 22nd Screen Actors Guild Awards and 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards.

In 2014, Guerrero was cast in a recurring role on The CW series *Jane the Virgin*. In February 2015, Guerrero was cast as the female lead in CBS' television pilot for *Super Clyde*, but the show was not picked up for series. Guerrero has appeared in the films *Emoticon ;)*, *Peter and John*, and *Happy Yummy Chicken.* In 2018, she is due to appear in the films *Beyond Control* and *The Godmother*.

In 2016, Guerrero released *In the Country We Love: My Family Divided*, a memoir about her parents being detained and deported when she was 14. The book was written with Michelle Burford and published by Henry Holt and Co.

A drama based on her memoir was picked up by CBS, to be developed into a drama executive produced by Jennie Snyder Urman, Ben Silverman, and Paul Sciarrotta, with Snyder attached as the showrunner. Guerrero was initially set to play the lead. In 2017, CBS decided to pass on the project, but was picked up by Fox. As of January, 2018, no pilot for the series has been ordered.

In 2017, Guerrero was cast in a regular role for season 2 of *Superior Donuts*. The second season, which was debuted in November 2017 and it was cancelled by CBS after two seasons, but Guerrero's character would not be contact named Sofia having completed her thesis towards the end of this series.

On July 30, 2018, Guerrero has joined the cast as Crazy Jane in DC Universe series *Doom Patrol*.