Naya Rivera

With one exaggerated flip of her tightly wound ponytail, Naya Rivera captivated television viewers as self-assured and sassy cheerleader Santana Lopez on "Glee" (Fox, 2009-15), an award-winning musical comedy series about a group of teen misfits who deal with surviving high school while planning for various choir competitions. "Glee" launched the careers of its talented cast, including the California-born Rivera, whose devilish smirk, confident come-ons and star presence as Santana helped turn her supporting role into series regular status, and garnered the hardworking triple threat much-deserved praise from critics and viewers alike. Naya Rivera was born on Jan. 12, 1987 in Santa Clarita, CA. The future star began modeling when she was a baby, appearing in print advertisements and commercials. The multitalented Rivera also took songwriting classes when she was 15 years old. She made her television acting debut opposite Della Reese and Redd Foxx on the CBS comedy "The Royal Family (1991-92), from creator Eddie Murphy. Even though the series was short-lived, Rivera quickly landed guest spots on wholesome, family-oriented sitcoms, including "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" (NBC, 1990-96) and "Family Matters" (ABC, 1989-1998). Rivera made a leap to feature film acting in 2002, landing a supporting role in "The Master of Disguise." The comedy starred "Saturday Night Live" (NBC, 1975- ) alum Dana Carvey as a quirky and dim-witted waiter named Pistachio who has the ability to transform himself with the help of hundreds of disguises and voice impressions. Soon after, Rivera appeared in a recurring role opposite another comedy legend, Bernie Mac, on his long-running Fox series "The Bernie Mac Show" (2001-06). Rivera was reportedly hired for a single-episode appearance, but was brought back for more episodes throughout the series' run. In 2009, the California native's fortunes changed when she was cast as an Ohio cheerleader on Fox's big gamble, "Glee." Rivera played Santana Lopez, a cold-hearted and competitive member of the cheer squad, the Cheerios, who is sent by her coach Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch) to spy on the school's fledgling glee club. Her character also finds a sidekick in Brittany (Heather Morris), a fellow Cheerio and her frequent make-out partner. Santana also has her eyes on the school's football stars and glee club hunks Finn (Cory Monteith) and Puck (Mark Salling), although her physical advances solely serve her own interests. Rivera showcased her singing talent during one of the show's most acclaimed episodes, "The Power of Madonna" (2010), where she had featured vocals during covers of the singer's hits "Like a Virgin" (1984) and "Express Yourself" (1989). Such was the phenomenon of the musical comedy series, that Rivera shared a 2010 Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy with her fellow cast members, as well as staged a successful nationwide concert tour that featured the show's musical numbers and skits. Promoted from recurring character to full cast member for season 2, Rivera remained a key part of the ensemble for the rest of the show's run, and also appeared in the feature "Glee: The 3D Concert Movie" (2011). Between seasons, Rivera appeared in the animated film "The Naughty List" (2013) and starred in the horror film "At the Devil's Door" (2014). After "Glee" came to an end in 2015, Rivera had a multi-episode guest arc on comedy-drama "Devious Maids" (Lifetime 2013-16) and co-starred in Fred Wolf's improvisational comedy "Mad Families" (2017) opposite Tiffany Haddish and Leah Remini. On July 8, 2020, Naya Rivera rented a pontoon boat on California's Lake Piru in Ventura County with her four-year-old son Josey. A search was initiated when the boat was not returned on time. The boat was located on the lake with Josey asleep on board wearing a life jacket, and an adult life jacket nearby. After an intensive search of the lake, Rivera was declared missing and presumed drowned. Her body was recovered July 13, 2020.