Best known for her breakout role as Cleo in Outer Banks, Carlacia Grant is a rising star. The American actress joined the hit Netflix series as a recurring cast member in the second season and earned a regular spot in the third season. While it forged her path to major recognition, Grant was not a stranger to the spotlight when she joined the Outer Banks cast. Beyond the popular action-adventure mystery teen television series, Grant has showcased her versatility by playing dynamic characters across different genres.
Carlacia Grant discovered her knack for acting early in life, guided by her natural creative talent and charisma. Her grandmother also played a key role in prompting her interest in the performing arts. Her growing list of movies and TV shows reflects Grant’s dedication to her craft as an ambitious actress. Explore the most interesting details about the Outer Banks star.
How Old is Carlacia Grant, and Where is She From?
Carlacia Grant’s age and ethnicity are among the facts fans often want to know, especially since she began playing a teenager on Outer Banks. Grant was born in New Haven, Connecticut, but there are conflicting details about her actual age and date of birth. Although some sources claim she was born on January 18, 1991, various speculations about her age when she joined Outer Banks don’t align with this date.
While some claim she was already in her 30s when she was cast as a teenage girl from Nassau on Outer Banks, others say she was in her 20s. Nevertheless, the actress plays the role perfectly, and her unique features add a bit more flavor to her performance. While Grant’s parents have Caribbean descent, she is from a mixed background consisting of Jamaican ancestry from her father and Haitian heritage from her maternal side.
Education and Early Career
Most of her formative years were spent in Florida, where her family moved to for a while. There, she continued her education and graduated from Florida State University in 2023, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Media and Communication Studies with a minor in English. She’s leveraged her background and education in her career in the entertainment industry. Grant developed her passion for acting at a young age, leading her to tailor her path to a career in the entertainment industry.
Several claims about her early life suggest that she was involved in modeling and pageantry before acting. She discovered her passion for the performing arts during a summer theatre camp where she was cast in the group’s stage production of Robert Louis Stevenson‘s play Treasure Island. Notably, her grandmother prompted her to try it out, and she got hooked. The experience marked the beginning of her acting journey, which has seen exponential growth over the years.
Carlacia Grant’s Movies and Television Credits
The Outer Banks star made her TV debut in 2016, appearing on three television shows, including an episode of the History Channel’s miniseries Roots. She also played Leesha and Alicia Bausch on Game of Silence and Danielle Turner on OWN’s Greenleaf from 2016 to 2017, alongside Merle Dandridge, Kim Hawthorne, and Desiree Ross. Her next television credit came in 2021 when she made a guest appearance on the fourth season of The Resident as Trinity Jolson. She also landed her career-defining role in 2021, joining the cast of Outer Banks as Cleo.
For her film career, Carlacia Grant made her debut in the 2019 short, Headlines, as Crystal Thomas. Her other film credits include Appolyon – The Black Awakening (2021) and Bae Night: The Little Black Book (2022). Her filmography is still a work in progress, and the Outer Banks star is poised to take her career to greater heights.
Carlacia Grant Auditioned Twice for Outer Banks
In her interview on what it’s like to play Outer Banks‘ Cleo, Carlacia Grant said she initially didn’t want to audition, but she encouraged some of her friends to. However, she auditioned and didn’t get the part at first. The showrunners continued their search for Cleo, and Grant sent the same audition tape she used before and got the role. Grant said she loves the character for her resilience and strength. Cleo’s accent, however, posed a challenge, but Grant was able to cope by listening to reggae music every morning to prepare for shooting.
Outer Banks premiered on April 15, 2020. The Netflix show focuses on two groups of teenagers as they clash in their quest for a lost treasure. Carlacia Grant co-stars with other rising stars on Outer Banks, including Chase Stokes, Madelyn Cline, Madison Bailey, and Jonathan Daviss. Outer Banks was renewed for a fifth and final season in November 2024 with Grant on the cast list.
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