Who is Kiernan Shipka (American Voice Actress)? Here are 7 Facts To Know

Quick Facts

When an entire family relocates to support the career of one of its own, you can be almost certain that person is going to be a success story. So is it with Kiernan Shipka. She was largely unknown in the industry until her time with the television series Mad Men; her powerful portrayal of the character Sally Draper on the show propelled her to greatness.

Kiernan is a native of Chicago, Illinois. She was born on November 10, 1999, and spent the first few years of her life here discovering her interests, one of which was ballroom dancing. The young flourishing actress who is not afraid to play any role given to her has received a lot of praise from fans and critics alike including from Dale Roe, who criticised her acting on Mad Men. Unsurprisingly, she has also garnered a slew of nominations and awards in her time on television and the big screen. Here are a few facts you just have to know about the star actress.

1. Her career started before she was a year old

Most child stars start their careers in their toddler stage, say three to five years of age. Kiernan Shipka started much earlier – before she was up to a year old. In 2000, Kiernan was on NBC’s medical drama ER as a baby on the series. She was just five months old at the time. Granted, she wasn’t aware of what she was doing, still, that was her first television appearance and marks the beginning of her career.

Her next appearance happened years later at the age of six. She played the character a female customer on the television series Monk. In the same year, she followed that up playing the character Lola in the movie The Angriest Man In Suburbia.

Her biggest gig yet came in 2007, when she passed the audition to join the cast of AMC’s Mad Men. Knowing that this was a really big deal for young Kiernan, her parents packed up and moved the family to Los Angeles to help her focus more on her career. She basically grew up with the show playing Sally Draper until the season finale in 2015.

2. She has been kept very busy since 2007

The year 2007 turned out to be the breakout year that then seven-year-old Kiernan was looking for. From that point on she began to get different types of roles on a regular basis. The Chicago gal has been working almost non stop since then. Besides her work on Mad Men, she has had guest roles and recurring roles on other series such as Corey in the House, Heroes, and Feud, appearing as B.D. Hyman/Merrill on the latter.

Her movie credits since 2007 have included Dimension (2007); Lower Learning (2008);  Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore (2010); Flowers in the Attic (2014); and The Silence (2018). In 2018, Kiernan started playing Sabrina Spellman, the half-witch, half-mortal on Netflix’s series Chilling Adventures of Sabrina in 2018. Since her big break with Mad Men, the actress has been on a plethora of projects numbering well over 30.

3. Kiernan Shipka is a voice actor

In 2013, 2015, and 2018, she voiced the character Oona in three episodes of the Disney animated show Sofia the First. Some of her other voicing roles include When Marnie Was There (2014); The Legend of Korra (2012 – 2014); American Dad! (2017); Family Guy (2017); and Neo Yokio (2017).

She also did voicing for The Legend of Korra video game in 2014 for the character Jinora like she had for the television series. Two years later, the actress voiced Jessica Drew (Spider-Woman) in the Marvel Avengers Academy video game.

4. She schooled online

For her education, the in-demand actress never considered taking a summer break from work to do some studying. She instead went the online route. Kiernan enrolled in Laurel Springs, an online study programme where she covered her high school course requirements. She decided to go through the program because it didn’t affect her mobility and its schedule could help her finish faster. She was done with the program at the age of 14.

Concerning her college education, Shipka plans to eventually attend college physically. However, she plans to start off online for that also.

5. Kiernan Shipka is a foodie

A brief visit to Kiernan Shipka’s Instagram page and one thing will be immediately clear; this girl loves her food. Her Instagram is filled with pictures of her and her close friends having a good time and eating any and everything under the sun in different restaurants. Kiernan does not hide her love for food either as she consented to her near-addiction for anything that whets her appetite.

In an , she revealed her love for the Food Network Channel. Kiernan confessed that she could watch it for hours on end.

6. Her last name oozes royalty

The actress’s ancestral heritage involves at least five countries. Her father, John Young Shipka who works as a real estate developer is half-Bohemian, quarter German, and a residual mix of Scottish, English and a sprinkling of French. Kiernan’s mother, Erin Ann Shipka also has a mix of Irish and Italian ancestry, although she leans more heavily towards the latter.

Her last name “Shipka” comes from her Bohemian roots, thanks to her father. In its native language, the name Shipka means “Son of a Lord”, which sounds like a name only fit for those of a royal blood.

7. The Mad Men actress has some interesting hobbies

She is definitely an advocate of self-protection. At least that is what some of her hobbies and interests indicate. Kiernan is a black belt in the ancient Taekwondo fighting technique. She is also trying her hands out at Muay Thai boxing.

Kiernan also enjoys ballet which is as far removed from Taekwondo as possible. She enthused that the dance style speaks its own language and that it makes her feel alive. She says she wouldn’t mind incorporating her love for singing and dance into her acting routines some day.

Also Read: Top 10 Richest People in the world with full biography and details.