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Isabela Merced

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American actress (born 2001)

Isabela Merced
Merced in 2019
BornIsabela Yolanda Moner
(2001-07-10) July 10, 2001 (age 23)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Citizenship
  • American
  • Peruvian
OccupationActress
Years active2013–present

Isabela Yolanda Moner (born July 10, 2001), known professionally as Isabela Merced since 2019, is an American actress. She played the lead role in the Nickelodeon television series 100 Things to Do Before High School (2014–2016), and went on to feature in the films Transformers: The Last Knight (2017), Instant Family (2018), and Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018). She starred as the titular character in the adventure film Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019) and played main roles in the romantic drama film Turtles All the Way Down (2024) and the horror film Alien: Romulus (2024).

Early life

Merced was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She is the daughter of Katherine, who was born in Lima, Peru, and Patrick Moner, who was born in Louisiana. Merced has stated that Spanish was her first language, and she struggled with English when she first started grade school, adding that she considers herself more Peruvian than American. She has two brothers. At age 15, she was accepted into college.

Merced began acting after her family's Cleveland home was destroyed by a fire. She was a Judy Garland fan, so her parents, in an attempt to distract her from the loss, encouraged Merced to audition for a local production of The Wizard of Oz. She agreed and was cast as a Munchkin. She attended the Fairmount Performing Arts Conservatory, led by Broadway producer Fred Sternfeld, who tried to persuade Merced's mother into taking her to New York to pursue auditions. After some reluctance, her mother agreed, and the family moved to New York City for a month to help Merced pursue a career on Broadway.

Career

Merced has said that she wanted to be an actress from a very young age, inspired by movies featuring Shirley Temple and Judy Garland and starting in local community theatre at age six. Merced booked her first job, a Claritin commercial, on what was supposed to be her last day in New York City during the summer she spent auditioning there. She made her Broadway debut at age ten in a production of Evita, in which she sang in Spanish with Ricky Martin.

Merced's first starring performance was as CJ Martin, the lead role on the Nickelodeon television series 100 Things to Do Before High School, from 2014 to 2016. That same year, she began providing the voice of Kate, one of the main characters in the Dora the Explorer spinoff, Dora and Friends: Into the City!, a role she performed from 2014 to 2017. In 2015, she appeared as Lori Collins in the Nickelodeon Original Movie Splitting Adam, and was cast as Sadie, one of the leading roles, in the 2016 Nickelodeon Original Movie Legends of the Hidden Temple. Merced's debut album Stopping Time was produced by Broadway Records and was eventually released on September 18, 2015.

In May 2016, Merced was cast in the film Transformers: The Last Knight, which was released in June 2017. She voiced Heather in the animated film The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature, which was theatrically released on August 11, 2017.

Merced in 2018

In 2018, Merced had a major role in Sicario: Day of the Soldado, playing the daughter of a drug cartel head, in a performance lauded by critics. The New Yorker's Anthony Lane wrote "Moner is terrific, and her character’s fortunes can be read in her eyes—blazing to begin with, as she scraps with another girl in a schoolyard, but dark and blank by the end, their youthful fire doused by the violence that she has seen."

In the same year, she played the adopted daughter of the characters played by Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne in the comedy film Instant Family, for which she also wrote and sang the song "I'll Stay". In 2019, Merced starred as the title character in Dora and the Lost City of Gold, a live action film adaptation of the animated series, and was cast in the Christmas romantic comedy ensemble film Let It Snow. The same year, she was cast opposite Jason Momoa in the film Sweet Girl for Netflix.

On October 14, 2019, Merced announced to her fans via a post on her Instagram account that she had decided to change her stage name to Isabela Merced in memory of her late grandmother whom she never met. Merced later explained that she had not legally changed her name and said that it was "just a stage name but it's got a deeper meaning". Her first single, "Papi", was released on October 25, 2019, followed by her first music video released on November 6, 2019. On May 22, 2020, Merced released her debut EP, The Better Half of Me, through Republic Records and was named one of Billboard's top 15 new Peruvian artists to listen to in July 2020.

In 2024, she starred in Turtles All the Way Down, a film adaptation of the 2017 novel by John Green, and Fede Álvarez's Alien: Romulus. In July 2023, Merced was cast as Hawkgirl in the DC Universe (DCU) film Superman (2025). In January 2024, Merced was cast as Dina in season 2 of The Last of Us.

Personal life

Merced has polycystic ovary syndrome. She has attended therapy and openly discussed her struggles with anxiety.

Her mother has an ongoing battle with breast cancer for an unknown period of time. As of 2020, she is free from the disease.

Filmography

Key
† Denotes productions that have not yet been released
Film roles
Year Title Role Notes
2013 The House That Jack Built Young Nadia
2016 Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life Jeanne Galleta
2017 Transformers: The Last Knight Izabella
The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Heather (voice)
2018 Sicario: Day of the Soldado Isabel Reyes
Instant Family Lizzy
2019 Dora and the Lost City of Gold Dora Final credit as Isabela Moner
Let It Snow Julie First credit as Isabela Merced
2021 Spirit Untamed Lucky Prescott (voice)
Sweet Girl Rachel Cooper
2022 Father of the Bride Cora Herrera
Rosaline Juliet
2023 Migration Kim (voice)
2024 Madame Web Anya Corazon
Turtles All the Way Down Aza Holmes
Alien: Romulus Kay
2025 Superman † Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl Post-production
Television roles
Year Title Role Notes
2014 Growing Up Fisher Jenny Recurring role, 7 episodes
2014–2017 Dora and Friends: Into the City! Kate Main voice role
2014–2016 100 Things to Do Before High School CJ Martin Lead role
2015 Splitting Adam Lori Collins Television film
2016 Legends of the Hidden Temple Sadie Television film
2019 The Amazing Race Canada Herself Episode: "Clamageddon Continues"
2020 #KidsTogether: The Nickelodeon Town Hall Herself Television special
2021 Maya and the Three Widow Queen Miniseries; voice role
2025 The Last of Us † Dina Season 2; Recurring role
Video game roles
Year Title Role Notes
2017 Kingdom Hearts χ Back Cover Ava Short film; voice role

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2015 Imagen Awards Best Young Actress – Television 100 Things to Do Before High School Nominated
2016 Imagen Awards Best Young Actor – Television 100 Things to Do Before High School Won
2017 Teen Choice Awards Choice Summer Movie Actress Transformers: The Last Knight Nominated
2017 CinemaCon Award Rising Star of the Year Herself Won
Young Entertainers Award Best Young Ensemble Cast – Feature Film Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life Nominated
2019 Young Entertainers Award Best Leading Young Actress Instant Family Won
Imagen Awards Best Actress – Feature Film Instant Family Won
2020 Imagen Awards Best Actress - Feature Film Dora and the Lost City of Gold Won

References

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