Aunjanue Ellis

Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor is an American producer stage and screen actress, best well-known for her films on the film Ray Undercover Brother and on the TV show The Mentalist. She graduated with a B.A. in African-American Studies, from Brown University. Her MFA is in acting from Tisch School of acting at New York University. Aunjanue is an American actor as well as a producer and director. She has worked in both film and television. She began her career as an actor in theater but then proceeded to be a part of numerous television series, mainstream and independent films. She rose to fame as Miranda Shaw in ABC's Quantico as well as on BET's epic series The Book of Negroes. In both roles, she won critical acclaim as well as numerous nominations and awards including an award from the Television Critics Choice Award for Best Actress. She made her professional debut with the character Ariel as Ariel in The Tempest in 1995. She has performed as a character on Broadway with roles in Come and Gone, A Winter's Tale, Drowning Crow and Seeking the Genesis. The most recognizable part of her career is her roles in the films Men of Honor and the Caveman's Valentine The Express & The Help. Her work in television she's been recognized for her performance as a regular character on ABC's drama about cops High Incident.