Bailee Madison Biography

Bailee Madison was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and is the youngest of seven siblings. She began her acting career when she was just two weeks old, appearing in an Office Depot commercial. She also did commercials for Cadillac, Disney, and SeaWorld.

Bailee made her big screen debut in the film Lonely Hearts (2006), which starred John Travolta, James Gandolfini and Salma Hayek. She began to receive recognition the year after as May Belle Aarons in the film Bridge to Terabithia, starring alongside Josh Hutcherson, for which she earned a 2008 Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film Young Actress Age Ten or Younger.

That same year, she won a second Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special - Supporting Young Actress for the TV movie The Last Day of Summer (2007).

In 2009, she had the opportunity to work with Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Natalie Portman in Brothers as Isabelle. Her portrayal of Isabelle earned her a Saturn Award nomination for Best Performance by a Younger Actor and a Critics' Choice Movie Award nomination for Best Young Actress.

In 2010, Bailee landed her first lead role starring in the horror film Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, playing Sally Hurst. She was nominated for a Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Actress for her work.

In 2011, she appeared in the rom-com Just Go with It alongside Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, stealing every scene she was in as Maggie Murphy, an aspiring young actress who uses a Cockney accent whenever she can. Although the movie was not well received critically, Bailee's talent did not go unnoticed, as she was nominated for another Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actress.

Bailee has also worked on television, including recurring guest appearances on two Disney Channel shows — Wizards of Waverly Place, playing Maxine Russo in the fourth and final season, and Cory in the House, on which she played Maya for two episodes. She has also appeared on CSI: NY (2007), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2010), and played the lead role of Grace Russell on five seasons of Good Witch (2015-2019).

On the hit series The Fosters, Bailee played the younger sister of Maia Mitchell's character, Callie, for two seasons from 2014 to 2016. The two actresses look so much alike that they are often mistaken for real sisters.

Bailee has also produced three movies that she also starred in: Annabelle Hooper and the Ghosts of Nantucket (2016), A Cowgirl's Story (2017) and the new Netflix musical movie A Week Away (2021).

Her older sister Kaitlin Vilasuso is also an actress. Bailee loves tennis, but after breaking both wrists at tennis camp in 2012, she doesn't play anymore. She also has a YouTube channel under her name, Bailee Madison. 

Bailee divides her time between Los Angeles and her hometown, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.