Childhood & Early Life
Jerrika Delayne Hinton was born on September 28, 1981, in Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas, United States of America, to Cynthia, a retired government worker, and Avaleon Hinton.
She studied theater, direction, and playwriting at 'Meadows School of the Arts' of the 'Southern Methodist University' and graduated with a bachelor of fine arts degree in liberal arts in 2002.
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Career
Hinton began her acting career performing in stage productions. She made her film debut in 2005, playing 'Natalie' in 'Foreign Soil.' The following year, she appeared as 'Beni Arnold,' Khandi Alexander's on-screen daughter, in the independent drama 'Rain,' adapted from the novel of the same name by V. C. Andrews. It premiered at the 'Palm Beach International Film Festival.'
She made her TV debut that year with single-episode appearances in 'The WB' comedy series 'Gilmore Girls' (as 'Allison') and the ‘CBS’ sitcom 'Everybody Hates Chris.'
In 2008, she featured in a commercial for 'Hanes,' along with Sarah Chalke. Hinton also made brief appearances in 'Broken Angel' (as 'Officer Raines'), 'The Roommate' (as 'Shiana'), and in the 'Ion Television' movie 'A Christmas Kiss' (as 'Tressa').
In September 2012, Hinton was included as a recurring cast member in the ninth season of Shonda Rhimes's medical drama series 'Grey's Anatomy,' aired on ‘ABC.’ She was introduced as a new intern named 'Stephanie Edwards.'
From the subsequent season, her character was made a regular. She continued to be part of the series till its 13th season (2017). In further episodes, 'Edwards' was shown as part of the love triangle involving 'Jackson' (Jesse Williams) and 'April' (Sarah Drew), with a prime focus on her childhood illness and her struggles with burnout.
In March 2016, after three seasons of 'Grey's Anatomy,' Rhimes cast Hinton as the protagonist 'Page Sanders' in her first comedy pilot, 'Toast.' Had the pilot been promoted to a series, she would have continued to star in the medical drama. Unfortunately, 'Toast' was not picked up as a series.
As soon as the news of Hinton being cast in 'Toast' surfaced, there was also news of her exit from 'Grey's Anatomy.'
With her experience on 'Toast' and positive feedback from Rhimes and other ‘ABC’ executives, Hinton decided to move on to other projects.
Meanwhile, she continued making appearances in films such as the 2014 film 'Teacher of the Year' ('Mrs. Curtis'), the 2015 short 'Just Another Dance with My Father' (as 'Katie'), and the 2016 film 'Odious' (as 'Sharlette').
In January 2017, Hinton appeared in Alan Ball's ‘HBO’ drama 'Here and Now.' She played 'Ashley Collins,' the owner of a retail fashion website and the adopted daughter of Holly Hunter (therapist 'Audrey Bayer'), in 10 episodes.
She appeared as 'Nell' in the 2018 'Hallmark Channel' movie 'A Majestic Christmas.' In 2019 and 2020, she played 'Natalie Gorman' in two episodes of the 'Apple TV+' psychological horror series 'Servant.'
She played a closeted lesbian, 'Millie Morris,' in the 'Amazon Prime' series 'Hunters.'
Hinton has been featured in several TV commercials for brands such as 'State Farm Insurance,' 'Nascar,' 'Time Warner,' 'Best Buy,' 'McDonald's,' 'Schick/Wilkinson Sword,' 'Apple,' 'IHOP: Cool Whip,' 'K & G Fashion Superstore,' and 'GM OnStar.'
Family & Personal Life
Hinton was a guest panelist at an annual luncheon for 'St. Jude Gold.' She appreciated the hospital's holistic approach to healthcare.
Her character in 'Grey's Anatomy,' who was motivated to make a career as a healthcare professional because of her own struggle with sickle cell disease, was loosely based on her real-life cousin.
Hinton enjoys photography. She pursues abstract photography, mostly with her reliable 'Olympus PEN.' Her works can be found on her website.
It is believed, she names her house plants.
