While acting is one of the most competitive industries to get into, it’s even more so for women of color. We’ve seen Dania Ramirez (she/her) grace the small and big screen countless times throughout her career in Heroes, Entourage, X-Men, and many more, but the journey to her latest role as Nikki Batista in FOX’s Alert: Missing Persons Unit has come with its challenges.

Born and raised in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Dania landed in NYC at the age of 9 and was booking modeling gigs by the time she was 16. It was then that she also landed a small role in Spike Lee’s Subway Stories, got a SAG card, and graduated high school early. The actress managed to get the college experience at Montclair State University while sharpening her acting skills, and eventually signed with an agency upon graduation. After completing an Actors Workshop course, she moved to LA with her bestie to get this show on the road. We spoke to Dania about how she got started, her tips for managing career longevity, and everything that she’s faced along the way.

Did you always know that acting is what you wanted to do?
I guess I always had an ability to escape my reality and transform. As a little girl, I would imagine scenarios and reenact scenes from telenovelas with my sisters. However, growing up like I did, I never thought of it as a career that I or anyone I knew would be able to have. At the age of 15, when I was working at a store in West New York, NJ, someone walked in and asked me if I wanted to model. As a natural hustler, I saw it as an opportunity that would be fun to explore. I quickly felt at ease and once I was cast as a ring girl in the Spike Lee project mentioned above, I decided to try acting. My acting coach saw me do an improv scene my first day of class and said I had a gift and should really do this for a living. I never looked back after that!

Alert: Missing Persons Unit just returned to TV. What can we expect from your character this season?
I’m very excited for what I’ve been able to explore with my character Nikki this season. You can expect to see her growth as a leader and get a glimpse of her strength as a woman in a male-dominated world. She has a lot more on her plate to manage this season and is still having to navigate her work and personal relationship with both the men in her life. Get ready for a new boss and other characters that will make her MPU world more complex and a lot of new cases that will keep you at the edge of your seat!
 

Is there a certain genre of acting that’s your favorite?
I enjoy all genres. However, I love tapping into flawed journeys because they resonate more naturally with me. There’s humor to find in the most dramatic of instances. I love a world that isn’t polished, so being able to dive into a fantasy and making it raw is always intriguing.

Are there any challenges you faced stepping into the industry as a woman of color?
Anything worth having will come with challenges! I’m a big believer that there isn’t much to learn and grow from in an easy path, and I’ve always had to prove myself throughout my career.  Having an accent was a big hurdle that I had to get through, but I continued to persevere and own who I am. I believe that staying true to that has allowed me to be authentic, and fearlessly showing representation of others like me has been the key to my longevity in this business. I continue to face challenges within the industry as my life evolves, like getting older, and wanting to be a performer that can go between doing comedy and drama, but I love proving to myself that I can and will do it all my way.

If you could write your dream role, what would that be?
This is a very good question! I would love to do a timeless piece about the rise of a goddess and go through a timeline that shows her as a fighter while speaking English, and a lover in a timeline where she speaks Spanish. I think it would be great to get the opportunity to work in both languages in one role.

Do you have advice for a young woman who’s trying to get her foot in the door?
Believe in yourself more than you think is possible, and know that what the world thinks of you is none of your business—it’s what you think of yourself that matters. Have no set or rigid mindset of what you want to accomplish and the universe will always surprise you with abundance as long as you keep a positive attitude about the journey—no matter how hard it gets.