Bailee Madison (born October 15, 1999) is an American actress. She started as a child actress and later expanded to mature roles and into the horror genre. Her accolades include three Young Artist Awards, with nominations for a Critics' Choice Movie Award and a Saturn Award.
She is best known for her roles as a child actress in hit films like Bridge to Terabithia and Just Go with It, as well as her television roles in Good Witch and Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.
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Early life
Madison was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Patricia Riley (née Williams) and Daniel Hotte. The youngest of seven children, she has four brothers and two sisters. Her elder half sister, Kaitlin Vilasuso, is also an actress. She has Canadian citizenship through her father.
Madison began her career when she was two weeks old, appearing in an Office Depot commercial. Since then, she has appeared in several national commercials for major companies including Disney, SeaWorld, and Cadillac.
Career
2010s
In 2010, Madison starred in her first leading role in the supernatural horror film Don't Be Afraid of the Dark. She starred alongside Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce, portraying the role of Sally Hurst, a lonely withdrawn child who is sent to live with her father and his new girlfriend. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3+1⁄2 stars out of 4, calling it "a very good haunted house film" and adding that it "milks our frustration deliciously."
In 2011, Madison portrayed Maxine Russo in some episodes of Wizards of Waverly Place at the time when Max Russo was turned into a girl.
In 2013, Madison began playing Hillary on the TV sitcom Trophy Wife, replacing Gianna LePera who played the character in the pilot.
In 2014, she began playing the recurring role of Sophia Quinn in the ABC Family drama The Fosters.
In 2015, she began playing Grace Russell, the daughter of Cassie Nightingale, in the Hallmark series Good Witch. Madison continued in the role until the end of the fifth season in 2019.
In 2017, it was announced that Madison would star in an adaptation of Rachel Bateman's novel Someone Else's Summer.
In 2018, Madison portrayed the role of Kinsey, a rebellious child in the slasher film The Strangers: Prey at Night. She starred alongside Christina Hendricks and Martin Henderson, as her parents. Although the film received a mixed response from critics, Madison's performance was praised and was relatively successful at the box office.
2020s
In 2021, Madison played the female lead in a teen Christian musical drama, A Week Away, alongside Kevin Quinn. Netflix released the film on March 26. The following year, she played Imogen Adams in the HBO Max horror-thriller series Pretty Little Liars, a spin-off of the 2010 television series of the same name, to critical acclaim. In 2024, Madison signed a deal with Red Van Records, releasing her first single, "Kinda Fun", on January 12, and her second single, "Chiller", on July 26. In April 2026, Madison signed with TFC Management.
Personal life
Since 2019, Madison has been in a relationship with Blake Richardson, from the band New Hope Club.
Madison is an avid supporter of English soccer club Manchester United.
Other ventures
Since 2010, Madison has served as the national youth spokesperson for Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, a childhood-cancer charity organization that encourages kids to fundraise and spread awareness of pediatric cancer by running their own lemonade stands. In January 2018, Madison's first novel was published, Losing Brave, a young-adult mystery which was co-written with Stefne Miller. Since November 2018, she has co-hosted the podcast Just Between Us with her sister Kaitlin Vilasuso.
Filmography
Discography
Publications
Losing Brave (January 24, 2018) (co-written with Stefne Miller)
