Samantha Bailey, an American writer, producer, director, and actress, was born in 1989 in the Logan Square neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Growing up in Chicago, Bailey began stage acting as a teenager and went on to receive her bachelor's degree from Columbia College Chicago.
After graduating, Bailey started acting professionally in Chicago's theater community, but she was frustrated by the limited and unfulfilling roles she was offered. This frustration sparked her to write a sketch that would eventually become the web series You're So Talented, a semi-autobiographical story about a struggling 25-year-old actress in Chicago. This marked Bailey's debut as a writer and director, and the series gained widespread recognition, earning a nomination for a Gotham Award in 2015.
In 2017, Bailey co-produced the web series Brown Girls with poet Fatimah Asghar, which explored the experiences of two young women navigating their queer identities and careers. The series received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama Series in 2017 and was later developed into a series with HBO.
Bailey's work extends beyond web series, as she co-produced the short documentary film Masculine/Masculine with Hank Jones at the 2018 LA Film Fest. She has also directed episodes for several television shows, including Alone Together, First Wives Club, East of La Brea, Grown-ish, Loosely Exactly Nicole, and Dear White People, for which she was also a writer and producer.
In 2022, Bailey was selected to direct episodes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe series Ironheart, further solidifying her position as a prominent figure in the entertainment industry. Today, Bailey resides in Los Angeles, where she continues to work on various projects, including television and film.
