Tessa Ludwick (born October 5, 1988) is a Korean-born American actress from

Apollo Beach, Florida Apollo Beach is an unincorporated census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 14,055 at the 2010 census, up from 7,444 at the 2000 census. Geography Apollo Beach is located in southern Hillsborough ...

. She began acting at the age of 5, when she held a lead role in ''

Allegra's Window ''Allegra's Window'' is an American children's television series that aired on Nickelodeon through its Nick Jr. block from October 24, 1994, to December 8, 1996, with reruns being shown until February 5, 1999; it was later shown on Noggin from F ...

'', a

Nick Jr. Nick Jr. (known on-air as the Nick Jr. Channel) is an American pay television channel spun off from Nickelodeon's long-running programming block of the same name. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Gr ...

children's

television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, e ...

show taped at

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

. When filming on ''Allegra's Window'' ended in May 1996, 7-year-old Ludwick went from ''Allegra's Window'' to a lead role in '' Big Bag'', a live action/puppetry preschool television program on

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

. At the age of 8, she landed the role of Kate, an orphan girl in the touring Broadway musical '' Annie, the 20th Anniversary.'' For the next eight months, she toured the United States and Canada with the musical, during which time Ludwick gave eight performances per week. In 2003, Ludwick appeared as the character Yumi in ''

Thirteen Thirteen or 13 may refer to: * 13 (number), the natural number following 12 and preceding 14 * One of the years 13 BC, AD 13, 1913, 2013 Music * 13AD (band), an Indian classic and hard rock band Albums * ''13'' (Black Sabbath album), 2013 * ...

,'' an autobiographical

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

based on American film actress/writer

Nikki Reed Nicole Houston Reed (born May 17, 1988) is an American actress known for her portrayal of vampire Rosalie Hale in '' The Twilight Saga'' (2008–2012). She became known in 2003, after the release of the film ''Thirteen'', directed by Catherine ...

's experiences as a 12 and 13-year-old girl. In 2004, Ludwick appeared on ''

Movie Surfers A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

'', a

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...

short show where four teenagers go behind the scenes to report on Disney-related films. Three years later in June 2007, Ludwick began work on ''

Teen Witch the Musical ''Teen Witch'' is a 1989 American teen fantasy comedy film directed by Dorian Walker, written by Robin Menken and Vernon Zimmerman, and starring Robyn Lively and Zelda Rubinstein. Originally pitched as a female version of ''Teen Wolf'' (198 ...

'', a stage musical based on the 1989

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

Teen Witch ''Teen Witch'' is a 1989 American teen fantasy comedy film directed by Dorian Walker, written by Robin Menken and Vernon Zimmerman, and starring Robyn Lively and Zelda Rubinstein. Originally pitched as a female version of '' Teen Wolf'' (1985 ...

''.

Early career

Tessa Ludwick was born October 5, 1988, in

Seoul, South Korea Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

she was adopted by American parents as a infant. Ludwick's career began at age two and a half when Ludwick saw a television commercial about modeling and begged her mother to call the number. Her modeling led to acting roles. In the summer of 1994 at the age of 5, Ludwick spent time reading books but took time off to go to

Six Flags Over Georgia Six Flags Over Georgia is a theme park located in Mableton, Georgia. Opened in 1967, it is the second park in the Six Flags chain following the original Six Flags Over Texas, which opened in 1961. Six Flags Over Georgia is one of three park ...

, a

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

located west of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, in Austell. In September of that year, Ludwick attended 1st grade at Apollo Beach Elementary. While attending Apollo Beach Elementary, Ludwick held a minor role in ''

'', a children's

shown taped at

and shown on

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...

's preschool block

When filming on ''Allegra's Window'' ended in May 1996, 7-year-old Ludwick began a minor role in '' Big Bag'', a live-action television puppet program for preschoolers that was produced by

Children's Television Workshop Sesame Workshop (SW), originally known as the Children's Television Workshop (CTW), is an American nonprofit organization that has been responsible for the production of several educational children's programs—including its first and best-know ...

and aired from

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

Television, Broadway, and film

Ludwick was sent away in 1997 from ''Big Bag'' to play in the role of Kate in ''Annie, the 20th Anniversary,'' the Broadway musical on tour revival of the 1977

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

production of ''

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

''. The ''Annie, the 20th Anniversary'' tour ran across the United States and Canada from October 1997 through June 1998, during which time Ludwick gave eight performances per week.

The Buffalo News ''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It recently sold its headquarters to Uniland Development Corp. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by W ...

noted that her November 1997 performance as the orphan girl Kate at

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

Shea's Performing Arts Center Shea's Performing Arts Center (originally Shea's Buffalo) is a theater for touring Broadway musicals and special events in Buffalo, New York. Originally called Shea's Buffalo, it was opened in 1926 to show silent movies. It took one year to bu ...

crafted a personality for the character whose "naturalness ar exceededthat of the original Broadway cast." Characterized at that time as "bright, bubbly and

ringing Ringing may mean: Vibrations * Ringing (signal), unwanted oscillation of a signal, leading to ringing artifacts * Vibration of a harmonic oscillator ** Bell ringing * Ringing (telephony), the sound of a telephone bell * Ringing (medicine), a ri ...

a sparkle wherever she goes," Ludwick additionally made the honor roll in Hillsborough County's program for gifted students in 1998. A year later, Ludwick became a spokesperson for Kids with a Cause, a youth organization based in California dedicated to improving the quality of life of children who suffer from

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...

, lack of

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...

, or health-related issues. When she was 13, Ludwick played the character Yumi in ''

,'' a

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

autobiographical

based on American film actress/writer

's experiences as a 12 and 13-year-old girl. About a year later, Ludwick appeared on ''

'', a

short show where four teenagers go behind the scenes to report on Disney-related films. After this successful career, she starred in ''

Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide ''Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide'' (sometimes shortened to ''Ned's Declassified'') is an American live action sitcom on Nickelodeon that debuted on the Nickelodeon Sunday night TEENick scheduling block on September 12, 2004. The series ...

'' as Jennifer. Tessa has also appeared on a special "7th Graders" edition of the game show

The Weakest Link ''Weakest Link'' (also known as ''The Weakest Link'') is a television game show which The Weakest Link (British game show), first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and originally ended on 31 March 2012 when its host ...

, where she made it to the final round and won $77,000 against Jill.

Personal

Ludwick is openly lesbian and has been in a relationship with a woman since 2020 according to her Instagram.

References

External links

*
Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ludwick, Tessa Living people 1988 births American adoptees American child actresses American film actresses American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American actresses of Korean descent Actresses from California Actresses from Florida South Korean emigrants to the United States People from Hillsborough County, Florida 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses