Jessica Chastain
Chastain in 2012, photo by PR Photos
Birth Name: Jessica Michelle Chastain
Place of Birth: Sacramento, California, United States
Date of Birth: March 24, 1977
Ethnicity:
*mother – English, Scots-Irish/Northern Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, French, Dutch, German
*likely biological father – Basque, Castilian/Spanish, Greek, English, and German
Jessica Chastain is an American actress and producer. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021). Her roles also include the films Jolene, The Tree of Life, The Help, Take Shelter, Zero Dark Thirty, Mama, Interstellar, A Most Violent Year, The Martian, Miss Sloane, Molly’s Game, It Chapter Two, and The Good Nurse, the mini-series Scenes from a Marriage and George & Tammy, and many acclaimed stage performances. She has founded production company Freckle Films, and invested in soccer club Angel City FC.
She was raised by her mother, Jerri, and her stepfather, Michael Hastey, a firefighter. Her mother’s family is from Kansas. Jessica is married to Italian executive Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo, with whom she has two children. Gian Luca is from an Italian noble family from Bergamo.
The surname Chastain, her mother’s maiden name, is French.
Jessica’s maternal grandfather is Gary Douglas Chastain (the son of Bert Lowell/Lowel Chastain and Irene Treva Welch). Bert was the son of George Washington Chastain and Elva/Eva Evans. Irene was the daughter of Wilbur Gale Welch and Gussie Pearl Kennedy.
Jessica’s maternal grandmother is Marilyn Schoonover (the daughter of Alvin Dwight Schoonover and Mary Jane Adams). Alvin was the son of Joseph Jay Schoonover and Olive Josephine Adair. Mary Jane was the daughter of Charles/Charley Wesley Adams and Maude Elizabeth Toothaker.
Jessica’s biological father has been identified in some articles as Edward Michael Monasterio. If that is the case, then Jessica’s paternal grandfather was of three quarters Basque and one quarter Castilian [Spanish] descent, while Jessica’s paternal grandmother was of half Greek descent, with her other half being of British Isles/English, and some German, ancestry.
If Edward Michael Monasterio was Jessica’s biological father, then Jessica’s paternal grandfather is Edward Michael “Eddie” Monasterio (the son of Antonio “Tony” Monasterio Astoreca and Ramona/Romana Egurrola Basañez). Edward was born in California. Antonio and Ramona were emigrants from Spain, with Antonio being of Basque descent, and Ramona being of Basque and Castilian ancestry, making Jessica of three sixteenths Basque and one sixteenth Castilian ancestry. Antonio was from Gernika-Lumo, Biscay, the son of Juan Pedro Monasterio Sendagorta and Petra Astoreca Arrien. Ramona was from Bilbao, Biscay, the daughter of Antonio Egurrola Gandiaga, who was from Bilbao, and of Melitona Severina Basáñez Pereda, who was from Villasuso de Mena, Burgos.
If Edward Michael Monasterio was Jessica’s biological father, then Jessica’s paternal grandmother is Alice Ann Thomas (the daughter of Ernest John Thomas and Matilda Maude Cupp). Alice was born in Wyoming. Ernest was a Greek immigrant who had changed his surname from Anastasiou. Matilda was born in Kentucky, the daughter of Andrew Jesse/Jessie Cupp and Emyline/Emeline “Emily” Minnie “Mincy” Rutherford, and had British Isles/English, and some German, ancestry.
Jessica descends from Dr. Pierre Chastain, born c. 1659, in Chârost, Cher, Centre-Val de Loire, a French Huguenot immigrant who is the ancestor of likely millions of Americans, including professional football player Terry Bradshaw, actress Joan Crawford, and entertainer Chris Hardwick.
Sources: Genealogies of Jessica Chastain – https://www.geni.com
https://gw.geneanet.org
Obituary of Jessica’s paternal grandfather, Edward Michael “Eddie” Monasterio – https://familysearch.org
Jessica’s paternal grandmother, Alice Ann Thomas, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Genealogy of Jessica Chastain (focusing on her mother’s side) – https://www.wikitree.com
Jessica’s maternal great-grandmother, Irene Treva Welch, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Obituary of Jessica’s maternal great-grandmother, Irene Treva (Welch) Chastain – https://www.legacy.com
Genealogies of Jessica’s maternal great-great-grandparents, Wilbur Gale Welch and Gussie Pearl (Kennedy) Welch – https://www.findagrave.com
Genealogies of Jessica’s maternal great-great-grandparents, Joseph Jay Schoonover and Olive Josephine Adair – https://www.findagrave.com
Daily Mail article about Jessica’s biological father – http://www.dailymail.co.uk
She’s pale and pasty… but still very pretty.
Yeah it’s weird how white people are white sometimes.
You know when they forget to roll through self-tanner or soak up the skin cancer.
The reason why there is the stereotype of Irish redheads is because Ireland and Britain is where there are the highest amount of redheads per capita than anywhere else. There is a significantly higher percentage of redheads in Britain and Ireland than any other European country and a high proportion of the population carry the “redhead gene”.
http://blog.britainsdna.com/2013/08/29/who-is-the-reddest-of-them-all/
Yet the gene traces back to Eastern Europe.
Yes everything would have arrived from older populations. There is a place called Urmurtia in Russia where the people have a high proportion of red hair. I don’t know if any genetic studies have been done on them.
Sorry that is Udmurtia.
She reminds me of Spanish actress Maria Castro.
http://img.fandemia.com/2009/09/maria_castro_.jpg
I watched her starring in the horror “Mama”. Impressive movie
she looks spanish(from spain)
the surname Thomas is a classic and popular Welsh last name, correction is required.
I don’t get into the debat about what she looks coz it’s pretty useless
Thomas is a surname very popular in Wales, as for Williams,Jones,Evans,Davies etc.. you know ppl use to move so you can find Thomas in English phonebooks . The actress Kristin Scott Thomas is not Welsh but she has this surname (she is from Cornwall that is close to Wales)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_(surname)
If you have Thomas as last name you have high chances to have a Welsh heritage because Welsh people share a few number of surnames. Anyhow there aren’t frontiers in UK, English people can have Welsh surnames and viceversa. For example David Bowie was born David Jones but there’s no proof he has Welsh ancestry
Her great-grandfather, “Mr. Thomas”, is exactly why you shouldn’t base things on generic surnames.
Because “Mr. Thomas” was actually a Greek man who changed his name from Anasaciou to the generic Thomas?
I don’t see what you and gndg see lol
I see her very Spanish, I’m from South Africa and I usually go 3 times per year to Spain and the Spanish girls look like her, even why not she could be Mexican, i think at leat 10% of mexicans are white, there is a boxer you can check that he is redhead Canelo Alvarez, but I don’t like to discuss with Americans about races or ethnicities because they have their opinion from US and I have my from what I’ve seen from South Africa, Zimbawe and Europe.
FOLLERS, YOU ARE STUPID! I never had to say that to anyone before as much as you, but ya need to stop with the prejudice crap. She looks as any Caucasian, and I have the same Chastain heritage, and that royally pissed me off. Chastain are the most eurocentral people ever and ya insult. F— that, man! Learn to say some words correctly or I will flag ya from now on!