Jordana Brewster
Brewster in 2011, photo by Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com
Place of Birth: Panama City, Panama
Date of Birth: April 26, 1980
Ethnicity:
*father – English, some Scottish and Irish
*mother – Portuguese-Brazilian
Jordana Brewster is an American actress and model. She is known for starring as Mia Toretto in The Fast and the Furious universe, the sister of Vin Diesel and John Cena’s characters; and for her roles in the films The Faculty, The Invisible Circus, D.E.B.S., Nearing Grace, Annapolis, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, American Heist, Home Sweet Hell, Random Acts of Violence, Hooking Up, Simulant, and On Our Way, and on television’s As the World Turns, Dallas, American Crime Story, Secrets and Lies, and Lethal Weapon.
Jordana was born in Panama City, Panama, grew up in London, England and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, until the age of ten, and then moved to New York City. Her father, Alden Brewster, is an American-born investment banker, and has English, and some Scottish and Irish, ancestry. Her mother, Maria João Leão de Sousa, is Brazilian, and was a Sports Illustrated cover model. She is of Portuguese ancestry. A picture of her parents can be seen here. Jordana’s grandfather, Kingman Brewster, Jr., was an educator and diplomat, who was President of Yale University and U.S. Ambassador to the U.K.
Jordana talked about her Brazilian heritage in an interview with Craig Ferguson. Jordana is married to Mason Morfit, who is the CEO of ValueAct Capital. She has two children with her former husband, producer Andrew Form. Her sister, Isabella, was married to professional basketball player Baron Davis.
Jordana’s paternal grandfather was Kingman Brewster, Jr. (the son of Kingman Brewster and Florence Foster Besse). Jordana’s grandfather Kingman was born in Longmeadow, Hampden, Massachusetts, and served as the 8th Provost of Yale University, from 1960 to 1963, President of Yale University, from 1963 to 1977, U.S. Ambassador to the U.K., from June 3, 1977 to February 23, 1981, and Master of University College, Oxford, from 1986 to 1988. Jordana’s great-grandfather Kingman was the son of Charles Kingman Brewster and Celina Sophia Baldwin. Florence was the daughter of Lyman Waterman Besse and Henrietta Louisa Seger/Segee, who was born in Woodstock, Carleton, New Brunswick, Canada, to American parents, from Massachusetts, her father from Wareham, Plymouth and her mother from Falmouth, Barnstable.
Jordana’s paternal grandmother was Mary Louise Phillips (the daughter of Eugene James Phillips and Mary L. Griffin). Jordana’s grandmother Mary Louise was born in Providence, Providence Co., Rhode Island. Eugene was the son of Riley E. Phillips, who was born in Connecticut, and of Frances L., who was Scottish. Jordana’s great-grandmother Mary L. was the daughter of John H. Griffin, whose parents were Irish, and of Kate.
Jordana’s maternal grandfather was Fernando Manuel Ramos de Sousa (the son of Anibal Marques de Sousa and Aurora da Silva Ramos). Fernando was born in Lisbon, Portugal.
Jordana’s maternal grandmother was Marieta Correia Leão (the daughter of Alfredo Artur Leão and Carminda Reis Correia). Marieta was born in Cascais, Portugal. Alfredo was born in Vila Real, the son of Albertina de Jesus. Carminda was born in Cascais, the daughter of João Raimundo Esteves Correia and Mariana dos Reis.
Jordana’s patrilineal line traces to William Brewster (c. 1566-1644), a Mayflower passenger and noted Pilgrim. Among many of William’s other descendants are actors Paget Brewster, Austin Butler, Chevy Chase, Taylor Lautner, Seth MacFarlane, and Elisabeth Shue, actors and models Noah Mills and Brandon Routh, director, producer, screenwriter, and cinematographer Zack Snyder, singer Buffy Sainte-Marie, soccer player Clint Dempsey, Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld, U.S. Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, and Governor of Arkansas Winthrop Rockefeller. Branches of Jordana’s family have been in the United States, and, specifically, in New England, since the 1600s.
Sources: Genealogies of Jordana Brewster (focusing on her father’s side) – https://www.geni.com
http://famouskin.com
Jordana’s paternal grandmother, Mary Louise Phillips, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Immigration record of Jordana’s maternal grandfather, Fernando Manuel Ramos de Sousa – https://www.familysearch.org
Immigration record of Jordana’s maternal grandmother, Marieta Correia Leão – https://www.familysearch.org
I am surprised that both of her maternal grandmother and grandfather were immigrants from Portugal. That doesn’t happen too often.
Apparently Jordana’s mother was born in Portugal herself and arrived in Brazil at the age of two with her sister and mother. Her father had already left Portugal months before that, which wasn’t uncommon at the time.
It doesn’t surprise me Jordana has never mentioned her recent Portuguese ancestry. Her mother is probably very culturally Brazilian.
I had no idea her mother was born in Portugal as well and immigrated to Brazil when she was child. I have no doubt that she is culturally Brazilian. It just doesn’t seem usual for Brazilians to be “straight-off-the-boat” (for the lack of a better phrase) Portuguese like Jordana’s mother. That’s why I was shocked to find out.
Wondered if there was more info about the background of Jordana’s mother, thought the latest comments would show me that. But what i found was just a bunch of childish ramblings and no concrete arguments to refute anything i said, i give a bunch of examples and perspectives, but some people here are just too full of themselves, not to mention the xenofobia… Btw you guys don’t know —- about politics and economics lol never said Portugal was like heaven, but to implicate that country is somewhat in a “hotter mess” than for example Spain, Italy, and Greece just shows how clueless you all are, the whole “inferiority complex” talking point is nonsense, some people are really butthurt that i stated the simple fact that portuguese people are generally lighter than other southern europeans, the way you guys are freaking out over this mild detail is hilarious. Felipe Neto and Fernanda Vasconcelos are avarage looking portuguese people, not Jordana or her mom, that’s a fact and no strawman argument or xenofobic attack will change that. Her mom surely can be just portuguese, never denied that, but to say her phenotype is the most common there is simply insane.
Jordana Brewster would pass anywhere in Portugal any day, get over it man
Stop making silly assumptions. Portugal economy has the 47th place in GDP rank, Italy is 8th and Spain is 14th: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)
Also Portuguese are not the ‘lightest Southern Europeans” (?), whatever it matters. They are actually stereotyped for the opposite, the country is a foot out of Morocco.
Why Southern Europeans and Latin Americans are obsessed with being white ? Being “dark” is not shameful, Mediterranean euros are more diverse and have more healthy genes than other europeans
Good point but it’s mostly a New Worlders (Americas, Australia etc) phenomenon.
Lol you guys are simply clueless when it comes to interpretation, nuances and perspective, besides the blantant display of xenofobia… You are all just proving my points
*blatant
Jordana’s maternal grandfather was Fernando Manuel Ramos de Sousa (the son of Anibal Marques de Sousa and Aurora da Silva Ramos). Fernando was born in Lisbon, Portugal.
Jordana’s maternal grandmother was Marieta Correia Leão (the daughter of Alfredo Artur Leão and Carminda Reis Correia). Marieta was born in Cascais, Portugal. Alfredo was born in Vila Real, the son of Albertina de Jesus. Carminda was born in Cascais, the daughter of João Raimundo Esteves Correia and Mariana dos Reis.
Immigration record of Jordana’s maternal grandfather, Fernando Manuel Ramos de Sousa – https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V1SF-24H
Immigration record of Jordana’s maternal grandmother, Marieta Correia Leão – https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939X-4RTS-1?i=49
Humn interesting, always thought she looked heavily european dispite her strong tanning, her face gives way both her portuguese and british parts. I guess she has some non-white ancestry from her maternal grandmother? She’s obviusly white, but she does have a strong natural olive complexion, it can be an indicator of some distant african or native admixture (more likely native)…
*wait, i take it back the “distant non-white ancestry”… So her maternal grandmother was ALSO fully portuguese? Wow, this naturally strong olive complexion is quite uncommon for a portuguese person, so this skin comes from her full northwestern european dad? Confused…
My just be a tan. Her father and his family aren’t particularly “dark.” Here is her mother and her father:
https://bodyheightweight.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Jordana-Brewster-family-parents-1.jpg
She quite strongly takes after her mother.
So it turns out her dad is as white as snow, not surprising given his background. This pic is quite old, her mom does look portuguese, but still, quite odd this strong olive complexion for a full portuguese person, never saw this people tanning this well. My grandfather’s parents were from Setúbal, they were pasty white, and had light hair and eyes, my grandfather was a bit “darker”, he could get a tan, but not nearly as strong as Jordana, he had red spots with sunburn. The thing is that most people seem to think that the portuguese are very similar to spaniards, wich is far from true, portuguese people are not even mediterranean, they don’t have the same amount of middle eastern and north african admixture that the other southern europeans have(that btw it’s not that substantial anyway). So from what i know the portuguese tend to be a bit lighter than that, especially those with ancestry in the north of Portugual. I might be at least 1/8th non-white, with the rest being portuguese with more distant french and german, and i am pale as a ghost, i burn like gasoline under the sun, so Jordana got this exotic complexion from her “100% portuguese mom”? Not saying her mom’s background is made up, but we need to dig deeper into it, it’s not impossible that she is really just portuguese, this complexion can be just a combination of northern and southern portuguese genes, im just saying that from what i personally know from my own family, and read in varius sources, the portuguese are lighter than Jordana and her mom.
Full European people can have tan skin, this Spanish/French politician is darker than her : https://cdn.radiofrance.fr/s3/cruiser-production/2021/10/46fafda3-0d4d-48ca-b37b-9fd0fbbb73f2/838_000-9mp44f.jpg
Yes they can, but i adressed that the portuguese are usually lighter than other southern europeans, since they are not mediterranean, so they don’t have a substantial geographical connection with the middle east, reducing the possibitily of admixture, most portuguese people are pale in complexion, so im just pointing out that Jordana has an uncommon strong olive skin (wich is even more surprising when you take into consideration her full northwestern european dad)…
She is French national but Spanish by family.
Such dark Cro-Magnoid types exist in Iberia so before claiming some Latinos are part this and part that…be careful.
Seriously stop with this…are you a comedian? The Portuguese are probably the darker-pigmented people in Europe. I mean, Iberian Peninsula stands at the most southerner latitude on European continent, with the biggest sun irradiation, desert landscapes and tropical fruits fields. A region like Algarve is for Brits an easier alternative to West Indies for vacation. So though the Portuguese can certainly display light features as your family do, they are absolutely darker on average than mainstream Europeans, and to claim olive skin is something odd is arguably ridiculous stuff.
Read carefully what i said, what is arguably ridicolous is to claim portuguese people are “the darker-pigmented” people in Europe, when you have the spaniards, italians(especially in Calabria, Sicily, Malta, Sardinia), not to mention Greeks… The portuguese have less non-euro admixture than any other southern europeans, i guess americans think they are mediterranean, have you seen Tom Hanks mother?That was a standard portuguese woman, types like Jordana’s mother are not the rule, the avarage portuguese person is something between politician Eduardo Rodrigues and actor Paulo Rocha. It’s perfectly possible that her mother is really just portuguese, sometimes it happens a combination between genes, for exemple if her mom’s parents had ancestral ties in regions far away from each other (lets say far north and far south) that results in someone with a darker complexion, Nuno Bettencourt for exemple. I said that it’s important to do more research on her mom to eliminate any doubt, that’s what this site is for right? It’s always better to have more info than less, you guys don’t want any questions about anything? Lets all agree that it’s kinda wierd that Jordana has this deep olive skin having two full european parents (one of them being northwestern european). But sure, cases like her can happen, it’s a matter of coincidence, specific genetic combinations, etc… Just don’t say the Portuguese are the darkest europeans when we have italians such as Al Pacino and John Torturro, Spaniards such as Antonio Bandeiras, french people such as Audrey Tautou, and greeks such as Maria Callas.
*John Turturro
*That might results in someone with a darker than avarage complexion
Yeah I mean, I’ve been actually either agreeing or respectfully disagreeing with Jonas’s latests posts for a while now but this is straight up delusional, firstly, the “uncommon olive natural complexion” claim is outright ludicrous, I go to Portugal every so often for work and this skin tone, while it’s probably on the high end, it’s not atypical in the slightest.
Then the claim that “Portuguese are not mediterranean” is almost as absurd as when Galician nationalists, some of whom clearly have Berberid influence claim they are mostly Celts and superior ro other Europeans, NEWS FLASH: pretty much everyone in the Iberian peninsula stems from the same Celtiberian stock and has undergone the same history, only the Basques could perhaps be exempt of this since they didn’t assimilate to any conquering groups.
Also the “Spaniards” rhetoric, what does “Spaniards” even mean? as I’ve hinted, there’s multiple groups within Spain that have experienced historical events differently and aren’t exactly the same.
You’re also using a couple darker looking actors of southern descent as proof of something apparently which is laughable, it doesn’t surprise me since you made that post on Rafael Nadal’s page claiming he is the “classic spaniard” (which I already debunked that for you there) while also using a couple people as proof that Portuguese people are,somehow porcelaine death pale white skinned people? lol …. anyways, as I’ve already said before, I feel like a lot of Portuguese people, or people of Potuguese descent have a chronic inferiority complex and try to make themselves look “whiter” than the Spaniards or the rest of southern Europeans for self esteem, which is really sad honestly, Portuguese are white, Spaniards are white (which again, aren’t homogeneous), Italians are white, Greeks and French are white, etc etc
Again I could start naming lightskinned Spanish, Italian, Greek, etc celebs and dark looking Portuguese celebs but that’s a pointless game to me IMHO
NOTREALLY, have you seen the map? “Then the claim that Portuguese are not mediterranean is almost as absurd as when Galician nationalists” lol…Portugal is as further west is britain and ireland, it’s not over de mediteranean sea(therefore they don’t have as much middle eastern admixture as the other southern europeans, you can find historical and genetic evidence of that) sure, there are cultural similarities, especially with Spain, but not nearly as much as many people like to believe. Many pretend that the portuguese are like cousins of spaniards, wich is absolutely untrue, they look wildly different, you rarely seen an Antonio Bandeiras or Javier Bardem type there, portuguese-brazillian youtuber Felipe Neto is the perfect exemple of a standard portuguese person. “The uncommon olive natural complexion claim is outright ludicrous”… Well, you guys either twist, or don’t understand what i say and mean, olive complexion is indeed common in Portugal, since it’s sunny there, but to say Jordana’s skin is not at all weird for someone with two full european parents is quite a strech, i might be over 10% non-white and i am pale as a ghost(nearly all my european ancestry is portuguese). I stand by what i said, her mom tans way too well for a portuguese person, this STRONG olive complexion is NOT common, the portuguese can, mostly, get a tan, but not as deep and without red spots like Jordana and her mom (and keep in mind her father is full northwestern european, if you don’t think there’s something of, than you are just innocent). “You’re also using a couple darker looking actors of southern descent as proof of something apparently which is laughable”… Ok then, tell me that, for exemple, Antonio Bandeiras is not a avarage spaniard, Al Pacino is not a avarage italian, and Maria Callas os not a avarage greek, i chose those for a reason, and they me avarage portuguese people are just as dark as them… The portuguese are on avarage, lighter than other southern europeans, that’s a fact, you and Andrew acting like types such as Jordana’s mother and Nuno Bettencourt are the avarage look in Portugal is simply insane. “I feel like a lot of Portuguese people, or people of Potuguese descent have a chronic inferiority complex and try to make themselves look “whiter” than the Spaniards or the rest of southern Europeans for self esteem”, well, i can only speek for myself, but to say that portuguese people have a “chronic inferiority complex” it’s kinda weird, last time i check, Portugal is in a better situation than most southern european countries for a while now (economically, culturally, and politically), Spain has a long identity crise history, they can’t even come to terms among themselves, Italy is a mess, Greece is not even worth mention LOL and the “make themselves look whiter” part is such a reductive and childish talking point, you clearly misread all my comments on this thread, stating the simple fact that the portuguese are on avarage lighter than other southern europeans is not at all to say that they are somehow “better” or that spaniards, italians, etc… are not white too, the fact that you were buthurt by this says much more about yourself than about me. The portuguese have less non-euro admixture than any other southern euro ethnic group, therefore it’s not really absurd to point out that most of them have a lighter skin when compared to spaniards, for exemple, i never said portuguese people are all pale like ghosts, olive complexion itself is not rare, whats rare is STRONG, deep, without red spots, like in Jordana’s case. Again, it can be just a coincidence, problably caused by a specific combination of genes from different regions in Portugal, i never denied that it’s perfectly possible that her mom is just portuguese, i just said that this deep tanning is not common and we need to dig deeper into her background to eliminate any doubt. You don’t have anything to say about this, bye guys and maybe see you in other discussions.
@jonas
Well…we have to say you ‘thank you”. Thanks for the fun you give to this platform. I’ve never seen such a long comment here, and by a user with name and picture. Well I don’t judge your patologies, anyhow thank you.
I appreciate your love for the motherland, but mind Portugal is the poorer country in Western Europe, and not anywhere close to Italy economy (the 3rd in UE), and also far from Catalonia (Spain richer region). It’s enough for today. Oh dear.
“tell me that, for exemple, Antonio Bandeiras is not a avarage spaniard”
No, he’s not, not by any stretch of the imagination, I don’t know what you want me to tell you.st
Neither is Al pacino, again, you believe, Andalucians = average Spaniards, like a lot of Americans do, same with Sicillians = average Italians, same absolutely erroneous stereotypes, there’s a reason for it, both groups are overrepresented in entertainment.
Your entire worldwiew on Italians, Spaniards, Greeks, etc couldn’t be any more flawed, which to me is a reminder that not only “Americans” (as in USAers) are ignorant about Europeans, it’s the whole of America, including Brazilians and that’s why your takes seem to clash with so many users, give that a thought.
That was a funny read nevertheless, Portuguese inferiority will never cease to amaze me
As for Portugal’s economy, which I have no idea why was even brought up,
I have to thank you though, this whole post legitimatelymade me laugh
@NOTREALLY
About Banderas, that man really has a special aura. He is maybe the biggest ambassador of Spanish men in the world. I dont think he is neither average Spaniard (silly concept) or particularly exotic-looking.
Anyhow I have a few stories: there was this beer festival in my town, and I remember Bavarian girl
I was saying…there was this Bavarian girl flirting with a friend on mine, and she told him he looked like Antonio Banderas (?), though this was to the case at all lol.
Also once Antonio was a guest at Sanremo festival. He played piano with simple skills, and I remember female journalists on the radio wondering about touching his hair like he was a god.
I also don’t forget an Isabella Allende interview where she made sexual fantasies about him. The mas has power.