Jillian Morgese

File:Much Ado About Nothing Jillian Morgese.jpg

Jillian Morgese (born September 25, 1989) is an actress notable for her performance in the role of Hero in Joss Whedon’s 2012 film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4711616/ IMDB: Jillian Morgese]

Life and career

Raised in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, Morgese graduated from Fair Lawn High School in 2007, where she was initially more interested in athletics than acting.Beckerman, Jim. [http://www.northjersey.com/arts-and-entertainment/fair-lawn-actress-gets-starring-role-in-joss-whedon-s-take-on-shakespeare-s-much-ado-about-nothing-1.692333 "Fair Lawn actress gets starring role in Joss Whedon's take on Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160917235903/http://www.northjersey.com/arts-and-entertainment/fair-lawn-actress-gets-starring-role-in-joss-whedon-s-take-on-shakespeare-s-much-ado-about-nothing-1.692333 |date=2016-09-17 }}, The Record (Bergen County), June 18, 2013. Accessed July 19, 2016. "Morgese (pronounced 'More-Jesse'), now a California resident, found her way into the movies almost by accident. She had dreamed of being an Olympic athlete in school (Fair Lawn High School, class of 2007), and then studied merchandising at the Fashion Institute of Technology."

Morgese, an alumna of the Fashion Institute of Technology, decided to pursue a career in film. She was noticed by Whedon as she was performing as an extra in The Avengers.[https://www.buzzfeed.com/jordanzakarin/jillian-morgese-much-ado-joss-whedon-avengers Buzzfeed: The Fairy-Tale Story Of An “Avengers” Extra Who Became Joss Whedon’s Big New Star] Whedon referred to Morgese as having 'a quality which is undeniable'.[http://www.indiewire.com/article/joss-whedon-much-ado-toronto-the-avengers Indiewire: Joss Whedon on What 'Much Ado About Nothing' Has in Common With 'The Avengers]