'X-Men: Apocalypse' Cast Alexandra Shipp: 5 Things Fans (Probably) Didn’t Know About The Actress Behind Storm


"X-Men: Apocalypse," which stars Alexandra Shipp as the fierce mutant Storm, wrapped up filming and is now in post-production. Director Bryan Singer and a couple of cast members, including Shipp, had a celebration, Entertainment Weekly reported.

Some cast members like Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult and James McAvoy will reprise their roles in "X-Men: Apocalypse." Meanwhile, Shipp will be one of those new faces that will portray an original "X-Men" franchise character.

In a matter of few months, her name rose to Hollywood stardom. But who is Alexandra Shipp before fame?

1. Movies she did before "X-Men: Apocalypse"

"Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel" was Shipp's debut movie, where she played the role of Valentina. In 2014, she played the role of Dani Bolton in "Drumline," as per IMDb.

Afterwards, she landed the role of Aaliyah Haughton in the biopic "Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B," and in 2015, she played Kim in the box office film "Straight Outta Compton."

2. Before "X-Men: Apocalypse," she was a struggling artist.

Shipp admitted that she had her fair share of hardships in finding a lead role in Los Angeles. She moved into the city when she was 17, but it was only in 2014 when she got her big break.

3. Considers career as a blessing.

Shipp got two roles, just in two months, and she claims it was a blessing from God.

"I cry about it all the time and I get really excited because it's hard to be Black and to be female and look for any sort of lead role in Los Angeles. The fact that I got two roles in two months is just... that's God," she said during her interview with Essence.

4. Playing Aaliyah was scary for her.

"It was scary. But I knew that I had to do it," she revealed to ET.

"Something in me was just like, 'You have to do this. You're going to love this experience more than anything,'" she continued.

5. Asked how life is for her now...

She told Bossip, "Life is pretty good. I'm just happy that my hard work is paying off."

Watch Shipp play the all-time favorite character Storm when "X-Men: Apocalypse" bows to theater on May 27, 2016.

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