Jurnee Diana Smollett is an American actress who had her acting career at a young age with her five siblings. She is a native of New York and was born on the first day of October 1986.
In 1997, Jurnee Smollett debuted when she had her appearance in the film ‘Eve’s Bayou,’ along with some of her siblings. After she made her appearance in her first movie, the young Jurnee earned her first award of Best Youth Performance in Broadcast Film Critics Award.
The actress also started her acting career with her family. So, as they grew older, they received more notable projects in several productions. This article will tackle Jurnee Smollett’s parents, Janet and Joel Smollet, and her five siblings.
Jurnee Smollett’s Parents Love Life
Both of Jurnee Smollett’s parents are activists. According to their third child, Jussie, Joel Smollett and Janet Harris met while participating in a Black Civil Rights campaign. They only dated for several months after they decided to get married. Jurnee’s parents are inseparable.
Janet remained faithful to her husband, even if Joel couldn’t survive his battle with cancer on the 7th day of January 2015.
Jurnee Smollett’s Father, Joel Smollett Biography
The late father of Jurnee, Joel Smollett, was a cable splicer and activist who let his children pursue their careers in the entertainment industry as an actor at a young age. He is a Jewish immigrant from Russia.
On the 8th day of October in 1956, Joel had his first breath. Then at the age of 58, he passed away on the 7th day of January 2015 due to cancer. His five children and wife can only reminisce their times with him by posting throwback pictures on their social media accounts.
Jurnee Smollett’s Mother, Janet Smollett Biography
Like her late husband, Janet Harris-Smollett is also an activist and a chef. Janet worked for political activists Bobby Seale and Huey Newton and associated with them and Joel Smollett during the Black Civil Rights campaign. She was born on November 27th, 1952, as Afro-American.
Janet Smollett is a full-time mother to her six children and doesn’t have a plan to remarry after her late husband’s death.
Jurnee Smollett’s Siblings
All of Jurnee Smollett’s siblings are actors and actresses. They all had their appearances on ‘On Our Own,’ a sitcom in 1994. In addition, Jojo, Jazz, and Jake are producers. They worked together producing the CLEO TV series ‘Living by Design,’ and Jazz was a co-host.
Also, besides acting, Jussie works as a photographer and singer. Then, Jocqui didn’t further his acting career. However, like his father, Jocqui is a technologist and founder of Hosted Incorporation.
