Chandler Kinney

Chandler Kinney
Kinney in 2022
Born (2000-08-03) August 3, 2000 (age 26)
Sacramento, California, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active2012–present

Chandler Kinney (born August 3, 2000) is an American actress and singer. She gained recognition for her leading role as Willa in three films and other media for Disney's Zombies franchise (2020–2025). This breakthrough led to her competing in the 33rd season of Dancing with the Stars, in which she finished third.

Kinney played the lead role of teenaged cinephile Tabby Haworthe in the HBO Max horror series Pretty Little Liars (2022–2024), a spinoff of the eponymous original series, and starred in the Amazon Prime Video comedy drama series Elle (2026).

Early life and education

Kinney was born on August 3, 2000, in Sacramento, California. She started dancing when she was three, and is trained in tap, jazz and hip-hop. She studied dance at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy. She began acting at age nine. She also has a black belt in martial arts.

Kinney and her mother founded the organization Chandler's Friends, which helps disadvantaged youths. She was homeschooled, and took a gap year before she studied at UCLA. She majored in psychology at UCLA, but left school to film Pretty Little Liars.

Career

Throughout her early acting career, she had guest roles on the Disney Channel shows Girl Meets World and K.C. Undercover, and the Nickelodeon show The Haunted Hathaways. Her first major role was as Catherine Dillman in Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street. She then went on to star as Riana Murtaugh in Lethal Weapon. In 2020, she joined the Zombies franchise as Willa, a werewolf who first appears in Zombies 2.

In July 2021, Kinney was announced to be starring in Pretty Little Liars, a 2022 spinoff of the 2010 television series of the same name. It was announced she would be playing Tabby, an aspiring director and horror movie buff.

Dancing with the Stars

On September 4, 2024, Kinney was announced as a contestant on season 33 of Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with professional dancer Brandon Armstrong. Earning both the highest cumulative points based on judges' scores and the first perfect score of the season, Kinney and Armstrong are the first Black partnership in Dancing with the Stars history to advance to the finale. Their freestyle routine was the show's first performance to feature an ensemble cast of all-Black dancers.

Kinney and Armstrong ultimately finished in third place on November 26, 2024, behind runners-up Ilona Maher and her partner Alan Bersten, and winners Joey Graziadei and his partner Jenna Johnson.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2012 Battlefield America Chantel
2013 Company Town Ally McKinley Television movie
2020 Zombies 2 Willa Lykensen
2022 Zombies 3
2025 Zombies 4: Dawn of the Vampires
TBD Hidden Secrets 4: Back in Time Mariah Television movie, in production

Short films

Year Title Role Notes
2020 Zombies 2: Wolf Tales Willa Lykensen Voice role
Addison's Moonstone Mystery
2021 Zombies: Addison's Monster Mystery
2023 Zombies: The Re-Animated Series Shorts

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2013 American Horror Story: Asylum Older Julia Episode: "Madness Ends"
90210 Olivia Episode: "You Can't Win Em All"
2014 The Haunted Hathaways Mirabelle 6 episodes
2014–2016 Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street Catherine Dillman Main role
2015 Girl Meets World Vanessa Episode: "Girl Meets Texas: Part 2"
2016–2019 Lethal Weapon Riana Murtaugh Main role
2017 K.C. Undercover Monique 2 episodes
2021 The Ghost and Molly McGee Tammy Myers (voice) Episode: "Howlin' Harriet/The (Un)natural"
2022 Robot Chicken Buttercup, MJ, Animal Adoption Woman (voice) Episode: "May Cause a Squeakquel"
2022–2024 Pretty Little Liars Tabitha "Tabby" Haworthe Main role
2024 Dancing with the Stars Herself 3rd Place on season 33
2024 Zombies: The Re-Animated Series Willa (voice) Main role
2026 Elle Kimberly
TBD Off Campus Sabrina James Season 3 beginning star (confirmation by production script)

References

  1. ↑ "Chandler Kinney News". Us Weekly.
  2. 1 2 Stivale, Shelby (August 3, 2023). "Who Is Chandler Kinney? What to Know About the 'ZOMBIES' Star". J-14. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Chandler Kinney". TVGuide.com. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  4. ↑ justin (May 10, 2018). "Chandler Kinney, Girl Power". Black Chalk Magazine. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  5. ↑ "Interview with Chandler Kinney". upfrontNY. February 6, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  6. ↑ Mediaplanet (July 18, 2019). "How Chandler Kinney Is Prepping for Her New Role as a College Freshman". Education and Career News. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  7. 1 2 Bowen, Sesali. "Chandler Kinney Talks Growing Up On Lethal Weapon". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  8. ↑ Dodson, P. Claire (August 11, 2022). "Chandler Kinney Used to Mimic "That's So Raven." Now She's Her Own Star". Teen Vogue. Retrieved November 24, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Chandler Kinney Talks Season 2 of Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street – Read the Q&A!". Celeb Secrets. October 5, 2015. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  10. ↑ jmcmullen (February 11, 2020). "Awoo! Meet the Werewolves in Disney Channel's ZOMBIES 2". D23. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  11. ↑ Petski, Denise (May 21, 2019). "'Zombies 2': Pearce Joza, Chandler Kinney & Ariel Martin Join Disney Channel Movie". Deadline. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  12. ↑ Petski, Denise (July 2, 2021). "'Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin': Chandler Kinney & Maia Reficco To Star In HBO Max Reboot". Deadline. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  13. ↑ America, Good Morning. "Meet the celebrity cast of 'Dancing with the Stars' season 33". Good Morning America. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  14. ↑ Knolle, Sharon (October 23, 2024). "Dancing With the Stars Week 6: Deadpool & Wolverine Fight-Inspired Routine Steals the Show on Disney Night". TheWrap. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
  15. ↑ "Chandler Kinney, Brandon Armstrong earn season's 1st perfect scores on 'Dancing with the Stars'". ABC30 Fresno. November 13, 2024. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  16. ↑ LaCapria, Kim (November 23, 2024). "Chandler And Brandon Just Made DWTS History, And We're So Excited". TheThings. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  17. ↑ Baker, Kamrin (November 27, 2024). "Dancing with the Stars finalists perform first-ever all-Black ensemble dance in show's history". Good Good Good. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  18. ↑ Campione, Katie (November 27, 2024). "'Dancing With The Stars' Season 33 Finale Recap: Who Wins The Mirrorball Trophy?". Deadline. Retrieved December 8, 2024.