April Lee Hernández

Born and raised in The Bronx, New York, April Lee Hernandez is one of the renowned Latina actresses in Hollywood. She is best known for her role in the 2007 critically acclaimed film, Freedom Writers, and The History of Future Folk (2012). She made her acting debut in 2003 from the short movie Big Wes. 

She is married to Jose Castillo and the couple is proud parents of two daughters.

Early Life And Education Of April Lee Hernandez 

April Lee Hernandez was born on January 31, 1980, in The Bronx, New York, U.S. She was raised in a Grand Concourse along with her siblings. Hernandez is American and belongs to the Hipa s sian ethnicity.  She is of Puerto Rican descent and has described herself as a "strong Latina".

Hernandez attended Hunter College where she studied nutrition but dropped out in order to pursue her career in comedy. John Leguizamo's off-Broadway production Mambo Mouth truly inspired her to be an actor.

April Lee Hernandez's Career

April Lee Hernandez started her career as a stand-up comedian at the famous New York Comedy Club in New York City. Then she got her first screen break as the Yo/Yoa girl along with NBA All-Star, Yoa Ming in 2004  Super Bowl Visa Check Card national commercial.

She made her acting debut in 2003 with a short movie, Big Wes. After a year she debuted on TV with police procedural and legal drama television series, Law & Order. 

CAPTION: April Lee Hernandez SOURCE: hopeforwomenmag.com

In 2010, Hernandez starred in the American TV crime drama mystery series Dexter in the 5th season. She portrayed the recurring role of Off. Cira Manzon. 

She has appeared on several  hit TV series such as;

In 2007, Hernandez debuted in big screen with the critically acclaimed movie, Freedom Writers where she portrayed the role, Eva Benitez. She shared the screen with Hilary Swank, Scott Glenn, Imelda Staunton, and Patrick Dempsey. Hernandez received a positive response from critics and audiences for her performance. The movie was based on the real-life of a high school student, Maria Reyes.

April Lee Hernandez then made her appearances in a number of movies including, Broken, The Big Wes, The History of Future Folk, Officer Down, The Stockroom. 

Since 2016, she has taken the break from movies and TV series instead she enrolled herself as the motivational and inspirational speaker. Hernandez served as VP of Lion Chaser Films and she is also known as the Teen Dating Specialist. As of 2018,  she is busy with her self-titled YouTube channel, April Hernandez-Castillo.

Hernandez is involved in many social welfare organizations in order to support the children and women in any possible way. 

April Lee Hernandez's Net Worth

April Lee Hernandez is active in the film industry since 2003 and till the date, she has worked on numerous movies and TV series. As per some online sources, her estimated net worth isn't less than six digit figure but the real figure is still under review.

Hernandez earns between $65k -$70k for her appearance in movies and TV series.  In 2007, her debut movie, Freedom Writers grossed $43.1 million at the box office which made under the budget of $21 million. IMDB rated the movie with 7.5 stars out of the 10. 

She owns a luxurious house in New York which cost millions of dollar. 

April Lee Hernandez's Personal Life

April Lee Hernandez married her best friend, Jose Castillo. He is a New York City-based filmmaker & lifestyle photographer.  The duo tied the knot on May 12, 2007, at an intimate ceremony held at the presence of their closed friends and family in the church of New York.

CAPTION: April Lee Hernandez and her husband SOURCE: Instagram

They knew one another since their high school days, at first they were just friends but eventually fell in love. The couple welcomed their first daughter, Summer Rose Castillo on September 30, 2012. After five years, they were blessed with another baby girl, Lyla Isabela Castillo (born on March 23, 2017). 

Hernandez is active on Instagram and often shares adorable images of her husband and children. She also shares inspiring quotes and messages with her fans and well-wishers. 

She is a huge fan of Jennifer Lopez and admires her a lot. 

"Jennifer Lopez opened the door for me so that I don't have to take certain roles as a Hispanic-American actress."

Hernandez also considered herself as one of the biggest fans of Oprah Winfrey.  

In November 2017, April Lee Hernandez criticized the cover image of Nicki Minaj with a lengthy post on her Instagram. She entitled the post with, "Porn in Media". 

 

Caption: Porn in Media *lengthy Post Ok so I just want to begin by saying this post is not about bashing Nicki Minaj. This is about bringing an awareness to what is being fed to us the audience, especially women, to thinking this is art and nothing else. So a few nights ago while I was in bed scrolling through the gram I came across @papermagazine and saw this cover. So many thoughts were running through my mind and all of a sudden I felt sad and disappointed. I had to process my feelings because I don't know Nicki and probably never will. She has made her mark in Hip Hop as a matter of fact one of my favorite songs of hers is Moment 4 Life. So she gets the respect. But when I saw this cover not once did I see a Hip Hop rapper, nor an MC. I saw a cover of a magazine that looked like a promo for a new porn video. I remember when you could tell the difference between a porn star and a celebrity and now there really is no difference both are selling SEX. ~~~~~ So I began to wonder how many young ladies who look up to Nicki Minaj will think this is what it looks like to be famous? I wondered how many young girls of color will look at the cover and think I want to be just like Nicki? I get the whole pushing the limits when it comes to art but without a doubt I'm sorry to say this is just straight up porn. As someone who speaks to youth I hear so many stories of the pressures young girls deal with to be someone they are not. Or how kissing is not enough hooking up with a guy or girl is the main goal now. Whether you declare yourself as a role model or not the moment you have impact on someone's life you become a role model plain and simple. So many young black girls admire this woman who is extremely talented will they ever be able to see past a cover like this? This cover is nothing new under the sun and it will continue to get worse but at what expense? We must do better as a society when it comes to educating our young girls and understanding their value. I pray Nicki wakes up one day because she has so much more to offer other than sex. #staywoke #empoweringwomen #feminism #wecandobetter #enoughisenough #sexualizationinmedia

A post shared by April Hernandez-Castillo (@aprillhernandez) on Nov 16, 2017 at 9:07am PST

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