# Alicia Vela-Bailey
**Alicia Vela-Bailey** (born 1982 in [Alameda, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/alameda-california)) is an American stuntwoman and actress who has worked as a stunt double for actors including Zoe Saldana, Gal Gadot, Kate Beckinsale, and [Shailene Woodley](https://www.edgepedia.org/shailene-woodley), and who has built a parallel on-screen career playing physical, often monstrous characters such as Diana in *Lights Out* (2016) and Alisha Whitley on *Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/) • [2](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1982, Alameda, California, U.S.[3](https://cinegraph.org/people/alicia-vela-bailey) |
| First stunt job | Doubling Milla Jovovich in *Ultraviolet* (2006) at age 21; four months in Hong Kong and two months in Shanghai; two Taurus World Stunt Award nominations in 2007[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/) |
| Signature double work | Zoe Saldana's stunt double for Neytiri on *Avatar* (about 3 years of work), and double for Sigourney Weaver and Saldana on the *Avatar* sequels[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/) • [2](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey) |
| Acting breakthrough | Diana, the lead villain of *Lights Out* (2016); she auditioned for the stunt double role and was hired to perform the character as well[4](https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/180495/lights-out-exclusive-alicia-vela-bailey-talks-bringing-the-evil-diana-to-life-annabelle-2/) |
| Television role | Alisha Whitley, a multiplying Inhuman on *Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.* (2014–2016), a role fans dubbed the "Ginger Ninja"[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/) |
| Notable stunt | The *Divergent* building jump, raised from 50 to 60 to 66 feet, performed four times on a wire and four times without[5](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/interviews/a29306/alicia-vela-bailey-divergent-exclusive/) |
| Recognition | Artemis Stunt Icon Award, Artemis Women in Action Film Festival, 2018[6](https://www.artemisfilmfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Artemis_Program_2018_web_72.pdf) |
## Early life and training
Vela-Bailey was raised in Kailua, on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Her mother Cecelia was a ballerina and artist from North Carolina, and her father Carlos Armando was a magician from [El Salvador](https://www.edgepedia.org/el-salvador). With two artistic parents, she was enrolled in gymnastics and dance at a young age and became a competitive Level 9 gymnast with the Hawaiian Island Twisters, later shifting her focus toward dance as a member of Marcelo Pacleb's 24-VII Danceforce[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/).
She has said she never planned to do stunts. She was asked to audition for a film because producers thought she would make a good double for an actress, and, in her words, it "snowballed from there" as people remembered her work and hired her on other productions[7](https://www.vanityfair.com/video/watch/hollywood-stuntwoman-breaks-down-her-career-in-stunts). Her dance background has remained central to her stunt work; she credits dancers' body awareness and attention to body lines with helping her pick up fight choreography and make it look natural[8](https://dancemagazine.com/dancers-stunt-performers/).
## Stunt career
Her first film job was doubling [Milla Jovovich](https://www.edgepedia.org/milla-jovovich) in *[Ultraviolet](https://www.edgepedia.org/ultraviolet-film)* (2006), which was also her first experience with stunts and martial arts; she spent four months in Hong Kong and two months in Shanghai on the production, and the work earned two Taurus World Stunt Award nominations in 2007[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/).
**Avatar and motion capture.** As a dancer she had become a Pussycat Doll in Las Vegas at [Caesars Palace](https://www.edgepedia.org/caesars-palace), and was then called to audition for [James Cameron](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-cameron)'s *Avatar* (2009). She spent about three years on the film as Zoe Saldana's stunt double for Neytiri and also played Na'vi characters, including her own role as the Ikran Clan Leader[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/). She continued in the franchise as stunt double for both Saldana and [Sigourney Weaver](https://www.edgepedia.org/sigourney-weaver) on *Avatar: The Way of Water* (2022) and *Avatar: Fire and Ash* (2025)[2](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey) • [9](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2151188/).
Her double credits span a wide range of leading actresses: [Gal Gadot](https://www.edgepedia.org/gal-gadot) on *Wonder Woman* and *Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice*, Kate Beckinsale on *Underworld: Awakening*, *Total Recall*, and *Underworld: Blood Wars*, Anne Hathaway on *Interstellar*, Shailene Woodley on *Divergent*, [Jennifer Lawrence](https://www.edgepedia.org/jennifer-lawrence) on *X-Men: First Class*, Charlize Theron in the [Brandon Flowers](https://www.edgepedia.org/brandon-flowers) music video "Crossfire", Rosie Huntington-Whiteley on *Transformers: Dark of the Moon*, and Adrianne Palicki on *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*[2](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey) • [7](https://www.vanityfair.com/video/watch/hollywood-stuntwoman-breaks-down-her-career-in-stunts). Her television stunt work includes *The Mandalorian*, *Ahsoka*, *Westworld*, *Luke Cage* (as assistant stunt coordinator), and *The Defenders*[2](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey) • [10](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/alicia-vela-bailey/credits/3030756048/).
**The Divergent jump.** One of her most described stunts is the *Divergent* scene in which Tris jumps off a building to prove herself as a Dauntless initiate. The height kept being raised, from 50 to 60 to 66 feet. She trained by jumping from a lift at 30 feet into an airbag inside a Chicago warehouse, then moved outside to 45 feet, and finally made the jump at height, four times on a wire to line up camera angles and four times without a wire[5](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/interviews/a29306/alicia-vela-bailey-divergent-exclusive/).
## Acting roles
Vela-Bailey's movement background carried her into character acting, particularly in horror. She played the Female Freak in *The Purge* (2013) and the leather-clad Cyber Punk in *Hostel Part III* (2011), roles that used her ability to manipulate her body into unnatural movement[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/).
**Lights Out.** Director David F. Sandberg and producer [James Wan](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-wan) were having trouble casting the lead villain Diana in *Lights Out* (2016). Vela-Bailey came in to audition for the stunt double role, and the team liked her audition enough to use her for the performance itself[4](https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/180495/lights-out-exclusive-alicia-vela-bailey-talks-bringing-the-evil-diana-to-life-annabelle-2/). She wore a black bodysuit with prosthetic hands, neck, and face, and drew on her dance and gymnastics training for hand-walking, crawling, and contortionist movements[4](https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/180495/lights-out-exclusive-alicia-vela-bailey-talks-bringing-the-evil-diana-to-life-annabelle-2/). In an interview she described the physical challenges: she was sometimes rigged to the ceiling, wore goggles with reflectors that limited her vision on a dark set, and worked barefoot on her toes for an extra "creepy limb" look[11](https://dailydead.com/interview-alicia-vela-bailey-discusses-becoming-diana-for-lights-out/). *The New York Times* critic Jeannette Catsoulis singled out her "chilling exertions" and wrote that she "portrays Diana with limber ingenuity"[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/). She reunited with Sandberg as the evil Mrs. Mullins in *Annabelle: Creation* (2017)[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/).
**Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.** While working on the show as [Adrianne Palicki](https://www.edgepedia.org/adrianne-palicki)'s stunt double, Vela-Bailey was cast as Alisha Whitley, an Inhuman with the ability to duplicate herself, appearing in seasons 2 and 3 (2014–2016 episodes)[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/) • [12](https://www.sensacine.com/actores/actor-154106/filmografia/). Because she could act and perform her own stunts, the character's fight scenes could be staged with her on both sides of a duel; fans nicknamed her the "Ginger Ninja"[1](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/).
**Later roles.** She played Recom Zdinarsik in *Avatar: The Way of Water* (2022) and Ikeyni in *Avatar: Fire and Ash* (2025), and appeared as Owl of the Salem Seven in the 2024 miniseries *Agatha All Along* and in an episode of *NCIS* in 2025[9](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2151188/) • [12](https://www.sensacine.com/actores/actor-154106/filmografia/).
## Recognition
The Artemis Women in Action Film Festival honored Vela-Bailey with its Artemis Stunt Icon Award in 2018, citing her use of skills as both a stuntwoman and an actress to portray "dynamic, unstoppable female characters"[6](https://www.artemisfilmfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Artemis_Program_2018_web_72.pdf). She is a [SAG-AFTRA](https://www.edgepedia.org/sag-aftra) member based in California, listed at 5 ft 9 in[2](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey).
## References
1. [Alicia Vela-Bailey, Women In Stunts (Matt Mullins, September 24, 2018)](https://www.womeninstunts.com/alicia-vela-bailey/)
2. [Alicia Vela-Bailey profile, iStunt Global Stunt Directory](https://istunt.com/alicia-vela-bailey)
3. [Alicia Vela-Bailey, Cinegraph](https://cinegraph.org/people/alicia-vela-bailey)
4. [Lights Out Exclusive: Alicia Vela-Bailey Talks Bringing the Evil Diana to Life; Annabelle 2, Dread Central (August 2, 2016)](https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/180495/lights-out-exclusive-alicia-vela-bailey-talks-bringing-the-evil-diana-to-life-annabelle-2/)
5. [Meet the Brave Stuntwoman Who Did a 66-Foot Jump for "Divergent" Eight Times, Cosmopolitan](https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/interviews/a29306/alicia-vela-bailey-divergent-exclusive/)
6. [Artemis Honorees 2018, Artemis Women in Action Film Festival program (PDF)](https://www.artemisfilmfestival.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Artemis_Program_2018_web_72.pdf)
7. [Hollywood Stuntwoman Breaks Down Her Career in Stunts, Vanity Fair "Notes on a Scene" (September 24, 2018)](https://www.vanityfair.com/video/watch/hollywood-stuntwoman-breaks-down-her-career-in-stunts)
8. [Why Dancers Make Strong Stunt Performers in Action Films, Dance Magazine](https://dancemagazine.com/dancers-stunt-performers/)
9. [Alicia Vela-Bailey, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2151188/)
10. [Alicia Vela-Bailey List of Movies and TV Shows, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/alicia-vela-bailey/credits/3030756048/)
11. [Interview: Alicia Vela-Bailey Discusses Becoming Diana for LIGHTS OUT, Daily Dead (July 28, 2016)](https://dailydead.com/interview-alicia-vela-bailey-discusses-becoming-diana-for-lights-out/)
12. [Alicia Vela-Bailey: Filmografía, SensaCine](https://www.sensacine.com/actores/actor-154106/filmografia/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Stunt performers and physical performance specialists*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license