Julia Goldani Telles is a Brazilian-American actress and ballet dancer. She is known for playing Sasha Torres on the short-lived ABC Family series Bunheads (2012–2013), Whitney Solloway on the Showtime original series The Affair (2014–2019), and Iris in the third season of The Girlfriend Experience (2021).
Early life Goldani Telles was born in Los Angeles, California, to a Brazilian mother and Mexican father. She moved with her parents to Rio de Janeiro when she was almost two years old. It was there that she was introduced to the world of ballet at the age of five. When the family relocated back to Los Angeles that year, Goldani Telles could speak only Portuguese and learned English after the family's move. Goldani Telles moved to New York City when she was 13.
Goldani Telles trained at the School of American Ballet and Ballet Academy East, and appeared in numerous ballet performances including Sleeping Beauty, Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Swan Lake. A case of tendonitis and labral tears in her hips at the age of 15 forced Goldani Telles to stop practicing ballet for a year; to avoid depression, she decided to take a drama course.
Career Goldani Telles studied at Columbia University, but graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in English in 2026. Her first television role came in 2011 when she successfully auditioned for the part of Sasha Torres in ABC Family's Bunheads. She did so, having never had an acting job before and without head-shots or a résumé. Her agent felt Bunheads should have been one of her first auditions as he felt she would be comfortable with the dancing aspect of the show. The pilot episode was filmed in November 2011. Bunheads was picked up to series and ran for eighteen episodes from June 11, 2012, to February 25, 2013.
As well as Bunheads, Goldani Telles also appeared in the Nat & Alex Wolff music video for the song "Greatest Prize" in early 2012.
She also guest starred on the Blue Bloods episode "The Bogeyman" which aired January 10, 2014.
Goldani Telles played the role of oldest daughter Whitney on the Showtime drama series The Affair.
In May, 2021, Goldani Telles starred as Iris in the third season of the Starz series The Girlfriend Experience.
Filmography + Television and film roles Year Title Role Notes2012–2013 Bunheads Sasha Torres Main role 2014 Blue Bloods Morgan Episode: "The Bogeyman" Amelia Strong Episode: "Hungry Like the Wolf" Nurse Jackie Mandy 3 episodes2014–2019 Whitney Solloway Main role2016 Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life Sandee Martin Episode: "Spring" 2018 Most Likely to Murder Tami Douscher FilmSlender Man Hallie Knudsen Emma Harper2020 Looks That Kill Alex 2020 Helpsters Ballerina Betsy Episode: "Ballerina Betsy/Pizza Pasquale" 2021 Julia Adams Film Iris Stanton Main role (season 3)2022Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Kelsey Jones Episode: Mirror Effect2023 Accused Alice Baylor Episode: "Samir's Story"
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