‘Ugly Betty’ Cast: Where Are They Now?

Netflix recently added all six seasons of Ugly Betty to its library, meaning you can rewatch the high-fashion workplace comedy on binge mode. 

America Ferrera stars as Betty, a braces-wearing 22-year-old who’s thrust into the glamorous and cutthroat world of fashion media as an assistant at a glossy fashion magazine, despite her complete lack of social skills or sense of style. The ABC series was based on a Colombian telenovela and broke ground for representation, with Ferrera becoming the first Latina to win an Emmy in lead actress category. Ugly Betty was also ahead of its time with its LGBTQ and trans storylines, and won a GLAAD Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2007. 

The lovable series ran from 2006-2010, and the stars have all moved on to other projects. Here’s what the Ugly Betty cast is up to now.

America Ferrera as Betty Suarez

The role of Betty was perfectly cast, with America Ferrera embracing the character’s endearing awkwardness (not to mention rocking a Guadalajara poncho). Critics agreed, and Ferrera won multiple awards for the role, including an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. Ugly Betty helped solidify Ferrera’s place in Hollywood. Since the show ended, she starred in another acclaimed, long-running comedy series, NBC’s Superstore, and moved into producing with Netflix's Gentefied. She voiced Astrid on How to Train Your Dragon and its many spinoffs. And, of course, she delivered an instantly iconic monologue in Barbie. Her upcoming projects include Dumb Money, which comes out in 2023, and a voice role in Pixar's Elio.

Eric Mabius as Daniel Meade

Since playing the reformed playboy and editor-in-chief of MODE magazine, Mabius found his rhythm with Hallmark movies, playing Oliver O’Toole on the network’s Signed, Sealed, Delivered film series, It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, and Haul Out the Holly. Mabius also had a seven-episode stint on Chicago Fire.

Vanessa Williams as Wilhelmina Slater

Williams played a convincing TV villain on Ugly Betty, but that was far from her breakout role. In 1984, Williams found fame as the first Black woman to be crowned Miss America and went on to have a successful singing and acting career. After Ugly Betty, Williams landed gigs on Desperate Housewives, Daytime Divas, and the short-lived 666 Park Avenue. Recently, she’s been featured in Girls5Eva and voiced a character on the animated series T.O.T.S (Tiny Ones Transport Service).

Michael Urie as Marc St. James

Everyone could use a right-hand man like Marc St. James, but Urie didn’t stay an assistant forever. He had a recurring role in TV Land’s Younger, and starred in Netflix’s holiday rom-com Single All the Way, as well as Shrinking on Apple TV+. Urie also has a role in the upcoming Bradley Cooper film Maestro.

Ana Ortiz as Hilda Suarez

Although Betty and her sister Hilda (played by Ortiz) clashed sometimes, Hilda was a loyal and family-oriented, albeit sassy sister. Ortiz had a part in Labor Pains with Lindsay Lohan while she was still filming Ugly Betty, and has since accumulated a ton of other acting credits on shows like Devious Maids, Whiskey Cavalier, #FreeRayshawn, and Love, Victor. She also reunited with her Ugly Betty castmate Ferrera on Superstore.

Mark Indelicato as Justin Suarez

Indelicato’s career-defining role was that of Hilda’s son and Betty’s nephew, Justin. The series opened more doors for him, starring in HBO’s Hacks and as Jorge on Prime Video’s With Love.

Tony Plana as Ignacio Suarez

After playing Betty’s loving and supportive father for all four seasons, Plana has stayed busy with plenty of other TV roles on shows like The Fosters, Lethal Weapon, Madam Secretary, and The Good Fight. And like other members of the Ugly Betty cast, he also had a short role on Superstore.

Becki Newton as Amanda Tenan

Aside from playing the gossiping receptionist at MODE, Newton has scored recurring roles in How I Met Your Mother and Divorce. She can currently be seen in the role of charming legal assistant Lorna Crane in Netflix’s series The Lincoln Lawyer.

Judith Light as Claire Meade

Ugly Betty helped launch the careers of many actors, but Judith Light was already an icon when she joined the cast. Light had a thriving career before playing Daniel’s mother, including on Broadway and in shows like One Life to Live and Who's the Boss? More recently, she's starred in movies like Tick, Tick... Boom!, The Menu and Down Low and earned Emmy nominations for the shows Transparent and American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace.