Miranda Cosgrove facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Miranda Cosgrove
Cosgrove in 2022
Born	Miranda Taylor Cosgrove (1993-05-14) May 14, 1993 (age 32) Long Beach, California, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Southern California (BA)
Occupation	Actress singer producer
Years active	1996–present
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Genres	Pop
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Columbia Nick

Signature

Miranda Taylor Cosgrove (born May 14, 1993) is an American actress, singer, and producer. She became a popular teen star in the 2000s and early 2010s. In 2012, she was named the highest-paid child actor by Guinness World Records. She also appeared on Forbes' "30 Under 30" list in 2022. Miranda has won four Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and was nominated for an Emmy.

Miranda started her career at age seven, appearing in TV commercials. Her first movie role was Summer Hathaway in School of Rock (2003). She became widely known as Megan Parker on the Nickelodeon show Drake & Josh (2004–2007). She then became a huge star playing Carly Shay on the Nickelodeon sitcom iCarly (2007–2012).

In 2008, Miranda began her music career with the soundtrack for iCarly. She sang four songs, including the show's theme song, "Leave It All To Me". In 2009, she released her first extended play (EP), About You Now. The next year, she released her first studio album, Sparks Fly. This album reached number eight on the Billboard 200 chart. Its main song, "Kissin U", was certified gold.

Since 2010, Miranda has voiced the character Margo in the Despicable Me movie series. She released her second EP, High Maintenance (2011), and went on the Dancing Crazy Tour. She also starred in independent films like The Intruders (2015) and 3022 (2019). Since 2019, she has hosted the CBS show Mission Unstoppable with Miranda Cosgrove. From 2021 to 2023, she returned as Carly Shay in the iCarly Paramount+ revival series, where she was also an executive producer. In 2024, she starred in the films Drugstore June and Mother of the Bride.

Early Life and Beginnings
Career Highlights
Personal Life and Interests
Awards and Recognition
Images for kids
See also

Early Life and Beginnings

Miranda Cosgrove was born on May 14, 1993, in Long Beach, California. Her father, Tom Cosgrove, owned a dry-cleaning business, and her mother, Chris, was a homemaker. Miranda is an only child. She was homeschooled starting from sixth grade. Before becoming an actress, she dreamed of being a veterinarian.

When she was three years old, a talent agent discovered her. She was singing and dancing at a restaurant in Los Angeles. Miranda has said she "never really thought of being an actress" before that day. After being discovered, she appeared in many TV commercials for companies like McDonald's. She also modeled for different brands. At age seven, she began trying out for roles in theater and television.

Career Highlights

Starting Out in the 2000s

Miranda's first TV appearance was in 2001. She voiced a young character in the show Smallville. Her first movie role was in School of Rock (2003), directed by Richard Linklater. In the movie, she played Summer Hathaway. Summer was a very smart and organized girl who learned to be more free-spirited from her new music teacher, played by Jack Black. Miranda said working with Jack Black was great because "He just acts [as] the most normal, nice guy." School of Rock was a big success, earning over $130 million worldwide.

In 2004, Miranda got her first big TV role in the Nickelodeon series Drake & Josh. She played Megan Parker, the mischievous younger sister of Drake and Josh. In 2005, she voiced a character named Munch in the film Here Comes Peter Cottontail: The Movie. She also guest-starred in two episodes of Lilo & Stitch: The Series. Miranda then appeared with her Drake & Josh co-star Drake Bell in the movie Yours, Mine & Ours. Her third movie, Keeping Up with the Steins, came out in 2006.

Cosgrove, around 2009, on the set of iCarly

Miranda also made guest appearances on other Nickelodeon shows. She was on Zoey 101 and Unfabulous. Then, she was cast as the main character in the sitcom iCarly, which started on September 8, 2007. The show's creator, Dan Schneider, designed iCarly around how much young people loved the internet. Viewers could send in their own videos to be part of the show. By summer 2008, iCarly was one of the most popular shows for kids aged 9–14.

Miranda's music career began with the iCarly theme song "Leave It All to Me". This song featured Drake Bell and was released in December 2007. In June 2008, Columbia Records released the iCarly soundtrack. It included four songs sung by Miranda and reached number one on the Billboard Kid Albums chart. In January 2009, Miranda released "About You Now" as the main song from her EP of the same name. This song reached number 47 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Success in the 2010s

Cosgrove at the 2010 MuchMusic Video Awards

In 2010, Miranda voiced Margo in the Universal Studios animated movie Despicable Me. This movie was released in July 2010. For her first studio album, Sparks Fly, Miranda worked with famous songwriters. "Kissin U" was the only song released from Sparks Fly. It became Miranda's best-selling song, reaching number 54 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning a gold certification. Sparks Fly was released in April 2010 and reached number 8 on the US Billboard 200 chart. In March 2011, Miranda released her next EP, High Maintenance. It included the song "Dancing Crazy", which was written by Avril Lavigne.

On January 24, 2011, she started the Dancing Crazy Tour. The tour traveled across the United States. In July 2011, the tour continued as the Dancing Crazy Summer Tour. Miranda performed at music festivals and state fairs. On May 17, 2012, it was announced that iCarly would end after its sixth season. The final episode, "iGoodbye", aired on November 23, 2012. After filming the iCarly finale in June 2012, Miranda went on another tour called the Summer Tour.

Cosgrove in June 2013

In 2013, Miranda voiced Margo again in Despicable Me 2. She also appeared in animated short films like Training Wheels. In 2014, Miranda did voice work for the animated film A Mouse Tale. She also starred in the horror film The Intruders. In 2016, she was cast in the NBC sitcom Crowded.

In 2017, Miranda returned as Margo in Despicable Me 3. In 2019, she appeared in the science fiction film 3022. Since 2019, she has hosted Mission Unstoppable with Miranda Cosgrove. This show airs on CBS and earned her a Daytime Emmy Award nomination in 2020.

Recent Work in the 2020s

Cosgrove in June 2021

In 2021, Miranda played Rachel in the independent film North Hollywood. She also returned as Carly Shay in the iCarly revival series. This show premiered on Paramount+ in June 2021 and ran for three seasons until July 2023. Miranda was also an executive producer for the series. She said that as an executive producer, she got to "have a say in everything." The first season of the revival received a perfect rating on Rotten Tomatoes. She won the award for Favorite Female TV Star at the 2022 Kids' Choice Awards. In 2022, Miranda told Yahoo! Lifestyle that she does not plan to return to making music.

Miranda had a starring role in the comedy film Drugstore June, which was released in February 2024. She then starred in the Netflix film Mother of the Bride alongside Brooke Shields. This movie was released in May 2024. Miranda said that "all the people in this movie were so nice." Critics praised her performance in the film. Miranda also reprised her role as Margo in Despicable Me 4, which was released in July 2024.

Personal Life and Interests

Miranda Cosgrove graduated from the University of Southern California. She earned a degree in psychology. She is a strong supporter of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. She also visits other children's hospitals. Miranda considers Education Through Music one of her favorite charities. She is a national spokesperson for Light the Night Walk. This organization helps raise awareness for blood cancer.

Awards and Recognition

Miranda Cosgrove has won several awards for her acting and public image. She has won two Young Artist Awards and three Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. She was also nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award.