Deanne Bray (born May 14, 1971) is a 52-year-old American actress who was born deaf and is the wife of Troy Kotsur, an equally deaf actor. As an actress, she made her name as Sue Thomas in the show, Sue Thomas: F.B. Eye.
Troy Kotsur is an American actor in theater, film, and television. His performance in the 2021 film CODA earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 2022. The actor has been married to Bray for over two decades now, and his recent accolade refocused attention on other members of his family like his wife. Here’s what we know about her.
Summary of Deanne Bray’s Bio
- Full name: Deanne Bray
- Gender: Female
- Date of birth: May 14, 1971
- Place of birth: Canoga Park, Los Angeles, California, United States
- Deanne Bray’s Age: 52 years old
- Ethnicity: Caucasian
- Nationality: American
- Zodiac Sign: Taurus
- Sexual Orientation: Straight
- Religion: Christianity
- Marital Status: Married
- Deanne Bray’s Husband: Troy Michael Kotsur
- Deanne Bray’s Children: 1 – Kyra Monique Kotsur
- Deanne Bray’s Height in Inches: 5 feet 7 inches
- Deanne Bray’s Height in Centimeters: 170 cm
- Deanne Bray’s Weight: 58 kg (128 lbs)
- Body measurements in inches: 25-36-32
- Body measurements centimeters: 64-91-81
- Eye color: Brown
- Hair color: Blonde
- Education: Washington State School for the deaf, California State University, Northridge [Bsc. Biology], Gallaudet University [Msc. Sign Language Education (linguistics)]
- Profession: Actress
- Deanne Bray’s Net worth: Est. $1.5 million
- Famous for: Being an actress and Troy Kotsur’s wife
- Deanne Bray’s Instagram: @deannebraykotsur
- Twitter: @DeanneBray
- Facebook:Â Deanne Bray
Deanne Bray Was Born In The Early 1970s
Deanne Bray was born on May 14, 1971, in Canoga Park, Los Angeles, California, United States, and is currently 52 years old. Her birth sign is Taurus, and she belongs to the Caucasian ethnic group.
Bray has been ever present in Hollywood since she made her bow in 1995 but she has been reluctant with regard to dishing out information about members of her birth family including her parents and any siblings she might have grown up with.
Material from several sources close to the actress indicates that her parents divorced when she was young, and after spending a few years with her mother who moved to Seattle after the divorce, she predominantly grew up with her father in California.
She Was Born Deaf
Although she is most notably known as a deaf actress, many people do not know that Deanne Bray was born deaf. Thankfully her parents stood by her and ensured she got all the support she needed including becoming proficient in the English Language as well as learning American Sign Language (ASL). They also sent her to several institutions where she strengthened her abilities in the aforementioned areas.
While living with her mother in Seattle, Bray attended the Washington State School for the deaf for her last year of middle school. Afterward, in her high school years, she gained admission to attend California State University, Northridge where she bagged a bachelor’s degree in Biology.
From 2012 to 2013, she enrolled at Gallaudet University to earn a master’s degree in Sign Language Education (Linguistics).
Deanne Bray is Married to Oscar-Winning Actor, Troy Kotsur
Deanne Bray is also married to a deaf actor named Troy Kotsur. Born Troy Michael Kotsur on July 24, 1968, in Mesa, Arizona, United States, Deanne’s husband is a member of the Screen Actors Guild of America, and is best known for being the actor who played the role of the character Frank Rossi in the 2021 coming-of-age-comedy drama film, CODA.
His performances in the movie placed him in the perfect position to snag several accolades including an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, a British Academy Film Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Critics’ Choice Movie Award. In the process, he became the first deaf actor in history to pick up the three aforementioned awards.
Deanne recounted the story of how she met her husband during an interview with verywellhealth.com. According to the actress, she met the man who would become her husband for the first time in 1993, in Connecticut when she went to visit a friend at the National Theatre of the Deaf.
Her husband was part of the theatre company for around two years before moving to Los Angeles, California, Deanne’s base, in 1994. They reconnected and worked together on a couple of projects. However, their relationship at the time was restricted to being just colleagues and friends because of her reluctance to get emotionally involved with someone she worked with.
They eventually transcended the challenges and misgivings Deanne had about becoming romantically involved with a co-worker in 1997, and four years later, in 2021, they exchanged marital vows in front of their friends and family members.
They Remain Together to Date and have a Daughter
Deanne Bray and Troy Kotsur are still married to each other and have been for over two decades. From all indications, they have a successful marriage. Whatever challenges they have faced as a married couple have been handled expertly away from the view of the public and the media.
In public, they have presented the picture of a perfect couple, and a clear example of that was manifested in Troy’s acceptance speech for his awards where he extolled the virtues of the actress he married, and thanked her for always supporting him.
In addition to other blessings they have received in their marriage, Deanne and her husband have been blessed with a child, a daughter who they named Kyra Monique Kotsur. Kyra was born on September 8, 2005, and is currently 18 years old. Not much is known about the celebrity child including whether she is deaf like her parents.
Deanne Bray is an Actress
Deanne Bray has been active in the entertainment industry as a stage and theatre actress since the early 1990s. However, she got her big break in the industry in 1995 after she was discovered performing with a deaf dancing group known as Prism West during a Deaf festival held at California State University, Northridge while she was a student there.
She then made her on-screen debut as Teddy Franklin in the 1995 TV film Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct: Lightning. Since then she has appeared in several other movies and TV series productions including Last Mountain (2005), Universal Signs (2008), Strong Medicine (2001), Veep (2017), and several others.
Deanne Bray is, however, perhaps best known for her role as Sue Thomas in the Canadian/American crime drama television series Sue Thomas: F.B. Eye. The veteran actress was the lead character and starred in all 56 episodes of the series which premiered in 2002 and wrapped in May 2005.
Financially, Bray has done well for herself, and her hard work in the industry has ensured that she has amassed a net worth reportedly estimated to be around $1.5 million.
