Stunning Transformation Of Madelaine Petsch

Most pop culture lovers know Madelaine Petsch as the fiery teenager with fire-red hair Cheryl Blossom in the hit series, "Riverdale," per IMDb. However, within recent years, fans have gotten to know the adorable actress behind the iconic character, and they can't get enough. 

Born August 18, 1994, Petsch knew she wanted to be an actor. By 10, she had trained in dance and acting (via The Famous People). However, she didn't officially get into the acting world at around 19 years old, and within a few years, she became one of teen Hollywood's It Girls (via Panda Gossips). With less than 20 credits total in 2021, she's only getting started with "Riverdale" and "F*** the Prom." And fans are itching to see what else she has up her sleeves. From hippie beginnings to experimenting on YouTube, Petsch has had a super interesting life already. Here's where the red-headed beauty got her start.

Born in Port Orchard, Washington, Madelaine Grobbelaar Petsch comes from an interesting family. Her parents, Timothy S. Petsch and Michele Pestch, are South African citizens who'd bounce back and forth between there and the U.S. with Madelaine and her brother (via The Famous People). Her family also had a bunch of animals, with six cats and two dogs. Petsch told Cosmopolitan that her parents are "hippie-dippies."

Her parents were determined to pass on their values, and Petsch reports that by three years old, her father had taught her about the right and wrong plastics to look out for. She said in an interview that she loved her childhood, telling Elle,"I was lucky to grow up with two incredibly environmentally-aware parents, who ingrained these thoughts in me."

Petsch got into acting as soon as she could. At only three years old, she started dance courses, with theater classes following a year later.

While her home life was amazing, her school life was another story. Most people deal with bullies in school, and Madelaine was no exception sadly. During her time in school, she was bullied heavily for her red hair and South African accent. In an interview with Style Caster, she said, "I was the only person who was from somewhere else, so I think they just didn't understand it," she said. "They said I was a weirdo or that I didn't belong there. That was the hardest one when people said I didn't belong there." 

For a time, she would hide her hair in a ponytail and mask her accent as soon as she could. She even considered dying parts of her hair, but her mom would not hear it. In the same interview with Style Caster, Pestch recalled, "My mom was like, 'If you do that, I'm disowning you.'" While she never quite got the accent back, her hair is what helped her separate herself in acting auditions. 

Madelaine got her acting start in 2014, when she would guest star in several different shows as well as the small movie, "The Curse of Sleeping Beauty." However, her big break happened a few years later in 2017, the year she was in the dramedy, "F*** the Prom." And as for TV, almost everyone knows her now from her iconic, sassy role of Cheryl Blossom in the hit series, "Riverdale" (via IMDb). Fans fell in love with her portrayal of the comic character, and soon her character became a bisexual icon (via MSN). As of 2021, she's currently working on two more productions to come out in the next couple of years, plus a few more seasons of "Riverdale" on the way. Of course, success didn't arrive without hard work; Petsch recalls going on almost 250 auditions before getting her big break (via The Famous People).

As for her personal life, she was in a three year relationship with rapper, T. Mills (via Vogue). They frequently shared their relationship on social media. However, in 2020, millions of fans heart broke when news came that the couple split. 

Today, Madelaine has been busier than ever, to say the least. Along with having a packed schedule with acting, she created her own YouTube channel in 2017. Within four years, she's accumulated nearly seven million subscribers and has had over 250 billion combined views. She created the channel to be able to get closer to her fans and within the platform she creates ASMR videos, GRWM (Get Ready With Me) vids, and collaborations with her "Riverdale" co-stars (via YouTube). 

Since she's such an avid animal lover and vegan, she's collaborated with PETA on campaigns (via YouTube). As stated before, she's currently signed on to act in two projects, a short called "Nightwalkers" and a western called "The Express" alongside C. Thomas Howell and Harry Treadaway (via IMDb). Along with that, she's set to produce a horror called "Clare at 16" (via Deadline). At only 26, she's just getting started with taking over the industry.