What we know about Isabel May’s parents and her dating life

Isabel May became an overnight sensation following her starring appearance as Katie Cooper in Alexa & Katie. Many struggle to believe that the immensely talented actor auditioned for three years without securing a role. When she booked Katie’s part, May had no acting experience, but she embodied the role like a seasoned pro.

May’s character in Young Sheldon, Veronica Duncan, had an interesting character arc: She was a rebellious teen who reformed after accepting religion, leaving her love interest, Georgie, in limbo. 

Isabel will turn 21 in November 2021 and looks set to star on our screens for a long time to come. Let’s take a look at her personal life. 

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Isabel May was born on 21st November 2000 in Santa Monica, California. 

May described herself as a reserved child that preferred reading books indoors rather than socializing. In sixth grade, a teacher suggested to her parents that she pursue theatre to exercise her creative talents. Isabel told Terroir Magazine:

“I was an avid reader, at a young age, completely engrossed in fictional worlds. I love to write, as most actors do, they find other ways to express themselves, and my English teacher pulled my parents to the side in sixth grade, and said you gotta get her doing something else, cos she has to express this in some way.”

With her parents’ endorsement, Isabel involved herself in theatre. She demonstrated a knack for performance but still dedicated most of her time to schoolwork. 

May agreed with her parents that education would take priority over acting until she got to ninth grade. She continued:

“We kind of made a pact that I had to wait until ninth grade to really commit to something like this. After ninth grade, I started online schooling, and six months later I got Alexa and Katie. So that was very convenient. I was really happy about that, as were my parents.”

Isabel probably experienced three years of rejection because she wasn’t fully committed to acting. At the time, the rejections hurt, but she currently views them as stepping stones towards acting success. May said that a piece of advice from her mom helped her deal with the refusals:

“I can say that rejection isn’t a bad thing. Looking back on the many things I was rejected on, I’m so glad it was a rejection. It made me a better actor. Everything’s meant to be, My mom and I have always said that. So just follow your own path.”

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May’s secrecy has ensured that the rumors surrounding her love life have remained just that: rumors. 

Isabel was linked to her love interest in Alexa and Katie, Barrett Carnahan. However, the rumors turned out to be false: Barrett is married to his long-term partner Nina Kubicki. 

Fans have turned to social media for clues about Isabel’s love life and have found nothing helpful. In 2018, Isabel shared a photo of a monkey hanging on her head. “Relationship status: taken,” she captioned the post. 

The goofy post suggested that the monkey had stolen her heart rather than a human love interest. 

May is, at best, a sporadic social media user. At the time of writing, there are five posts on her Instagram page, with the last one appearing in September 2020. It’s common for Isabel to take extended breaks without updating her social media pages. 

“I’m not much of a social media person,” Isabel told KTLA 5. “I’m frightened of it, so I’ll sneak in, check stuff out, and then disappear for a while.”

Isabel enjoys acting as much as she loves reading a good book at home. She talked to Bello magazine about her private life:

“I have such an amazing family and a pretty private life (plus I’m so new to all of this). I’m a homebody, what can I say? Getting to work in this industry and then race back home to a good book is my cloud nine.”

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