Many fans who watched (or re-watched) the Disney 'Descendants' films recognized China Anne McClain from various other Disney Channel projects. Starting in 'Descendants 2,' China Anne portrayed Uma, an evil villain turned good girl (well, in the third installment) who can also turn into a giant octopus AKA Kraken, thanks to her evil mama Ursula.
Anyway, the final film in the franchise came out in 2019, and it doesn't sound like Disney plans to revisit the storyline at this point. But like other Disney stars, China Anne McClain is far from a one-hit-wonder.
She was a great villain-turned-hero in 'Descendants,' but China Anne already had a long list of Disney appearances on her acting resume, too. Namely, she headlined a show called 'A.N.T. Farm' for three years — and the show also showcased her singing chops.
After that, China Anne had a ton of roles, cameos and guest spots, on Disney hits like 'Doc McStuffins,' 'K.C. Undercover,' and more. Then came her role as Uma, working with Dove Cameron and a ton of other Disney A-listers.
So what's next for the rising star?
Though China Anne has been acting since she was seven, her first love appears to be music. In fact, since 2005, she's been singing in a girl group with her two sisters, Sierra and Lauryn. The girls — now rebranded as Thriii — have opened for 2000s boy band hit Big Time Rush, performed at Disney parks, on 'A.N.T. Farm,' and more.
But it was in 2020 that the three McClain sisters changed their name on YouTube and released a new song called "My Sanity." Of course, they've also been super busy on TikTok, where China Anne posts tons of hilarious videos, most of them featuring her acting talents but sometimes also featuring her sisters.
She's garnered over 4 million fans on the platform so far, not to mention almost 7 million followers on Instagram, making her one of the most-followed Disney stars out there.
The actress turned 22 this year, but she's still close with her siblings and appears to live with them, too.
As far as her other acting projects, the pandemic has probably sidelined a few things, but China Anne is still listed as having a main role on 'Tyler Perry's House of Payne' (since 2007), which recently rebooted, and she was in Adam Sandler's pet project of 2020, 'Hubie Halloween.'
And, China's been on 'Black Lightning' — playing a DC superhero — since 2018. The series appears slated to end in 2021, but China posts plenty of behind-the-scenes pics (no spoilers, though) on her Instagram for fans to enjoy.
While she's also spoken out about some causes dear to her heart — like the film industry's apparent disinterest in respecting folks' religious beliefs and tragedies like the loss of Chadwick Boseman — China is also happy to provide tons of entertaining content for her followers.
Who knows where she's going next!