Samira Denise Wiley was born on April 15, 1987, in Washington, D.C., to Christine and Dennis W. Wiley, who were co-pastors of the Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ.

She has two siblings, Aiyana Ma'at and Joshua Wiley. Raised in a religious and supportive family, she developed a passion for acting from a young age, deciding to pursue it in the third grade after being inspired by a school oratorical contest.

She attended the Duke Ellington School of the Arts and later graduated from the Juilliard School in 2010, where she trained in theater performance.

Her career began with a role in the comedy film "The Sitter" in 2011, but she gained widespread recognition for her role as Poussey Washington in the Netflix series "Orange Is the New Black," which aired from 2013 to 2019.

Her portrayal of the character earned her critical acclaim and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She also starred in the Hulu series "The Handmaid's Tale" as Moira, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series.

Her other notable film roles include "Nerve" (2016), "Detroit" (2017), and "Social Animals" (2018). In 2020, she narrated the Netflix documentary "Night on Earth."

In her personal life, Samira Wiley is married to Lauren Morelli, a writer for "Orange Is the New Black," whom she met on the set of the show. The couple got engaged in October 2016 and married in March 2017.

They have one child together. she has been open about her journey of self-discovery and the impact her roles have had on her personal life, particularly how playing Poussey Washington helped her embrace her identity and fall in love with herself.

She has received several awards, including the Human Rights Campaign's Visibility Award and being named "Ingenue of the Year" by Out magazine.