Dora Madison's career in television began just two weeks before she was set to attend college, when she landed a breakout role on NBC's Friday Night Lights. Her portrayal of Becky Sproles, an optimistic pageant girl from a broken home, earned praise from both critics and fans, and her tenure on the Emmy-nominated series opened doors for additional recurring arcs on Freeform's The Lying Game, CW's Starcrossed, and Showtime's Dexter.
After her time on Friday Night Lights, Dora returned to NBC as a guest star on Chicago PD, playing the role of Jelly Bean, a criminal informant. Her performance impressed showrunner Matt Olmstead, who cast her in his sister series Chicago Fire as a series regular, Jessica 'Chili' Chilton. Her performance as a seasoned and troubled paramedic, who struggled with alcohol addiction, gripped audiences and was written specifically with Dora in mind.
Dora then tried her hand at comedy, starring in Viceland's first scripted series What Would Diplo Do?. She played Karen, a sarcastic over-educated personal assistant opposite James Van Der Beek's hyper-realized version of Diplo.
In addition to her extensive television career, Dora has also appeared in numerous feature films, playing a diverse array of characters. She has had the privilege of collaborating with iconic filmmakers Terrence Malick and Richard Linklater, and has made a name for herself in the horror genre, appearing in films such as Exits, Into the Dark, Bliss, VFW, Christmas Bloody Christmas, and Alone With You. The physical demands of the horror and action film genres excite Dora and have inspired her love of performing stunt and fight choreography.
Dora took a brief hiatus from acting when her daughter was born, but has recently returned to the big screen in the coming-of-age queer comedy Big Boys, which has already snagged 10 audience awards from the 2023 festival season.
