Sarah Bock, currently playing Miss Huang in Severance, stars in the hit Apple TV+ show at only 18 years old —and this is not the only thing on her acting resume.
Born on Aug. 15, 2006, Bock is from Raleigh, North Carolina. Severance is Bock's second live-action, filmed project (the first being Hulu's Bruiser), though she has several other credits to her name.
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Sarah Bock Biography Details - Filmography, Education & More
Sarah Bock Has Been Acting From a Young Age
Speaking with Teen Vogue, Severance's Sarah Bock (Miss Huang) talked about how acting has been a part of her life since she was 5 years old.
At age 15, she auditioned for Severance and shared that she "still remember[s] memorizing [her Severance] lines in chorus class," as well as all the late nights, early dismissals, and long hours:
"I still remember memorizing my lines in chorus class [in preparation for Miss Huang] ... A lot of people knew me as the person who would leave school early. I would stay up until midnight for rehearsals and wake up at six for school."
Sarah Got Her Acting Start Performing on Stage
In an interview with Beltline to Broadway, Bock discussed her first professional gig—North Carolina Theatre's 2019 production of Annie.
She talked about how helpful the adults (and the other kids, particularly since "most of them" had been in other productions with the company) in the cast were, and how much it taught her about "what we’re gonna face when we grow up:"
"Well, I had never done anything like that so I was pretty much clueless going in, and the other kids really helped me because I think most of them had done shows at North Carolina Theatre, so they kind of like guided me through everything. But I think the adults also were so kind because they took time out of their breaks to, like, mentor all of the kids and, like, teach us professionalism and teach us, like, how to act during rehearsals but also teach us about the industry and what we’re gonna face when we grow up."
Bock remembers the two weeks they had "to put the show together." She talked about how it taught her a lot about picking things up quickly, before calling this "probably one of the best experiences of [her] life:"
"Throughout the rehearsal process I learned how to, like, take directions and learn dances quickly and… Because we I think we only had, like, two weeks to put the show together which is not very long so I learned how to work pretty quickly with that, and by the time opening night came around it was just probably one of the best experiences of my life because I’ve never done anything like that before, and that was really, really cool."
This was a sentiment she echoed on her Instagram in a post at the end of the show's run. Her Instagram account also features posts for shows like Dracula, Snow White, and Matilda, among others.
Sarah Voiced the Original Baby Shark
While she had only been in one other live-action filmed project before Severance, Bock had a very notable role in animation: she voiced the original Baby Shark in the "Baby Shark" song.
She explained to Beltline to Broadway that the opportunity came through her agents, and was "something [she] never thought [she'd] ever do," even saying she did not know it was something "that was possible:"
"That’s definitely something I never thought I’d ever do. I didn’t even know that like that was possible so basically my agency KU Talent sent it to me Terri and Julie which are the nicest people in the world and I sent him like audio auditions of me singing the Pinkfong songs and I heard back a couple weeks later."
She went in and recorded several songs, being "coach[ed] through" them by the Pinkfong team in South Korea via Skype:
"They asked me to come do a recording session with them, so I went in and I think I sang about 10 songs ... How it works basically is you Skype with the people in South Korea who run Pinkfong and they coach you through it. They coach you through the acting, and, like, if you aren’t getting rhythm or a note right they help you through that, and you just basically go into the recording booth and record the songs. You do it all the way through once and then you break it into little sections so that it doesn’t sound run-down by the end of the song. And, most of the times in the song I'm singing multiple parts at the same time so I obviously record those more than once."
Bock shared that sometimes they would need to change lyrics after the songs were translated "from Korean to English" — something she found "interesting" about the process:
"They translate the words from Korean to English so it doesn't always translate the way we talk. so sometimes we have to like work with them too, and make it so it sounds right and it's easier to like say in your mouth so that's also a really interesting part of it."
She told Teen Vogue that this all happened when she was in middle school, adding that she "didn't mind" the time commitment "because [she] loved it:"
"I was lucky to have the opportunity [to act in several projects], so I didn’t mind [the long hours] because I loved it."
Sarah Is Attending Northwestern University
While working on Severance Season 2, Bock felt inspired to give college a try, telling Teen Vogue that "being the only kid on set" helped to offer her "a different appreciation for regular high school:"
"Being the only kid on set could be isolating, but it gave me a different appreciation for regular high school. It made me want to go to college."
So, she is currently studying drama at Northwestern University, with a second major in psychology too.
Where To Follow Sarah Bock on Social Media
Fans can follow Sarah Bock on Instagram @sarah_bock.
Severance Season 2, continues with new episodes every Friday on Apple TV+.
Gillian Blum has been a writer at The Direct since 2022, reporting primarily from New York City. Though she covers news from across the entertainment industry, Gillian has a particular focus on Marvel and DC, including comics, movies, and television shows. She also commonly reports on Percy Jackson, Invincible, and other similar franchises.
